In This Issue:
Emerald Ash Borer Update
The House Environment and Natural Resources Committee met Wednesday morning to receive updates from state agencies on several topics including Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) grants for local governments. Amy Kay Kerber and Emma Schultz from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) provided members with an update on the spread of EAB, background information on state investment, and data from EAB grant programs for local mitigation and reforestation efforts. Click HERE to view the DNR slides.
DNR received 51 applications through the Preparing for EAB in Community Forests program with $3.3 million total being requested. This program funds activities such as tree inventory, the creation of management plans, as well as tree removal and replacement. With $700,000 being available the department could only award 13 grants. Similarly, more than double the available funding has been requested for EAB Community Forest Response Tree Planting. An additional $1.7 million in Preparing for EAB funds were made available in 2021 for which the DNR received 43 applications totaling $2.6 million. The department was able to award 26 grants totaling $1.6 million.
Several cities in the metropolitan area were awarded funds for these and other EAB grant opportunities. Click HERE to view a more detailed list of grant opportunities, city recipients, and funding amounts.
Contact Mike Lund at [email protected] or 651-215-4003 with any questions.
Local Housing Trust Fund Survey – State Match Funds Available
Metro Cities, League of Minnesota Cities and Minnesota Housing Partnership successfully advocated during the 2021 legislative session for $1 million in state funds to match locally raised dollars used to capitalize local housing trust funds.
Under the legislation, “a grantee is eligible to receive a grant amount equal to 100 percent of the new public revenue committed to the local housing trust fund from any source other than the state or federal government, up to $150,000, and depending on funding availability, an amount equal to 50 percent of the new public revenue committed to the local housing trust fund from any source other than the state or federal government that is more than $150,000 but not more than $300,000.”
Minnesota Housing is designing an application process for cities to access state matching funds in early 2022.
If your city has an existing local housing trust fund or is considering establishing a local housing trust fund, please fill out the survey. This survey will help inform our feedback to the agency to design a program that works for cities. Thank you for taking several minutes and submitting your feedback. Please contact Charlie Vander Aarde at [email protected] or 651-215-4001 with any questions.