APPLETON (NBC 26) — The City of Appleton announced the formation of a task force dedicating to finding solutions to the shortage of affordable housing in the city on Tuesday.
The task force is made up of representatives from the Home Builder's Association of the Fox Cities, Habitat for Humanity, REALTORS Assocation of Northeast Wisconsin and the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce.
Appleton Mayor Jake Woodford says that although the city has taken steps to create more affordable housing, costs continue to rise, making the task force a necessity.
“The average residential property in the city has appreciated over 39% since our last appreciation a few years ago…" said Woodford, "while the challenges we face as a community when it comes to housing are not always in our direct control, I believe whole-heartedly we must work together to do all we can to address the challenges that are in our control.”
Woodford says the task force will spend the next several months reviewing the city's current process for housing development and making recommendations to make affordable housing easier to develop.
