SB 840

This bill requires municipalities to take certain actions with regard to certain

housing development and provides for judicial review of certain denials of

applications for approvals related to workforce housing projects.

Under the bill, any municipality that has a zoning ordinance and that furnishes

water and sewer service must 1) provide at least one district in which multifamily

housing providing not fewer than 16 residential units per acre is a permitted use and

2) with certain limitations, permit residential use at a density of at least 16

residential units per acre in any district designated for commercial use.

Also under the bill, a political subdivision must 1) establish a process for

approving, denying, or conditionally approving an application for approval of a

workforce housing project within 90 days of receiving the application and 2) approve

any application for approval of a workforce housing project that is consistent with

the housing element of the political subdivision's comprehensive plan or consistent

with the political subdivision's zoning ordinance unless the political subdivision

demonstrates that the project would have an adverse impact on public health or

safety that is significant, quantifiable, direct, and unavoidable and the impact

cannot be mitigated without making the project financially infeasible as a workforce

housing project.

The bill also provides that a person aggrieved by the failure of a political

subdivision to approve an application for a workforce housing project including at

least four residential units may appeal the decision to the circuit court of the county

in which the project was to be completed. If the court finds that the political

subdivision has failed to satisfy certain statutory requirements related to

comprehensive planning or failed to prepare certain reports, the court must order the

political subdivision to approve the application.

Finally, the bill provides that a county, town, city, or village (approving

authority) that has the right to approve or object to a map of a subdivision (plat) must,

if the approving authority has the right to do so, assign street addresses to the lots

within the plat no later the date on which the plat is approved or deemed approved

by the approving authority, unless the time is extended by agreement with the

subdivider.

Because this bill may increase or decrease, directly or indirectly, the cost of the

development, construction, financing, purchasing, sale, ownership, or availability of

housing in this state, the Department of Administration, as required by law, will

prepare a report to be printed as an appendix to this bill.