Nokomis : Development News

In 2006, Community Housing Development Corporation (CHDC), a Minneapolis nonprofit developer and owner of 44 affordable-housing properties, opened a project for homeless veterans. Next to the Minneapolis VA Medical Center in South Minneapolis, CHDC and partners renovated four former officers’ quarters and constructed two new buildings to create 140 affordable units for homeless vets.
 
“That project was incredibly successful,” says Elizabeth Flannery, CEO, CHDC. “Since it opened, we’ve regularly had a waiting list of more than 300 people.”
 
Six years ago, CHDC staff began talking about expanding the 2006 building. “In addition to the waiting list, which needed to be addressed with more affordable housing, we learned that the veterans community is huge and has a range of needs,” Flannery says. “We also learned we need more support services than we originally projected.”
 
“Moreover, when vets finally have housing they can afford, they have the opportunity to think about what’s next, whether that’s counseling, employment, getting their VA entitlements in order or getting treatment,” she adds. In other words, “Housing is critical. Housing is a foundation to everything.”
 
Last week, CHDC and partners broke ground on Veterans East. Located adjacent to the 2006 project, near the Blue Line light-rail station, Veterans East will include 100 affordable units, and will provide on-site support services for health care, case management, life skills, financial management, VA benefits, and education and employment resources.
 
UnitedHealth Group, based in Minnetonka, is the project’s largest private investor; the organization is providing $5.2 million in equity using low-income housing tax credits approved by the State of Minnesota. The Minnesota Housing Finance Agency, which finances affordable housing, is providing $7.7 million in deferred loan funds. Additional funding comes from the Federal Home Loan Bank of Des Moines, Hennepin County, affiliates of CHDC, and $290,000 in energy and sales tax rebates.
 
Eligible veterans—those who have experienced chronic homelessness—will pay 30 percent of their income toward rent. When completed in Summer 2017, Veterans East will provide permanent supportive housing for veterans struggling with homelessness.
 
The five-story, energy-efficient building, designed by LHB Architects, will also have a community room with a fireplace, a kitchenette and laundry facilities. In addition to its transit-friendly location near the VA Hospital, Veterans East will be adjacent to Minnehaha Park, and near Lake Nokomis and other area amenities.
 
Since January 2015, Minnesota has kept a registry of homeless veterans to help identify opportunities for housing and other services. So far, 600 vets have been housed, but many more remain homeless. “Once vets get housing they can get work,” Flannery says.
 

The Lander Group and Forteva have announced plans for a multi-unit retail and apartment complex on 38^th Street in Minneapolis’ Standish-Ericsson neighborhood. The multi-phase project will reshape 38^th Avenue west from the Blue Line light-rail station, and feature a series of connected new structures built around A Cupcake Social, located at the corner of 38^th Street and 28^th Avenue S and also owned by Forteva.

Andy Root, president of Forteva Development and Forteva Solar, also owns the Northbound Smokehouse building across the street from the proposed development, and additional properties near Chatterbox Pub and Matt’s Bar. “It all started when I bought the Northbound building in 2011,” Root says, which he successfully converted from a furniture store into a busy brewpub.

As Root looked at the surroundings, he saw underutilized space located within walking distance of the 38^th Street Blue Line station. With public transportation and a growing business zone that also includes Keen Eye, Studio Emme, Buster’s on 28^th and Angry Catfish, Root saw a fit for the City of Minneapolis’ movement toward denser, more walkable developments. Teaming Forteva’s neighborhood familiarity with the experience of The Lander Group, the two developers are collaborating on the proposal.

Renderings feature 51 market-rate apartments, mostly one bedrooms, with four retail units on the ground level. The project includes 34 shared parking spaces to emphasize the project’s proximity to public transit. Retail units would be occupied by neighborhood and small businesses.

Forteva would like to install solar power, as the company did at the neighboring Northbound Smokehouse property, along with EV charging stations for electric cars, and offer residents carsharing programs such as car2go or HourCar. The project’s “main driver is definitely the transportation,” Root says.

A public hearing on the development is scheduled for May 23. If approved, Root estimates a fall groundbreaking on the property with full construction completed by early fall 2017. “We’re looking at what [the city] wants,” Root says, emphasizing the project’s small footprint and ability to increase density. The site is the first of at least three proposals for the neighborhood from the collaborating developers.
 

