TOPEKA (KSNT) - Topeka City Council's final October meeting included voting on nine action items, many of which seek to create additional housing around the city. Here are some of the items that were approved Tuesday evening: Riverstone (Meier's Place) Housing Development The council unanimously approved a deal with local developer, Gen III construction, on a new housing subdivision in north Topeka. They established a Reinvestment Housing Incentive District (RHID) as part of a state-sanctioned program. Gen III will cover the costs to develop 15 houses up front. The city will reimburse them up to $385,000 on the back end using the increase in property taxes generated from the project. Prices for the houses in the subdivision will range from $260,000 to $325,000. RHIDs require city and state approval. In short, they help local governments address housing needs. Capital city leaders approved another RHID for low-income apartments back in August. Neighborhood Revitalization Plan (NRP) Renewal Generally speaking, the NRP is designed to be a win-win for citizens and the city. The idea is to incentivize investing in neglected parts of town so that in five to ten years the city's tax revenue is higher from the increase in property values. Basically, the city will defer collecting most of the new property taxes in the areas deemed "at risk," and "intensive care" based on data collected in three year cycles. Currently, those areas account for 13.31 square miles, or 23% of the city. Under the renewal plan there's a slight decrease to 12.31 square miles (19%). There is an application process and some qualifications that must be met for the tax rebate. It's also worth noting the rebate is available for both residential and commercial properties. The city began using NRP's in 1994. According to the city's website, Topeka was the first municipality in the state to adopt one of these plans. The plans last three years and the current one expires at the end of 2024. The RNP renewal passed unanimously. Land Bank Updates The council also unanimously voted to ease restrictions on land bank rules to be more friendly for developers. The rule change allows these properties to be used for rental homes. Prior to the change, the properties sold through the land bank required whoever lived on the land to own it. City leaders also added three new properties from the Lauren's Bay development the city bought at auction last month. There are currently six undeveloped parcels listed for sale, which does not include the Lauren's Bay properties. City leaders established the land bank in 2023 with the goal of revamping abandoned, foreclosed and dilapidated properties to help address the city's housing shortage. For more context on the city's land bank, click here. Amendments to Zoning Code Earlier this year, the city created a special committee for housing to identify unnecessary restrictions in the city's zoning code that may be contributing to the housing shortage. The committee solicited public feedback and came up with a list of changes that were approved by the council at Tuesday's meeting. Among the changes are incentives for affordable housing developers. They also increased the maximum residential densities, meaning more housing units can be built in a given development than was previously allowed. Other Council Actions The city reached an agreement with the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF) union on a labor contract with a budgetary impact of $25.2 million to $28.5 million over the next three years. Roughly $2 million were approved to be spent on the fire department fleet replacement program. The budget for the city's new light duty fleet garage was increased from about $5.6 million to about $8.8 million. KDOT will pay for the majority of this project. The entire city council agenda for Oct. 15 can be found below. Topeka City Council Agenda 10.15.24Download For more local news, click here. Keep up with the latest breaking news in northeast Kansas by downloading our mobile app and by signing up for our news email alerts. Sign up for our Storm Track Weather app by clicking here.