Housing & Transportation
415 workers vote to strike at St. Cloud bus manufacturing plant
Ninety-seven percent of workers at the New Flyer bus manufacturing plant in St. Cloud voted to authorize a strike on Sunday and say they’ll walk off the job if the company doesn’t meet their demands for higher pay, sick time, paid religious holidays and limits on mandatory overtime. The workers have not said when they […]
91 cities come out against bill that would allow more housing density across Minnesota
Ninety-one city councils across Minnesota have formally voiced their opposition to a bipartisan bill that supporters say will bring down the cost of housing construction by overriding local zoning restrictions. The League of Minnesota Cities, a trade group for cities, created a template resolution for cities to pass declaring they “oppose legislation that restricts the […]
St. Paul City Council hurtles toward implementing rent control policy by May 1
The St. Paul City Council took its first steps Wednesday toward implementing the rent control ordinance that voters passed in November and that takes effect in just over six weeks. The council voted to spend $635,000 this year to fund five new staff positions to begin administering the ordinance, which caps annual rent increases at […]
St. Paul mayor faces skeptical GOP senators, says rent control going forward May 1
In less than two months, St. Paul must implement one of the most stringent rent control policies in the country, capping rent increases at 3% annually on all units across the city. But Mayor Melvin Carter told state lawmakers on Thursday that key details have yet to be worked out. For example, city leaders haven’t […]
States to feds: Don’t tell us how to spend infrastructure money
State and local leaders from both parties are at odds with the Biden administration over how billions of dollars in new infrastructure money should be spent. Republican governors are upset over a federal memo seeking to limit dollars for highway expansions. Western states and some progressive cities don’t like the feds’ plan for how to […]
League of Minnesota Cities pitches new tax on corporate landlords
In an effort to discourage large investors from snapping up homes and turning them into rental properties, the League of Minnesota Cities is proposing a new state tax on corporations purchasing owner-occupied single family homes. “We’re trying to preserve single family homeownership opportunities for individuals,” said Daniel Lightfoot, a lobbyist with the League of Minnesota […]
Senate Republican calls for state audit of RentHelpMN
The chair of the Senate Housing Finance and Policy Committee is calling for the legislative auditor to review the state’s half-a-billion-dollar emergency rental assistance program. Sen. Rich Draheim, R-Madison Lake, cited concerns about unclear reports from the Minnesota Housing commissioner, who’s overseeing the program. The program, RentHelpMN, was funded through two federal COVID-19 relief packages […]
Attorney General Ellison sues one of Minnesota’s largest landlords for unsafe living conditions
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison’s office filed suit on Thursday against one of the state’s largest private landlords, HavenBrook Homes, for failing to maintain its properties and address lead paint hazards in its properties. The lawsuit also alleges HavenBrook Homes tried to evict tenants during the state’s eviction moratorium. “Bad landlords’ bad treatment of tenants […]
3 housing issues to watch during the 2022 legislative session
Again this year, home prices have reached new highs while the number of homes for sale has dipped to record lows. Finding an affordable apartment has also rarely been so difficult. The persistent housing crunch across the state is pushing the issue to an even more prominent role at the Legislature. For the past two […]
Affordable housing in state gets $241 million boost
Minnesota Housing officials announced on Friday the recipients of $241 million in government funding for the construction and preservation of affordable apartments, senior housing and single-family homes. The selections include $220.5 million for building and renovating 1,095 apartments, $12.5 million for 322 single-family homes and $7.5 million for infrastructure investments in 12 mobile home parks […]
Minnesota Housing announces Friday deadline for emergency rental assistance
Minnesota Housing will stop accepting new applications for emergency rental assistance on Friday at 9 p.m., having nearly depleted the $518 million the state received through two federal COVID-19 relief packages. “My heart is heavy today, knowing the hardship that households across the state are still facing,” Housing Commissioner Jennifer Ho said during a Tuesday […]
Minnesota Democrats renew call for guaranteed rental assistance ahead of 2022 legislative session
Democratic lawmakers and their nonprofit allies are calling on the state Legislature to use part of its $7.7 billion budget surplus to pay for the so-called “Bring It Home, Minnesota” bill that would provide rental assistance to all low-income residents paying more than they can afford in rent. Minnesota state Rep. Michael Howard, DFL-Richfield, and […]