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SPECIAL SECTION: HOUSING IN GREATER LANSING
Affordable Housing Shortage Squeezes Lansing Area Families
he housing shortage combined says one of the problems is a lack of subsidized housing in
with rising inflation is putting the area. Fleming says there is an acute need in the city of
Tthe squeeze on low-and-middle Lansing for 3, 4 and 5- bedroom units. LHC has a wait list for
income families. Rents have been the Section 8 HUD program of 10-11 months.
climbing and wages are not keeping
up and many families are being forced “The last two times we opened the list we had 3,400
to spend more than 30 percent of their applications within 7 days,” said Fleming.
income on rent and utilities. The lack of
affordable housing is disproportionately LHC uses a lottery system to narrow the list down to 600-700
impacting minority and underserved McDaniel applicants. After going through a required process to identify
populations. qualified families to receive the subsidy, LHC will issue a
voucher. However, each family must then find a housing unit
Mark McDaniel is CEO of Cinnaire that meets their needs. LHC gives each family 90 days plus a
Corporation, a Lansing-based 90-day extension to locate qualified housing.
community development organization
that lends funds and manages “We are finding more and more that families that need that
affordable housing projects throughout 3,4 or 5 bedroom unit bringing the voucher back to us and
the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic. Locally, saying ’we just can’t find a unit,” said Fleming. “You get the
Cinnaire acquired the former School golden ticket only to go out into the market to find out the
for the Blind Site near Old Town in golden ticket isn’t worth anything.”
Lansing, and working with an Indiana Van Fossen
developer built affordable housing The National Low Income Housing Coalition estimates the
units known as Walnut Park, as well shortfall of rental units to low-income families in Michigan at
as senior citizen units. Adjacent land more than 200,000. Contributing to that shortfall is the fact
is development ready and McDaniel that wages have not kept pace with rising costs. Van Fossen
hopes to build townhouses there once also points to a need for more funding options from both the
economic conditions are more favorable. public and private sector, adjustments in local zoning laws to
McDaniel says the affordable housing enable communities to better plan for future housing needs
crisis has evolved over a number of years, and more landlords willing to participate in various housing
resulting from failed policies at the assistance programs.
federal state and local level, which led to
efforts to keep affordable housing out Fleming The Capital Area Housing Partnership has calculated the
of communities, primarily due to anti-low income and often region needs at least 20,000 more housing units to meet
racial bias. the region’s needs. Van Fossen says to meet that need will
require leadership from elected officials and freeing up
“We’re now playing catch-up,” said McDaniel. “The working more funds from HUD’s Community Development Block
poor making 12-18 dollars an hour have no place to live Grant program, expanding the federal low-income housing
because of historic policies that have not generated a supply tax credit and increased dollars from the National Housing
of housing to serve those people needs.” Trust Fund.
Rawley Van Fossen, Executive Director of the Capital Area “We need our elected leaders and the private sector to
Housing Partnership, says there are more people searching encourage and advocate that we fund those programs even
for home ownership or rentals than there are available units. more than we already do,” said Van Fossen.
Additionally, many people are living in sub-standard housing
and unable to move. The lack of supply plus skyrocketing Officials at the state level have moved the housing crisis
costs has the market out of balance. up on the priority list in the past couple of years. In 2021,
LRCC joined with 20 statewide organizations to support the
“It costs us more to build a house in the city of Lansing than Housing Michigan Coalition, which has already been able to
it will ever be appraised for,” said Van Fossen. “It is a losing push four pieces of legislation into law.
model and you are not likely to get a for-profit builder to
build a home in the city because the numbers don’t work.” In September 2022, Governor Gretchen Whitmer signed
an executive order establishing the Statewide Housing
The Lansing Housing Commission (LHC) is a Public Housing Partnership within the Michigan State Housing Development
Agency that provides rental housing units and rental Authority (MSHDA). The partnership will develop a strategy
assistance to families in ten communities in the Greater to implement Michigan’s Statewide Housing Plan. The
Lansing region. LHC Executive Director Doug Fleming Michigan Economic Development Corporation announced
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