BROOKINGS – Consider it a building boom. With the backing of an anonymous donor’s million-dollar donation, Brookings Area Habitat for Humanity is ready to embark on its biggest, long-term build yet: building multiple houses over several years.
“(The donor) wanted to direct it toward this specific project,” said Trever Shelden, a Brookings native and director of Habitat construction here, explaining that the project involves partnering with a private developer.
A 23-acre site west of Esther Heights and Valley View additions, just off West 20th Street South in the new River Run Addition, will be divided up between the two parties: Habitat will get 32 lots; the private developer will get the remainder of the land and plans to put in a bit more than 100 houses. Shelden said that some of the 32 lots could be divided and accommodate twin homes. Regardless of how all this falls out, he anticipates picking up the pace for building Habitat homes, which he’s been doing for the past five years.
“During that time we’ve been kind of building a couple lots here, a couple lots there, all over town, over in Aurora and down in Madison,” Shelden explained. “In that time we haven’t had a concentrated development like we’re trying to do here.
“We’re building at a rate of three to five (houses) a year. What we’d like to do now is add that to eight a year for the next five years.” The first build will start in August.
Before Shelden’s time, Habitat’s most ambitious and concentrated build had been 16 houses in Pactola Cove, near Camelot Intermediate School. Looking ahead to the newly planned bigger project, he’s hoping to continue a working relationship that has been beneficial to both parties.
“We’ve been partnering with the Brookings School District and their building trades class,” Shelden added. “They built a house for us this year on Eighth Avenue. We’re just finishing up that. Their work was invaluable for us this year. Without what they did for us this year, that house would be a hole in the ground right now. We’re hoping we can continue that partnership with them.
“In August, we’ll have a basement here, we’ll have a street and we’ll be ready to go.”
A little bit emotional
While this new project will be Shelden’s most challenging to date, it will additionally be one with ties to his family history.
“What makes this neat was that this land and all the land to the east where the building will take place and the land to the east beyond that was part of my family’s farm,” Shelden said. “I grew up farming this land, hunting on this land.”
“This kind of gets me,” he added, choking up a bit as he reflected on where he was and where he is now.
This land originally belonged to his great-grandfather, Martin Isackson. He farmed the land. Then Harold Shelden, Trever’s grandfather, took over the land and farmed it.
Esther Heights, the first development in the area, was named after Harold Shelden’s wife; the streets are named after several of Trever’s family members: Martin Boulevard, after his great-grandfather; Rhonda Road, after a cousin; and David Cove, after his father, David Shelden.
The 20 remaining acres in that area were sold by Trever’s grandfather, who was ready to retire. The area was developed as Valley View around 2009.
“This land had been sitting here, and we’ve had our eye on it for quite a while,” he said of the present site. “As Habitat, we’ve been looking at this. So when the opportunity came up and the funding came up, we thought, ‘What a great opportunity for getting a bunch of development in one location. It’s really going to help our efficiency to build.”
Shelden sees the impact of his grandfather on what lies ahead for Habitat. “When we made it happen, I thought I should tell everybody that this is pretty neat, this was my family’s farm.
“My grandpa, who taught me how to be a carpenter and really got me into the construction world, he built the first three houses in Esther Heights. I helped him on a couple of those. That was kind of my introduction into construction. Now we’re in a different level here.
“I’m just super happy that this land could go to this use.”
For Shelden, a best-case scenario looks out to five years of building and moving the Habitat mission forward.
“We’d kind of like to ramp up our construction: getting more homes, helping more families. Because that’s what it’s all about. It’s about helping families. It’s about affordable housing, making sure that the world is a place where everyone has a decent place to live.
“This is just such a neat thing for me personally. I get a little bit emotional about it.”
Contact John Kubal at jkubal@brookingsregister.com.
