by Thayer Long

Approximately 15,000 people attended the Mississippi Recovery Expo held in Biloxi, Miss. in August. The Mississippi Manufactured Housing Association, which has been working closely with Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour’s office from the beginning of the recovery efforts, arranged for nineteen factory-built homes to be set up for the public to tour. Reports from manufacturers who exhibited homes at the Expo have been very positive on their participation in the Expo and public response to their homes. Gov. Barbour, along with many other state and local officials all along the Gulf Coast, have stated that with chronic labor shortages and tremendous need for new construction, the region needs to rely on homes that are assembled in a factory.

Photo Right: Gov. Barbour tours factory-built homes on display at the Recovery Exo.

Just over a year ago Hurricane Katrina and the ensuing tragedies struck the Gulf Coast and left hundreds of thousands without homes, jobs, and communities. Immediately afterwards, it was evident that the rebuilding that needed to take place was unlike anything ever seen before in this country. The widespread destruction, huge demand of complete rebuilds, and labor and material shortages, necessitated that public officials, consumers, and home builders and developers rethink construction techniques and take a second or even a first look at homes produced in a factory. Two months after the hurricane, Leland Speed, executive director of the Mississippi Development Authority stated that “given the tens of thousands of homes destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, factory-built homes offer a real opportunity” for putting people back in their own homes and that “stick-built homes aren’t even an option.”

The National Modular Housing, in partnership with its parent organization the Manufactured Housing Institute, embarked on an aggressive campaign to promote the use of factory-built housing for the permanent rebuilding efforts. The NMHC and MHI sponsored two housing conferences, one in Mississippi and one in Louisiana, to showcase homes and educate the public about factory-built housing and the role it can play. Topics covered included special considerations in working with industry manufacturers, financing options, special installation requirements, multi-family options, and case histories of successful community development projects utilizing modular and manufactured homes. Also featured during the conferences was an exhibition – drawing manufacturers, financial lenders, suppliers, and industry consultants – where conference participants and exhibitors could meet with and discuss how manufactured and modular homes could meet particular housing needs. Display homes were also featured for attendees to tour.

The Gulf Coast Housing Initiative (GCHI), sponsored by MHI and the National Modular Housing Council (NMHC), also launched a dedicated Web site, www.factorybuilthousing.org, which continues to serve as a clearinghouse of information on the modular and manufactured housing industries’ rebuilding efforts and provides information and resources to manufacturers, builders, developers, retailers and public officials interested in rebuilding efforts.

Photo Right: Homes on display in Biloxi, MS.

As expected, rebuilding in general has been slow to develop due to the enormity and scope of the damage, and as decisions about funding and land-use and planning have delayed projects. However the interest in the industry remains as strong and committed as ever.

"Today’s manufactured and modular homes cover a wide range of architectural styles and amenities for the housing marketplace, with a tremendous flexibility in the kinds of homes it can provide. The factory-building process addresses two continuing challenges in the Gulf Coast -- the scarcity of qualified construction employees and of building materials," said Chris Stinebert, president of the Manufactured Housing Institute and the National Modular Housing Council. "The manufactured and modular housing industries look forward to helping many more people along the Gulf Coast get into their own homes again and move forward with their lives."