Sitka Assembly approves land transfer to develop 'affordable housing'

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Wednesday, August 10th, 2022 8:41am

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City and Borough of Sitka Municipal offices.

Sitka, Alaska (KINY) - The City and Borough of Sitka Assembly voted unanimously Tuesday night to transfer lots on Halibut Point Road to the Sitka Community Land Trust to continue development of affordable housing.

The trust created a 7-lot subdivision, and of of those seven, three houses have been constructed and sold, two are actively under construction, and it is expected that houses will be constructed on the remaining two lots by the end of 2022.

You can read City Administrator John Leach's memo on the transfer here.

The Sitka Planning Commission previously completed their review and approval of the proposed subdivision, including the conceptual plat, preliminary plat, and final plat. With the final decision by the Assembly, the approval process for the subdivision is complete.

Homeowners in the subdivision pay property taxes on both the home and the parcel of land on which their home sits. Of the three developed homes in the first phase, the average total assessment for each is approximately $252,967. With a property tax rate of 6 mils, this represents an average annual property tax payment of $1,518.

The addition of seven lots of similar size and development would result in annual property tax revenue of approximately $10,626, at current assessment rates.

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