Olmsted County to spend $16.1 million in federal relief funds on affordable housing

The Olmsted County Board signed off on a plan this week to put $16.1 million in federal relief funds toward affordable housing.

The “unprecedented support” for housing infrastructure includes $10 million for a Rochester Area Foundation initiative that aims to create and preserve more than 1,100 affordable housing units in Olmsted County.

Another $5 million will be used to create affordable homeownership opportunities through a new program to be developed by the county. The program, according to the announcement, “will incentivize the addition to the affordable housing stock in the county.” Additional details regarding the investments, the county says, are forthcoming.

Other investments included in the $16.1 million plan include the purchase of the building at 105 North Broadway Avenue in Rochester to continue providing transitional housing to homeless individuals. The $1 million allocation will cover half the estimated cost to purchase the space. The county also earmarked $100,000 to make repairs to the Rochester Community Warming Center, an overnight homeless shelter.

“Affordable and diverse housing opportunities have long been an important priority for Olmsted County and our residents,” said Olmsted County Board Chair Stephanie Podulke, in a written statement. “We have heard from the community that we need to focus on this area. These funds, and our prioritization of them, are essential steps in the right direction.” 

Additionally on Tuesday, county commissioners approved the following initiatives using federal American Rescue Plan Act funds:

—A proposal from Workforce Development, Inc. to support developing pathways to careers in local government totaling $420,000. This program development has been underway for several years but has lacked consistent funding. It will provide job training and support for individuals interested in positions in local government that have traditionally been hard to fill.

—A trained social worker liaison from the county to work with all the school districts in Olmsted County for truancy prevention. This is a one-year provisional FTE for $120,000. This need was supported by recent data from a COVID-19 impact survey sent countywide and through discussions with school partners regarding truancy and mental health concerns for children in K-12 schools.

—Funding of $1.2 million to complete the new nature center at Oxbow Park. The Oxbow Park nature center project cost is approximately $7.5 million and has already received $2.33 million from the state’s Parks and Trails Legacy Fund. Olmsted County had previously committed to investing $3.5 million.

—Chester Heights Sewer District funding of $500,000 for key upgrades and improvements.

—Technology projects within Health, Housing, and Human Services at the county that will support interoperability, automation, conversion of paper to electronic processes, and access to data and ease of use for clients. These projects total $1 million.

—Additional hours totaling $120,000 for school nurses to prepare for the upcoming 2021-2022 school year after being deployed to the pandemic for 18 months.

—Provisional staffing for the County Attorney’s Office totaling $500,000 to assist with the backlog of court cases in the system.

The $20 million in spending will come from the total $31 million package awarded to the county. The remaining $11 million be reviewed and allocated in the spring of 2022, according to the county.