This Weeks Articles for 6/29/2026 ...

1. Wisconsin Housing Preservation Corp. adds workforce housing expert...
2. Development Agreement Put Together for Affordable Housing Project ...
3. Congress passes the largest housing affordability bill in decades — and Trump cancels the signing...
4. ‘A problem for us all to work on’: Lack of infrastructure a major hurdle in Oneida County housing developments ...
5. Barndominiums and Workforce Housing Planned for Division Road Site ...
6. States are changing fire codes to make housing cheaper. Some safety experts are worried. ...
7. Albert Lea adds EDA to tackle housing, redevelopment gaps ...
8. Rep. Fitzgerald Introduces Package of Housing Legislation to End the GSE Conservatorship & Help Fix America’s Housing Supply Crisis...

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Wisconsin Housing Preservation Corp., a nonprofit dedicated to preserving and expanding affordable housing throughout Wisconsin, announced Monday the appointment of Nicole Solheim as vice president of development.

Solheim will lead development and acquisition initiatives that support WHPC’s continued growth and more.

“Nicole brings a unique combination of development expertise, strategic leadership and deep commitment to affordable housing,” Mike Slavish, president of WHPC, said in a statement. “Her experience navigating complex housing projects and building strong partnerships will be instrumental as we continue expanding our impact across Wisconsin.”

Solheim has more than 15 years of experience in affordable housing development, finance and community revitalization...

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Leo's notes: While leadership announcements rarely make housing headlines, experienced development professionals play a critical role in turning housing concepts into completed projects. As affordable housing financing grows more complex, organizations increasingly rely on leaders who can assemble public-private partnerships, secure layered funding, and navigate challenging development environments. Looking forward to following her continued affordable housing work!

A development agreement has been put together to provide financial incentives for an affordable housing apartment project on Sturgeon Bay’s east side. 

The city’s Finance/Purchasing and Building Committee recommended the agreement, which received final approval by the Common Council on June 16. 

Developer Brian Spoerl of Spoerl Commercial said he plans to begin construction in July on a three-story, 39-unit apartment building as the first phase of the development, known as The Avenue, to be built along North 14th Avenue near Georgia Street. The project has been awarded low-income housing tax credits (LIHTC) from the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA). 

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Leo's notes: While often overlooked, preemptive agreements that outline responsibilities between municipality and developer are a critical tool for translating community housing goals into shovel-ready projects. As communities across Wisconsin continue searching for ways to overcome housing shortages, structured public-private agreements like this one demonstrate how local governments can reduce uncertainty while ensuring public investments deliver long-term workforce housing outcomes.

If there's room for agreement on anything in Washington, it's that lawmakers need to do something to make homeownership more affordable. On Tuesday, legislators on both sides of the aisle clinched the final vote in the House to pass the largest piece of housing legislation in decades.

The bill, called the 21st Century Road to Housing Act, passed 358-32 in the House. The Senate approved it Monday with similarly overwhelming bipartisan support...

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Leo's notes: This bipartisan legislation recognizes that the country's housing crisis is fundamentally a supply challenge requiring reforms across financing, regulation, permitting, and construction. Communities that already have development-ready sites, supportive zoning, strong public-private partnerships, and a pipeline of workforce housing projects will be best positioned to leverage the new federal tools. The legislation reinforces that federal policy can create opportunities, but homes are ultimately built by communities that are prepared to say "yes" to housing...

Ken Notes: WWHNews is a nonpartisan publication, in fact we see workforce housing as one of the few bipartisan issues in the legislature now. to play politics with this is not in the best interest of the American people.

(WXPR) - The Oneida County Economic Development Corporation Executive Directors says he has developers that would be breaking ground if not for one major hurdle.

Much of the county lacks the needed infrastructure for more housing and the cost to put it in would make the housing unaffordable for many.

Available lots with water, sewer, streets, and other utilities already in place are in short supply in Oneida County, especially in the Rhinelander area.

Putting those in can cost anywhere from $850 to $1,000 a square foot.

