Community Project Funding FY 2024
Community Project Funding FY 2024
The projects below were submitted by Rep. Omar in the FY24 CPF cycle. For information on their final funding click here.
Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies
City of Columbia Heights, 590 40th Ave NE, Columbia Heights, MN 55421
Project: Columbia Heights Sanitary Sewer Lining
Amount: $500,000
The proposed project is to install Cured In-Place Pipe in sanitary sewers within Columbia Heights to rehabilitate sanitary sewers that are structurally deficient. This work will ensure the continued operation and reduce the risk of failure. The repairs will reduce inflow and infiltration. The City of Columbia Heights has been notified by the MCES of peak flow exceedances and has a plan dedicated to the reduction of I/I. This project will renew the infrastructure for residents and reduce inflow and infiltration in the MCES collection area.
The project would be a valuable use of taxpayer funds because the taxpayers of Columbia Heights, MN rely on their sanitary sewer infrastructure as a public good and for their continued quality of life.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
City of Hilltop, 4555 Jackson Street NE, Hilltop, MN 55421
Project: City of Hilltop Emergency Tornado Shelter
Amount: $1,000,000
The funds would be used for a fully-accessible emergency tornado shelter, which will improve public safety for residents of manufactured homes. Sixty-six percent (66%) of the housing units in the community are manufactured homes which are extremely vulnerable to tornadoes and other extreme weather.The proposed shelter’s capacity of 700 will allow the city to shelter the entire population of manufactured home residents in the community.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
Three Rivers Park District, 3000 Xenium Lane N., Plymouth, MN 55441
Project: Sochacki Park Water Quality and Recreation Improvements
Amount: $2,500,000
The proposed project is to improve the water quality of Sochachki ponds by reconstructing stormwater outfalls, re-establishing native vegetation, and restoring shorelines. The improvements also include the construction of an environmental education classroom and an ADA-compliant boardwalk network used to enjoy the parks and educate visitors about the environment. Taxpayers of Robbinsdale and Goldenvalley, MN rely on the watery quality of the ponds and educational park experiences as a public good, and these measures ensure access to better park functions and educational services.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
Isuroon, 1600 E. Lake Street, Minneapolis, MN 55407
Project: Isuroon Building Renovation Project
Amount: $1,800,000
The requested $1.8 million would fund the renovation of Isuroon’s building to enhance the legal services it provides. The funding would also go toward a kitchen renovation for Isuroon’s healthier-cooking demonstrations as well as provide space for a culturally-specific food shelf. This space would make food deliveries more efficient, especially for homebound clients. Isuroon meets the complex needs of the Somali-American and Afghan-American immigrant communities, as well as other low-income neighborhood communities.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
People Serving People Charities Inc., 614 S. 3rd St., Minneapolis, MN 55415
Project: People Serving People’s Elevator Modernization Project for Families Experiencing Homelessness and Disability
Amount: $1,000,000
The proposed project is to modernize the PSP elevator system to improve the reliability, safety, and efficiency of its use. In a 10-story building with 99 single family shelter rooms, 10 supportive housing apartments, disabled community members who require accessible transportation, and over 150 children per night calling our shelter home, PSP relies on safe and efficient transportation systems for guest safety and comfort, accessibility, and shelter operations. The elevator system upgrades would make the building safer for clients and staff alike, who often need to quickly transport supplies to guests.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
City of Minneapolis, 305 S 5th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55406
Project: City of Minneapolis 38th and Chicago Affordable Housing
Amount: $4,000,000
The funds will be used to invest in people living in the vicinity of George Floyd Square and the surrounding neighborhoods to prevent displacement, advance local ownership, and provide construction jobs and investment in healthy, safe, affordable housing infrastructure. On May 25, 2020, a former Minneapolis Police Officer murdered George Floyd at the intersection of 38th and Chicago, which is at the heart of the 38th Street Cultural District—a historic Black community. This has added to the stress faced by the community and increased the need for support and stability in housing and commerce. The project would have programs in three areas: homebuyer assistance, affordable housing construction, and preservation of LMI people.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
Avivo, 1900 Chicago Avenue, Minneapolis, MN 55404
Project: Avivo Capital Improvements
Amount: $5,000,000
The requested $5 million would fund the construction of a 43,000 square feet addition to the existing organization building. High traffic has deteriorated existing public spaces and can no longer serve clients with dignity and respect. This project includes complete gut and remodel of the existing building and parking lot, and other additional upgrades. The project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because Avivo’s programs help Minnesotan families who are experiencing homelessness, substance use disorders, and mental illness, the chronically under- or unemployed, those experiencing the effects of structural racism, new immigrants, and people living with disabilities.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
Little Earth of United Tribes Housing Corporation, 2501 Cedar Avenue S, Minneapolis, MN 55404
Project: Little Earth of United Tribes Rehabilitation Project
Amount: $3,000,000
