...Full Story Here

Community Updates, News Stories, Best Practices, Resources, and other data supporting the development of affordable housing for the citizens of Wisconsin in every city and region in the State. Please consider partnering with us and sharing your story

PESHTIGO (NBC 26) — The City of Peshtigo is moving forward with a new workforce housing development project, meant to attract new workers to the area and help the small town grow.

Joe Beranek owns Evergreen Tools in Peshtigo. They make metal pieces for manufacturing equipment and fire suspension.

After more than a decade of operating in the area, he’s looking to expand.

“Our business is growing and it’s growing to the point where we need to buy additional equipment and they’re very large, so we’re looking to add on about another 10,000 square feet later this year, and with that, we’d be adding some new employees,” Beranek says.

   ...Full Story Here

Leo’s notes: Peshtigo’s proposed 30-home workforce housing development highlights a challenge shared by many rural manufacturers: jobs exist, but housing shortages limit workforce growth. By using city-owned land and pursuing state grants to lower development costs, local leaders are aligning housing supply with economic expansion. For small towns competing for talent, housing is economic development.

Ken Notes: So about 200K per unit. I would love to see a state funded program allowing communities to buy land and install infrastructure then "front" the lots and improvements to developers for homes sold to owner occupants for under 200K. I can not think of a more productive way to invest a 4 Billion dollar surplus. That could create almost 100,000 homes for our service and retail workers. Not to mention attracting new workers into our communities.

Last week, Dane County Executive Melissa Agard announced $1 million in grant funds will be released to accelerate housing development and help address the county’s housing crisis. Interested municipalities can use the funds to update their zoning codes, permitting processes, and internal procedures.

“Regulatory barriers can drive up housing costs and restrict the supply of homes and the range of housing options available.” Agard said. “Through the CDBG PRO Housing grant program, our participating municipalities will have a chance to review their local zoning, permitting, and internal procedures—and make important reforms to remove barriers and support more housing.”...

   ...Full Story Here

Leo’s notes: Dane County’s $1 million PRO Housing grant program targets a key barrier to workforce housing: local regulations that slow or limit development. By helping municipalities modernize zoning and permitting systems, the initiative focuses on structural reforms that expand supply across the region. Streamlining local rules is emerging as one of the most effective housing tools

GREEN BAY, Wis. (WFRV) – Communities across Wisconsin, including northeast Wisconsin, are continuing to face a significant housing shortage, according to local industry leaders.

Local 5’s Stacy Engebretson spoke with representatives from the home building industry and the Realtors Association to examine the challenges driving the shortage and potential solutions.

   ...Full Story Here

As housing shortages push prices higher across the metro Milwaukee area, a new study concludes that local zoning and permitting processes are significantly influencing how quickly new developments get built. The study, released by the Wisconsin Policy Forum Thursday, analyzed zoning and permitting timelines in six cities: Milwaukee, Wauwatosa, Waukesha, West Allis, Oak Creek, and...   ...Full Story Here

Leo’s notes: As shortages push prices higher, the pace of local approvals is emerging as a key factor in expanding workforce housing supply. Regulatory efficiency is becoming a central housing strategy. Zoning reform and approval process (and timelines) must continue to be evaluated for real change to occur.

ENABLING BETTER PLACES: A USER’S GUIDE TO WISCONSIN NEIGHBORHOOD AFFORDABILITY	WHEDA’s Rural Affordable Workforce Housing Initiative	Wisconsin REALTORS® Association
WISCAP Affordable Housing Network	Division of Energy, Housing and Community Resources	Housing Authority City of Milwaukee (HACM)
Wisconsin Housing Preservation Corp	WEDA Legislative Tracker	NRA Housing Needs By State / Wisconsin
Wisconsin Housing Alliance	Office of Rural Prosperity Wisconsin Economic Development

   ...Full Story Here

Nate Notes: to be included as a Workforce Housing resource email us a link and a brief note to: wwhnews.com@gmail.com...

   ...Full Story Here

Leo’s notes: As hospitality jobs expand and more workers choose to live year-round in the region, local leaders are recognizing that workforce housing is essential to sustaining the visitor economy. In tourism markets, housing supply increasingly determines economic capacity

When Therese and Dan Hanson bought their Wauwatosa home in 2017, the selling points included a run-down second house in the backyard – being used for storage.

The couple now plans to spend a six-figure amount, helped with city cash, to make the building livable for a family member or other person.

The Hansons are taking advantage of the growing trend among Milwaukee-area communities to boost development of such backyard second homes. They`re known as accessory dwelling units, or ADUs...   ...Full Story Here

Leo’s notes: Incremental housing solutions are becoming increasingly important in the workforce housing puzzle, particularly in well-established neighborhoods like Wauwatosa in Milwaukee. No amount of NIMBYism should outweigh the upside of these solutions.

Last winter, I got an intriguing story tip: Many Wisconsin manufactured home communities were operating with expired licenses. 

I didn’t initially know much about these communities, often called mobile home parks, where residents own their homes but rent the land they sit on. I quickly learned they provide a critical source of affordable housing in Wisconsin and beyond — the country’s largest portion of unsubsidized low-income housing. 

Housing experts and advocates told me private equity’s growing interest in the model threatens to change that. My reporting found that Wisconsin’s government is failing to enforce basic protections for owners. Still, some residents and groups see pathways for safe, affordable manufactured home ownership as a solution during an affordability crisis.    ...Full Story Here

Ken Notes: We should recreate the statutes that govern both the old mobile home parks and newer options for denser lots allowing for manufactured homes. Also the practice of buying parks and then ignoring the tenants and using the income as a cash cow is the newest form of slumlords and we allow it to happen.

It was big news when construction stopped abruptly on downtown`s Edison apartment high-rise – but that`s not the only Milwaukee project in limbo.

Milwaukee hosts several major developments that received city approvals years ago but have either not yet broken ground, or have ground to a halt after construction started.

This includes major projects, such as apartment towers and high-end hotels...

   ...Full Story Here

Leo’s notes: When financing gaps, market shifts, or construction costs delay projects, planned housing supply never materializes. For cities facing shortages, keeping approved developments moving from paper to production is becoming a critical priority.

Across Wisconsin many employees can simply not afford to live where they work.

This is true in big cities and small rural communities. Both the availability and price of housing is not in line with the needs of those working in jobs that are vital to the success of our communities. Imagine a firefighter, teacher, city employee, service, or retail worker not able to afford a home in the community they serve.

We believe Wisconsin employers will support these efforts so they can successfully recruit workers to fill the thousands of job openings now hampered by a shortage of affordable housing.


   ...Full Story Here

   ...Full Story Here

WWHNEWS Notes: To add a resource or correct above send data and link to wwhnews.com[at]gmail.com...