The City of Minneapolis is launching a free technical assistance program for budding co-op founders, starting with a two-hour presentation on April 20th.
 
Dubbed C-TAP (Cooperative Technical Assistance Program), the initiative is an outgrowth of the city’s successful B-TAP (Business Technical Assistance Program) for aspiring small and midsize business owners. Like B-TAP, C-TAP is an immersive program designed to support co-op founders and supporters from ideation through opening—and, in some cases, beyond.
 
According to the City of Minneapolis, C-TAP will unfold over three years, in three steps.
 
Step one, happening this year, focuses on “co-op readiness planning” for “groups that are thinking of forming a Co-op…to get a clear picture of the legal, operational and organizational requirements.” It’s basically a crash course in what it means to start a co-op.
 
Step two, set for next year, will focus on “board member and organizational design.” That means training prospective board members in the basics (and nuances) of co-op governance, as well as “one-on-one technical assistance” for select co-ops that require guidance designing their organizational structures. Step two is available to not-yet-open co-ops and existing co-ops that want or need outside assistance.
 
Step three, set for 2018, will revolve around “sustainability [and] profitability.” In other words, setting and keeping newly opened co-ops on the path to stable, long-term profitability and prosperity.
 
C-TAP’s kickoff event, a two-hour presentation dubbed “The State of Co-ops in Minneapolis,” is scheduled for April 20, 5:30-7:30 p.m., at Open Book in Downtown East. The presentation will discuss the city’s current “co-op inventory” and the industries supported by Minneapolis co-ops, introduce and explain C-TAP, and discuss next steps for co-op founders and principals interested in participating.
 
On May 11, Step one officially gets underway with an eight-week “co-op feasibility” course. Held at the City of Minneapolis Innovation Center in the Crown Roller Mill Building near City Hall, the course’s eight sessions will cover the basics of the co-op development process, co-op business plans, finances, cooperative governance, legalities and other topics. Registration is free and open to the public, but prospective co-op groups need to have at least two participants and have selected a product or service to offer prior to signing up.
 
The City of Minneapolis is no stranger to co-op support. According to city government, Minneapolis has plowed some $3.5 million into local co-ops through existing development and support initiatives, and has an additional $850,000 outstanding in loans to three in-development co-ops—including Wirth Cooperative Grocery, a first-of-its-kind grocery co-op in the city’s underserved Northside, slated to open later this year.
 

They’re known as granny flats, mother-in-law apartments, even Fonzie suites for those who remember the Fonz’s digs above the Cunninghams' garage in the tv show “Happy Days.” For years, accessory dwelling units (ADUs) have been popular throughout the U.S. for homeowners needing an additional, separate living space for a relative (or family friend) adjacent to main house—and as a flexible housing option in developed urban neighborhoods.
 
Now ADUs are legal in Minneapolis. On December 5, 2014, the Minneapolis City Council passed a zoning code text amendment allowing ADUs on lots with single or two-family homes. Shortly thereafter, architect Christopher Strom, who spent countless hours working with zoning administrators during discussions about the code change, launched his new initiative, Second Suite.
 
“I wanted to be the first to market my expertise with the zoning related to these small residential dwellings,” says Strom, who has a thriving business as a residential architect in Minneapolis, and has designed ADU-type cottages for clients in the suburbs and northern Minnesota.
 
He learned during informational meetings that “a lot of people didn’t want ADUs because they fear too many people would be added to the neighborhood, resulting in extra noise and traffic,” Strom says. “But the new law limits ADUs to a total of 1,000 square feet, including parking; they’re only feasible on certain lots, depending on the positioning of the primary house; and the primary house must be owner occupied. Only one accessory building is allowed per property, so most people will combine an ADU with a detached garage.”
 
As a result, Strom continues, “The majority of the new ADUs to be built in Minneapolis will be Fonzie suites. Remember how he lived above the Cunninhgams' garage? He had a cool bachelor pad totally separate from the main house, but was always at the Cunninghams'.”
 
ADUs are a viable option for creating more space, whether for additional storage, an art studio, home office or apartment for aging parents. With the new zoning, the units can also include a small kitchen and/or bath. “They’re wonderful for seniors, and a nice way to establish multi-generational living next to the primary house while giving the occupant an integral level of independence,” Strom explains.
 
