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'Sparking Change': Leaders talk energy transition, rural housing challenges

Boswell Energy in Cohasset on July 23, 2024.
Megan Buffington
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KAXE
Boswell Energy in Cohasset on July 23, 2024.

Tamara Lowney of IEDC and Chuck Marohn of Strong Towns discussed rural Minnesota's economy and more ahead of this week's "Sparking Change" conference in Grand Rapids.

In rural places, some of the most pressing issues include economic diversification, housing and energy transition.

Tamara Lowney, President and CEO of Itasca Economic Development Corp., and Chuck Marohn, founder of Strong Towns, recently joined the KAXE Morning Show to discuss these pressing concerns and preview "Sparking Change: Diversifying Our Regional Economy," a two-day event taking place Wednesday and Thursday, Feb. 5-6, in Grand Rapids.

"We are layered with challenges, the unique part of energy transition is that it gives us opportunities to access funding that could potentially help us in areas like housing.”
Tamara Lowney, President & CEO of IEDC

Lowney said her organization will share its recent report to highlight insights it has gathered. The event also includes local leaders, public officials and guests from around the country with experience in energy transition and economies.

Housing crisis in rural America

Marohn — whose nonprofit advocacy organization Strong Towns works with communities nationwide — emphasized that housing shortages are not limited to any single demographic. People across all income levels are struggling to find affordable housing. In his latest book Escaping the Housing Trap: The Strong Towns Response to the Housing Crisis, he examines the paradox of housing.

Housing, according to Marohn, is broadly unattainable for all income levels.

Chuck Marohn is the founder and president of the nonprofit advocacy organization Strong Towns.
Contributed
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Strong Towns - Andrea L. Baumann
Chuck Marohn is the founder and president of the nonprofit advocacy organization Strong Towns.

“Our middle class are struggling to find homes," he said, explaining those with more wealth are feeling stuck due to rising home prices and interest rates. In past generations, Marohn said, people started with smaller homes and gradually expanded them. This practice has largely disappeared due to changes in mortgage financing and zoning regulations.

“It’s kind of like musical chairs where the music stopped,” Marohn said, describing how inflation and high interest rates have frozen movement in the housing market. “People are sitting on homes that have increased in value, which feels good, but they’re locked into low-interest mortgages. The idea of selling and taking on a new mortgage at a much higher rate keeps people from moving.”

This, he explained, is contributing to a housing inventory shortage, making it even harder for new buyers to enter the market.

A blonde haired woman smiles confidently.
contributed
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IEDC
Tamara Lowney is President & CEO of IEDC, Itasca Economic Development Corporation in Grand Rapids, Minn.

One of the speakers at "Sparking Change" will be Ben Winchester, a researcher at University of Minnesota Extension. Winchester argues housing is a major factor in rural workforce shortages — businesses struggle to recruit workers when there aren’t enough homes for them to live in.

Lowney agreed housing solutions must be part of the broader economic strategy.

“We are layered with challenges,” she said. “The unique part of energy transition is that it gives us opportunities to access funding that could potentially help us in areas like housing.”

How to participate

Both Lowney and Marohn emphasized that meaningful change must start at the local level.

“When I look around, I see people who have a voice but aren’t sure how to use it,” Lowney said. “That’s really what I’m hoping for with this event — helping people find ways to take action.”

“Sparking Change” is free and open to the public. Attendees are encouraged to register in advance at itascadv.org, but drop-ins are also welcome. Participants can attend the full two-day event or choose specific sessions that fit their schedules.

Listen to the full conversation above.


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Heidi Holtan is Director of Content and Public Affairs. She manages producers/hosts and is the host of the KAXE Morning Show, including a variety of local content like Phenology, What's for Breakfast, Area Voices, The Sports Page and much more, alongside Morning Edition from NPR.