July 2022 Newsletter
Welcome to the first issue of the Little Traverse Bay Housing Partnership’s quarterly newsletter. The newsletter will include updates on housing projects in Emmet County, local and statewide policies, and innovative financing and construction approaches, among other features.
The lack of housing attainable by people at all income levels who live and work in our community is a major crisis affecting our ability to attract and retain families and jobs, and ultimately, maintain the quality of life we enjoy. This crisis is the result of many factors, including land and materials costs, labor shortages, and policies that have the effect of increasing housing costs. A study conducted by Housing North in 2019 estimated a need for over 2,200 homes in Emmet County. Of these, 80% are rental units, most with rents of $700/month or less.
The Little Traverse Bay Housing Partnership is a voluntary association of organizations and individuals working to increase housing options in Emmet County. We support new construction and rehabilitation and champion financial mechanisms and policy changes needed to create more affordable housing in our region. The Partnership collaborates with Housing North to support a full-time Housing Ready Program Director for Emmet County. We welcome local governments, employers, professional associations, local and regional housing nonprofit organizations, financial institutions, developers, builders, philanthropic organizations, and individuals who share these goals to join us and share in our work.
Several New Housing Projects Are Underway
Housing projects that will add over 400 new homes are in various stages of development or consideration. The Little Traverse Bay Housing Partnership and Housing North have lent support to each of them. The Pine Pond project in Bear Creek Township is featured in this issue of the newsletter. Others include:
The Alexander, a 156-unit apartment complex at Atkins and McDougal Roads in Bear Creek Township. The preliminary site plan has been approved; the developer is working on final site plans and sewer study.
Victories Square, a 50-unit apartment complex led by the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians in Bear Creek Township, is scheduled to begin construction soon. The project has received approval from MSHDA for Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) funding.
Northwest Michigan Habitat for Humanity is currently implementing a project that will build 42 single-family homes over the next four years, mostly in Littlefield Township. Habitat has been able to increase substantially its production by using innovative manufactured home components.
Lofts at Lumber Square, 60 units on Emmet Street in Petoskey, is envisioned to be a private/public partnership led by the Petoskey Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation and Haan Development of Harbor Springs. With funds raised through the Emmet Housing Solutions Fund at the Community Foundation, the property has been acquired for the project, with further planning and fundraising currently underway.
Project Highlight
Pine Pond Project on Pickerel Lake Road to Begin in 2022
After many years in planning, Manthei Development Corporation plans to break ground this summer on its Pine Pond project on Pickerel Lake Road in Bear Creek Township. The project includes 128 single-family homes for sale to be built in two phases over 5-8 years, along with on-site storage units, an 8-acre lake, a community center, a beach for residents, walking paths, and substantial green space. At least 10% of the homes will be priced to be affordable by households earning 30% of the Township’s area median income (AMI).
As a transitional feature, the project will include 136 recreational vehicle (RV) sites for up to 8 years as the permanent homes are being built. At least 10% of RV sites will be reserved for long-term rentals, intended for the local workforce. Manthei Development Corporation is pursuing partnerships with local service providers and other businesses with the goals of increasing access to the homes in Pine Pond to local working families and providing group service discounts to residents.
Project Updates
Andrea Jacobs took on the important job of Housing Ready Director for Emmet County this past January.
The position, funded by local government and nonprofits, operates through the regional housing strategy group Housing North and works closely with the Little Traverse Bay Housing Partnership. Her task is to advance strategies to combat the housing crisis by facilitating cooperation between local governments, developers, banks, nonprofits, and other groups interested in housing solutions. A Kalamazoo College graduate with long experience in hospitality and knowledge of the area, Andrea has stepped right up to the challenge.
So far, she can report real progress on several fronts. After getting to know the interests and capacities of area governments and planning agencies, she is identifying where we have “opportunity” zones in which zoning, utilities, and financing might converge to build needed housing and is keeping tabs on potential developments to see how she can help. Andrea is also convening local employers to talk about challenges and solutions, exploring training options to increase students entering the skilled trades, and proving a valuable resource for local groups investigating financing options such as land trusts and investment funds. Given the complexity and urgency of housing needs in our area, Andrea’s skills, experience, enthusiasm, and can-do approach are a welcome and promising contribution. Andrea can be reached at andrea@housingnorth.org.
