Sixty-eight new housing units are coming to Crystal Falls with financial backing from Build U.P., which is a housing development fund managed by InvestUP.
The city will add a significant inventory of desperately needed new multi-family housing units. This development will go a long way in helping alleviate the area’s housing shortage, adding 7% more housing to a community that only has, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, 920 current homes.
This collaborative effort to expand housing options in Crystal Falls is the first Build U.P. project to utilize the Residential Infrastructure Loan Program, which provides financial assistance to Upper Peninsula municipalities to facilitate infrastructure extensions to new residential or rehabilitated housing; such as water, sewer, and road improvements.
The investment from Build U.P. will fund approximately 1,500 feet of new city streets, sidewalks, and infrastructure that are necessary for this housing development to proceed. These improvements will serve a city-owned property, which Crystal Falls will then, as part of a development agreement, transfer to S.C. Swiderski, who will construct the homes, which are designed for medium-income residents. The first units are expected to be available December 2026.
The CEO of Build U.P., Marty Fittante, credited the city and the Iron County Economic Chamber Alliance (ICECA) for taking a leadership position on the issue of new housing.
“Crystal Falls and the ICECA sought out a quality developer and utilized their assets to an extremely positive outcome. We congratulate these community leaders and hope their approach will motivate other communities in the U.P. to follow their lead and look at what they are doing and how they got it done.”
The additional housing capacity comes at a crucial time for Crystal Falls, which has a population of less than1,600 people. By increasing the city’s housing stock, the project aims to attract new residents, support workforce expansion, and stimulate economic growth.
Crystal Falls City Clerk/Treasurer Tara Peltoma praised Build U.P. for its innovative support of a project that is destined to be impactful to the community’s future success. According to Peltoma,
“This is a sizable development for a community of our size, and it will have a transformative impact on Crystal Falls. Not only will it help address the housing shortage we’ve been facing, but it will also attract new families and professionals, contributing to the economic growth and vibrancy of our city.”
State legislators have also praised the initiative as well.
State Senator Ed McBroom said, “this is exactly how we envisioned InvestUP putting this money to work when my colleagues and I entrusted them with the funding opportunity. Housing is one of the greater needs in the region, and this collaboration between Crystal Falls, the ICECA and Build U.P. not only goes a long way in addressing that need in the area but will provide meaningful opportunity.
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