Some Grand Forks residents were shocked to learn that previously-flooded homes the city acquired under a buyout program might be rented out.

Facing a housing crunch, the city doesn’t want to lose any more homes, so it’s looking at options like physically moving houses out of the high-risk flood plain.

After many low-lying homes were swamped with floodwaters in 2018, the City of Grand Forks said it wanted to buy dozens of properties in the North and South Ruckle neighbourhoods and convert the area into a green space.