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Affordable housing proposed in Lyndale neighborhood

Kelly Busche//April 12, 2021//

affordable housing project in Lyndale neighborhood

Alliance Housing Inc. is planning a 64-unit affordable housing project at 3301 Nicollet Ave. and 9 E. 33rd St. in Minneapolis’ Lyndale neighborhood. (Submitted image)

affordable housing project in Lyndale neighborhood

Alliance Housing Inc. is planning a 64-unit affordable housing project at 3301 Nicollet Ave. and 9 E. 33rd St. in Minneapolis’ Lyndale neighborhood. (Submitted image)

Affordable housing proposed in Lyndale neighborhood

Kelly Busche//April 12, 2021//

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Alliance Housing Inc. has proposed a 64-unit affordable housing building in Minneapolis’ Lyndale neighborhood.

The Minneapolis-based affordable housing developer was seeking plan, zoning and variance approvals from the Minneapolis Planning Commission during its Monday evening meeting. The project, at 3301 Nicollet Ave. and 9 E. 33rd St., will bring much needed housing to the transit-heavy neighborhood, the developer said.

The project is estimated to cost around $15 million, and the developer is financing the project through a combination of sources including the city of Minneapolis, Hennepin County and Federal Home Loan Banks. It’s also utilizing a low-income housing tax credit of 9%, said Executive Director Barbara Jeanetta.

The apartment will be two blocks east of Interstate 35 and three blocks south of Lake Street. Hennepin County values the vacant property at $121,300, according to county property records.

The developers chose the Lyndale neighborhood because rent can sometimes exceed $1,500 monthly for studios or one-bedroom units. Alliance’s proposed building will have studios ranging from $400 to $600 a month and one-bedroom units from $500 to $800 monthly, Jeanetta said.

“We use all government money when we fund our properties, so there’s no amortizing debt — that’s how we’re able to keep them affordable. Otherwise, they look and act just like any rental building kind of around town,” she said.

Alliance has developed and managed affordable housing for more than 30 years. It owns about 500 units of affordable housing across the Twin Cities, with both larger and smaller buildings included in its portfolio, Jeanetta said.

Most of its residents are considered low-income, meaning they typically earn $10-$15 an hour. These people have been “frozen” out of the rental market, since there is nearly no housing available this group can afford, she said.

“We looked for places with good access to transit because most of our tenants are transit-dependent,” she said.

And the pandemic has made it even harder for this group to achieve stable housing. They typically hold front-line jobs, many of whom lost these jobs or had hours reduced, she said.

The Alliance rarely evicts people for nonpayment of rent and will work with residents to create payment plans. It also utilizes government rent assistance programs to aid with rent, Jeanetta said.

“We’ll overlook most transgressions of the past, [and] kind of focusing on the future [like] paying rent, respecting neighbors, respecting property,” she said.

This is the Alliance’s fourth development project. It’s beginning work on another development, at 700 10th Ave. S. in downtown Minneapolis, where it will rehabilitate an existing building into a 55-unit apartment complex for adults who are homeless, she said.

“I think things are looking brighter, but it’s been a tough year and a half here,” she said.

The Nicollet Avenue project is seeking variances to allow a reduction of the minimum front and rear yard requirements, as well as to reduce the minimum vehicle parking requirement from 32 to 10. It’s also seeking rezoning, which would add a Split Zoning Overlay District zoning characterization to the property, according to planning documents filed with the city.

Paul Gates Architect, of Minneapolis, is the project’s architect, and St. Paul-based Frerichs Construction was hired as contractor, according to the documents.

Pending approval, the Nicollet Avenue project is expected to wrap up in the fall of 2022, the documents said.

RELATED: County awards $9.6 million in grants for housing, development

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