The city responded aggressively, acquiring a former mall property spanning roughly 40 acres. “We’ve been doing site preparation since May of last year,” Tegen says. “And then we’ve signed a development agreement with a housing developer to bring in over 200 new residential units to the community. Those will be a mix of single family and rentals.” Mayor Nickels has made housing his administration’s top focus, recognizing its connection to economic development. The former Mirro plant site, vacant since 2003, will finally see redevelopment thanks TACKLING THE HOUSING CHALLENGE Housing has emerged as Manitowoc’s most pressing priority, reflecting a statewide crisis where workforce availability increasingly depends on residential options. “Like any community, we did a housing study needs assessment in 2021, and not shockingly, that basically came back and said, we need housing everywhere,” Tegen reports. “We need affordable housing, we need workforce housing, we need high-end housing, we need rental, we need new construction single family.” 7 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 06, ISSUE 07 MANITOWOC, WI
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