Latest news with #TerrySabers
Yahoo
22-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
First Governor's House arrives at South Lake Estates housing developments
Mar. 21—MITCHELL — Terry Sabers had good reason to smile Thursday morning. It was the first day of spring, and clear skies and mild temperatures were giving notice that summer is approaching. It was also his birthday, and he quietly acknowledged that it was number 70 for him. But coming over the hill at the South Lake Estates housing development by Lake Mitchell was a flatbed semi truck hauling a brand new Governor's House to be set on a concrete foundation. It was a first for the development, and a step Sabers, president of Mitchell Area Housing, Inc., had been looking forward to for some time. "It's exciting, it really is, to get the first one in here," Sabers told the Mitchell Republic as a crew worked to line up the trailer to offload the house. "And then we've got another basement over there and in two weeks, we'll have another one coming." The Governor's House program works to offer affordably priced, energy-efficient and high-quality homes for South Dakotans. The hallmark program of the South Dakota Housing nonprofit, which itself was created by the South Dakota Legislature in 1973, the Governor's House offers low-maintenance dwelling options that are attractive, reasonably sized and budget-friendly for those who are income-qualified. Over 3,300 Governor's Houses have been sold since 1996, according to information on the South Dakota Housing website. The delivery of the house to South Lake was the latest step in MAHI's efforts to help alleviate a housing shortage in the Mitchell community, a process that the nonprofit has been working on for the last three years. The group has two new housing developments taking shape in Mitchell — the South Lake Estates project as well as the Ridgeview on Foster development near Avera Queen of Peace Hospital. Officials with the Mitchell Area Development Corporation and MAHI have been trumpeting the need for more housing — particularly affordable housing — in Mitchell for years. With major employers like Avera Health and Trail King on the lookout for new workers, as well as the new soybean processing plant on the way, the Mitchell community needs places for those workers to call home so they can work, live and contribute to that economy. Governor's Houses, built by inmates at the Mike Durfee State Prison in Springfield through a partnership with the South Dakota Department of Corrections, are a great option to entice young employees and families to locate to Mitchell, Sabers said. "Because they are a very efficient home and a very nice-looking home. And it takes that construction process from four months down to three weeks," Sabers said. "And the price? Basically, the inmates are building it, so you save on labor." There are qualifying factors for those who wish to purchase a Governor's House. Basic qualifications include the purchaser making $66,570 or less in a one or two-person household or $76,080 or less in a household of three or more; having a net worth of less than $125,000 — or $105,000 in liquid assets — for applicants 61 or younger and having a net worth of less than $250,000 — or $140,000 in liquid assets — for applicants age 62 or older. The home must be considered the purchaser's only residence and it must be placed in South Dakota. Prices for Governor's Houses vary depending on floor plan and style, but they generally start at around $79,000 and top out at approximately $99,900. The home that arrived Thursday comes in at 1,200 square feet with three bedrooms and two bathrooms, and a full basement is expected to be installed. That will increase the liveable square footage and give new homeowners options as their families grow. "And then there will be a full basement, so they can put two or three more bedrooms in the basement, depending on what they need," Sabers said. "And they can still have a nice big family room." Sabers said MAHI is aiming for lot and home prices at the development to be in the $250,000 to $300,000 range. Mike Lauritsen, CEO of the Mitchell Area Development Corporation and the Mitchell Chamber of Commerce, said the arrival of the first Governor's House is an important step forward in the work local organizations have been doing to bring not just more housing to Mitchell, but more affordable housing. "To get a house that's really workforce housing and in their price range, a really great option is the Governor's House (program)," Lauritsen said. "(This) is part of the reason that we got the Community of the Year Award. We have the housing and we're doing creative things to recruit the workforce. We need housing to recruit that workforce." Lauritsen said the progress made in recent years by MAHI with its two housing projects is indicative of a variety of positives in local development. Along with those projects, he pointed to the impending completion of the new soybean crush plant outside town that will bring new workers to town, and the new Mitchell High School under construction on Capital Street that will serve as an enticement for potential new residents, as indicators that Mitchell is on the rise. Though no official figures were immediately available from the city, Lauritsen estimated that building permits last year were about double the average over recent years. He credited individuals like Sabers and the Mitchell Chamber's Geri Beck for having been crucial to adding to that momentum, he said. "I feel like we have momentum from a multitude of things. We have the largest value-added economic development project in state history, a new high school building, housing developments and we're recruiting labor forces," Lauritsen said. "We have a lot of positive things happening in Mitchell right now. It's a great time to be in Mitchell." The Governor's House delivered Thursday is the first for South Lake Estates, but it is not the first of its kind in Mitchell. That distinction goes to a home sold in 2022, which was placed at 1209 S. Duff in Mitchell. Sabers estimated there were seven or eight Governor's Houses now in the community less than three years after the arrival of the first, an example that shows the demand for such dwellings. MAHI itself has 17 more Governor's Houses on order with the state, and Sabers estimated they likely would be moved in over the next three years. "We have them on order as people are interested. I'm already talking to three or four more people about them," Sabers said. Sabers said all major utility work at South Lake was completed in the fall of 2024. Final street grading along the curb and pavement work on Indian Head Drive is expected to commence in April or early May. That timeline is dependent on how the weather cooperates. The roadwork is crucial to being able to move forward, Sabers said, but hopefully MAHI will be able to start talking with potential buyers soon. For the Ridgeview on Foster development, Sabers said initial utility work has been completed, and work on the parking lot and Nagle Lane is expected to begin in April or May. Utilities and street work are anticipated to be completed by mid to late summer of 2025. The demand is only expected to continue. For those looking to locate to Mitchell to work, Sabers said MAHI will continue to work to find housing solutions. "Later this summer, the bean plant, they're going to be hiring people. And when they're hiring people, they're going to be looking for more houses," Sabers said. "So hopefully by then we'll have five or six more going, and we'll see how quickly we can get them done."
