Accessory Dwelling Units have arrived, DART & Principal are joining forces, housing funds set record

Welcome to PCHTF Housing Beat. This is an experimental newsletter made especially for our LinkedIn community. We value your feedback on this offering - be sure to leave a comment with what you'd like to see in future newsletters.

We're all abuzz about Des Moines' newest accessory dwelling unit

Check out the final episode in our three-part video series on accessory dwelling units hosted by Kourtney Kirkpatrick of HOME Inc. The final episode features an interview with Brad Anderson of AARP - Iowa, a leading ADU advocate and a tour of the demonstration ADU HOME Inc. recently completed in the Oak Park neighborhood of Des Moines.

• Background: Accessory Dwelling Units are just smaller homes that share a lot with a larger single family home. Des Moines recently dramatically expanded the portion of the city where they may be built.
• ADUs are a way of adding new housing choices that match well with existing neighborhoods, often at a substantially lower price than constructing a new full size home on its own.

PCHTF names Amal Barre Graduate Fellow in Housing Justice

PCHTF has named Amal B. Graduate Fellow in Housing Justice. Barre, who is VP of strategy and planning at Oakridge Neighborhood, is pursuing her PhD in urban planning at the University of Amsterdam. The fellowship will support Barre's research on the impact of urban renewal policy on owner occupied household displacement in historically low-income and minority neighborhoods in Des Moines, Iowa, and Amsterdam, the Netherlands, between 1950 and 2022.

Thanks to the Mid-Iowa Health Foundation and Dr. Jane Rongerude of Iowa State University for support that makes this award possible.

DART and Principal Foundation team up for transit innovation

Elizabeth Presutti of DART - Des Moines Area Regional Transit Authority and Jo Christine M. of Principal Financial Group and the Principal Foundation recently teamed up to publish an item in the The Des Moines Register highlighting three equity-focused transit innovations DART is undertaking this year.

1. Free rides to school for Des Moines Public Schools North High and Harding Middle students.
2. Weekend service in the Merle Hay corridor through City of Des Moines Moines and City of Johnston, Iowa helping people get to work & shopping when buses previously didn't run.
3. (In planning phase) New on demand mobility services in the 50314 zip code, to provide better access to opportunity in a neighborhood where many are living in poverty. The Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines just awarded this pilot a $20,000 leadership grant.

Read the whole article about these innovations or show your support through a public comment to DART.

State Housing Trust Fund support of PCHTF exceeds $1 million for the first time

This year, the Iowa Finance Authority allocated more than $11 million in State Housing Trust Fund resources to local housing trust funds statewide -- the largest amount ever -- including $1.03 million to PCHTF.

• Local impact: Polk County's contribution and the State Housing Trust Fund allocation are the two sources of funds PCHTF uses to fund the development and improvement of housing.
• Funds for the State Housing Trust Fund are higher this year because the legislature and governor raised a cap on funds for the program in 2021.
• The Iowa Finance Authority reports since it was started in 2003, the State Housing Trust Fund has provided $112.2 million in affordable housing assistance to benefit more than 35,200 Iowa families, leveraging more than $175 million in other funding resources.
• Learn more: PCHTF recommends reading a new policy brief by the Legislative Services Agency issued in December as the ultimate guide to housing programs in Iowa as well as current information about housing market conditions.

Looking ahead through an unsettled housing market

Recently the Des Moines Business Record hosted a Project 515 panel discussion focused on the unsettled housing market that lies in store for 2023. While interest rates and rising costs have cooled the market and reduced buying power, experts recommend staying focused on the local picture, which has been more positive than market conditions nationally. Watch a recording on the Business Record's Facebook page.

Good news

• PCHTF thanks Luke Mohlenhoff (far right) from West Bank for dropping by to provide a $10,000 investment in the Trust Fund's Stable Steady Strong campaign. This investment will support programs and services that help keep Polk County neighbors stably housed.
• Congratulations teree caldwell-johnson , PCHTF board member and president and CEO of Oakridge Neighborhood Services on being elected chair of the National Civic League which awards the All-America City awards (of which Des Moines is a six-time recipient)
• Congratulations to Aaron DeJong for being named economic development director for the City of Urbandale and to Curtis Brown for moving full-time to the assistant city manager role. (Read more in the press release.)
• Congratulations to Britney Appelgate for being named senior social impact and sustainability specialist for 富国银行 . (We will miss your leadership of Capital Crossroads (CXR) and partnership on the Here We Grow initiative!)
• Congratulations to Luke Elzinga, MPP who will now direct policy and advocacy efforts full time at the Des Moines Area Religious Council (DMARC) and to Blake Willadsen who joins DMARC as marketing and communications director.

We love good news! Leave a comment to suggest something we should mention in a future newsletter or send suggestions to PCHTF via LinkedIn message.