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Record of Proceedings

Joint Workshop: City Commission & AHAC on Affordable Housing Incentives – June 30, 2025

City Commission — Monday, June 30, 2025
BodyFort Lauderdale, Florida
SessionCity Commission
DateMonday, June 30, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 31:09

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0:00

Everybody, we're gonna get started.

0:02

Um, the mayor is on his way, um, and so is Commissioner Herb.

0:07

So uh Commissioner Sarncy, can you hear us?

0:10

Good afternoon.

0:11

Yes, I can.

0:11

Can you hear me?

0:12

Good afternoon.

0:13

Just so you know, at your chair, we have a little monitor, and there's your face.

0:16

And oh, wonderful.

0:20

Unbelievable technology.

0:23

Thank you.

0:23

All right, welcome.

0:24

So um, we'll have the roll call for the commission, and then I'll let Susan do the roll call for her board.

0:32

Vice Mayor Herbst, not present, Commissioner Glassman.

0:35

Here, Commissioner Beasley Pittman?

0:38

Here, Commissioner Sorensen.

0:40

Here.

0:40

And Mayor Transalis, not present.

0:43

Okay, thank you.

0:44

Well, we have a quorum, and Susan, can you call role for the board?

0:48

Uh Gyro.

0:53

Um, Commissioner Hamily Beasy Beasley Pittman here.

0:58

Uh, William Condon is absent.

1:01

Willie McKay is absent.

1:05

Roderick Newkirk, not here.

1:07

Arminda Fort Figueroa, not here.

1:10

Rich.

1:11

Did you all know here?

1:13

Thank you.

1:14

Um, Amanda Wilson.

1:16

And Agustina Squire.

1:18

Here.

1:19

We do have a quorum.

1:20

Excellent.

1:21

Thank you.

1:22

So thank you very much to the committee and Susan for your work as chair.

1:26

Uh, we'll turn it over to you now.

1:28

Thank you.

1:45

Good afternoon, Commissioners, members of the AHAC, city leadership, and members of the public.

1:50

My name is Rachel Williams, and I'll be doing a quick overview of a slide presentation.

1:55

I won't be reading directly from the slide.

1:58

I'll be summarizing the information to facilitate the discussion that will follow.

2:16

Okay.

2:18

As I said again, for the record, my name is Rachel Williams, Housing and Community Development Manager.

2:24

Excuse me, Richard, I'm sorry.

2:26

Do we have the display on our monitors on the floor, please?

2:29

Thank you, Commissioner.

2:30

I was just gonna mention we we can't see that in front of us.

2:33

Thank you.

2:34

We got it.

2:34

Thank you.

2:35

Thank you.

2:38

Okay.

2:39

As you're aware, state law requires us to annually review and adopt affordable housing incentives.

2:46

Today's workshop covers two affordable housing incentives recommended by the AHAC in the 2024 in incentives report.

2:56

The first um incentive is the use of accessory dwelling units.

3:01

The second incentive to be discussed is establishing a measurable affordable housing goal for the next three years.

3:10

The focus of this workshop is to discuss how these strategies will directly address the Fort Lauderdale's affordable housing needs.

3:27

The cities already the city already has in place and identify concrete next steps for each each strategy.

3:41

As part of the 2024 Affordable Housing Incentives, the AHAC identified the development of ADUs, accessory dwelling units, as a key strategy to expand affordable housing options.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Affordable Housing█████████████████████████████████████████████57%
Accessory Dwelling Units████████████████████████30%
Procedural████5%
Public Engagement████5%
Technology and Innovation██3%
Summary of Proceedings

City Commission and Affordable Housing Advisory Committee Joint Workshop – June 30, 2025

The Fort Lauderdale City Commission held a joint workshop with the Affordable Housing Advisory Committee (AHAC) on June 30, 2025, to discuss two key affordable housing incentives recommended in the 2024 Incentives Report: Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) and establishing measurable affordable housing goals. The workshop aimed to identify concrete next steps for implementation, focusing on expanding ADU production and creating a centralized tracking system for affordable housing units. Commissioners expressed unanimous support for the recommendations and directed staff to work with AHAC to implement the proposed strategies.

