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SERVING: Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, Leelanau and Benzie counties force housing to benefit residents who have difficulty obtaining market-rate housing but have more income than would qualify for subsidy programs.

Thankfully, our collective voices were heard as Michigan policymakers came together in a successful bipartisan effort to pass the package of housing legislation in December. The package provides new tools to address our local housing needs in several important ways, including two bills from local lawmakers. A payment in lieu of taxes (PILOT) bill, sponsored by Sen. Wayne Schmidt, allows local governments to provide low-income housing tax credits for workforce housing projects. Rep. John Roth sponsored a bill that allows municipalities to offer temporary tax abatements for multi-family or single-family housing.

The legislation also offers new ways for local governments to address the missing middle subset of workforce housing. Municipalities can now create “attainable housing districts” where property owners can apply for partial tax exemptions if they meet affordability requirements set by the local government and Neighborhood Enterprise Zones to support the construction of new homes or condominiums in mixed-use buildings in newly designated zones.

While this legislation is a big step forward, successful growth in attainable housing stock for local communities depends on deploying and utilizing the new tools in our neighborhoods. Effective partnerships between private sector developers, nonprofits, and local governments will be key to success.

As state agencies begin implementing the legislative changes, business leaders can engage with local officials to discuss the importance of these programs to address workforce housing. Local elected officials and municipal leaders will have an opportunity to attend information webinars hosted by Housing North to learn more about implementing the new tools available to them.

County, city, villages, and townships will be key to implementing these tools and changing the narrative about our region’s housing opportunities for working families. We may not fully address the workforce housing gap by 2025, but by working together with effective public-private partnerships we can significantly impact our region’s future growth and success. Local business and community leaders of the mid-21st century will thank us for taking action today.

Warren Call is the president/CEO of Traverse Connect. Contact him at warren.call@ traverseconnect.org.

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The Traverse City Business News

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