Advocacy Updates – August 2024

East Metro News

The Saint Paul Area Association of Realtors® (SPAAR) has compiled a list of resources regarding the upcoming election.
SPAAR 's Government Affairs Director, Simon Opatz, was featured in a Star Tribune article about cities permitting accessory dwelling units (ADUs).
Saint Paul Mayor Melvin Carter released new plans to scale back rent control in the hopes of encouraging development (subscription).
Saint Paul's newest development, The Heights, will soon see 147 new homes built by Habitat for Humanity.
The Saint Paul City Council lifted building height restrictions along more than a mile of Grand Avenue.
Saint Paul voters will decide whether to move mayoral and city council elections to even years (subscription).
Both Saint Paul and Minneapolis mayors are looking to housing stakeholders to determine the impact of office vacancies on property tax hikes.

The Woodbury City Council approved a new 520,000-square-foot Amazon warehouse facility (subscription).
A new Inver Grove Heights development could potentially bring in more than 750 new housing units.
Burnsville could see a 170-unit affordable housing complex on the site of existing office buildings (subscription).

Arden Hills' Rice Creek Commons may add an additional 500 housing units to the proposed 1,960 units.
Scandia is partnering with Washington County to create a new plan to improve resources for the City's pedestrians, bicyclists, and other modes of travel.
Lino Lakes remains in the news regarding the development moratorium that was placed on a new housing development (subscription).
Becker is home to one of the nation's largest coal power plants. It will soon be replaced by solar panels.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey has proposed a 8.1% property tax levy hike in 2025 (subscription).
Hennepin County residents could get help from FEMA after early summer storms and flooding.
Dayton could soon see as many as 650 new market-rate rentals at a 67-acre site in the City (subscription).

For Minnesota Realtors®, rules regarding commissions went into effect on August 17. Here's everything you need to know.
Minnesota's First-Generation Down Payment Assistance Fund is temporarily on pause due to a large number of submissions.
Minnesota officials welcomed the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) to speak about "contracts for deed", which target immigrant communities.
In Greater Minnesota, local government aid is instrumental to a city's budget and driven by a city's property tax base (subscription).
All Minnesotans have access to homeownership with the right help and down-payment assistance, according to the new CEO of the Minnesota Homeownership Center.

The National Association of Realtors® (NAR) provides critical support regarding housing-related advocacy issues. Learn what NAR's current priorities are .
NAR has officially named Nykia Wright as the permanent CEO of the Association.
The Biden-Harris Administration has released the Housing Supply Action Plan in the hopes of reducing barriers to affordable housing.
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it's not unconstitutional to enforce laws that penalize people for sleeping on public property. Many MN nonprofits have responded since the ruling.