Northside Residents Redevelopment Council

Neighborhood CART Design Workshop

admin — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 15:09:25 +0000

The “Cart” is becoming a reality! Come help us envision what the cart project will look like, what it will contain and where it will go. We need EVERYONE! Young and old, bring your creative ideas, your crayons and paints, and come help us create a tool that will serve you!

Neighborhood Design Workshop Saturday, April 21st, 10am-12 at Juxtaposition Arts, 2007 Emerson Ave N (RSVP)

The workshop will be a hands-on creation time to sketch ideas, brainstorm, and dream. Be ready to get your hands dirty (don’t worry, not too dirty).

Any questions can be directed to info@nrrc.org

About the project:

A local neighborhood organization is developing a mobile “Neighborhood Cart” that will invite residents of North Minneapolis to participate in fun, approachable, interactive art and community programs designed by and for neighbors. It will also be an “office on the street” to connect with residents and share community information and resources.

Tornado Listening Session Dec 15th

admin — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 14:47:26 +0000

Come and listen and share reflections on the impact and aftermath of the May 22nd tornado. In collaboration with KBEM and Polar Producers, this event is an opportunity for residents to come out and share their stories. We will invite key leaders and organizations to attend, not to present, but to listen to the community. If you have a story to share, or know someone who does, please be sure to come out to this event.

Dec 15th, 6:30-8:30pm at North High School, 1500 James Ave N, 55411

Download a poster
Download quarter sheet fliers to handout

Questions? info@nrrc.org (612) 335-5924

NRRC Elections and Social Hour

admin — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 23:59:48 +0000

Thursday, November 17th

Election from 8:30am-7:30pm at UROC, 2001 Plymouth Ave N – RSVP

Social Hour 7-9pm at Cross Connections, 1823 Emerson Ave N – RSVP

Come out and Elect your neighborhood representative.

Enjoy some snacks, get to know neighbors and share what

you’d like to see happening in the neighborhood in 2012.

September Board Meeting Minutes (unofficial)

admin — Tue, 04 Oct 2011 04:55:36 +0000

The September board meeting was primarily spent discussing the Emerson North proposal for which a motion was passed to draft a neutral letter to the city regarding NRRC’s position. Additionally, we received updates on numerous other developments and approved a staffing plan that will carry us through December of 2012.
Northside Residents Redevelopment Council Board Minutes

Urban Research and Outreach/Engagement Center

2001 Plymouth Avenue North, Minneapolis, MN 55411

Monday September 18th 6:30-8:00pm

Meeting called to order at 6:30: Ariah Fine – Vice Chair (Acting Board Chair)

Motion to approve agenda passed

Welcome and Intro Activity

Board chair Ariah Fine introduced the general board meeting with an exercise surrounding a 1935 Minneapolis planning map delineating sections of the city with racially charged language. View the map and Ariah’s comments at nrrc.org. Director Dehn read the mission statement for all attendees.

Emerson North Proposal

The Plymouth Church Neighborhood Foundation founded in 1999, is a non-profit housing organization proposing to develop a 48 unit affordable housing complex in north Minneapolis dubbed the Emerson North Proposal. This potential project has major implications both for the community and the NRRC organization. There was a community meeting held on Thursday September 15th 2011 to discuss the project to the community at-large and to stage a vote to gauge community support for/against the housing project being developed in the NRRC district. Director Dehn read and explained (see below) the results of the vote as this was going to further aid the directors and the NRRC board in reaching their decision(s) on the manner. NRRC facilitated the meeting, monitored and convened the election process. Because of the nature of the politics involved on both sides of the issue NRRC is committed to pursuing this process in the most democratic manner. Directors debated several issues surrounding this project.

Voting Results
Row 1 = Voted in Favor of Proposal
Row 2 = Voted in Opposition of Proposal

Totals	55411 Area	Impact Area
64	44	20
96	11	85

Director Bushay made a motion that NRRC be in opposition to any public subsidies and/or variances for that site (1800 Emerson).

Director Mascia raised motion, limiting comments/questions around the Emerson North Project to 90 seconds. Director Everett said we should not rush the process and remain neutral as to our decision until we are able to make a more concerted decision. Interim Executive Director Ishmael stated that this meeting should be following Robert’s rules.

Director Dehn said variances will always happen with projects of this magnitude so the motion Director Bushay offered is very deceptive in nature and has the purpose undermining the project in entirety at its purposed site.

Director Gartell wrote a statement (she was not in attendance) that NRRC is should take a neutral stance on the project at this time.

