July 31, 2015

Dear Mayor Rawlings and Dallas City Councilmembers:

As stakeholders in the residential and commercial building community throughout the City of Dallas, we support
the purpose of the Neighborhood Plus plan, and we have appreciated the opportunity to participate in a
dialogue about different ways to revitalize our neighborhoods and increase affordable housing options in Dallas.
We are committed to working with you to help determine which methods will be most effective in
accomplishing this goal. However, in light of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision and the new HUD ruling,
we think that a formal stakeholder group should be formed to analyze any proposed changes to affordable
housing policies that impact the development process within the City of Dallas prior to the City Council formally
adopting such policies.
The undersigned organizations and individuals are uniquely positioned to assist you in this effort. Our members
develop multifamily projects all over the country and they have the appropriate expertise to help the City of
Dallas create a program that would meet the federal requirements and also would include meaningful incentives
to address affordable housing needs throughout the city. We urge you to give us the opportunity to work with
city staff and other interested stakeholders as an official Affordable Housing Committee to make these
recommendations for your consideration. Until such a committee convenes and thoughtful recommendations
can be adopted, we will not support efforts to push solutions prematurely through a piecemeal manner on
individual development projects.
In our industry, predictability is essential to the success of a project. Changing the rules without sufficient notice
will discourage other developers, lenders and investors from developing in Dallas, and they will choose to take
their business to other municipalities where they can depend on the predictability of a process. It is also critical
to our industry that any new rules adopted by Dallas City Council become effective after a reasonable amount of
lead time in order to avoid unfairly and retroactively harming a development project that relied on a different
set of rules and requirements prior to making that investment.
We believe that this issue deserves far more attention and discussion because the impact of how we proceed
from here will last for decades and it will dramatically shape the citys landscape for better or for worse. If the
city decides to offer incentives for the inclusion of affordable housing units in developments, we ask that it is
done right. This is a complex issue and there are many questions to be answered not the least of which is its
compliance with state and federal law, as well as taking into consideration the U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development requirements and funding options.
Increasing density is not a one-way street on which only the developers benefit. Density increases our tax base it fixes our pot holes and improves our parks. It adds vibrancy to our urban core as more people move to the
area and spend time in the shops and restaurants that then thrive from the increased commercial activity. This
symbiotic relationship between increased density and amenities only further benefits the City of Dallas and we
urge you to keep that perspective in mind as we work together to consider solutions.
The signatories of this letter are uniquely qualified to understand the importance of a mixed- income
neighborhoods. We all represent the entire spectrum of residential, commercial and land development. Please
allow us the opportunity to work with city leadership and staff to develop a program and process that works for
Dallas.

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The stakeholders who have signed below have and are committed to serving on an affordable housing
committee with city staff, such as the Directors of Housing, Economic Development, and Sustainable
Development and Construction. In the meantime, we hope that you will provide us the reassurance that the
City of Dallas will not change the rules without stakeholder input and will provide sufficient lead time for
implementation once new rules may be adopted. Thoughtful development is taking place throughout Dallas
now is not the time to create barriers to that development. We look forward to working with you to accomplish
our goals together, and are ready to start as soon as possible.
Sincerely,

Linda McMahon
President & CEO
The Real Estate Council

Phil Crone
Executive Officer
Dallas Builders Association

Sue Ansel
Chair, The Real Estate Council
President & CEO, Gables Residential

Frank Mihalopoulos
Chairman, The Real Estate Council PAC
President, Corinth Properties

Diane Butler
Vice Chair, The Real Estate
Council
CEO, Butler Burgher Group

Neal Sleeper
President, Cityplace Company

Steve Bancroft
Board Member,
The Real Estate Council PAC
Senior Managing Director,
Trammell Crow Residential

Matt Enzler
Managing Director
Trammell Crow Residential

Adam Brown
Managing Director
Trinsic Residential Group

Michael Krywucki
Board Member,
The Real Estate Council PAC
Shareholder,
Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr, P.C.

Rick Perdue
Managing Director
Mill Creek Residential

Bob Voelker
SVP/General Counsel
Streetlights Residential

Kennis Ketchum
President,
Portfolio Development, LLC

Justin Goertz
Business Development
Executive
Marvin F. Poer and Company

Roger Gault
President
The Gault Company

Susan Mead
Partner
Jackson Walker, L.L.P.

Joel Behrens
Principal & Director of
Multifamily
Trammell Crow Company

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