Clarkston moves toward allowing affordable housing
Jan. 9—Clarkston city officials are working on an agreement with Catholic Charities and Horizon Housing Alliance that will allow affordable housing units near Walmart.
At Monday night's council meeting, the first reading of an ordinance lifting a temporary ban on land-use applications in the port commercial area was read, along with a draft memorandum of agreement that would give the green light to Horizon Housing's project at 1005 Port Drive.
The fully funded development has been sitting on a shelf for months after the city passed an emergency interim ordinance to halt apartment construction applications in that area. Once lifted, the project can move forward.
City administrator Steve Austin said officials have been negotiating with housing developers, and the details should be wrapped up and ready for council consideration at its next meeting in two weeks.
Horizon is a nonprofit organization that focuses on building affordable housing in the state of Washington. The group, which works with Catholic Charities, wants to build 72 units on privately owned property west of Walmart.
A short plat application to divide the 6 acres into two tracts is being finalized. The plan is to construct a mix of buildings that will be used for housing and commercial opportunities. Construction on the housing units could begin this spring and be completed by summer 2025.
A pre-application meeting for the project's permit has been tentatively set for Feb. 1. No one from Horizon or Catholic Charities was at this week's council meeting.
In other city business, two residents spoke to the council about the homeless camp along Port Drive on right-of-way property. Pete Broyles, who owns Riverport Brewery, said his dumpster has been filled with buckets of human waste from the nearby camp.
Broyles asked why the city won't allow portable toilets at the site, and why his business and others in the area should be responsible for the sanitary needs of the homeless population. The waste is a hazard to his employees and city crews tasked with emptying the dumpsters, Broyles said.
Councilor Skate Pierce said the city's insurance carrier has said it's a liability to provide portable restrooms at the tent city, but the private property owner next door may not have those limitations. The site was intended to be temporary, Pierce said, and officials are working on a response.
Cinnamon Stewart, of Clarkston, asked officials to purchase property and make it available to the homeless population. The Union Gospel Mission shelter under construction in Lewiston is not a home or permanent solution, she said.
With freezing temperatures on the way, it's imperative to help "our homeless brothers and sisters," Stewart said.
Sandaine can be reached at kerris@lmtribune.com.