Vice Chair Fine explained that while the Old Highland email list served to inform a certain constituency about the proposal and Old Highland’s opposition, NRRC’s role as an organization charged with “informing residents” should welcome the opportunity to hold informational meetings for the community, thus the decision to hold the September 15th meeting. It was Director Bushay’s decision, as chair of the RCTF, to hold a vote at that community meeting.

Director O’Brien stated that Old Highland tends to be very subjective and can be racist at times and she also stated they have a bad attitude around the negative “perception” of the people that may be moving into the project.

Director Pier stated Old Highland flyered the impacted zone. It was then clarified that NRRC did not flier at all. Old Highland fliered with their letter stating opposition to the project. PCNF fliered as well in the general area.

Director Amoke stated she would like to hear further details about the project so she can make the best informed decision as it pertains to the Emerson North proposal.

Director Ford presented substitute motion stating correct non-partisan flyering be done as well as a comprehensive effort to educate the entire NRRC district with a letter being sent to the city of Minneapolis for tax credits with community benefits agreement and land use process. Motion 2nd by director Dehn

Motioned passed to become the new motion (replacing the original motion by Director Bushay)

New motion did not pass. End result: No motion regarding the proposal in support or opposition was approved.

Motion by Director Dehn to draft a neutral letter from NRRC stating the results of the community meeting and the communities desire for further dialog, including a community benefits agreement. Motion passed unanimously.

Updates

Letter of Interest was approved and a full proposal was asked for regarding the CURA Art grant that NRRC is applying for with Works Progress
Director O’Brien held a youth listening session with teens to talk about the recent violence. The evening dinner also featured a nationally recognized local hip-hop group.

Staffing Plan

The board received a staffing plan drafted by the current interim Director, Ishmael Israel, and consultant Tene Wells, and approved by the Executive Committee. The plan lays out NRRC’s staffing and goals for the next 15 months to utilize contract staff to restructure the organizations and ramp up it’s community engagement. The staffing plan was approved unanimously.

Finances

Director Dehn gave financial report on organization and spoke to the cash position of the organization and the philosophy behind financial management of the organization.

Community Benefits Agreement

Director Everett is leading this movement within the ranks of NRRC. Director Dehn and Director McGlory talked about the upcoming open house at UROC and where the current process is. The CBA is a potentially binding agreement with the University of Minnesota and north Minneapolis that will be brokered through the NRRC membership.

RCTF

Director Bushay talked about what was going on with the residential task force committee and the alliance housing organization’s housing developments in the community.

Motion was made to approve 3 bldgs. W/condition that citizen advisory board be formed prior to 8/19 (Director Bushay confirmed this as done prior to 8/19)

Meeting adjourned 8:09 p.m.

Next Meeting

October 17th 2011

6:30-8:00pm

Minutes prepared by Matthew McGlory

Q & A with Emerson North Developer

admin — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 22:01:36 +0000

Several questions asked at the Community meeting on Sept 15th did not have time to be answered completely. The developer of the Emerson North project has taken the time to provide responses below. If you have additional questions you can email them to AJohnson@plymouthfoundation.org and we will add them to this document as they are answered.

Does the plan conform with allowed density? Isn’t the new education building four stories?
Yes, the Emerson North proposal conforms with allowed density for R-4 zoning. Our proposal to build 48 units does fall within the City of Minneapolis R-4 zoning provisions, including the provisions that allow for density bonuses. Density bonuses allow for an increase in a development’s density in instances where such a development furthers the City’s objectives, including underground parking and affordable housing.
The new Minneapolis Public Schools Educational Service Center is a 72 foot tall, 5 story building. It is 4 stories tall along Broadway, and a portion of the building more interior to the site is 5 stories tall.Why not do this project in Kenwood, Golden Valley or Edina? Why North Minneapolis?
Good questions. First, why North Minneapolis? The answer is twofold: First, we already own the land at 1808 Emerson where Families Moving Forward is currently located and it is already zoned to allow the housing we propose to build. Secondly, the damage to local housing stock from the tornado created an opportunity to use this land resource to create a tangible response to the well- documented need for affordable, high quality housing in North Minneapolis, made worse by the storm. We believe that neighborhoods need a mix of various types of housing — single family homes, duplexes and multi-family buildings. Different people seek different types of housing based on what they can afford, ease of maintenance, proximity to transportation and shopping and need for space.
Second question: why not somewhere else? PCNF looks forward to building homes in other parts of the city and the suburbs in years to come. Our partnering congregations assist us in selecting a viable site for development. For example, Mayflower Congregational Church gave us land from their church property to build Creekside Commons in the Tangletown neighborhood, one of the most affluent neighborhoods in Southwest Minneapolis. Plymouth Congregational Church and Westminster Presbyterian Church helped us locate and purchase the land for Nicollet Square on the site of a closed business in South Minneapolis. We are about to break ground for a senior housing development near the Veterans Administration Home with the partnership of Lake Nokomis Lutheran Church and Minnehaha United Methodist Church. In the case of Emerson North, we currently own the land where the proposed development would be constructed. We believe that all people deserve high quality housing and that they should be able to select that type of housing in a neighborhood of their choosing.

