Affordable Housing

The Grand Forks Council spent about 90 minutes looking at ways to improve and strengthen housing in the city without settling on any answers.  The council discussed the Blue Ribbon Commission Housing report last night.   Members focused on two suggestions:     relaxing the 50-percent up front requirement for new infrastructure and whether to reduce the 27-percent project fee.    Lowering those costs could benefit developers but some on the council noted there’s no guarantee the savings would be passed on to prospective buyers.    The council may seek the advice of a UND economist to help guage the housing demand in greater Grand Forks.