Does Decorah have enough affordable housing?

An ad hoc group has recently been discussing ways the city of Decorah could increase the number of affordable housing units it has.

Decorah City Council members have identified the issue as one of their priorities in the future.  City council member Rachel Vagts says sijmply, "We need more (housing) units."

But the question is how the city could encourage the construction of additional affordable housing.  Among the ideas being discussed are tax credits to make housing more affordable or tax abatements on new houses.

But WCDI Executive Director Randy Uhl, who has been leading the group, says the first step will be to gather information.  He's working with Winneshiek County GIS Coordinator Jon Lubke to review housing inventory figures in the City of Decorah.  City council member Randy Schissel says that's a good first step because, unlike many other cities, Decorah does not have easily developable farm fields at its borders, so finding empty lots or homes in poor condition that could be torn down is very important.