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Home My WebLink About2026-05-11 26-160 OrdinanceCITY COUNCIL ACTION Council Meeting Date: Item No: 26-160 Responsible Dept: City Manager Action Requested: Ordinance Map/Lot: N/A Title, Ordinance Amending the Code of the City of Bangor to Create a Standing Committee on Housing Summary During City Council's annual priority setting session in December, City Council selected affordable housing as a top priority for the coming year. In subsequent discussions, Council coalesced around the creation of a standing committee to help advise Council on its approach to housing -related issues. This standing committee would include a mix of experts in affordable housing development, construction finance, representatives of construction and trade employees, and other housing experts. The Committee's mission is to consider and advise Council on issues impacting affordable housing including: better regional and structural coordination, identifying and quantifying gaps, recommending sustainable funding strategies, reviewing state legislative proposals, reviewing and providing feedback on housing -related items coming before Council and community stakeholder engagement. This item was reviewed and unanimously recommended for approval at the May 41" Government Operations Committee meeting. Committee Action Committee: Government Operations Action: Recommend for approval Staff Comments & Approvals Meeting Date: May 4, 2026 For: 5 Against: 0 City Manager City Solicitor Finance Director Introduced for: First Reading CITY COUNCIL ORDINANCE Date: February 9, 2026 Assigned to Councilor: Deane ORDINANCE, Amending the Code of the City of Bangor to Create an Advisory Committee on Housing BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BANGOR AS FOLLOWS, THAT The Code of the City of Bangor is amended as follows: Article VIII Advisory Committee on Housing § 23-53. Committee establishment; membership; and mission. A. There is hereby established the Advisory Committee on Housing. B. The Committee shall consist of nine regular voting members appointed by the City Council. All members shall be at -large members. The Council shall work to include members with a wide variety of perspectives and interests on the Committee, such as, but not limited to: (1) An affordable housing developer or representative from the construction sector. (2) An individual that is a landlord. (3) A real estate agent. (4) A Bangor employer with an interest in workforce housing_ (5) A commercial banker or municipal finance expert with housing bond and trust fund expertise. (6) A local service provider with experience serving individuals and families that are homeless, experience housing instability, or challenge to find affordable housing. (7) A local service provider with experience providing mental health treatment or support to the unhoused population in Bangor. (8) The Chief Executive of Bangor Housing, or designee. (9) Representatives of Penobscot County and/or surrounding municipalities. (10) Representatives of construction or trade employees. (11) Other experts in housing or associated areas that Council believes contributes to the work of the Committee. C. The City shall solicit interest in Committee membership through a public application and nomination process. Applicants will be interviewed and recommended for appointment by the Personnel Committee and appointed by the City Council. D. To ensure Board recommendations are operationally viable, staff from the following City departments shall be assigned to serve as permanent Ex-Officio (non -voting) technical advisors: (1) Public Health, (2) Community & Economic Development, (3) Public Safety. E. The Council Chair shall annually appoint a member of the City Council, as a non -voting member and a liaison between the Council and the Committee. This term shall expire on the first Monday in November following the regular City election, at which time the Chair for the ensuing year shall make a new appointment. Any liaison appointed mid-term shall only serve until the next such Monday in November. § 23-54. Residency; salaries and compensation. Regular members of the Committee shall be selected primarily on the basis of the guidelines outlined above, but preference may be given to appointing members who are residents of the City of Bangor. Committee members shall receive no compensation for their service. Fe 23-55. Terms of office. A. For initial appointment, Council shall appoint three representatives for a term of one year, three representatives for a term of two years, and three representatives for a term of three years. Thereafter, the term of each regular member shall be for three years or until their successor has been appointed. B. Any vacancy shall be filled in the same manner for the unexpired term. 15 23-56. Officers. The Committee shall annually elect a Chair, a Vice Chair, and a Secretary from amona its votina members. 15 23-57. Meetings; quarterly report; quorum. A. The Committee shall meet at least monthly, but more frequent meetings may occur. B. Beginning three months following the date of the first Committee meeting, and quarterly thereafter, the Committee shall prepare and submit to the City Council a report outlining its activities during the preceding_ calendar quarter that specifically addresses each prong of the Committee's mission outlined in § 23-XX, below. C. A quorum shall consist of a simple majority of the Committee's voting members. § 23-58. Mission. A. Consider and recommend ways to ensure better regional and structural coordination on housing which may include evaluating the policies and ordinances in surrounding municipalities and at the county - level, advocating for a fairer regional sharing of investments, and evaluating how the City can better align with state -level efforts. (1) Identify and quantify specific gaps in the local housing inventory for all housing types and recommend to Council specific policies and ordinances to help incentivize investment in needed housing types. (2) Recommend a sustainable municipal funding strategy for housing investment, which may include, but is not limited to, a housing bond or other methods of City participation in financing to incentivize the creation of affordable housing, researching and presenting creative and non-traditional funding_ mechanisms, and reviewing opportunities to leverage existing and future City investments to prioritize affordable housing. (3) Review state legislative proposals that impact housing and make recommendations to Council regarding legislative proposals that the City should consider supporting or opposing. The Committee may also make recommendations to Council regarding legislative proposals that the City should consider seeking sponsorship. (4) Review, consider, and provide feedback on all housing -related items that Council refers to the Committee for this purpose. (5) Proactively engage the City's diverse community stakeholders to incorporate broad community input into the recommendations made to Council Additions underlined, deletions strtfeak threuO IN CITY COUNCIL MAY 11, 2026 COrd 26-160 First Reading � �.� ,�..� � �� :,w�,�N � ��.� . � ��;�� ,, CITY CLERK IN CITY COUNCIL MAY 27, 2026 COrd 26-160 Motion made and seconded for Passage Vote: 8—0 Councilors Voting Yes: Beck, Carson, Deane, Faloon, Fish, Leonard, Mallar, Hawes Councilors Voting No: None Passed � �.� ,�..� � �� :,w�,�N � ��.� . � ��;�� ,, CITY CLERK