Is the Plymouth Church Foundation willing to donate millions of their own dollars even if the project does not get funding?
Although we have “foundation” in our name, we do not have an endowment. Like other non-profits, we raise our operating funding every year. The majority of our annual funding comes from private sources: individuals, foundations and congregations.
On the capital side, we seek a combination of public and private funding sources for each project. The largest source of funding is from the Low Income Housing Tax Credit program that provides tax credits for the equity invested by the corporate sector in affordable housing.

Is there anything that can be done to better integrate the design with the feeling of the old buildings – red or blond brick and early 1900s or Art Deco style?
We are in the final stages of selecting an architect for this project, and the drawings we’ve displayed to the public are only preliminary. We will work with our congregations involved in the development process as well as the neighborhood association on elements of design and look forward to collaborating on a building design that fits the neighborhood.

What was the percentage of community people that got jobs from the new school education building? What percentage will get jobs from this project?
The goal of the Minneapolis Public Schools Educational Service Center in building their new headquarters on West Broadway is that 30% of total project labor hours are to be worked by disadvantaged workers (25%-minority and 5%-female). Their goals for disadvantaged business participation were 25% of total construction contracts (15%-minority owned and 10% women owned). The school board announced in June that they have exceeded their disadvantaged business contracting goal and that 54% of construction contracts have gone to minority or women owned businesses. Results of disadvantaged labor participation goals will be reported when construction is complete.
Our congregational task force will be voting on disadvantaged hiring and business contracting goals for the development soon. It’s our intention to mirror the hiring process the Minneapolis Board of Education used in the construction of its new headquarters. We anticipate that between 100 and 150 construction workers will be involved in building the development. There would probably be three or four permanent staff jobs created in property or program management. It is also possible there would be a ripple effect of commercial growth and possibly job creation in the immediate neighborhood by adding 48 families to the customer base for local businesses.

PCNF claims that the presence of this facility will increase property values. Please cite cases and provide documentation to support your position.
The research indicates that in many cases, though not all, affordable housing developments do have a positive effect on surrounding property values. High-quality, well-managed properties such as those built by PCNF tend to have positive effects. The National Association of Realtors website, “Field Guide to Effects Of Low-Income Housing On Property Values,” has links to recent research on this topic.
A 2008 analysis of more than 150 national studies included this finding: “Good management makes a difference. In one major study, good property management coincided with properties developed by non-profit community development corporations, less so with those developed and managed by for-profit developers or public housing authority. This tendency typically occurred in areas with well-established, high quality non-profit organizations such as Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York City, and the Bay Area of California. These nonprofit builders who have been operating successfully for decades may be more attentive to designing affordable housing that matches neighborhoods in terms of size, scale, design and amenities.”

It was mentioned that Northside has affordable rents. Where are they? The average rent for a three bedroom is $900. Is that really affordable?
According to RentRange.com, an online database of rental rates in various markets, the median rent for a three-bedroom, two-bath apartment in the 55411 ZIP code of Minneapolis is $1,044. The low for the same area is $900, the high is $1,350. So, our $950 rent is within the fair market rental range and reasonable for good quality housing in the area.
Often a low vacancy rate can drive rents up as supply decreases. A quarterly report by the Minnesota Housing Partnership released Sept. 14 indicated that in the metro area overall, the vacancy rate is 2.4 percent, a 10-year low. The report attributes this lack of availability to the foreclosure crisis that has caused some former homeowners to become renters.

Summary of NRRC’s Special Housing Meeting

admin — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 02:52:36 +0000

Thursday night, NRRC held a special meeting regarding the Emerson North development being proposed by the Plymouth Church Neighborhood Foundation at 1800 Emerson Ave N. There was a large turn out of over 160 people who came to hear from the developer of the proposed 48 unit housing development, hear from the opposition, share comments and questions and cast a vote in support or opposition to the project.

The charge of NRRC and the reason for convening this special meeting was to hear from the community in an effort to draft a letter from NRRC, which is the city-recognized neighborhood organization for Near North and Willard Hay neighborhoods in Minneapolis, regarding the Emerson North development. The board of NRRC serves to represent the community and reflect the voice and opinions of the community regarding issues like this development.

