NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — Hutchinson/Reno County Chamber of Commerce CEO Debra Teufel wants to be clear. Hutchinson needs more housing, no matter who is putting it up.
"Housing has been a topic for several years. It was, you know, it was brought up during our ARPA discussions around what can we do to bolster housing in Hutchinson," Teufel said. "The city and the county invested mightily from ARPA dollars in housing rehabilitation, but there has still been, you know, that elephant in the room of what is it going to take to get new housing development sparked in Hutchinson, even though we all recognize that it's a need. I was really glad to see us finally get to the point with Jim Strawn and Strawn Contracting and their proposal for the development on 43rd because I think that new housing product is much needed here. We hear it from businesses when they're trying to recruit people to town that they need workforce housing. It's one of the things holding us back, you know, we're creating, literally, I looked back over the last five years, we're creating hundreds of jobs with existing industry. At the same time, if we're not getting those people that they're hiring to live here because we don't have the housing product that the market demands, then we needed a developer to step into that space. I applaud Jim Strawn for, you know, a year ago or two he applied for the MIH housing grant from the state. He's worked really hard to put his development concept together. But one of the reasons it was hard for him to get to the place that he could actually then put, you know, dig dirt is that there's a big cost to some of the infrastructure. And generally, that infrastructure gets placed on lots as special assessments. But there are some added costs for his project with a lift station and some drainage way reserve that has to be carved out that just are expensive on the front end. They don't really generate a return until this the whole development is complete. That development timeline might take five to ten years. And so, it's a lot of risk for a developer like him. I think it's a risk for any developer, and that is the crux of the issue of why it's been hard to get a private developer to the table to say yes."
Teufel also is glad the city sees the need, as well.
"I applaud, too, our new city manager Enrico Villegas, who came up with an idea for housing development out generally near Hendricks," Teufel said. "He had approached the County Commission about a possible housing incentive using some of the county's economic development reserve. And so, the county had a debate about that. And I was not at that meeting, so, you know, I'm paraphrasing. But there was a lot of discussion then around, yes, we want a tool that can help spark housing across all of Reno County. And so, I think it's an appropriate thing that the county is looking at how do we provide an incentive for any developer who wants to build in Reno County if it just, you know, as to jumpstart things. Now, I also think that at the same time, we also ought to make sure that we go back to some of the previous housing studies done here that say that there are a couple thousand or more homes that are also either vacant or blighted that need to be addressed. Because if you can take some of that product and either rehabilitate it or do infill on vacant lots, you don't also then incur more costs for, you know, specials for streets and sewer and water infrastructure because it's already there. So, I think we need to be looking at both. But I do think, you know, it's important that we get creative. And so, I applaud the city manager for coming up with that concept and presenting it. And I also just want the county to take a careful approach that they need to just be cautious that they don't also deplete the economic development reserve.
That reserve is an important tool if the new industrial park is able to land a really big fish in the near future.
"It is also there as kind of your treasure chest for when you then have a catalytic project in the future that you want to make sure you have funds in reserve for," Teufel said. "We don't want to spend all of our savings bank on one thing. So, you know, I applaud the work that's been done."
Teufel facilitated a meeting between the city, the county and Jim Strawn this week that ultimately resulted in Strawn coming to the county and asking for help for his project, which they seemed on board with doing.
County Counselor Patrick Hoffman and Strawn still need to work out a model agreement that can be used with future developers, so the amount of county assistance is unclear at this point. The city has been tearing down more houses than it has been putting up in the period between 2010 and 2021, so additional housing is a need for the community, all things considered.