by April Scheinoha
Reporter

It’s a great problem to have. After all, as Pennington County Commissioner Neil Peterson quoted the late Roger Tunberg, “If you’re not growing, you’re dying.”

Local counties continue to feel the housing pinch and are trying to find ways to solve the problem. Roseau Mayor Dan Fabian appeared before the Pennington County Board on Tuesday, April 12 to share Roseau’s efforts and ask for suggestions to solve the area’s housing issues. In particular, he was focused on the need for more market-rate housing.

Roseau city leaders have come up with innovative ways to solve some of its housing shortage. A developer planned to build a $6 million market-rate apartment building. Once completed, the building was expected to be appraised at $4 million when considering how much could be collected in rent. As a result, according to Fabian, the developer was only able to borrow 80% of $4 million.

The city obtained a $1.5 million grant through the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency. Fabian said Polaris chipped in an additional $100,000 with LifeCare Medical Center and Karl Manufacturing Solutions contributing additional funds. Tax increment financing and a tax abatement will provide the remaining funds.

Similar approaches have been used in Thief River Falls. At the same meeting where Fabian spoke, commissioners approved a TIF plan for The Angle. MAK Properties LLC is requesting redevelopment TIF from the City of Thief River Falls to construct a four-story mixed-use building near Valley Assisted Living. Three of the four floors will house a total of 93 apartment units. The remaining floor will house commercial space and a heated parking garage.

Developer Marc Kuhn plans to construct a separate 6,000 square-foot daycare on the property. Discovery Place has signed a letter of intent to offer a second daycare at that location.

The Thief River Falls School District has also approved the TIF plan. The Thief River Falls City Council was required to notify both the district and county prior to creation of the TIF district and allow for comments from both entities. The council is expected to hold a public hearing on the TIF district at its meeting Tuesday, April 19 at 5:30 p.m.

In the past, Pennington County has abated taxes for certain properties. At their meeting Tuesday, commissioners approved scheduling a public hearing to discuss the potential creation of a new county property tax abatement program. The hearing will be held Tuesday, May 10 at 9:30 a.m. at the Justice Center.

The City of Thief River Falls has already approved the three-year tax abatement for the construction of new single-family homes no matter the cost or location of the home in the city. City leaders then asked county and school district leaders if they wanted to offer similar tax abatements of their respective entity’s taxes.

Housing isn’t the only thing in short supply in the area. Pennington County Board Chairperson Bruce Lawrence noted that Textron and Central Boiler are both looking for a considerable number of new employees. He questioned where the businesses expected to obtain the employees.

One way to entice people to work here is to have housing stock available. Commissioner Darryl Tveitbakk noted his home is too big for him and his wife. He believed he could sell their home in two days, but there is no place for them to go in Thief River Falls.

The Greater Minnesota Partnership is trying to help area communities solve the housing crisis. In an interview with the Northern Watch this week, GMP Executive Director Scott McMahon said the state spends about $1 billion on housing. The bulk of the state housing funding is federal pass-through money, and the vast majority is focused on individuals with lower incomes. The Walz Administration has proposed adding $10 million in funding for housing. That money would then be used to provide housing for individuals without any income limits imposed. McMahon said neither the Minnesota House nor Senate have tackled the proposal.

Another option is using bonding proceeds. GMP advocates utilizing bonding proceeds to provide infrastructure grants to local governments for new housing developments.