Magnolia Homes today hosted a tour and open house of its facility on Rundell Road as its public and private partners celebrated the construction of six homes in southeast Gering that are providing additional single family housing for the community.

Magnolia's Doug Fillingham says with the help of a $575,000 economic development loan from the city of Gering, his company was able to manufacture the homes and keep people working at a difficult time this past spring.

Fillingham says the homes, priced in the $120-130,000 range, provided the community with affordable housing that families have purchased with the help of USDA Rural Development, Valley Bank and Platte Valley Mortgage. The lots at K Street and Pappas Boulevard were purchased by the city in a partnership with Twin Cities Development.

Fillingham says Magnolia, which currently has 90 people employed, has been able to pay back the economic development loan and has purchased five other adjacent lots from Twin Cities Development they will put additional homes on because of the quick turn-around regarding the first six homes.