Residents and advocates urge River Falls to act on affordable housing and tiny homes

Several members of the public used the meeting's public-comment period to press the council on housing policy and the need for affordable housing.

Patricia LaRue, of 489 Marcella Court, said planned unit developments and map lines on staff presentations represent future homes and families. LaRue said residents who move to River Falls "become our coaches, our teachers, our librarians" and argued that smaller, single-level affordable units can allow seniors and lower-income buyers to remain in the community. "I want a nice little single level place that I can call my own that's affordable," she said.

Dana Linscott, speaking for the River Falls Alliance for the Homeless, told the council that city-funded housing studies show the community is behind on low-income housing and that waiting for private developers will not produce needed tiny-home or low-income options. Linscott criticized the mayor and the city administrator's current approach to outside investors, saying it amounts to "tribalism" that excludes people who live outside city limits from investment opportunities and urged a change in attitude among city leadership.

No formal council response to the criticisms is recorded in the transcript; the comments were entered into the public record as appeals for more active local housing strategies.

Next steps: The remarks signal public pressure on the council to consider more proactive local approaches to affordable housing and to clarify how city processes and PUD approvals will address housing affordability and scale.