Discussion Items

  • Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs): Rachel Williams, Housing and Community Development Manager, presented an ADU Action Plan developed through a statewide work group. Key barriers identified were lack of awareness and cost, not zoning restrictions – ADUs are currently allowed in 8 of 12 residential districts, with 798 existing units on 5,100 eligible parcels. The action plan includes four strategies: education campaign, simplified process via pre-approved plans (potentially procured through an RFP), deed restrictions when public funds are used, and a tracking system. AHAC chair Susan Sprague requested the Commission accept the action plan and direct staff to implement with AHAC.
  • Expanding ADU Eligibility: Commissioner Beasley-Pittman and Commissioner Glassman supported reviewing the four districts where ADUs are not allowed (RS 4.4 and three annexed area districts) to potentially add them. Assistant City Manager Chris Cooper indicated the annexed areas would require a zoning process, and staff will analyze feasibility.
  • Grant Funding for ADUs: Commissioner Glassman inquired about creating a grant fund. Cooper identified sources: entitlement grant funds, state housing funds, and the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund. Amendments to the consolidated plan and LHAP would be needed, estimated at 45–60 days for approval. Grants would require affordability restrictions and could prohibit short-term rentals.
  • Educational Component: Staff will develop educational materials through the Housing and Community Development Division and Strategic Communications, targeting homeowners via website and civic associations.
  • Housing Types: Commissioner Beasley-Pittman requested staff also examine different ADU types (e.g., prefab, shipping containers) to reduce construction costs. Cooper confirmed prefab and container structures are possible if code-compliant, citing a recent prefab ADU in Commissioner Sorensen’s district.
  • Measurable Affordable Housing Goals: AHAC recommended setting yearly goals for new affordable housing units, tracking progress semiannually, and publicizing results. Williams noted that Broward County will launch a public scorecard in August. Cooper stated that over the last five years, approximately 30% of units in regional activity centers and corridors approved have been affordable. He suggested a percentage-based goal rather than a hard number, to be developed with AHAC. City Manager Williams added that auditing actual occupancy (income eligibility) is challenging but improvements are expected with the new ‘Neighborly’ compliance software, currently being implemented.
  • Aspirational Goals: Commissioner Sorensen requested research on how Fort Lauderdale stacks up against peer cities for workforce/affordable housing, to inform an aspirational goal that could be included in the Comprehensive Plan.

Key Outcomes

  • The Commission unanimously accepted the ADU Action Plan and directed staff to collaborate with AHAC on implementation, including exploration of expanding ADU zones to annexed areas, developing pre-approved plans via RFP, and establishing a grant program using available funding sources.
  • Staff was directed to recommend yearly affordable housing unit goals (likely percentage-based) and develop a centralized tracking and reporting system, leveraging the upcoming Neighborly software update.
  • Staff will gather peer city data to propose an aspirational housing goal for the Comprehensive Plan.
  • Next steps: Staff will return to the Commission with a proposal for ADU zoning amendments, a grant program framework, and concrete goal recommendations, working with AHAC on all items.

Meeting Transcript

Everybody, we're gonna get started. Um, the mayor is on his way, um, and so is Commissioner Herb. So uh Commissioner Sarncy, can you hear us? Good afternoon. Yes, I can. Can you hear me? Good afternoon. Just so you know, at your chair, we have a little monitor, and there's your face. And oh, wonderful. Unbelievable technology. Thank you. All right, welcome. So um, we'll have the roll call for the commission, and then I'll let Susan do the roll call for her board. Vice Mayor Herbst, not present, Commissioner Glassman. Here, Commissioner Beasley Pittman? Here, Commissioner Sorensen. Here. And Mayor Transalis, not present. Okay, thank you. Well, we have a quorum, and Susan, can you call role for the board? Uh Gyro. Um, Commissioner Hamily Beasy Beasley Pittman here. Uh, William Condon is absent. Willie McKay is absent. Roderick Newkirk, not here. Arminda Fort Figueroa, not here. Rich. Did you all know here? Thank you. Um, Amanda Wilson. And Agustina Squire. Here. We do have a quorum. Excellent. Thank you. So thank you very much to the committee and Susan for your work as chair. Uh, we'll turn it over to you now. Thank you. Good afternoon, Commissioners, members of the AHAC, city leadership, and members of the public. My name is Rachel Williams, and I'll be doing a quick overview of a slide presentation. I won't be reading directly from the slide. I'll be summarizing the information to facilitate the discussion that will follow. Okay. As I said again, for the record, my name is Rachel Williams, Housing and Community Development Manager. Excuse me, Richard, I'm sorry. Do we have the display on our monitors on the floor, please? Thank you, Commissioner. I was just gonna mention we we can't see that in front of us. Thank you. We got it.

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