St. Paul, particularly the neighborhood of St. Anthony Park, is currently looking at its building codes, as well, by studying the feasibility of allowing ADUs on single-family lots.  
 
Strom adds that ADUs are “a great entry point for people to start working with an architect.” A well-considered design might result in an ADU that blends in with the architectural style of the existing residence, or be entirely different.
 
Moreover, Strom adds, “Second Suite represents a lifestyle that I want to be able to deliver to my clients. This lifestyle is about families pooling resources and enjoying more quality time together through care-giving that enables grandparents to help with childcare and adult children to help with aging parents.”
 
 

As a survivor of the I-35W bridge collapse in Minneapolis in 2007, Lindsay Walz, a youth worker, turned to art for healing.  
 
“I found myself through the artistic process and creativity. I could tell my story to myself in a different way,” she says.  

That experience led her to open courageous heARTS, an arts-focused youth center at 4164 Cedar Ave. S. in Minneapolis. As a part of a soft launch this summer, the center has special drop-in hours for open studio use. The center is also helping plan community art projects in conjunction with the Standish Ericsson Neighborhood Association (SENA).

Walz, who has long wanted to open a youth center of her own, says courageous heARTS is a “space that’s safe, where youth can express themselves and get the gunk out,” adding, “It’s better if those feelings come out on paper or with words, whatever the case may be.”

The center is a place to explore those possibilities. “Maybe someone is an untapped writer or a dancer or a musician,” she says. “It’s not about being good at it, just doing it.”

Also, youth can learn from each other. “They don’t have to separate themselves,” and they can develop leadership skills through the youth advisory board and other opportunities, she says.

The space, formerly a convenience store that had sat vacant for some time, is an ideal location, according to Walz. She wanted to find a space in the neighborhood, where she lives, “so it would be community-based in the true sense of it,” she says. Plus, the neighborhood doesn’t have a lot of youth programming. “It was about making art and space accessible."

The center will probably occupy the 1,800-square-foot space for a couple of years and then move to another location, since the landlord has other plans for the building in the longer term. “I felt like it would be a good window to get the center off the ground,” Walz says.

At this time, she’s still looking for partners and volunteers to help make the place a success, while an Aug. 1 fundraiser includes a screening of the documentary “Inocente” at the Riverview Theatre.

“Anyone that’s interested we’d love to hear from,” whether that has to do with art or office work or another skill, she says. “We need a lot of helping hands to get off the ground. We want to be around for a long time. That’s the goal.”


Source: Lindsay Walz, courageous heARTS
Writer: Anna Pratt

Sandcastle, a new eatery taking over the concession stand at Lake Nokomis in Minneapolis, will open this spring.

The concession stand has been empty for the past couple of years, according to Amy Greeley, who is a co-owner of the restaurant with her husband, chef Doug Flicker, along with Chele Payer (see photo at left).

Flicker is well known for his award-winning restaurant, Piccolo, in Minneapolis.

Greeley and Flicker live nearby in the Longfellow neighborhood.

Greeley says the opportunity came out of a unique relationship with the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board (MPRB), which granted the trio a contract in December.

Construction at the site is planned to start in the coming weeks, according to Greeley.

The existing lakeside structure is getting a fresh look, but the place will "hold true to the concession beach feel," she says. She describes the design as reminiscent of the Boardwalk in New Jersey's Atlantic City, "But it'll feel more modern."

A new full kitchen will be enclosed, with big windows so that people can see food being prepared inside. Heat-treated wood paneling will go on the building's exterior. "The wood will be treated in a unique fashion, like they do it in Finland," she says.

Between the stylized wood paneling and other colorful materials, "At different times of the day, with the way the sun hits it, the reflection or the aspect of the building will look different."

Sustainability, both in the build-out and in the business operations, is a big priority. "We want to get as near to zero waste as possible," she says, adding, "We're talking with people about how to achieve that," including a master recycler.   

So far, the community has been receptive to the new restaurant. "What we heard a lot was that people wanted a place to sit down and have a snack and enjoy something close to their homes, that they can bike or walk to."

"We want it to be community-focused, with good, healthy and fun food," and to "be a place where people can spend time and make memories."

The restaurant is slated to open in May.


Source: Amy Greeley, Sandcastle
Writer: Anna Pratt