As the alderman representing the Central West End and the Cortex Innovation District, Michael Browning of the 9th Ward understands the importance of incentives when it comes to development.
They’re especially key when it comes to housing, he said.
“The city doesn't build housing, the state doesn't build housing, the federal government doesn't build housing,” Browning said recently during an appearance on Politically Speaking. “We rely on private developers to build this housing. Like it or not, we live under capitalism, and we've got to figure out a way to build housing underneath that system.”
Browning has firsthand experience with what happens when a developer can’t make a housing project “pencil,” or work financially on paper. In October, North Point Development pulled out of a planned $120 million development at Kingshighway and Interstate 64 that would have brought 300 units of new housing to the Forest Park Southeast neighborhood.
The city was unpredictable with the level of incentives it would offer, Browning said, and the numbers wouldn’t work without them.
“And that's where I think we need to get politics out of the process,” he said.
Browning wants to try a new development strategy for housing on another property in his ward – the site of the Engineers Club building on Lindell in the Central West End.
A few developers have “kicked the tires” on the site for housing, he said, but cannot make the math work without some development incentives.
“So we're going to pass a package without a developer in mind that offers a mild incentive to get started there,” Browning said. “It’s letting people know up front, here's what you're going to be eligible for, and then trying to entice them in in a way that makes it clear that we'll be a good partner in this process.”
Here’s what else Browning discussed on the podcast:
- The city’s struggles to quickly distribute relief to victims of the May 16 tornado makes it even more important to change its internal processes. Some of the changes, like those to the Board of Estimate and Apportionment, the city’s fiscal oversight mechanism, will require altering the city’s charter. Browning says the city needs to learn from the outcome of a 2024 charter commission and put public engagement at the heart of the process. “We should be including people through the long process so that they feel bought in,” he said.
- Browning hopes to get the process of creating the new Department of Transportation back on track. Voters passed the charter change last year, and the city has until 2029 to implement it. Regardless of what the final structure looks like, Browning said, the new department needs to include some planning authority. “I'm trying to get us in a place where we are thinking ahead of time and really planning the improvements to our streets to improve safety, not just when an alderman gets elected who's interested in doing that,” he said.
- Browning hopes a piece of legislation up for a final vote on Friday will encourage more people to run for the board by reducing the filing fees. Currently, the fee for the office is 1% of the aldermanic salary. But when the salaries for members went up to $72,000, the resulting $720 fee made it more expensive to file for the board than for U.S. Senate. “We're hoping that we'll see not only more people be able to file for office, but also have a more equitable approach to this, where you don't have to pay a month's rent to just file and be on the ballot,” he said.