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Marshall Mitchell: Mitchell Ridgeview on Foster development streets to be turned over to city
Mar. 10—MITCHELL — Who owns the streets after a developer builds them? The Mitchell City Council, during their regular meeting on March 3, approved an agreement with non-profit Mitchell Area Housing Inc. (MAHI), at no cost to the city, to provide up-to-standard street improvements for the right-of-way at the Ridgeview on Foster housing development. The 22-acre Ridgeview on Foster housing development runs west to east from Foster Street to North Calhoun Street, and north to south from East Eighth Avenue to Bridle Drive. About 4.35 acres, or nearly 20% of the development, is made of right-of-way streets to be given to the city and include Nagle Lane, Peace Place and Nursia Drive. The agreement calls for MAHI to improve the right-of-way for residential purposes and to grade and surface all roads and streets, and provide a complete sewerage system throughout the entire subdivision before residents can occupy the houses, which are still under development. In addition to the city receiving the right-of-ways, the agreement calls for MAHI to reimburse the city for upgrading the Ridgeview on Foster sewage lift station from a submersible lift station to a dry well/wet well lift station. The total cost of the lift station was $345,000, according to MAHI president Terry Sabers. The city paid the up-front costs of the lift station and will be reimbursed $199,880 over time by Tax Increment District 36, which was approved in July 2024 for the Ridgeview on Foster and South Lake Estates developments. "A dry/wet well helps us with maintenance of the lift station, and it's safer for our crews to work in," Mitchell Public Works Director Joe Schroeder told the council on March 3. A submersible pump has the pumps in the sewage. Work on the pumps requires a worker to pull the pumps out of the sewage on rails. If the pumps get stuck, a worker wearing a ventilator has to go in to work on it, according to Schroeder. On the other hand, a dry/wet well has two different structures, one for the sewage, and a clean area for the pumps so they can be maintained in a dry and safe environment. "So if you need to work on the pumps, you're in a completely separate space from the sewage," Schroeder told the Mitchell Republic. Council member Mike Bathke questioned how the dollar figure was decided on and what the bidding process was for the life station. The city is paying the difference of the upgrade costs to have a type of lift station that meets maintenance requirements, according to City Administrator Stephanie Ellwein. "It was bid through the grant requirements. They were required to bid it just the same as a city bid," Schroeder said. The Ridgeview development project received a $1.026 million infrastructure funding grant from the South Dakota Housing Authority, which administers a mix of state and federal funds. Bathke asked if Nagle Lane to Foster Street would be part of the Ridgeview Phase I plan. "I believe it is being installed all the way to Foster right away as phase one. It's my understanding that it is to be built out 100% this spring. I believe all the utilities are in for the entire project," Schroeder said. The city has a one-year warranty from the development's completion, and if defects are found, the contractor has to come back and fix the city's right-of-way. "If there's any settlement, if there were to be any water leaks, those types of issues usually pop up within the first year. There are South Dakota statutes that protect us further," Schroeder told the Mitchell Republic. In 2020, Avera Queen of Peace hospital donated the 22-acre parcel to MAHI to build a workforce housing development. "We are ahead of schedule and behind schedule. We got a lot of work done. The construction season was good for us. However, our lift station, which is built right here in Mitchell with Dakota Pump, is behind schedule so that's slowing us down," MAHI housing leader Mike Lauritsen told the council during the March 3 meeting. In February 2023, $2.4 million in federal appropriations was awarded for Ridgeview on Foster. A groundbreaking ceremony was held in October 2023. There are 68 lots in the Ridgeview on Foster housing development. Fifteen of the lots along East Eighth Avenue are set aside for Mitchell Technical College to build homes as part of their carpentry training program. The tech students finish one house a year, according to Sabers. The 53 lots left are for workforce housing, with some framing planned by July 1. "Our goal has always been to try to get houses in that $250,000 to $300,000 range. Hopefully, we might have some smaller ones yet that will be under $250,000," Sabers said. In October 2023, the estimated cost of putting the street, sewer and utility infrastructure in place for the development was $3.4 million. That number is now over $4 million due to inflation, according to Sabers. "This fall, there should be some ready to move into," Sabers said. The 53 lots could take time to develop and for homes to be built. It just depends on the demand, according to Sabers. "Obviously, we're not going to build houses if the demand slows down because of the economy. We'll slow down our building also, because we don't want to sit on a house that's not sold," Sabers said. "It could be somewhere between seven and 10 years."