New Housing Ready Director Gets to Work
Housing North: Priority Initiatives
Housing North was created in 2018 to address barriers to affordable housing in northern Michigan by building awareness and capacity in regional communities to create housing solutions that meet their unique needs.
Housing North is based in Traverse City and serves a 10-county region in Northern Michigan. To learn more, go to www.housingnorth.org.
Two recent initiatives strike home for us here in Emmet County. One is the “Housing Ready Community” Program which offers communities a toolkit to guide advocacy for affordable housing, provides a checklist to assess community readiness, helps develop Housing Action and Opportunity Maps, and facilitates current housing projects and opportunities. Hiring Andrea Jacobs as our Emmet County Housing Ready Director puts us at the forefront of this broad community capacity-building effort.
Second, Housing North is a key member of the Housing Michigan Coalition which supports a bipartisan package of four bills proposing financial incentives to help overcome bottlenecks to building more workforce housing in the State. For more information about the legislative details, CLICK HERE. To send a letter of support, CLICK HERE.
All About ADU’s
Communities Are Looking at Accessory Dwelling Units to Help Address Housing Shortages.
Emmet County recently approved a new zoning ordinance allowing the construction of Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs) in areas for which the County is responsible for zoning. The County joins a number of communities that see ADUs as one solution to their lack of affordable housing options.
ADUs are units on existing single-family lots that have separate kitchen, bathroom and sleeping areas where residence by a second, unrelated household is allowed. ADUs can be an apartment within or attached to a house, or a separate building on the same property as the principal dwelling.
Over 70% of Emmet County households have less than two members, yet much of the housing stock is large single-family homes. ADUs are smaller than existing houses, so are appropriate for smaller households.
ADUs can provide additional benefits, for example:
Allow seniors to “age in place”, by providing options for family members or care-providers to live on site and/or for seniors to move into smaller quarters on their current property;
Allow residents to receive rental revenue to supplement their incomes; and
Provide housing options at lower cost than a full, single-family residence.
However, without proper regulation, ADUs can have several drawbacks, including:
Alter neighborhood character;
Increase traffic, noise, and parking-related issues in residential neighborhoods; and
Stress water supply and waste disposal in areas not connected to municipal utilities.
Emmet County’s ADU ordinance allows one accessory dwelling per lot of between 200-800 square feet (or 75% of the ground floor area of the principal residence, whichever is less) and no higher than the existing house. ADUs must have their own entrance, kitchen, sleeping area, and full bathroom separate from those of the principal dwelling and be adequately served by on-site septic system or sewer. At least one additional parking space is required for the ADU. ADUs cannot be rented for periods of less than 30 days.
AARP also has a variety of resources on ADUs - Click here to view.
Policy Updates:
Emmet Housing Solutions Fund Makes Attainable Housing Possible Locally
The cost of constructing new homes continues to exceed the rents and mortgages that local families can afford. The cost of land, the rising cost of labor and materials, and the costs associated with meeting environmental and zoning requirements all impact the ability to build homes that are attainable. To help overcome some of these barriers, the Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation established the Emmet Housing Solutions Fund in December 2019 with support from the Frey Foundation and myriad donors.
The first grant from the Emmet Housing Solutions Fund went to Northwest Michigan Habitat for Humanity in November 2020 to support infrastructure costs at two of its home build sites: one in Oden and one in Alanson. After a targeted fundraising campaign, which garnered tremendous support from the community, the fund will support the purchase of land in Petoskey for the development of apartments to serve our area’s workforce.
Learn more about the Emmet Housing Solutions Fund here.
Harbor Springs Group Examining Community Land Trust Concept
A group of Harbor Springs area people are considering an idea to help some local families make the jump from renting to owning a home. After participating in two webinars hosted by Housing North, the group is discussing whether a Harbor Springs-focused Community Land Trust could attract donors and help the community.
The group has been consulting with Jane MacKenzie from Northern Homes Community Development Corporation and are grateful for all that she has shared about what her organization does and what they have learned over the years working with Community Land Trusts. They welcome more people to get involved with their group. If interested, contact Bill Mulder at wmulder1@gmail.com. Look for more news in the coming months.
A community land trust (CLT) is a nonprofit corporation that holds land on behalf of a place-based community while serving as the long-term steward for civic projects such as affordable housing or other community assets on behalf of a community.
