A local housing provider’s accusation that city officials were using discriminatory means of deciding where to locate new assisted housing has halted discussion and progress in Iowa City.
Many of those working to solve Iowa City’s need for more affordable housing agree that a regional policy for Coralville, North Liberty and other communities in addition to Iowa City would be beneficial.
While only those who are legal residents of the Iowa City Housing Authority’s jurisdiction are able to receive housing assistance, that doesn’t stop out-of-state residents from applying to the program.
At 53, Rose LaGrange is living her dream. She became a first-time homeowner in November 2009 with the help of a program administered by the Housing Trust Fund of Johnson County, an organization that supports affordable housing by funding affordable home ownership, rental and transitional housing.
Of 15 recommendations made to the Iowa City Council by a housing task force convened in 2005 the only one adopted by the city was to implement the use of a fair share matrix when determining where new affordable and assisted housing should be located.
For more than a decade, Iowa City has grappled with a chronic social problem – how to provide adequate and affordable housing for people who don’t earn enough to pay for a place to live. The dilemma seems to have stumped and perhaps frustrated everyone involved - city officials, housing providers, t
