Small towns such as Taos are not immune to the nation s housing crisis - leading the rural community to launch a cooperative effort to address the challenge. Access to affordable housing can make or break a community s economic health. And with only 7,000 residents, the scale of development needed has not occurred. .
Some one-time grant funding has made the difference between renters in rural New York having a safe place to live - or having to move. The McNeil Park Apartments, in Copenhagen, is an income-based complex for seniors and adults with disabilities. When it was purchased in 2020 by the Copenhagen Happy Acres Housing Fund, McNeil Park was in a state of disrepair. .
New apartments on the market in Pulaski are the latest development aimed at reducing New York s housing shortage. Selkirk Landing consists of 44 affordable homes for families and seniors, along with 20 homes with supportive services to house adults who have been homeless. A Rural Housing Coalition of New York report found most rural towns have vacancy rates twice their urban counterparts. .
Nebraska s Winnebago Tribe is considered a mid-sized tribe, but it s a big award winner. The tribe s Ho-Chunk Village housing development is one of nine recipients of a 2023 Honoring Nations All-Star award from the Harvard Kennedy School Project on Indigenous Governance and Development. The winners were chosen from 142 prior Honoring Nations winners. .