BARTLETT — It is no surprise that finding a new place to live is a challenge in Southeast Kansas. Many communities are struggling with both dilapidated buildings that need to be removed and a lack of housing units for new or existing members of the community to move into.
This series will cover the ways in which Southeast Kansas communities are thinking outside the box to create housing and economic development opportunities.
For some communities, this means building rental units, and in others, it means finding ways to build new single-family homes. For most, these solutions rely on planning, partnerships, and innovation.
In Kansas, the lack of available housing is most prevalent among low and middle-income housing options. According to the National Low Income Housing Coalition, meeting basic infrastructure needs in rural areas costs more, rural housing stock tends to be older and may need repairs, and rural counties have fewer resources to allocate to affordable housing development.
However, with the recent increased emphasis on seeking grants and partnerships, Several communities are seeing progress both in maintaining existing homes and building new homes.
While most of the examples in this series will cover what municipalities, housing authorities, developers, and contractors are doing, the first example actually begins at the high school level.
Students at Labette County High School have the opportunity to participate in the Building Trades program, which provides students with handson training in construction, plumbing, electrical wiring, and HVAC installation. Students are also involved in the design and blueprint-making process in the drafting class. The program itself isn’t new, having been part of LCHS’s offerings throughout several decades.
Over the years, dozens of homes have been built in Altamont. Now, the program is building in Bartlett. Students are wrapping up the second home in the town.
Currently, the program is run by Tyler Cares, an LCHS graduate. He is employed through Coffeyville Community College. Students in the Building and Trades program can take the classes and receive college credit through concurrent enrollment. Cares noted that in recent years, several students have received
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both their high school diplomas and an Associate’s Degree in Construction Technology come graduation.
“The whole intent and purpose behind this is…we want to continue to see young families move back into our district,” Superintendent John Wyrick said. He noted that Bartlett is the smallest community in the district.
“We want to clean up the community, and bring young families back into the district, and if you’ll notice while driving around, it’s already starting to happen,” Wyrick said. “People are now starting to take more pride in the community.”
This is possible through a partnership with the Bartlett City Council. Wyrick said that the council applied for a USDA Community Development Block Grant to support the program. This program is also possible through partnerships with other local businesses, such as Volmer Construction, which assists with concrete pouring.
“Our goal is to get to where we are self-sustainable, where we don’t need any grant funding to continue this project,” Wyrick said.
According to Wyrick, students can not only get college credit, but they can also get paid. During the summer, an internship program allows a select group of students to practice these construction skills and get paid for their time at the rate of $14 per hour, which is paid for via grant funding.
Wyrick said students work 40 hours a week through June, July, and the first week of August.
Students work in two to three-hour blocks during the school day.
These new homes have three bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a two-car garage, with a walk-in pantry and walk-in closets.
On top of building houses, the program also completes various repair jobs or other building projects for those living in the district. The waiting list is currently three years out and closed. Funds earned through completing building projects go toward replacing tools, Wyrick said.
“We’re doing this as a service to our community, because that is who we are, and who we want to be. We’re not doing it to make money. We’re doing it to serve the community and also give our kids opportunities, because if we didn’t have all these families coming to us, we would be building little storage buildings and dog houses.”
Wyrick said the program charges customers $1.50 per square foot for labor and the cost of materials.
Wryick noted that some students have been recruited to work for Crossland Construction straight from high school.
Cares said that employers are actually looking for employees who have the soft skills, because the practical skills can be taught. Students of the program graduate with both.
“They know that coming out of this program, they already have an abundance of knowledge on top of most other individuals,” Cares said.
Typically, those jobs start at $18-$20 an hour, according to Cares.
In conversation with professional contractors, Wyrick said that no one has ever said that the program is taking jobs away from contractors.
“They’ve got plenty of work,” Wyrick said.
Students say this program is opening doors for them and expediting their careers.
Junor Brantley Allen said his favorite part of the program is being productive and getting work done on a daily basis.
Sophomore Aaron Simpson said the class will allow him to take over the family business, Simpson Construction, after graduation.
He said he enjoyed learning about wiring recently.
“I thought it was fun. I’ve never done any wiring on a house, so it was fun to learn how to do that,” Simpson said.
He said the most challenging aspect of the program so far has been roofing and laying the shingles.
“I think it’s really cool. It builds character, and it helps you. If you’re out of high school, you need to know how to do that kind of stuff if you need to build or fix something in your house,” Simpson said of the program.
Cares said the skills students learn can be used for the rest of their lives.
“Whether they go into construction or not — most, at a point in time in somebody’s life — they end up a homeowner, and they can do their own repairs. You know, take care of their own stuff. They don’t have to worry about paying out of pocket for that,” Cares said. “Several of them do go into this profession and make great money and have a very successful life. It’s just a great all-around. Whether you’re going to be a carpenter or not. It’s a great skill. A great trade.”
This latest house is expected to be completed in March.
More stories of housing innovation will be shared in future parts of the Finding Home on the Range series.
Aaron Simpson, left, puts a hammer into his belt. To the right is Ethan Cuddy. Both are Labette County High School students in the Building and Trades program. Hannah Emberton | Tribune photo
