Abby Planning Commission talks material prices

The Abbotsford Planning Commission discussed delays in construction projects, material prices and how that might affect the probability that those projects are done on time at its monthly meeting on May 11.

In the first discussion on the agenda, Brandon Mueller of Abbotsford Appliance went before the commission to give an update on his new building he planned to complete by Aug. 1, 2023.

Mueller was sold the land to build the property on by the city in late 2020 as part of a tax incremental district (TID) that the city had been developing.

He said with the prices of lumber and other materials being above average, he would like to extend his completion date to Aug. 1, 2024.

The cost of materials has risen drastically since the COVID-19 pandemic. The National Association of Home Builders estimated that the rise in lumber prices has increased the cost of building a new, singlefamily home by an average of $19,000.

Mueller was originally contractually obligated to begin construction on the property by Aug. 1, 2022 but now that deadline has been pushed back a year.

The commission didn’t see a problem with the extension for the longtime local company and approved the extension of both the start date and completion date of the project.

Next on the agenda, Noel Felix III from Straight Shot Investments LLC was called on to give an update on the townhouses he was scheduled to complete by May 14, 2024. Felix said he was in the same boat as Mueller with not wanting to begin the projects due to the high prices of building materials. The contract he and the city signed stated that he was supposed to begin the projects by Aug. 1, 2021.

“The main update is, we’d love to be building right now,” Felix told the commission.

The 11 lots that are to be developed are a part of Schilling’s Subdivision, another TID that the city owned. As a part of the agreement, the city sold those lots to Straight Shot Investments LLC for $1 in the hopes that the company would build and earn the city a good amount of property tax money in the coming years.

Commissioner Jim Jakel wanted Felix to show the city that he still intended to build the properties and wanted to ensure that Felix would be held accountable if he did not hold up his end of the contract.

“If this doesn’t [get built], we should be guaranteed–we paid the realtor’s commission of $20,000 and we should get that back,” Jakel said.

Felix denied that he should be li­able for that money, brought a copy of the contract (signed by former city administrator Dan Grady in 2021) and recited a section that said that even if he doesn’t keep portions of the contract, the rest of the details in the agreement would still be upheld.

“It does say obviously there’s a start date for step 1 and step 2 and obviously I haven’t done that. But it doesn’t include any consequences until you get to 2024,” Felix said. He then recited from the contract: “If any part of this agreement is determined to be invalid or unforeseeable, the rest of the agreement remains valid and enforceable.”

Felix argued that clause was put in to protect himself and the city in the event that Felix missed a deadline, as Felix would still have to abide by certain structural and code standards for the buildings.

Jakel had thought that Felix was asking for an extension similar to Mueller’s but ultimately, Felix thought he might not even need an extension yet depending on what the price of building materials did in the coming months.

Abbotsford Public Works director Craig Stuttgen commented on the validity of the contract and whether the city should involve their attorney.

“The start date says, ‘No later than [Aug. 1, 2021]’ so I think we need to contact our attorney and find out if you miss that date, where we’re at exactly,” Stuttgen said. The planning commission also had an issue with the lack of communication between the city and Felix. One commissioner said they had called Felix on multiple occasions and had not heard back from him.

Felix said he felt offended that Abbotsford Mayor Jim Weix called his realtor and “harassed” his employee about the projects and lack of progress on them.

“I and Roger Weideman contacted the lady that has the sign up [on the lots],” Weix said.

“Well, we don’t need that,” Jakel said.

“She was very upset about the call,” Felix said. “It shook her up. She waited a week and called me because he said he was going to call me and he never did. If my staff is getting harassed here, this isn’t a partnership then.”

Another commissioner said it has to be a two way street in terms of communication as many attempts to reach out to Felix have been unfruitful. Felix denied that there was no communication and says he has the records of emails that were exchanged.

“I’ve sent numerous emails where it took forever to hear back and I’ve left messages,” Stuttgen said.

“That’s not true because I have those messages and you said you didn’t have time to talk to me,” Felix said.

Felix then explained that he had conversations with Grady before the deadline was missed and asked for an extension on the project but Grady had told him he wouldn’t be needing that extension because the commission would understand and nobody else was looking for the lots.

City administrator Josh Soyk asked Felix plainly, “Are you confident you’re going to get them all built by 2024?” Felix responded, “I’m confi dent that I will get it going and by 2023, I would ask for an extension if I did not feel like they were going to be built by 2024. I’m only asking for an extension if you’re going to come after me for the lots.”

Jakel said he just wanted to see some sort of progress or assurance that this project was still going to happen and if the commission hadn’t seen any improvements, then the city would be willing to explore other options.

Felix was optimistic about the prices of building materials going down in the coming months and that he would be able to complete the project on time.

After the heated discussion, Felix agreed to keep the contract as stated and said if he didn’t break ground by this time next year, then he would need to talk about an extension or other courses of action.

_ Jim Colby approached the council and asked if he could build a garage that would only have three feet of variance to an abandoned city road. The commission approved the building but Stuttgen asked if he would fix a recurring drainage issue while he was doing improvements to the property.

“The only reason I’m bringing this up Jim, is because you’re the one who is calling me and complaining to me about the water. I’m just saying if you’re going to do improvements, just get your lot up to the way it’s supposed to be,” Stuttgen said.

Colby questioned whether this was a project that the city should perform and said he would not be fixing that at this time.

Commission president Mason Rachu said the planning commission would have no problem approving the variance but said the drainage issue should be addressed down the road.

_ Citizen Clayton Kattre went before the commission to discuss selling the city a portion of land by the Sportsman’s Addition on the north end of Abbotsford. The land was slated to be turned into homes in the mid-1990s and the city had told Kattre that they would be running a sewer line and drainage ditch out to those lots to help make them habitable. Those promises were never kept and the lots are now swampy and virtually unimprovable.

Kattre said he had gone back and forth with the city, trying to get them to build the lines for years but no work was done.

In closed session, the planning commission decided they would recommend to the council to purchase the lots from Kattre at an abbreviated price of $6,800 apiece as opposed to the on average price of $24,000 that Kattre had estimated an improvable lot in the area would have been worth.

Stuttgen said there really isn’t anything the city can do at this point to drain the lots unless they want to spend a large amount of money.