Northwest, Iowa — Sheldon and Rock Valley have each been awarded a $10,000 Rural Housing Assessment Grant from Iowa Economic Development. The grants were announced late this week.
Earlier this year, Sheldon Development Director Curt Strouth came before the City Council to request permission to apply for the grant, which would fund an assessment of housing in the city through Iowa State University Extension.
Strouth tells us about the grant program.
He talks about the schedule for the assessment project.
Strouth says the state of Iowa has a particular goal in mind for the results of the assessment.
At the current time there are very few homes for sale in Sheldon, causing an immediate housing shortage in the community. And while Strouth says the Housing Assessment will be very beneficial for planning purposes going forward, he acknowledges that it doesn’t solve the immediate problem.
Sheldon and Rock Valley were two of six Iowa communities to be approved for a $10,000 Rural Housing Assessment Grant. The other communities are: Grinnell; Livermore; Mount Ayr; and Onawa.
