Grand Rapids Housing Development Aims to Help Low Income Residents

GRAND RAPIDS, Minn. - A fully-funded housing development is a glimmer of hope for people desperately searching for affordable housing in Grand Rapids."I think the difficulty we have is that we have a lot of good paying jobs, people coming in for those and even they can't find any housing," explained Isaac Meyer, community engagement manager at Itasca Community Action. Statistics show half of the people living in Grand Rapids are considered low income, and a recent study shows it's the main contributor in the housing shortage. Thanks to a big chunk of state funding and a group of dedicated housing experts, Grand Rapids is planning to build a huge rental housing complex called Beacon Hill. It's a big accomplishment for Grand Rapids, but officials say it's not the fix to the housing shortage in Greater Minnesota; it's more like a step in the right direction."We are in need of various types of housing in Itasca county, but particularly affordable rental housing options," said Diane Larson, executive director of the Itasca County Housing and Redevelopment Authority. If you live in Grand Rapids, it's likely about half your paycheck goes to rent and housing experts say that is a big problem."People aren't able to afford to keep their homes up,” said Meyer, describing the housing stock. “Now this ends up depressing our markets and lowering our home values." On any given night, about 80 people are considered homeless in Itasca County, and even more are sleeping in the county's one and only shelter."Here, our homeless want to blend in like anyone else, but they might be underneath the bridge,” said Audrey Moen, housing manager at the Northland Counseling Center. “They might be in the woods. They might be couch hopping."About a year ago, a group of Itasca County housing experts saw the major housing problem, asked the state for help and received state funding to build the new complex.The future spot of Beacon Hill is located on an eight-acre parcel on 21st Street NE. It'll have 48 units, a community center, and a playground. It's also conveniently located next to Target, Walmart, and Cub Foods."Being able to walk and not need their cars to go places is huge," said Meyer. “It's on a bus route. There's beautiful sidewalks." Beacon Hill will be brand new affordable housing, complete with rental assistance and home to numerous resources to help people get back on their feet."We know that children thrive at school if they know they have a safe warm place to go home to,” said Larson. “We think the project will just be a win-win for our community." Beacon Hill won't cost Itasca County taxpayers a dime because the $8.6 million to build it is coming from a state bonding bill."It will change our community for the better and that's a blessing," smiled Moen. Construction on Beacon Hill is set to start summer 2015. When it opens in fall 2016, the experts say they expect it to be full of locals who may have been without homes for a while.Other groups involved in the project are GRACE House homeless shelter, Itasca County Health and Human Services, Kootaska Community Action, and Minnesota Department of Corrections.