Oneida County Economic Development Corporation Executive Director Tony Pharo says if a developer was to take on those costs, it would price out buyers before they even build the house...

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Leo's notes: A community may have willing developers, available land, and strong demand, but without the infrastructure to serve new homes, construction simply cannot begin.This growing recognition represents an important shift in the workforce housing conversation. Infrastructure should no longer be viewed as a separate public works issue—it is a housing strategy.

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

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

Plans to develop city-owned property at 1259 Division Road on Sturgeon Bay’s west side, which could be included in a new Tax Increment District (TID), continue to progress.

Paul Shefchik of PortSide Builders is partnering with a Green Bay-area developer, Jim Conard of Iron Gates, who wants to use 23.7 acres of the 35.43-acre site for a 55-lot subdivision with 44 single-family lots and 11 duplex lots for a total of 66 dwelling units.

Of the 44 single-family lots, 30 would be for workforce housing, where specific types of homes are offered at set prices to Door County workers. PortSide has been involved with constructing workforce housing in the Geneva Ridge subdivision on the city’s west side.

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Leo's notes: Door County continues to demonstrate that solving a housing shortage requires more than a single housing product. While barndominiums may appeal to buyers seeking storage for recreational vehicles and boats, the inclusion of 30 workforce-priced homes ensures that local employees remain a central focus of the project. Equally noteworthy is the financing strategy: pairing the development with a new Tax Increment District; using a proven economic development tool to help fund the infrastructure necessary for housing growth.

States and cities are loosening building code requirements in an effort to lower construction costs and boost affordable housing.

Some of these changes include allowing low-rise apartment buildings to have just one stairway, reducing how often building codes are updated and rolling back specific electrical or fire safety standards.

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Leo's notes: Fire and life safety requirements have long been viewed as essential public protections, but they also influence the cost of every new housing development. This current debate illustrates the difficult balance communities face: how to reduce unnecessary construction costs without compromising occupant safety. The issue is less about eliminating safety standards and more about identifying where regulations can be modernized without increasing risk. Advances in building materials, construction methods, and fire detection technologies may create opportunities to achieve comparable safety outcomes at lower cost.

ALBERT LEA, Minn. — The Albert Lea City Council voted to create an Economic Development Authority to complement the existing Port Authority and Housing and Redevelopment Authority.

City officials say the new authority will help address economic development opportunities that fall between the traditional roles of the Port Authority and the Housing and Redevelopment Authority. The Port Authority focuses on industrial and infrastructure projects, while the Housing and Redevelopment Authority focuses on public housing.

The Economic Development Authority is intended to provide greater flexibility to support redevelopment efforts, market-rate housing and broader community economic growth. One area of focus will be workforce housing to help employers fill job openings...

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Leo’ s notes: Many communities have a housing authority, an economic development corporation, and planning staff—but significant workforce housing projects often fall into the spaces between those organizations. Albert Lea offers an example of how organizational structure can be just as important as funding in moving projects from concept to construction.

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, Congressman Scott Fitzgerald (WI-05) introduced three pieces of legislation aimed at fixing the housing supply crisis in the United States: the Sustainable Homeownership Act, the Working Families Home Construction Act, and the Home Affordability Through Mortgage Simplification Act.

The Sustainable Homeownership Act creates a statutory path out of conservatorship for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It also increases private-sector risk sharing, limits risky balance-sheet growth, and protects equal access for small lenders. The broader goal is to move the housing finance system away from indefinite government control and toward a more transparent, better-capitalized, private-capital-backed structure. The bill also addresses affordability concerns by tying conforming loan limit growth more closely to household income and by permitting certain enterprise funds to support housing supply initiatives...

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Leo's notes: While the proposals are unlikely to have the immediate visibility of federal grant programs or tax incentives, they focus on the infrastructure that makes long-term mortgage lending and home construction possible. If enacted, reforms to the secondary mortgage market could improve the flow of capital to lenders and builders, potentially making it easier to finance new housing developments and expand homeownership opportunities...

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.


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