Duluth mayor tackles affordable housing ‘crisis’
"We know we have an affordable housing crisis. We know that wages are not keeping up with the cost of rent. It's a supply issue and a math issue," she said.
At a news conference Tuesday morning, Larson praised a couple of projects now in the works that could provide at least some relief for people in search of modest-rent options, but she also acknowledged the need for more meaningful long-term solutions.
Toward that end, she announced that she is assembling a task force to address the problem by identifying sustainable financial resources that can be brought to bear for the long haul.
"The reality with affordable housing is that it costs a certain amount to build out a project or to rehab a property, and if you're not going to get that money back in rent, something has to fill that gap," Larson said.
Meanwhile, Larson hailed a couple of projects that are moving forward:
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An 84-unit affordable housing development proposed for the
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Bluffs of
Together, the two projects could bring
These subsidies are some of the tools now available to the city, but Larson said: "We envision affordable housing also utilizing private resources, working with private employers, working with our medical district and medical community and others."
Hamre also laid out plans for a pilot project city administration hopes to launch. Larson aims to ask the
When Larson first took office more than three years ago, the city already was facing about a 4,000-unit overall housing shortage, according to a
While Larson said that's great, she contends
Hamre agreed that the city has made modest progress at best in addressing the shortfall of 1,100 units of needed affordable housing identified in the Maxfield study. He said most of the recent housing gains instead have addressed the demand for higher-end market-rate rental units.
Hamre said he hopes some of the new projects and initiatives will begin "to make a dent" in a local affordable housing market as well, where people currently often wait 18 to 24 months to successfully obtain and make use of Section 8 housing assistance vouchers.
"You've got to provide some kind of assistance or there's got to be some resources to bring that rent cost into the affordable range," he said.
Larson said there are no easy answers to the need for affordable housing, but the city must find a way to address the shortage or else risk harm to public health and the local economy.
"It has been one of the hardest and most frustrating issues to address, because housing is expensive, projects take time, and we require a lot of partnership ... to achieve success," she said.
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