The best way to bring more affordable housing to Minnesota is creating relationships. We are doing a series of candidate forums around the state to create and build these important and strategic relationships.

On Thursday, October 6 at St. Barnabas Lutheran Church in Plymouth, we are inviting all candidates for Senate districts 42 and 45 and House districts 42A and 45A, focusing on races where neither candidate is an incumbent in the office for which they are running.

A major topic for discussion at the forum will be the desperate need for rent support. Over 500,000 Minnesotans pay more than 30% of their monthly income in rent. Tens of thousands will wait 5-7 years to receive a federal rent voucher. The critical lack of rent subsidies is also one of the biggest barriers to building more deeply affordable housing. To address this problem, Beacon has introduced a bill called “Bring it Home, Minnesota,” which would create a state rent support program. We will be interested to learn how candidates would vote on this bill and their specific plan to reduce housing insecurity and homelessness in our community.

Please join us as we come together to hold our candidates accountable for providing more affordable housing in the state.