The Affordable Housing Advisory Committee voted unanimously on Oct. 29 to approve Wellington’s annual SHIP (State Housing Initiatives Partnership) incentive report and to recommend continuation of the village’s current incentives, including expedited permitting and ongoing process review.

Staff presentation and vote: Andrew (village staff) presented the SHIP allocation history since the village’s program inception in 2022 and said that because Wellington’s SHIP allocation exceeds $350,000 the local advisory committee is required. "We receive, a ship allocation from the state. And because we receive over $350,000 we're required to have an AHAC," Andrew said. The committee moved, seconded and approved the incentive report by voice vote; the manager recorded the vote as unanimous.

Program outcomes: staff reported that since taking responsibility for the SHIP program the village has approved 47 home‑rehabilitation projects and completed 31, with an average per‑project cost of $32,558 and an average completion timeline of about eight months from application to finish. Typical funded repairs include reroofs, impact windows, new water heaters, electrical panel upgrades and air‑conditioning replacements; staff also recounted work completed under disaster repair following the previous year’s tornado.

Eligibility and requirements: staff explained SHIP income verification procedures, asset limits and that applicants must provide pay stubs and an affidavit of expected income. For rehabilitation eligibility staff said the property assessed value threshold is $568,000. The program must set aside 30 percent of funds for very‑low‑income households as required by program rules.

Discussion and outreach: committee members and staff discussed possible additional strategies — rental assistance, down‑payment assistance, construction/gap financing and tenant assistance — and noted trade‑offs between using funds for many smaller rehabilitation grants versus a few large down‑payment subsidies. Staff said Palm Beach County runs a down‑payment program and that county allocations have been substantially larger in past cycles.

Administration and safeguards: staff described verification steps and that SHIP grants are secured by recorded liens (for example, deferred zero‑percent loans repayable on a pro‑rata basis if a homeowner sells before the term ends); staff said there has been at least one foreclosure in which SHIP funds were recovered through the lien.

Public comment: the committee opened public comment for the incentive report, received no public remarks, closed comment and then approved the recommendation to continue existing incentives. The committee penciled a first‑quarter meeting for next year (March 4) at 6:30 p.m., with staff to issue formal notice.

Ending: staff will submit the report to village council by the end of the year, contingent on council approval, and the committee asked that future meetings include more detailed consideration of specific incentives such as down‑payment assistance and accessory dwelling units.