HERMANN – Stepping up efforts to add to the community’s housing stock, an agency working to promote economic development is forming an ad hoc committee to assemble a roster of possible sites for development.

The decision to form the panel came during the June 2 regular monthly session of the Hermann Regional Economic Development (HRED) Corporation Board of Directors. The group’s area of emphasis for development is within the boundaries of the Gasconade County R-1 School District. HRED was created about a dozen years ago to explore ways to curtail the loss of enrollment in the R-1 District. In the years since the organization was formed, the school district has seen enrollment decline from about 1,000 to about 750. The enrollment loss translates into a loss of state per-pupil dollars, which increases the burden on local taxpayers for funding the district’s operations.

The biggest hurdle to economic development and population growth within the district is the lack of housing units. Indeed, during the past 10 to 25 years, the city of Hermann has seen more than 100 single-family homes purchased — often by owners out of the area — and converted into guesthouses providing weekend lodging for tourists.

Leading the call for the appointment of the ad hoc committee was HRED Vice President Raylene Hollrah.

“I think we have to be proactive,” she said, in the effort to encourage housing development.

Part of that could include a detailed housing study. Such a project, which is being researched now by the Hermann Area Chamber of Commerce, would dig deep into the specifics of what is needed regarding housing units — the number of bedrooms and bathroom, single-family or multi-family units and where those units might best be located.

The Chamber also has another major project in its sights: A Strategic Plan that would serve as a blueprint of sorts for the growth and development of business in coming years. The Chamber has received one formal bid from a company to develop a Strategic Plan and is soliciting at least one more bid.

“Melissa is putting a tone of work on that,” Hollrah said, referring to Chamber Executive Director Melissa Lensing, a member of the HRED board who was unable to attend the monthly session.

As for a full-blown housing study, which could have a substantial price tag, there is not complete agreement among HRED members. Gasconade County Presiding Commissioner Tim Schulte, R-Hermann, again pointed out that a more modest housing study was included in the work done last year by Meramec Regional Planning Commission (MRPC) as part of the update of Hermann’s Comprehensive Plan.

Other members of the board argued that the housing component of the Comprehensive Plan was not a detailed study and a more-specific study would be helpful for contractors to have in hand when they sought financing for a housing project.

“In the real world of contracting, those housing studies are (important) in (obtaining) funding,” Hollrah said.

Perhaps, but that’s not enough to convince Schulte to back the idea.

“I’m sorry, but I still do not see paying for a housing study right now,” he said.

Hermann is scheduled to receive a batch of housing units later this month or early next when developer Ed Schmelz wraps up a multi-family project on West 6th Street near Hermann Elementary School. Those units have been built with Chapter 100 bond money, a financing mechanism provided through state government. In the past couple years, there have been two other housing developments outlined for the community, but those projects — one on Jefferson Street, the other off Highway 19 South and set between Tractor Supply Company and See Tal subdivision — have been stalled for several months.

But attracting a developer will depend largely on one thing: Finding the land that can be prepared for construction at a minimal cost. As noted by HRED President Bart Toedtmann, “the biggest hurdle” will be finding land that can be made ready without too much work. Toedtmann said that problem is one the Hermann Industrial Development Authority (IDA) has been dealing with “for some time.” Toedtmann is head of the city’s IDA.

There is little if any readily available land on which to build several housing units within Hermann. The project being completed by Schmelz involved the purchase of a former mobile home park and significant site work that had to be done before work could begin on the housing units.

That means the special HRED committee will be looking outside the city limits for potential sites — locations close enough to the existing city limits that they could be annexed by the municipality. Others possible sites might be farther away from town. With that in mind, Hollrah said city government and county government leaders should be involved in the committee’s efforts.

“I think this should be a high priority,” the group’s vice president said.

Hollrah said she hoped to arrange an initial meeting of the special committee within the next two weeks.