Duluth proposes new "affordable housing" column in Housing Trust Fund guidelines

Summary

Council staff presented proposed updates to the Duluth Housing Trust Fund guidelines that would create a dedicated affordable housing column for eligible projects and attach interest-rate terms. Councilor Kennedy asked which items were new; Director Van Tassel said the column and its associated purposes are the principal additions.

Councilor Kennedy asked about the proposed changes to the Duluth Housing Trust Fund program guidelines and which line items represented the additions. Director Van Tassel said, “the biggest change to the housing trust fund guidelines, that we're putting forward is actually creating the affordable housing column within that. I believe you're looking at the, the attachment to that. So that currently, we do not have an affordable housing bucket within the housing trust fund. This change would create that. And so that whole that whole column are are the new items.”

Van Tassel added that interest rates listed on the left of the table would apply to the new additions. The council also recorded a separate resolution (Resolution 856) authorizing acceptance of $970,416.10 from St. Louis County to provide Minnesota Family Investment Program and Diversionary Work Program employment and training services; no further detail on program breakdown was provided in this meeting.

No formal vote on the Housing Trust Fund guideline changes was recorded at this session.