Addressing the housing crisis
WUPPDR launches website
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HANCOCK -- The Western U.P. Planning and Development Region (WUPPDR) has developed and launched a new website to tackle the affordable housing crisis in the Western U.P. -- westernuphousing.org.
Regional Planner Lisa McKenzie was the lead developer on the project and said affordable housing in the Keweenaw is a complex issue spanning across the rest of WUPPDR's working region.
"We have Michigan Tech, that has a lot of students who for many years have been over saturating -- or stressing the system. We have had more and more people go outside of the community from where they work to find housing," she said. "And it's not just in the Houghton-Hancock area. Across the entire western U.P. we hear the same thing going on in Baraga County, Gogebic County, Iron County and Ontonagon County."
McKenzie and WUPPDR hope to aid this problem with their website. Renters and landlords are free to use it to meet both of their needs. Visitors can post rentals, browse them and even apply to rent.
According to McKenzie, the supply of housing has gone up in recent years due to Tech's international student population decreasing. McKenzie said housing is still not very affordable in the region. "Finding family appropriate housing and housing for professionals coming in is not easy to find," she said. "Student housing doesn't necessarily lend itself to a family."
Initiatives such as WUPPDR's housing resource website and the City of Hancock's Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) grants are aiming to make waves in the market.
Grant writing is an important process in creating affordable housing. According to McKenzie, the housing website also connects developers with resources to help acquire funding through state grants, like MSHDA's.
WUPPDR Housing Consultant Tiff DeGroot said getting the process started through grants or loan programs is a key part of housing development.
"Things like that are to help actually make it easier for them [developers] to get involved with this process and start developing," she said. "Maybe a small project. Maybe a duplex. That's really the kind of housing that we're hoping to be meeting in the future."
Developers, such as Moyle Construction in Houghton, are laying the groundwork for future affordable housing in the area with projects such as Summit Place and Skyline Commons. Moyle Property Manager Jackie Horsell said the firm is excited to tackle this issue and come up with solutions for the needs of the area.
"Housing needs to expand to keep getting people to the area and to keep and retain the workforce that we have," she said. "We know that there is a need and we're hoping to fill it."
DeGroot added there are initiatives from L'Anse and Hancock which are using MSHDA grant funds to refurbish old buildings into affordable apartments, not unlike what Moyle is doing.
The Keweenaw Economic Development Alliance (KEDA) has real estate development tools to help developers acquire funding and construct residential and commercial properties. This includes Brownfield financing, redevelopment tax credits and community revitalization. Executive Director Jeff Ratcliffe said building material costs have gone up and it makes development harder.
"We've assisted with the completion of five redevelopment projects totaling $4.4 million. That created 10 residential units," he said. "We're currently working with eight projects, with six of them under construction and two that are finalizing the financing right now. This is going to total about $44.3 million in investment."
According to Ratcliffe, there is current state and federal housing legislation to make housing grants and funding more accessible to developers.
McKenzie added housing takes a lot of time and this issue won't be fixed overnight. With some retooling of current systems and the proper funding, the Keweenaw could be a forever home for many families and low-income residents.
"It takes a long time to get this work done," she said. "I think that the municipalities are really trying to partner with the private entities to get this work done."
WUPPDR aims to heavily promote the resource website in the month of August. It can be accessed at westernuphousing.org.