During the meeting, residents were able to cast a ballot in support or opposition to the project. There were two separate ballots given. First, for those who live within the boundaries of James-Lyndale, 22nd-Plymouth. The results from that ballot were 20 Support, 85 Opposed. The second was for those living within 55411 (but not in the previous boundary). The results there were 44 Support, 11 Opposed.

This vote will impact the recommendation that the Real Estate Commercial Task Force, chaired by Brian Bushay (Old Highland President and NRRC Board member) will make to the NRRC Board. The NRRC Board will make a decision at Monday’s Board meeting on what the letter we write regarding the development will say.

We would appreciate hearing additional comments regarding this development from community members. Please feel free to use the comment feature at the bottom of this post to share your opinion regarding this development. Please be polite or your comment will not be published publicly, but we will take all comments into consideration.

Pro/Con: "PRO" View of Emerson North

admin — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 18:04:22 +0000

Q&A about Emerson North and the need for more housing

What is Northside Residents Redevelopment Council being asked to support?
NRRC has been asked to support Emerson North – a proposed mixed-income apartment building for 48 families earning between $20,000 and $40,000, with 25% of the apartments set aside for families transitioning from homelessness. The developer, Plymouth Church Neighborhood Foundation, has requested funding from the City of Minneapolis and the State of Minnesota for this development and NRRC has been asked to support this funding request.
NRRC will have the opportunity to work with PCNF on the design and site plan at a later date. The drawing that we have is only preliminary. We are hiring an architect who will work with us to create a more detailed design and site plan. When that is completed, we will begin the City of Minneapolis Land Use approval process including additional meetings with NRRC and neighbors.

Why create more rental housing in North Minneapolis?
Certainly many people aspire to homeownership. However, only about half of all Minneapolis residents are homeowners. The other half of our community needs good quality rental housing. A lot of the rental housing in North Minneapolis is in single family homes which are hard to manage and maintain. A well-designed multi-family development can provide high quality housing that is easier and more cost efficient to manage and maintain. In addition, the May 2011 tornado damaged the housing supply
including many rental units and homeowners’ properties, some beyond repair, creating an increase in demand.

Is this a good location for a multi-family development?
Yes. Urban planning experts recommend that commercial corridors have businesses and retail and that apartment buildings create a good transition from businesses to single family homes. Emerson North is on the “backside” of West Broadway, providing that transition. It will complement the preservation and redevelopment of the old library.
This is a great location for family housing. Our development will be walking distance to West Broadway, ensuring good access to public transit and shopping, while not actually being on West Broadway.

Will Emerson North concentrate poverty?
No. Emerson North is designed to be a mixed-income housing development which provides housing for primarily working families earning between $20,000 and $40,000 a year. Rents will range from $500 to $950 for one- to four-bedroom units. The median household income in Minneapolis is $45,000 a year, which means that almost half the
people in Minneapolis could live at Emerson North.
The majority of the residents will make more than the neighborhood median income. Twelve units of the 48 would have a rent subsidy to make housing financially accessible to lower-income families. These apartments will provide housing for homeless families transitioning from the Families Moving Forward emergency shelter program. Families Moving Forward will continue to provide the resources and guidance to help parents lift themselves and their children out of poverty.

How will families be supported?
Families Moving Forward will provide on-going supportive services to the families in Emerson North. Comprehensive services will be provided to the twelve formerly homeless families to assist in increasing income, reaching educational goals for parents and children, and connecting to community resources. In addition, FMF will welcome community agencies and volunteers to offer financial literacy and homeownership courses and other advancement opportunities for all families. An on-site computer resource room will give parents and children Internet access for homework and job searches.

Will Emerson North increase crime in the neighborhood?
No. PCNF has extensive experience in owning multi-family rental housing. PCNF hires professional property management to ensure that our housing is maintained and managed to the highest standards. Residents are screened based on their past rental, credit and criminal background. Any resident who is not a good neighbor will be evicted.

Will Emerson North decrease property values?
Capital investment that improves the physical appearance of the community will enhance the property values of adjacent businesses and homes. The residents will also be customers for the businesses along West Broadway, helping to maintain a thriving commercial corridor. Maxfield Research conducted research locally on the impact of affordable housing development on neighboring property values and determined that there was no negative impact or possibly a positive impact. These local findings are similar to studies conducted in other communities.

