Meredith Hobbs, Daily Report
Simon Bloom says he wants the board of the state Department of Community Development to encourage city and county compliance with Georgia’s model building codes. John Disney/Daily Report
August 19, 2014
Simon Bloom has become the chairman of the board of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Bloom, a partner in Bloom Sugarman Everett, called the agency the state’s “unsung heroes of economic development” and said he’d like to raise its profile.
“I don’t want us to be so unsung anymore. I want people to know the incredible things we are doing to improve their lives every day,” he said.
While the Georgia Department of Economic Development gets the attention for bringing new auto plants to the state, Bloom said the DCA does the same work for cities and counties. “They get Kia into Georgia. We get them into Troup County,” he said, referring to the new Kia plant in West Point.
The agency assists local governments with economic development, provides housing loans and administers state and federal grants. It also promulgates building codes.
Bloom, who has been on the board since 2010, said it was a “good marriage of issues to get involved in.”
“I’ve always been interested in the economic development component. Obviously, the building code promulgation component directly impacts my clients,” said Bloom, a real estate litigator for developers and builders.
The Department of Community Affairs has a budget of about $250 million in federal and state funds, with $64 million from the state. Its 18-member board is appointed by the governor, with representatives from the state’s 14 congressional districts and four members at large.
Bloom said he wants the board to take a more active role in encouraging city and county compliance with the state’s model building codes—particularly the enforcement of local tree ordinances and impact fees.
“If you cut down X inches of trees, you’ve got to pay Y dollars per inch, which goes to a fund to build forests and parks,” Bloom said. But not all municipalities use the fees they collect to plant more trees, he said. The same goes for the impact fees that local governments charge new developments to cover the cost of additional streets, sewer lines and the like.
Not all municipalities enforce their ordinances consistently, he said, and he’d like to see the DCA use its resources to make this happen.
“If you’re going to charge us the money, then do what you say you’re going to do,” Bloom said. “If you’re going to charge us impact fees, then the money you get needs to compensate for the things that are impacted. It should not just go into the general fund or other areas.”
The board takes an advisory role for the agency, which is run by Commissioner Gretchen Corbin. But Bloom said the board must approve bond financing, such as bonds issued by local housing authorities to fund home loans. The Georgia Dream Homeownership program offers first-time home-buyers loans for down payments and help in securing mortgage financing.
“I’m not a fan of big government, but this is an instance of government that does real good,” he said.
Read the full article: Real Estate Lawyer Chairs State Development Agency