DETROIT, Mich. — Governor Gretchen Whitmer announced plans to increase the availability of affordable, safe housing Tuesday afternoon in Detroit.
Gov. Whitmer was joined by the acting executive director of the Michigan State Housing Development, Gary Heidel, to announce plans to invest a portion of funding under President Joe Biden’s American Rescue Plan to increase the availability of affordable housing throughout Michigan.
At manufacturing facility in Detroit on Tuesday, Governor Whitmer announced the proposed investment of $100 million of federal relief dollars from President Biden's American Rescue Plan into the Michigan Housing and Community Development Fund (HCDF).
Whitmer says the plan would help 6,000 Michiganders, produce 2,000 rental housing units, and leverage an additional $380 million in private funding, while creating 1,600 good-paying jobs.
The move would allow MSHDA to specifically target workforce housing and “missing middle” housing for those transitioning from low-income into middle-income housing.
“This new housing investment will make a huge difference in the lives of Michiganders because a home is the foundation for long-term prosperity,” said Governor Whitmer. "Investments in housing infrastructure are crucial as we build our economy back better from the pandemic and put Michigan back to work in thousands of good-paying jobs. This transformational investment will put Michiganders first by expanding access to affordable and attainable housing, helping close equity gaps, and supporting the development of vibrant communities across the state.”
MSHDA will develop a plan to allocate the funds and a formula for disbursement based on poverty rates, and economic and housing distress.
“By leveraging additional private capital, we will be able to amplify this major investment to its fullest extent,” said MSHDA Acting Executive Director Gary Heidel. “The current magnitude of the housing shortage is so large that solving the supply problem will take significant coordination of both public and private resources, coordination that the Housing and Community Development Fund was designed to do.”
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