Local Housing Non-profit Receives $100k to Begin Operations
August 26, 2024
The Chequamegon Bay United Impact Land Trust (CheqBUILT) received a $100,000 award from the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA). This money will enable the new affordable housing non-profit to hire its first Executive Director. “Hiring an E.D. will be a monumental step forward,” says Kellie Pederson, President of the Board of Directors of CheqBUILT. “There is so much opportunity here. This contribution is just what we needed to build our capacity and bring more workforce housing options to the area.”
The organization has posted a position description on their website at www.cheqbuilt.org/hiring. Interested parties should apply before September 30.
The new community land trust is the result of a multi-year collaboration between WHEDA and several local municipalities and tribes as a part of WHEDA’s Rural Affordable Workforce Housing Pilot Initiative. “We’ve worked with WHEDA for years to come up with solutions that can better address rural housing needs,” Pederson says. “This idea had wings, and here we are, on the cusp of something amazing.”
Once the Executive Director is on board, CheqBUILT will launch a fundraising campaign to support its goal of bringing five homes into the trust in 2025. These homes will be available to income-qualified buyers making up to 120% of the area median income. In 2023, this income limit was just over $100,000 for a family of four. “There are very few programs that can meet the housing needs for middle-income folks in our region,” notes Kelly Westlund, Housing Outreach Specialist with UW-Madison for Bayfield County. “CheqBUILT will be a critical piece of the puzzle when it comes to addressing our regional workforce housing shortage.”
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The Chequamegon Bay United Impact Land Trust (CheqBUILT) received a $100,000 award from the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority (WHEDA). This money will enable the new affordable housing non-profit to hire its first Executive Director. “Hiring an E.D. will be a monumental step forward,” says Kellie Pederson, President of the Board of Directors of CheqBUILT. “There is so much opportunity here. This contribution is just what we needed to build our capacity and bring more workforce housing options to the area.”
The organization has posted a position description on their website at www.cheqbuilt.org/hiring. Interested parties should apply before September 30.
The new community land trust is the result of a multi-year collaboration between WHEDA and several local municipalities and tribes as a part of WHEDA’s Rural Affordable Workforce Housing Pilot Initiative. “We’ve worked with WHEDA for years to come up with solutions that can better address rural housing needs,” Pederson says. “This idea had wings, and here we are, on the cusp of something amazing.”
Once the Executive Director is on board, CheqBUILT will launch a fundraising campaign to support its goal of bringing five homes into the trust in 2025. These homes will be available to income-qualified buyers making up to 120% of the area median income. In 2023, this income limit was just over $100,000 for a family of four. “There are very few programs that can meet the housing needs for middle-income folks in our region,” notes Kelly Westlund, Housing Outreach Specialist with UW-Madison for Bayfield County. “CheqBUILT will be a critical piece of the puzzle when it comes to addressing our regional workforce housing shortage.”
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