Affordable housing project developers to receive $32.4M in grants

MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) - Affordable housing project developers in Wisconsin are set to receive $32.4 million in grant money to kickstart projects, Governor Tony Evers, the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA) and Executive Director Elmer Moore Jr. announced.

The money in these grants builds on the previous funding from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to help fill financial gaps caused by rising construction costs, interest rate increases and supply chain delays, the governor’s office said.

“Affordable housing is essential to the safety, health, and well-being of our kids and families, workers, and communities,” said Gov. Evers.

When the original $20 million from ARPA was introduced, WHEDA received over $38 million in grant requests from developer partners. After this, ARPA tacked on an additional $5 million and WHEDA added $7.4 million using federal allocation of National Housing Trust funds. The additional $12.4 will go toward being able to support 85% of the total requested housing project funding, Evers’ office explained.

“Wisconsin’s need for safe, affordable housing has grown, so we also chose not to limit the awards to the ARPA funds,” said Moore.

Wisconsin officials say that the grants will allow for the construction of 22 developments in 11 counties and open up space for 1,200 new affordable housing units in urban and rural areas of Wisconsin.