Amy Haase with RDG Planning and Development in Omaha, addresses City Council Jan. 14 about the results of a housing study, (Carol Bryant, Central Nebraska Today)
GRAND ISLAND – Grand Island’s City Council hear the results of a housing study Jan. 14.
Chad Nabity, Regional Planning Director, said a housing study is completed every five years.
Amy Haase with RDG Planning and Design of Omaha, which completed the report, gave a presentation to the City Council about the study.
In the market analysis, she said the city’s population would increase from 50,036 in 2025 to 62,332 in 2035. The average number of people per household for both years is about 2.55 people. The projected vacancy rate for both years is 5.2 percent. The number of units needed at the end of the period are 22,621 in 2025 and 25,212 in 2035.
Haase said that the city needs to have a wide variety of housing options. There is a shortage of housing at every price point and product type. Valuation increases are driving up property taxes.
Grand Island does not have a non-profit developer focused on Grand Island
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She next talked about goals and strategies. The first goal is to preserve existing housing and to invest in neighborhoods for the next generation. Options need to be preserved for first-time home buyers. Deterioration in neighborhoods needs to be avoided, and surrounding home values need to be maintained.
The second goal is to expand housing partnerships. The number of resources dedicated to providing a variety of affordable housing options needs to be increased. A network needs to be built to support the results of the Grand Island Housing Study. Awareness of housing challenges facing Grand Island needs to be built.
The third goal is to decrease housing insecurity. Health and well-being needs to be increased for all Grand Island residents. Economic stability needs to be enhanced. A sense of community in Grand Island needs to be grown. Displacement and homelessness needs to be decreased.
Mayor Roger Steele said, “We are often told we need affordable housing.
A nonprofit developer focused on Grand Island could be funded by entities such as economic development groups or churches.
Council Member Mitch Nickerson said that he owns rental properties. When there is a vacancy, it is not uncommon to have 140 inquiries.
“We have a lot of good stuff in the pipeline here,” Nickerson said, referring to the construction of apartments and homes.
Council Member Jack Sheard pointed out that renovation of older houses is possible.
Council Member Chuck Haase said he is concerned that when housing projects are supported by TIF, schools lose income sources for 15 to 20 years.
He said that home valuations are a problem. “I hear it all the time,” he said.
Gerald Poels of Grand Island spoke to the City Council about upcoming housing developments in Grand Island. He said that Woodsonia Real Estate is planning to construct 2,000 housing units in the Good Life District. He wondered how many students that would bring to Grand Island.
“Do we need to be promoting immigration if we have this housing crunch,” he said.
Poels said he wondered who is going to pay for new schools and infrastructure needed for housing developments.
“That’s what I would like for you to consider,” he said.
The Grand Island Area Economic Development Corporation and other local entities funded the housing study. In a memo to the City Council, Amber Alvidrez, Community Development Administrator, wrote that the city and RDG Planning and Design have been conducting the housing study in the last year.
“This study meets the requirements for Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funding from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and is used by investors and developers in determining where and how much to invest in housing in Grand Island. This also meets the requirements for a current housing study as determined by housing incentives offered and authorized by the State of Nebraska including workforce housing grants and the use of tax increment financing to build workforce housing,” she wrote.
This is at least the third time that the city and Economic Development Corporation have collaborated on a Housing Study.
In another matter, the City Council voted 9-0 to table an update of the Designated Depositories List for financial institutions that the city will use for financial transactions. Council Member Chuck Haase said that he wanted to see each financial institution respond in writing that it wanted to be included on the list. Finance Director Matthew Gleason will pursue the project.
The city received a request from VenuWorks, which manages the Heartland Events Center, for an additional $200,000 in working capital. The City Council had initially received $100,000 from the city in November for startup funding for management of the center. Council Member Maggie Mendoza was absent from the Jan. 14 meeting.
In a memo to the City Council, Patrick Brown, chief financial for the city and assistant city administrator, wrote that “there is a time lag for event revenues and signage and sponsorship opportunities to develop. We expect this additional funding will fully bridge the gap until revenues from events, suite sales, sponsorships, and the dedicated hotel tax are expected to offset monthly operating expenses.” VenuWorks is still projecting to operate within the constraints of the adopted FY2025 operating budget.
