ELY— There were smiles and plenty of sunshine here as dozens of officials gathered on the city’s southwest corner last Thursday, to break ground on the Wilderness Escape. It’s a new 37-unit market rate housing complex that’s expected to open to residents sometime next year.
The estimated $9.2 million project will provide a thoughtfully designed mix of studio, one-bedroom, two-bedroom, and three-bedroom apartments, along with 22 garage spaces, all designed to meet the needs of the community’s growing workforce.
The project is the culmination of years of effort by the Ely Housing and Redevelopment Authority, the city of Ely, and developer D.W. Jones, along with major funding from the Department of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation, and Minnesota Housing, along with private financing from Frandsen Bank and Trust.
That includes a $4.5 million IRRR grant, $2.8 million in Housing Revenue Bonds financed through Frandsen, $1.5 million from Minnesota Housing’s workforce housing program, and $350,000 from the city’s HRA, which will manage the facility once built. That combined financial assistance will help keep the price range for most units in the mid-$200,000s, according to Skip Duchesneau, owner of Walker-based development firm D.W. Jones, all while using prevailing wage.
Duchesneau noted that the IRRR played a critical role in filling a funding gap that had initially kept the project from moving ahead. “Without this gap funding, this project would not be moving forward,” he said.
In the recent past, that kind of funding would not have been possible, noted IRRR Commissioner Ida Rukavina, who spoke during the groundbreaking event. While the agency has long financed basic infrastructure needed for housing projects, the agency had declined to dedicate funding specifically for housing construction. Rukavina noted that has changed as the agency opted to create a new housing program after hearing from area businesses and families about the acute shortage of housing in the region. “Our board came through and really supported our agency going in a new direction,” she said, noting that most funding for the agency comes from the production tax on the region’s taconite industry. “The governor also made housing a priority with his One Minnesota vision,” Rukavina said, citing a $13 billion commitment to new housing in the state.
State Sen. Grant Hauschild noted the bipartisan consensus that has developed over the need to help fund housing in an era of high building costs, and that the consensus extends well beyond Minnesota. “We’re even hearing conversations at the national level with a bipartisan housing agreement that passed both bodies and has support really across the board.” Hauschild said projects like this one are likely to help attract younger families to relocate in Ely. With its location, directly behind the Ely Bloomenson Hospital, the project is expected to be a popular housing option for new medical staff.
That’s why Hauschild said he’s a strong supporter of the IRRR’s newfound willingness to finance housing. “In our communities, we should be shouting from the rooftops that it’s a good thing that the IRRR is involved in housing. It’s good that they’re being proactive. It’s good that we’re using mining dollars for this, because it’s going to benefit all of our communities.”
State Rep. Roger Skraba, Ely’s former mayor, used the event to laud his hometown, saying that other communities don’t have the kind of infrastructure that Ely can provide. “And I don’t mean ‘dirt’ infrastructure,” said Skraba. “I’m talking about the people infrastructure to make it work like we do here in Ely. We have the HRA, who gets it, who work with us. They’re doing a fantastic job. We have city hall, we have John [Fedo], we have people all pulling in the right direction.”
Skraba said he hopes the current project is the first of many. “I look at this as just the beginning. I’m glad Skip stepped up and wants to do it, because he’s a great developer.”
Project site ideal
The project is being built in a now former gravel pit, a portion of which is owned by the Ely HRA with the other portion owned by the city, both of which are donating land for the project. As of this week’s groundbreaking, the site was fully leveled, compacted, and ready for work to begin. Miller Architects and Builders, of St. Cloud, will manage the construction.