Minocqua committee on housing and labor to identify property suitable for workforce housing

The Minocqua town board and its ad hoc committee on housing and labor held a joint meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 8 to get more information regarding seasonal workforce housing development and tax incremental financing (TIF).

Near the end of the roughly two-hour meeting, the town board directed the committee research and find pieces of property that could be suitable for workforce housing development.

Ideally, the property would be three-and-a-half to four acres in size. 

The town board and committee heard presentations  from Dan Bullock, president of Lake Delton-based Holtz Companies, and Dave Rasmussen of MSA Professional Services. 

Bullock was the first to present, and he spoke to the town board and committee about two Holtz Companies that could help the town obtain seasonal workforce housing — International Residence Hall and Holtz Builders. 

Holtz Builders, Bullock explained, would be willing to work with local subcontractors to develop a piece of property. 

The only aspect that is non-negotiable is maintaining the same architect and designer its worked with on all the company’s other workforce housing developments, he said.

International Residence Hall is a Holtz company that manages and operates the housing development once it’s built. 

Bullock said a “standard” footprint of one of its developments is 12,500 square-feet for an acre or acre-and-a-half. 

Three to four acres is preferred, he said, because it leaves the opportunity to build if more housing is needed in the future.

A standard design, Bullock said, could house up to 350 seasonal workers — primarily foreign exchange students participating in the BridgeUSA J1 work program — and the price to build it depends on the community it’s in, which also affects the price students pay for the housing.

Bullock noted the price students typically pay per week at an International Residence Hall location ranges between $100 to $200. 

The time it takes to build a workforce housing development is anywhere from 12 to 14 months, he added.

Committee member Krystal Westfahl pointed out that the property would need to be within a four to five mile radius of Minocqua’s downtown — given that seasonal workers usually walk or ride bikes to get around. 

As part of potentially working with Holtz Builders and International Residence Hall, the town of Minocqua would need to incentivize the company to want to build in the community. 

Part of that incentive could include creating a tax incremental district (TID). 

In his presentation, Rasmussen outlined for the town board and committee the “basics” of creating a TID. 

He said the process includes creating the district’s boundaries, creating a project plan, holding a meeting with a joint review board, holding a public hearing with the town’s plan commission and then having the TID proposal go back to the joint review board for final approval and implementation. 

The joint review board, Rasmussen said, consists of a representative from the town, the school district, the technical college, the county and a citizen member. 

Any other “special district” would be notified of the joint review board formation as well, he added.

Most notably, Rasmussen said the creation of a TID would not increase residents’ taxes.

Town chairman Mark Hartzheim told The Lakeland Times the town would enter into a developers agreement with a construction company, like Holtz.

MSA, he said, is a consultant that helps the town organize and implement the TID.

Town supervisor and committee member Brian Fricke asked Bullock what the next step would be for the town to move forward with Holtz to develop workforce housing. 

Bullock said usually it’s identifying a piece of land the town believes would be a good spot for the housing development. 

With two area businesses — Oakfire Pizza and Wild Turkey — closing their doors recently due to not having enough staff, town officials expressed urgency in doing something to prevent further losses.

“It’s my feeling that I don’t want to kick this down the road anymore,” Fricke said. “I feel like we’re in crisis mode right now.”

“I think the first thing is finding a property that is suitable, and then we move from there,” town supervisor Billy Fried concurred.

Hartzheim confirmed with the Times, electors would need to grant the town board the ability to purchase a piece of property. He said he wasn’t sure if the town would need electors’ approval if it was gifted any land.

“How likely is that? I don’t know,” he said.

Trevor Greene may be reached via email at [email protected].