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$200 to $300 per month increase in rent. <br /> Mr. Opara stated it was always good to have conversations with City staff regarding the City's need for <br /> affordable housing. He discussed how expensive it was to develop and build affordable housing ($350,000 per <br /> unit). He indicated there was a growing need for affordable housing and there would be a gap in the City of <br /> New Brighton. He stated partnerships and alliances would be very important going forward. <br /> Ms. Harris agreed there would be gaps and one of the challenges with financing for affordable housing was <br /> who would be the first in with dollars. She explained this was where the City could help scoring for projects <br /> by having dollars available for affordable housing. <br /> Mr. Richards commented on how important it was to maintain the current levels of affordable housing <br /> especially considering the cost for steel and lumber at this time. He stated this was why it was so important to <br /> protect NOA in the community. <br /> Ms. Bennett asked what challenges Mr. Opara sees in his work. <br /> Mr. Opara reported he always tries to be transparent in his work. He believed this would help people learn <br /> from the challenges he has had to go through. He indicated he started his journey in 2017 after learning more <br /> about the struggles his father had gone through with affordable housing. He noted this led him to build a $16 <br /> million affordable housing project in St. Paul. He discussed how challenging it was for him to secure financing <br /> for this project given the size of his resume. He explained he had to rely on the strength of his team. He <br /> appreciated the cities that were willing to support him with gap financing. He stated the fact of the matter was <br /> the best to build affordable housing was last year noting costs were severely on the rise for new construction. <br /> Ms. Bennett discussed how it had taken Mr. Opara four years to get started on his first project. She questioned <br /> what distinguishes successful communities where they have created an environmental that spurs development <br /> and redevelopment. <br /> Mr. Parritz sent his props to Mr. Opara for his tremendous efforts to get his project together and off the ground. <br /> He commented further on the gap for affordable housing project and how this can be filled by TIF and other <br /> financing grants. He discussed how he approaches affordable housing projects and stated he appreciates when <br /> cities are flexible,predictable, and consistent. <br /> Mr. Opara agreed the flexibility and predictability components were key. <br /> Ms. Harris stated clarity of roles was also important. <br /> Mayor Niedfeldt-Thomas asked for further information regarding the ratio of retail to residential housing to <br /> population should look like. <br /> Mr. Parritz indicated this was a great question. He reported he did not have a proportion to offer, but discussed <br /> some of the current challenges with retail space development. He explained the new retail market development <br /> was very tough right now. He stated this was because it was so risky. He discussed how the pandemic has <br /> impacted the commercial/retail market and has created more retail vacancies because businesses have failed. <br /> Mr. Richards stated he was working on several projects where there was ground level retail and financers were <br /> seeing this as lost space. <br /> Ms. Harris explained there was a financial gap along with a community gap. She discussed how big of a drain <br />