Grand Rapids Reporter

Leaders from the city of Grand Rapids are joining forces with state officials, community leaders, and developers to provide relief from the ongoing housing crisis.

Over 100 citizens volunteered with Great Housing Strategies and the Housing Advisory Committee over the past 10 years, according to a news release from the city. The two initiatives brought about revisions to city policies – primarily ones related to affordable housing.

"There also is a lot of interesting work being done on the regional level, and we are in talks with our partners to determine how we can coordinate more in the future," Kate Berens, deputy city manager, said in the news release. "The city of Grand Rapids really works to streamline permitting processes and makes it relatively simple and straightforward for developers to go through the process to get building permits. We are cutting those costs and reducing that relative cost on the overall project. But, there are other factors that impact the cost of construction."

Berens said officials with the Community Master Planning process will seek feedback from the community on how to respond to the city's growth.

"The entire region is falling short of its numbers, but I think the city of Grand Rapids can be really proud of the work that has been done to increase capacity to create more supply and prioritize affordability alongside market-rate housing for a good healthy balance," Ryan Kilpatrick, executive director of Housing Next, said in the news release. "The city has done an outstanding job of supporting and encouraging use of State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) programs. We have a great group of local nonprofit and for-profit organizations that build affordable housing in the city. I think Grand Rapids is doing as well or better than any community in the state when it comes to new or affordable housing construction."