Displaying items tagged: Housing Next

GRAND RAPIDS — State and local housing leaders are beginning to collaborate on ways to accomplish goals established in Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s Statewide Housing Plan.

GRAND RAPIDS — A study released Monday shows the housing shortage in greater Grand Rapids soared during the pandemic as more young people moved to West Michigan amid sluggish new housing starts.

While local housing officials expect last year’s spike in housing prices and interest rates to cool off in 2023, high demand and low inventory are still creating difficulties for renters and homebuyers.

Advocates are awaiting details on how to access $275 million in new funding programs to address the state’s housing shortage.

The Ottawa County Board of Commissioners has approved allocating $32.7 million in federal stimulus funds for 24 community projects, over some objections that an incoming slate of commissioners should get to vote on project funding.

Ottawa County officials are considering a plan to redirect $12.5 million in reserves to fund the full number of projects prioritized for federal stimulus funding.

Kent County staff have narrowed down more than 300 requests for federal stimulus funding to 21 projects that involve housing, public amenities, support for underrepresented communities, and social programs.

As the statewide affordable housing shortage shows little signs of easing in the near term, different schools of thought have emerged on how to solve the issue. Those include supporting new housing at every price point, or focusing limited public resources on the lowest-income households.

Arecently published study from Up for Growth, a national housing advocacy and research group, found housing underproduction in Michigan has reached 87,491 homes — a 311-percent increase since 2012. 

Historically high housing and fuel prices have made access to public transportation an increasingly important piece to developing much-needed affordable housing. 

The lack of affordable housing has been a highly discussed topic at the local and state levels this past year as the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated an already tight market.

GRAND RAPIDS — A mixed-use building with 235 market-rate apartments in downtown Grand Rapids was recently sold for more than $50.7 million, and the buyer hopes to make at least dozens of units more affordable. 

GRAND RAPIDS — The city of Grand Rapids is partnering with the Grand Rapids Community Foundation on what has been a years-long process of creating a fund to increase the amount of affordable housing.

Land banks are emerging as an important resource to help fill the affordable housing shortage communities are facing in West Michigan and across the state.

West Michigan cities are examining new policies to expand affordable housing and create a supportive environment for developers as studies show an ongoing need for more units.

GRAND RAPIDS — The Grand Rapids City Commission has approved a brownfield tax incentive plan for a 10-unit apartment project in the city’s East Hills neighborhood.

GRAND RAPIDS — Local housing nonprofits are beginning to vet dozens of vacant properties made available through the state’s Land Bank Authority in an effort to fill the city’s need for affordable housing.

GRAND RAPIDS — Nonprofit housing organizations will now have the ability to purchase and redevelop up to 60 different foreclosed properties for affordable housing projects.

GRAND RAPIDS — The city of Grand Rapids needs to add nearly 9,000 housing units over the next five years to satisfy high market demand, according to a housing needs assessment prepared for city officials. 

HOLLAND — A new fund aims to cover pre-development costs to incentivize developers to add affordable housing in the Holland and Zeeland areas, MiBiz has learned.

As communities nationwide begin to examine the effects of single-family zoning on the density and affordability of housing, Grand Rapids has emerged as an example of how cities can function in the absence of those regulations.

For Housing Next Executive Director Ryan Kilpatrick, 2018 has been about laying the groundwork to get more affordable housing online in Ottawa County. Next year is “where the rubber hits the road,” when more than 600 new housing units will come online, with more yet in the pipeline, Kilpatrick said. Since January, Kilpatrick has worked with multiple municipalities to increase the amount of affordable housing in the county. He expects more tangible results to emerge in 2019.