The funds would go towards the rehabilitation of a HUD Section 8 housing facility. These funds would be used to meet HUD minimum property standards, upgrade the property to current life safety and building codes, increase security, upgrade mechanical and electrical systems to current energy standards, and other replacements. The property is the largest general occupancy Native American, urban located, housing project in the country. The property provides educational, life benefit training, social, medical, child care, elder care, and cultural services to all residents and Native Americans located in the Metro area.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
City of Minneapolis, 350 S 5th Street, 301M, Minneapolis, MN 55415
Project: Minneapolis Farmers Market Sustainable Modernization Project
Amount: $4,000,000
The proposed project is to support infrastructure improvements to the Minneapolis Farmers Market, the city’s oldest and largest farmers market, to support more than 125 small businesses that participate annually and increase resident access to healthy food. The enhancements will improve flow, function, and safe operation of the site; address ADA deficiencies; and increase the number of vendor stalls available to promote participation by more local producers. The market is an important hub for affordable, fresh, and healthy food access in an area that is one of the largest food deserts in the country.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
Phyllis Wheatley Community Center, 1301 N 10th Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55411
Project: Phyllis Wheatley Community Center Centennial Investment Project
Amount: $632,500
The funding would be used for vital infrastructure needs which include timely modification, expansion, and safety improvements of its 15,000 SF facility and its grounds. Additionally, this funding will underwrite renovations which support program expansion for the Mary T. Wellcome Child Development Center and expansion of the current kitchen into a true community commercial kitchen, also known as Prep Kitchen. Prep Kitchen offers career pathways for local entrepreneurs to build and grow successful food and beverage businesses. This project serves a population that is historically disenfranchised, live below 100% of poverty or more, and are black/indigenous/people of color (BIPOC).
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
RS EDEN, 1931 West Broadway Suite 101, Minneapolis, MN 55411
Project: Lorraine Apartments Project
Amount: $2,000,000
The requested $2 million would fund the renovation of the Lorraine Apartments. Due to age of the building, the units at Lorraine are substandard and need to be updated for safety and security. Additionally, the funds would help create a therapeutic environment that is vital for women, children, and families undergoing recovery from incarceration. This project helps low income-families avoid becoming homeless, especially extremely- low-income families and those who are being discharged from publicly funded institutions and systems.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
Hennepin County, Minnesota, 300 6th Street South, Minneapolis, MN 55487
Project: Hennepin County Emergency Shelter Program
Amount: $2,000,000
The funds would be used for the development of the Agate Housing and Services new emergency shelter, which is designed to give people the services they need to move on to permanent housing. The current emergency shelters have operated at capacity for many years. Designed with the direct input of shelter guests, it will better serve guests in a safer, more comfortable structure and give outreach workers new spaces to connect with those resistant to shelter with 24-hour support. Stabilizing this shelter better prepares clients to address needs in mental and physical health, employment, and family stability.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
Mni Sota Fund, 817 5th St S, Suite 400, Minneapolis, MN 55404
Project: Mni Sota Fund Indigenous Wealth Building Center
Amount: $1,000,000
The proposed project is to support the acquisition, renovation, and equipment of a building that will be used for an indigenous wealth building center. The building to be purchased is on the American Indian Cultural Corridor, an official designation by the City of Minneapolis for this area, which is home to thousands of American Indian families and businesses. Specifically, the building will be used for staff offices, community classrooms, and a Native American business incubator. This project aims to enhance building intergenerational wealth in the American Indian Community through increasing Native entrepreneurship, homeownership, and financial education.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
Afghan Cultural Society of MN, 301 Cedar Avenue, Minneapolis, MN 55454
Project: Refugee Support Hub in Minneapolis
Amount: $2,000,000
The requested $2 million would be used to acquire a 5000-square foot, three-story building that the office is in to expand the legal and professional services they offer to their clients. ACS currently works from the first floor, which has become too small for the program’s expanding services. Ownership of the office building would enable ACS to adequately serve the area’s low- and moderate-income refugee and immigrant communities by providing spaces for case work, and immigration legal assistance, in addition to existing activities including women’s and men’s support circles and childcare, to individual case management, tutoring, and organization administration.
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development Subcommittee
CAPI USA, 5930 Brooklyn Boulevard, Brooklyn Center, MN 55429
Project: CAPI Immigrant Opportunity Center Expansion
Amount: $1,000,000
The funding would be used CAPI USA proposes to develop a 3-story, 16,050 sq. ft. expansion to its Immigrant Opportunity Center to create new entrepreneurship and wealth building services at 5950 Brooklyn Boulevard, CAPI’s vacant .84- acre parcel of land adjacent to CAPI’s Brooklyn Center headquarters. The centerpiece of this expansion will be the center’s new Opportunity Incubator, 4,500 square feet of new retail and office space dedicated to supporting the area’s immigrant/BIPOC-led small businesses through the following: This is a valuable use of taxpayer funds because the taxpayers of Brooklyn Center, MN will benefit from increased job training and creation. The opportunity center will also provide a handful of other services like tax assistance, financial coaching, and homebuyer services.