Fascinating Women of Housing in NW Michigan

Guest Opinion

By Yarrow Brown | March 1, 2025

Housing is a marathon not a sprint, which means the people working in housing are also in it for the long haul. They are dedicated, patient, and determined. They show up at public events and meetings, they do their homework, and research and find the properties that will help support their mission.

In our region, we are lucky to have strong, determined women leaders working in housing. I want to highlight some amazing women working to bring housing to the 10 counties in northwest Michigan. These incredible leaders are not just advocating for change—they are actively building solutions in their communities. These women represent organizations that are doing everything they can to create housing opportunities across the income spectrum.

Yes, we still need zoning reform and to remove other barriers before we can attract more developers to some of our rural communities and increase our housing stock, but that’s not stopping them. These women are finding creative solutions and running in different directions to make sure they are successful in serving the people in the mission of their work.

Nora Dunlop is the Director of Housing Development for Goodwill Northern Michigan. Nora has been instrumental in coordinating the renovations and new phase of the East Bay Flats project—an affordable housing development in Traverse City—into 100 percent permanent supportive housing. She is also working very diligently to bring more housing projects to support those making 30 percent or less of the Area Median Income. Nora was also part of the team behind asking the city commission to approve $360,000 to help 17 chronically homeless people find housing, which was successful in 2024.

Jane MacKenzie is the CEO of Northern Homes CDC, a nonprofit housing organization and a community land trust. With over 30 years of experience in affordable housing, she is working to bring housing to Emmet, Charlevoix, Antrim, Otsego, Crawford, and Cheboygan counties. They are partners on the Lofts at Lumber Square in Petoskey, which is providing missing middle housing and is one of the first multi-family housing to be built in over 20 years in the city. Jane’s patience, perseverance, and dedication to her work has provided 237 housing units in her Northern Homes service area (172 apartments and 66 single family homes) with 70 units in progress. Northern Homes is also a HUD Certified Housing Counseling Agency and has provided homebuyer education and housing counseling to over 1,000 households.

Wendy Irvin is the CEO of Habitat for Humanity Grand Traverse Region. Wendy and her team have expanded their capacity and taken on huge projects over the last five years. They have active projects in all three counties they serve and are partnering with many organizations to bring single family homes to those making up to 120 percent of the AMI. Under Wendy’s leadership, we have seen new and innovative building practices and collaborative partnerships. All of these successes are vital to moving housing forward. Currently, there are at least 34 units being built under Wendy’s leadership.

Sarah Ulrich is the executive director of Northwest Michigan Habitat for Humanity. She is leading a campaign to bring 43 homes to Emmet County called Foundations for our Future, which has a $5M goal. This is one of the largest building developments in their history and will include housing in Alanson, East Jordan, and Oden. Sarah is also a member of the Little Traverse Bay Housing Partnership leadership team (LTBHP), a group meeting regularly to support and advocate for housing.

Sarah Ford with the Petoskey Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation (PHSACF) has been instrumental in supporting housing in Emmet County. Working with her executive director and board, PHSACF took a bold leadership role in the Lofts at Lumber Square, raising philanthropic support to secure the lot for the project and so much more. Sarah also sits on the leadership team for the LTBHP and has been a huge advocate for housing in the region.

Beth Verhay and the team at New Community Vision have led a huge effort to not only secure very important land to Leelanau County and the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians, but also to coordinate 18 acres that can be used for housing in partnership with local community developers and partners. The project is still in the beginning stages, but this new nonprofit has made huge strides and is beginning the process of planning for the housing phase of the project.

This is just a snapshot of the professional, dedicated, and diligent women working to bring housing to northwest Michigan. We applaud your efforts and support your momentum. We know the marathon continues and we hope that together, we can make it a half-marathon soon.

Yarrow Brown is the executive director of Housing North, a 10-county housing agency serving northwest Michigan.