Meeting Date: April 4, 2024
To: Members of the Housing & Redevelopment Authority
From: Melissa Hanson, Housing Coordinator
Title
The HRA Board shall be given an update on outstanding HRA/City and housing related items.
Body
Action Requested:
There are a number of outstanding items related to and connected to the HRA, City, and housing in the community. Below is a summary update on each item. The Board has the opportunity to discuss or ask questions about each item individually if desired.
Summary Report:
2024 State of the State’s Housing Profile
On March 14, 2024, Minnesota Housing Partnership (MHP) Research released the 2024 State of the State’s Housing Profile with Key Minnesota Findings and Trends. Attachment #1. First produced in 20217, MHP’s State of the State’s Housing bi-yearly report contains statewide housing data providing an important baseline of the housing climate and its impacts on everyday Minnesotans.
Northcountry Cooperative Foundation
Update to be presented during regular meeting.
Property Disposition Policy
The subcommittee for the Property Disposition Policy has not had the opportunity to review Council feedback prior to April’s HRA meeting. The subcommittee is expected to meet before the May HRA Board meeting.
Local Housing Trust Fund
No new update.
Manufactured Home Communities
In September 2022, the HRA allocated $50,000 to Manufactured Home Emergency Repairs and to be made available to CAC and HCI on a reimbursement basis. To date, the HRA has reimbursed $35,000 in total. HCI anticipates that they will be submitting reimbursement requests for the remaining $15,000. The CAC has also been made aware.
Down Payment Assistance
No new update, enough funds remain for one applicant.
Interns
We received seven applications for two intern positions. Theo Weldon and Emery Brown, both students at Carleton, have accepted internship positions in Community Development. They will work on projects for both the HRA and Building Department, beginning in June.
Youth on Boards
All Boards and Commissions meetings are part of the Youth on Boards program. Youth from the Mayor’s Youth Council and all City Boards and Commissions gather once per month to hear a presentation about important issues in the community and ask questions and provide feedback to community leaders. Recently, youth have been focused on the issue of affordable housing. On Wednesday, March 20, City Staff, along with Chair Malecha, and staff from Healthy Community Initiative (HCI), Community Action Center (CAC), Three Rivers Community Action (TRCA) and Rice County Habitat for Humanity presented to students regarding challenges associated with housing in Northfield and the surrounding community
Professional Development
Housing Coordinator is participating in the Leadership in Affordable Housing Certificate program at Hamline University. In addition, staff attended the following:
• Understanding Private Equity- Despite private equity’s immense impact on our housing markets, the average person knows little about how the industry functions. This can create a knowledge gap in housing-based organizations, and also create difficulties for organizers who are discussing the private equity industry with tenants. To help bridge this gap, the Private Equity Stakeholder Project has created popular education materials to make understanding private equity more accessible to our housing movements. March 21, 2024
• Studies of MN’s Child Care Operation Costs and ECE Workforce - In 2023, Minnesota Departments of Education (MDE) and Human Services (DHS) commissioned two studies of the early care and education field in Minnesota. First Children’s Finance conducted a Cost of Care Study, also known as cost estimation models, to determine the actual costs of operating a child care business (either in home or in a center). Wilder Research conducted a workforce study to learn more about the characteristics of the early care and education workforce, assess educators’ economic well-being, and describe their motivations for participating in training and professional development opportunities. Presenters from both First Children’s Finance and Wilder will discuss the methodologies used for each study and what we can learn about the child care industry in Minnesota from these complementary studies. March 20, 2024
• The Toxic Problem of Poverty + Housing Costs - For over three decades, Dr. Margot Kushel <https://harvard.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=32bdef9ad4f5c24e42bebf634&id=564248ac1c&e=84d7c17477> has both cared for people who experience homelessness and studied the causes, consequences, and solutions to homelessness. On Thursday, March 21 at 5:30 pm, Dr. Kushel will deliver the 23rd Annual John T. Dunlop Lecture: The Toxic Problem of Poverty + Housing Costs: Lessons from New Landmark Research About Homelessness <https://harvard.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=32bdef9ad4f5c24e42bebf634&id=8133adbab7&e=84d7c17477>. The lecture is presented by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies <https://harvard.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=32bdef9ad4f5c24e42bebf634&id=542592c549&e=84d7c17477> at the Harvard Graduate School of Design <https://harvard.us7.list-manage.com/track/click?u=32bdef9ad4f5c24e42bebf634&id=126c303507&e=84d7c17477> in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
SE MN Together Housing Action Team Meeting
Staff has been asked to participate in SE MN Together’s Housing Action Team. Team meets monthly on the 3rd Thursday of each month from 8:00am-9:00am.
Alternative Options:
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Financial Impacts:
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Tentative Timelines:
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