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Author Archive | Anton Schieffer

Geodesic Domes outside of Amazon's Seattle HQ

Don’t Hold Your Breath on Amazon

By on September 18, 2017 in Economics, Housing

Recently, Amazon announced plans to build “HQ2,” a second headquarters for their growing business. Amazon is soliciting various municipal and state governments with a request for proposals outlining the strengths of their particular region (unique and valuable business intel in and of itself, but that’s a whole ‘nother post) and what kind of tax breaks […]

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Unpacking Raymond Dehn’s Housing Platform

By on August 24, 2017 in 2017 Voter Guide, Politics

Minneapolis mayoral candidate Raymond Dehn recently released a position paper on affordable housing. It’s by far the most detailed housing policy paper any mayoral candidate has released to date. From a high level perspective, here are a few of the key points: Affordable Housing Trust Fund Priority #1 for Dehn is increasing funding to the […]

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Minneapolis Zoning Plate #25 from 1975. Again, we see areas where apartments were previously allowed changed to prevent their construction, replaced with R2B zoning.

Naturally Occurring Affordable Housing Shortage Rooted in Downzoning of 1970s

By on June 30, 2017 in Development, Housing, Neighborhoods

Efforts are underway to preserve existing “naturally occurring affordable housing” (NOAH) in Minneapolis. A $25 million loan program created by the Greater Minnesota Housing Fund (GMHF) will provide non-profit housing organizations with low-interest loans in order to purchase and preserve existing NOAH properties. What is a NOAH property? The GMHF site puts it this way: […]

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New Minneapolis Housing Projects Head to Planning Commission – April 2017

By on April 14, 2017 in Development, Housing, Planning

There’s a handful of housing projects coming up on the April 13, 2017 Minneapolis Planning Commission Committee of the Whole Agenda. I’m primarily writing this because every time people hear about new housing being built, there are often groans of “Ugh, it’s always more bro/luxury apartments.” It’s not really true, so I wanted to highlight these projects. So here’s a […]

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What other neighborhood has so many grocery stores within walking distance? (Not pictured is a potential new grocery store at 26th and Lyndale.)

Big Week at Minneapolis City Planning Commission

By on October 31, 2016 in Housing, Planning

On Tuesday, November 1, the Minneapolis City Planning Commission will be voting on three important items that will help shape the future of the city. The first item is a measure to allow intentional communities in Minneapolis. MSPyimby supports the motion, which would create more flexibility for residents who want to live in Minneapolis. According […]

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Median Rents v. Median Income

Obama To Cities: Build Some Housing Already

By on September 28, 2016 in Development, Governance, Housing

On September 26th, the Obama administration released the Housing Development Toolkit, signalling to the country that they are on Team YIMBY (that’s “Yes In My BackYard”). The document outlines the barriers for housing growth that many cities, including Minneapolis and Saint Paul, have been experiencing in recent years. Local zoning laws, outdated land use regulations, […]

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Field Report from YIMBYtown 2016

By on June 21, 2016 in Housing, Land use, New Urbanism, Politics, Smart Growth, Urbanism

This weekend I attended the first ever YIMBY conference in Boulder, Colorado. The YIMBY movement (that’s “Yes In My Back Yard!”) is an effort to make housing more affordable in cities across the United States and around the globe. Many people are struggling to pay rising housing costs and are being displaced due to ongoing […]

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When Single-Family Housing Becomes Luxury Housing

By on April 26, 2016 in Development, Housing, Land use, Smart Growth

Property values in Minneapolis and the surrounding metro area have been rising rapidly for the past several years, and there’s little evidence that the trend will stop anytime soon. Properties are on the market now for a matter of days (or even hours). Multiple buyers often end up in bidding wars at prices which far […]

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Improving Pedestrian Experience in Minneapolis: Ninth and Nicollet

By on March 9, 2016 in Downtown, Free Idea, Sidewalks, Signals, Urban Design

The intersection of Ninth Street and Nicollet Mall is one of the busiest in downtown Minneapolis. As a pedestrian mall, Nicollet caters primarily to pedestrian traffic and also offers a roadway for buses and bicycles. Ninth Street is essentially an urban highway, stretching 55 feet across and featuring three lanes for cars, as well as an unprotected bike […]

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Exclusionary Land Use Regulations and Income Segregation

By on January 25, 2016 in Governance, Infrastructure, Land use

Advocates for fair housing policies received a boost recently, thanks to a UCLA study which demonstrates a link between restrictive land use policies and income segregation within cities. Instead of focusing on the issue of “concentration of poverty,” the study identifies the primary problem as a geographic concentration of affluence brought about by overly restrictive, […]

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