InfoHive – Eminent Domain

What type of building codes are being touted as minimizing wildfire losses? International Code Council’s International Wildland Urban Interface Code that includes:

• ignition-resistant building materials
• screens to prevent embers from penetrating into eaves and under foundations
• creating and maintaining defensible space
• fire-service access to structures and water supplies

Where is this being considered or adopted?

• Austin, TX adopted the code
• Oregon Gov. Kate Brown’s Council on Wildfire Response recommended statewide IWUIC adoption, legislation is pending

Governing | How Better Building Codes Can Mitigate Wildfires’ Devastation

The vacant property: A former space for Lowe’s Home Improvement, left empty since 2012

The revamped property will house: The Generator , retail space, and a live work space

What will those spaces work like?

• 60,000 square feet of flex-tech space for technology, research, engineering, software and design companies
• 8,000 square feet for a brewery/distillery with a covered open-air seating area and events stage
• 10,000 square feet for additional food and drink options
• 9,000 square feet for small shops and business services
• Additional space for work-live studios

The partners in the development: Developers Foothill Partners & Innovation Collective, which supports entrepreneurship and innovation through mentorship, trainings and other events, and the Governor’s Economic Development Division

This is Reno | Vacant Sparks big box store to become “work-live-make innovation hub”

Who:  MyPitchList 

What does MyPitchList Do?

• Sellers put their property up for pitch
• Local real estate agents bid to win it as a new listing
• Sellers get full transparency of commission rates, sales history and recommendations, with a view to compare apples with apples

NZ | Real estate startup puts power back in the hands of sellers

New policy at the City of Oakland will prohibit homeless encampments at:

• parks
• near homes
• near businesses
• near schools
• near some churches

What are the specific distance requirements?

• 150 feet from a middle school, preschool or child care center
• 100 feet of high schools
• 50 feet from homes, businesses, public parks and places of worship
• within 25 feet of a homeless shelter

NBC Bay Area | Oakland Approves Rules to Restrict Homeless Encampments

North Dakota is considering costs savings that would shrink state agency office space and reduce budget costs by more than $1 million.

How are the employees rotating through office space?

• Cares Act funded remote working equipment
• State employees sign up for access to office space and rotate throughout the week and month

Overall, how much office space will be cut from the state? 20%

Bismark Tribune via Governing | North Dakota State Agencies Eye COVID-Related Lease Savings

A candidate for state house in Texas to introduce legislation concerning eminent domain use by pipelines.

The legislations goals:  “to create a public routing process just like with a road or electric transmission line or railroad. Eminent domain should not exist without transparency.”

Hays Free Press | LWV Forum: Incumbent State Rep Zwiener meets with challenger Isaac

Who is the new kid? Alfred Club Inc.

Who is backing Alfred Club? The WeWork founder

What is a residential services company? They provide apartment buildings with services such as concierge-like staff & software to manage maintenance requests and other paperwork

Why does this matter? Avid InfoHivers will remember a COVID start up in Austin, TX that provided a service to local apartment complexes that served as a second point package delivery service so that tenants could access delivered packages at all hours.

Bloomberg Technology | WeWork’s Adam Neumann Returns to Real Estate With Startup Investment

@businessweek on Instagram

What takeaways can be found in Airbnb’s COVID pivot?

• Pay attention & Don’t panic.
  • Urban residents wanted get aways that were in driving distance.
  • Shared spaces of hotels were being shunned
  • The pivot: focus on local stays
  • Listen to your customers: The company reimbursed 1/3 the value of canceled stays
  • Continued efforts concerning local & state regulation
• Act fast
  • Investors react favorably
• Adapt to Work from Home
  • People will have more flexibility
  • People will look to explore nearby
• Communicate with your Employees
  • Open and robust communications
  • Treat your employees well, even those that you lay off with lucrative packages, health care, and active & ongoing assistance to connect the former employees to new employers

Wall Street Journal | How Airbnb Pulled Back From the Brink

Where: Massachusetts

What is the proposed legislation: H5018 (2020 | MA)

How long would the eviction moratorium be extended under this legislation? A year after the pandemic emergency declaration expires

What else would the bill do?

• freezes rents
• creates a fund to help financially distressed small landlords

The policy goal: guarantee housing stability

Patriot Ledger | Gov. Baker, courts outline $171 million plan to prevent evictions

• South Dakota SCR 601 (2020 | SD)
  • $10 M in CARES Act Funds for housing assistance, including rent, utilities and mortgage
• Mississippi HB1810 (2020 |MS)
  • $20 million from the state’s budget contingency fund to a Rental Assistance Grant Program to provide relief to rental businesses
• Michigan SB 1132 (2020 | MI)
  • Relief for seniors & disabled by allowing local governments to adopt ordinances to cap their rent at 50% of their income
• Pennsylvania SB 1290 (2020 | PA)
  • Relief for landlords and mortgage holders, as well as tenants and homeowners, as long as their is a loss of 30% or more of income due to COVID
• New Jersey S2873 (2020 | NJ)
  • Require landlords to accept credit cards for payments during the pandemic
• Massachusetts S2918 (2020 | MA)
  • Tax credits for residential landlords based on the difference of what is collected and what is obligated