Source: http://www.plymouthfoundation.org/

Pro/Con: "Con" view on Emerson North

admin — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 17:59:39 +0000

Here is the “Con” argument regarding the development, put together by Brian Bushay, who is on the board of Old Highland and on the NRRC Board and chair of the Real Estate Commercial Task Force:

This proposed development would have a significant impact on the Old Highland Neighborhood. After discussion of the details that have been made available by the developers regarding this proposal, the Board of Directors of the Old Highland Neighborhood Association, at our August Board Meeting, voted to oppose this development for the following reasons:

Balance

Studies indicate that neighborhoods are more stable when there is more owner-occupied housing than rental housing. Our neighborhood has only in the past few years achieved a balance with approximately 50% of our housing units as rental. Adding this many new rental units would seriously challenge the current stability that residents have worked so hard to achieve. 48 new housing units represent 10% of the housing now in Old Highland.

Better Opportunities
North Minneapolis already has more than 1000 vacant housing units. We should be concentrating on rescuing/rehabbing these assets to provide housing for all who need a home, whether subsidized or not. Doing so would benefit every Northside neighborhood, and even more so it would be of greater benefit to the proposed clients of this development.

No One Benefits
Old Highland already hosts many agencies that provide assistance and social services for our Northside neighbors. These organizations are good neighbors and are needed on the Northside. However, they are also needed in many other neighborhoods around the city. Old Highland and the Near North Neighborhood already have more than their share of subsidized housing facilities. We believe that it would be detrimental to not only our neighborhood and the Near North Neighborhood, but also to the clients that these programs serve to continue concentrating them in one area.

Location/Scope of the Project
The size and density/concentration of this family housing project is also a concern. A 48-unit all-subsidy development with almost 200 tenants is much too large to drop into a predominantly single-family/duplex residential neighborhood. There appears to be no green space or recreational area for family housing that would include many children. Also, the building is proposed to be four stories tall. That’s higher than nearby buildings on West Broadway. Buildings should scale down from West Broadway, not get higher.

Parking
Large apartment buildings need parking for both residents and visitors. On-street parking is very limited at this location, and there is no place for parking for visitors. Underground parking, mentioned in this proposal, is very expensive to build, and we are more than skeptical that it will come to pass. And if it were built would take critical money from other proposals. Over the past 3-plus decades we have never even had a commercial proposal for this area along West Broadway that has even suggested a parking ramp, let alone underground parking.

West Broadway Vision
The Old Highland Neighborhood Association has been a long-term participant in the planning for the redevelopment of West Broadway, and we are very strong supporters along with the other neighborhood participants in the development of the recently completed West Broadway Alive vision for the future of West Broadway. This proposal does not, like many of the others we have seen, adhere to the spirit of that long-term planning effort. Instead, it seems to ignore most of that effort and tries to force its own vision onto the community to the detriment of the long-term plans for the future of West Broadway.

Source: http://www.oldhighland.org/

Special Meeting Sept. 15 regarding Building Development

admin — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 23:51:09 +0000

The NRRC Residential Commercial Task Force committee will be holding a special meeting Thursday, September 15, 6:00 – 8:00 pm at the UROC building, 2001 Plymouth Avenue.

The Plymouth Church Neighborhood Foundation is proposing a four-story housing development at the corner of 1800 Emerson Ave. N. (the site of the current Families Moving Forward facility).

Their housing proposal consists of a 4 story building with mixed income housing: 36 workforce housing units and 12 rent-subsidized. The first floor will be the Families Moving Forward Day Center.

This meeting will hear a presentation from the developer and have a short question and answer period followed by a community vote on the concept.

If you want your voice heard on the matter you need to be at this meeting.

Brian Bushay

Chair, NRRC RCTF committee

Tornado Disaster Short Term Rental Subsidy Program

admin — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 18:06:19 +0000

Limited Funding has been made available through the Family Housing Fund to provide eligible households a Tornado Disaster Short-Term Rental Subsidy for housing.
This program consists of a short-term rent subsidy, funding to help with household expenses, and in some assistance to locate affordable housing.

The rent subsidy is paid directly to the landlord for up to two months for participants meeting the eligibility.

The participant must be current on their rent and receiving no other subsidies.

Go to the either one of the following sites to apply for this program:

Pillsbury United Communities
Oak Park Center
1701 Oak Park Avenue North
Minneapolis , MN 55411
Tel: 612-377-7000

Neighborhood Hub
3210 Oliver Avenue N ,
Minneapolis , MN 55411
Office: 612 522 0942

Shiloh Temple International Ministries
1201 W. Broadway
Minneapolis , MN 55411
Phone: 612.302.1463

For more information, contact The Northside Community Response Team Hotline at
612-787-3730

Call the hotline 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday to get help