If you build or rehab housing in Eau Claire, the city has money it wants to hand out, and the clock is running.
The City of Eau Claire is accepting proposals for its 2026 Affordable Housing Fund. According to the city's request for proposals, the fund balance for 2026 stands at approximately $785,000. The money is for projects that develop or rehabilitate properties for new or expanded workforce and low-income housing inside city limits.
Proposals are due by 5 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 1. Late ones won't be considered.
The city set up the fund in 2020 as a flexible way to pay for workforce and low-income housing projects. The goal, in the city's words, is "promoting, preserving and producing quality, long-term affordable housing options."
What you need to apply
The city isn't interested in ideas on a napkin. "Speculative projects will not be accepted," the RFP says, and it repeats the point more than once. Every applicant has to provide:
- A detailed budget, including quotes from contractors where appropriate
- Proof that the applicant owns the property, or a fully signed agreement to buy it
- Detailed building or site plans showing the work
- Proof that at least half of the funding is secured, unless the city's grant would pay for the whole project
- A narrative showing how the project lines up with the Eau Claire Regional Housing Study
- A pre-application meeting with city staff to go over code requirements
Rehab projects only qualify if the upgrades are for health, safety or energy efficiency, though projects that add rooms or units will be considered. Anyone who gets money has to sign an agreement guaranteeing long-term affordability and promising to pay the money back if they don't hold up their end. Before final approval, the city may also check whether applicants owe back taxes, utility bills or other payments, or have building code violations. Low-Income Housing Tax Credit projects will be judged on timelines that match tax credit rules.
How projects get scored
Proposals are scored on a 159-point scale. The biggest piece by far is who the housing serves. A project can earn up to 40 points if half or more of its units are at or below 60% of county median income. Projects with four or fewer units have to put all of their units at or below that level. There are also points for housing people who are homeless or at risk of it, for on-site services, and for low-barrier housing for people with criminal records, bad credit or past evictions.
Readiness counts too. A project expected to finish within six months gets full points on that question, and shovel-ready projects score better than ones still a year or more from final review. Applicants also earn points for committing to affordability longer than the 20-year minimum, for budgets that look reasonable for the market, for experience, and for green and universal design features.
Proposals go by email, as a PDF, to Billie Hufford, the city's community development project manager, with the subject line "Affordable Housing Fund Proposal." Questions also go to Hufford, and the city asks for two business days for answers.
After that, the city expects to present its recommendations to the Housing Opportunities Commission on Nov. 11, with a final recommendation to the City Council on either Nov. 24 or Dec. 8. The city notes those dates could change.
Why it matters for Contractors
Look closely at the first requirement: a detailed budget "including quotes from contractors where appropriate." That means developers and nonprofits applying for this money need real numbers from real contractors, and they need them in the next two weeks.
If you do housing rehab, new residential construction, or energy work like windows, insulation and mechanical upgrades, this is a good time to call the housing groups and small developers you know. A quick, clean, itemized quote could be what gets their application across the line. The scoring also rewards budgets that match the market and projects that can wrap up within six months, so realistic pricing and a believable schedule help everybody.
About $785,000 won't build a big apartment complex on its own, but it can fill the gap on a small project or a serious rehab. For local contractors, it's money that ends up as work in town.