MN announces $134M for affordable housing

State officials on Friday announced more than $134 million for affordable housing to help thousands of Minnesota families, homeless veterans, senior citizens and low-income people.

It's partly due to the 2012 state bonding bill, which included $30 million for housing infrastructure, and it more than doubles the amount of funding awarded in 2011.

Housing Commissioner Mary Tingerthal said the funding targets Minnesotans who need the most help with housing, particularly in greater Minnesota.

"It might be a mother who might be a nursing assistant or a teacher with children who needs a place to live," Tingerthal said.

Gov. Mark Dayton's Chief of Staff, Tina Flint Smith, said a third of Minnesotans pay more than a third of their income for housing, which is considered a benchmark for affordability.

"The people that are in that situation, either because there is not an adequate supply of rental housing or for whatever reason, really run the gamut in Minnesota," she said.

Dayton said the housing projects will leverage hundreds of millions of dollars in additional private investment, and support more than 4,500 jobs statewide.

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