South Dakota Community Foundation Senior Program Officer Ginger Niemann (far right) presents a check to Sioux Falls Thrive staff members (left to right) Kristy Anderson, Director of Communications, Michelle Erpenbach, President, and Erin Nosal, Operations Manager.
The South Dakota Community Foundation (SDCF) recently awarded a $50,000 Beyond Idea Grant (BIG) to Sioux Falls Thrive. Offered in partnership with the Bush Foundation, the BIG program supports innovative, community-based, problem-solving efforts.
“Low-income affordable housing is a statewide need that requires creative solutions and the work of thoughtful leaders from all walks of life,” says Michelle Erpenbach, Sioux Falls Thrive President. “Proceeds from this grant will fund the work of Thrive’s Housing Action Team to provide strategic planning, community collaboration, and consensus building around a proposed Sioux Falls Housing Trust Fund. A housing trust fund will provide a sustainable source of local funding that supports the development and rehabilitation of housing units that are affordable to families and individuals surviving on 30% to 40% of the area median income.”
A Wish for No Homeless Children
Sioux Falls Thrive’s mission is to ensure all children in the Sioux Falls metro area have the resources they need to achieve optimal educational and career potential. The Housing Action Team members are Sioux Falls area leaders with a special passion for affordable housing, especially as it relates to the academic success of all children in the area. Team members represent government, business, faith, and nonprofit sectors of the community.
More than 1,000 students in the Sioux Falls School District are homeless during any given school year. Housing Action Team volunteers wish for no children to be housed in motels, shelters, or vehicles. Therefore, the group’s vision is to be a catalyst to influence, advocate, and fund housing development for the most vulnerable populations in the Sioux Falls area.
Michelle Erpenbach
President, Sioux Falls Thrive
A Sustainable Source of Local Funding
The Housing Action Team from Sioux Falls Thrive will work with community stakeholders, including the city, community foundation, developers, and others to create a community model and address potential sources for the future funding of a Sioux Falls Housing Trust Fund. A housing trust fund will provide a sustainable source of local funding that supports the development and rehabilitation of housing units that are affordable.
Ginger Niemann
Senior Program Officer, South Dakota Community Foundation
Article reposted with permission from the South Dakota Community Foundation.