Land trust and housing authority pitch co-op and report Habitat homes nearing completion

Kim Morisafi, executive director of Northwest Montana Community Land Trust, updated the City Council on two housing efforts aimed at preserving and expanding affordable units. She said six Habitat-built homes on the Railroad site are in the finishing phase and "we anticipate to have people start moving into them early next year," and she thanked the city for donating the property that enabled the project. Morisafi described a separate opportunity at Mountain View Court (821 7th Street), a 32-unit rental property put under contract by NeighborWorks Montana and housing partners that the Land Trust and others are exploring as a resident-owned cooperative.

Riz Getz, director of the Whitefish Housing Authority, told the council his agency will provide technical assistance and reiterated the cooperative model as a long-term preservation strategy. "Multifamily acquisition, by the residents themselves is one of the best preservation strategies we have for affordable units throughout the valley," Getz said, adding that his organization would not exercise government powers on the project and would work in a staff capacity unless council or residents asked otherwise. Both presenters emphasized that, if the pieces come together, they expect to avoid tenant displacement and to include long-term maintenance plans and resident education as part of acquisition and management.