The Upper Peninsula needs homes.
In fact, according to polling commissioned by InvestUP, a lack of available housing is the “top challenge” facing the Upper Peninsula. The lack of available housing not only drives up housing costs, but also stands in the way of growth, including the ability to attract and retain workers.
InvestUP’s innovative housing development fund, Build U.P., has been working to address this challenge with their Cash Collateral and Residential Infrastructure Loan Programs, which have collectively closed on three projects to date, with several more in the pipeline. However, Build U.P. has now added a new program, the Career and Technical Education Partnership Program, that addresses this challenge in a whole new and creative way by partnering with local intermediate school districts (ISD) to address the regional shortage of skilled trades workers needed to build new homes, while adding new housing to the market.
With a $1 million investment from Build U.P., the partnership will support the Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs at the Delta Schoolcraft ISD and Copper Country ISD. It is also expected that an agreement will soon be signed with the Eastern UP ISD. In total, this would see students construct six new homes in five communities. Construction is expected to start this fall on homes in Escanaba and Houghton, while construction is expected to start next year on homes in Cedarville, L’Anse, and Manistique.
The partnership between Build U.P. and the ISDs is in effect bringing back the past, when local skilled trades programs had the resources to construct a home which was then publicly sold when completed by the students. With constrained budgets, local schools have been unable to give students this important experience in recent years. Instead, they have generally only been able to have students build some home components on school property.
Build U.P. will advance the cost of the materials and supplies necessary to give students the benefit of actual hands-on experience by building new homes in their community. Once completed, the homes will be sold, with the costs that Build U.P. advanced for materials and supplies returned to the program so that it can sustain itself, while enabling the schools to retain the balance of the sale proceeds and in turn strengthen their CTE programs.
According to Build U.P. CEO Marty Fittante “this is truly a win-win-win for our region and schools and, most importantly, our students.”
Participating ISD’s shared their excitement about this partnership, including the valuable real life experience students will gain in residential construction, as well as how this sets the stage for long-term growth of the construction trades programs for schools and what that means for community growth.
Delta-Schoolcraft ISD Superintendent, Doug Leisenring said, “the Delta-Schoolcraft ISD values its partnership with Build U.P. Our Building Trades programs are eager to engage in hands-on instruction at an actual job site, as opposed to traditional classroom settings. This innovative partnership provides our students with a more effective learning environment, better equipping them for diverse career opportunities in the construction trades following their high school education.”
Andy Moyle has a unique role in assessing the opportunity of this partnership, as both a builder with Moyle Construction and member of the Copper Country ISD Advisory Committee, “As a developer and builder our project pipeline looks ahead 12-24 months. With the talent shortage in trades, projects are pushed out for years, or they just never happen. This means less community development, less opportunity for businesses to expand, and less employment opportunities. To balance the supply and demand of skilled trades would be so positive.”
“Programs like the CTE house building will help to solve the long-term crisis of skilled trades shortages.”
State policymakers also offered strong support for the initiative, recognizing it as a model for addressing community needs through public-private partnerships.
State Senator Ed McBroom applauded the partnership, saying, “I am glad to see this creative and timely collaboration happening. Leaders across the U.P. have a long reputation for working together to accomplish multiple goals as efficiently as possible and this partnership shows that commitment, especially to benefit students, is alive and well.”
Similarly, John Damoose, State Senator for the 37th District, also offered his appreciation for this cooperative and creative approach.
“After years of stagnation in skilled trades industries, the state is now seeing a resurgence as a result of initiatives like this. As we seek to build more homes, train more students, and boost manufacturing, these kinds of programs will play a major role in getting students interested in various trades and skill sets,” Speaking to the state funding received by InvestUP to stand up Build U.P., Damoose, R-Harbor Springs, continued, “This is exactly the type of use that policymakers envisioned with this funding, and I appreciate this creative approach that gives students real-world experience and helps highlight and strengthen the trades in Michigan.
Although the initial focus is on building six homes, the vision is that the Build U.P. CTE Partnership Program will be scaled to extend far beyond this first phase, reaching other ISDs across the region.
Said Fittante, “today’s announcement is merely a first step as we envision a sustainable solution across the U.P. through this program to address two of the most pressing challenges facing the region – housing and skilled labor shortages. In fact, other ISDs have already expressed an interest in this partnership. So, more to come, soon!”
For more information on the Career and Technical Education Partnership Program and other initiatives led by Build U.P., visit http://investupmi.com/
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