Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership plans to complete Jefferson Quarry project by the end of the year

MANKATO, Minn. (KEYC) - The Southwest Minnesota Housing Partnership says it is currently working on 15 different affordable homes in the Mankato area as part of its community land trust, with three new homes set to be built this year near the site of the old Jefferson Quarry.

Architect James Arentson on the project says it would add three homes near the Germania Park neighborhood, each priced around $200,000

Arentson says the homes can be priced lower than normal due to the land trust retaining ownership of the land, allowing homeowners to only buy the property on top of it.

The goal is to create more housing options for working class families making around 80% of the area median income.

He says each home is set to occupy a narrow 50-foot lot, with three to four bedrooms on the second floor and an open area with a kitchen, living room and dining space on the first floor.

Arentson says the project is one of several that local developers hope to build around the site of the old quarry, including new recreation areas.

“It has been a very interesting process and one of the nice things about this location is that for the existing neighborhood and these new homes there are plans for this quarry that are quite exciting,” Arentson said.

To prepare the site, Arentson says construction crews are currently preparing to add in new pavement at the corner of 8th Avenue and Lind Street, remove neighboring trees and dig up old bedrock beneath the site once the ground thaws in the spring.

He says the plan is for the homes to be ready for sale by this fall.

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