Prairie Cottages meeting yields new timetable
One of three panels presented at the public information meeting on October 3. Panels showed exterior and floor plans for the units.
Progress on the the cottages has moved along ahead of schedule. The buildings are expected to be completed by April. (Steve Van Kooten/Courier Press)
Ashley Lacenski
By Steve Van Kooten
On Thursday, October 3, Couleecap held a public meeting at Prairie du Chien’s City Hall in order to disseminate updated information about the cottages, the construction timeline and requirements for potential tenants.
Ashley Lacenski, Couleecap’s community development director, conducted the meeting in the second-floor conference room from 6–7 p.m.
Couleecap held a groundbreaking ceremony this past August for the Prairie Cottages, which will consist of two single-story buildings. Each building will have a variable number of zero-entry 1-, 2- and 3-bedroom units, which will be 700-, 900- or 1100-square-feet depending on the number of rooms in each unit.
Rent and all utilities (excluding cable) are combined into a single monthly payment that is determined by median county income levels. Utilities include water, electricity, sewer and trash.
“These units are going to be suitable for individuals, families, disabled residents, as well as seniors,” said Lacenski, who said there will not be any market-rate units.
Leases on the property will need to be renewed each year. Tenants will need to submit financial information to ensure they meet income restrictions. Prairie Cottages units will be available to people who are at or below 30, 50 and 80 percent of the county’s median income.
Lancenski said, “What that really means is folks will have to make less than certain income limits.”
The cottages will feature three one-bedroom units available for tenants under the 30-percent income level, which is currently $18,200 for an individual, and the rent will be $478. There will be two one-bedroom units for tenants under 50 percent of the county’s median income, which is $30,350, and the rent will be $695.
Other units will have limits for individual tenants or families, with rent staying under $1,000 per month.
“So, really, the range of rent goes from $478 to $990, depending on the bedroom size and the income level for households. We really worked hard to make those rents affordable,” said Lacenski.
The project was discussed for “many years” and evolved from talks between Couleecap’s Executive Director Hetti Brown and Prairie du Chien City Administrator Chad Abram about the area’s housing crisis.
The Cottages are the result of partnerships with multiple agencies, including the Gerrard Corporation, the city, the Wisconsin Housing Economic Development Authority, Cinnaire Solutions, Solar for Good, and Focus on Energy.
Lacenski said, “All of these different entities helped provide some sort of loan or grant in order to make this project possible.”
Due to the different funding sources used to construct the $7.1 million project, Couleecap contracted Paramark Real Estate Services as a third-party property manager.
“So, Couleecap has properties that we manage on our own. We decided to go to a third-party property manager because of the different types of funding involved,” said Lacenski. “There’s a lot of very complex compliance, and mistakes can be quite bad, for lack of a better term.”
Timeline
Just off of the street on Blackhawk Avenue, work on the cottages has been in full swing since the groundbreaking ceremony, and construction is ahead of schedule.
“They are making significant progress,” said Lacenski. “July 1 was the day the shovel was in the ground, and they’ve already got one building’s frame trusses up this week. They’re pouring concrete for the second building.”
Couleecap expects the first building to complete construction and obtain its occupancy permit by February. The second building should be ready by April. Lacenski said Couleecap hopes to see leasing start in the first quarter of the year.
