Lutheran Social Service to build $27 million center

By JEFF STRICKLER, Star Tribune

Last update: March 19, 2008 - 8:44 PM

Lutheran Social Service on Wednesday announced its most ambitious project ever: A south Minneapolis center that will combine affordable housing with job training, financial services, mental health support, after-school services for children and even an in-house church.

"It's going to be a one-stop model of service availability," said Mark Peterson, president and CEO of the agency. Called the Center for Changing Lives, the project is budgeted at $27 million, about seven times the cost of any of the agency's previous undertakings.

"This is the most extraordinary campaign in the history of this organization," he said.

Most of the money, $23 million, has already been raised from private sources, including a cross section of Lutheran congregations from around the state. Construction of the building, which is replacing the agency's former building at 2400 Park Av. S., is well underway and is scheduled to be completed by fall.

"Our goal is to move into the building debt-free on Sept. 25," Peterson said. "One of the keys to maintaining long-term affordable housing is to avoid having to divert money to pay off a [construction] debt."

The last phase of the project is to "reach out to hundreds and hundreds of individual donors," he said. The Kresge Foundation has established a challenge grant and will match the private donations.

The building will include 48 three- and four-bedroom apartments, "which, by itself, is quite exceptional when you're talking about affordable housing sites," Peterson said. "This is all going to be aimed at families."

It also will be the new home for Messiah Lutheran Church, a move that excites the Rev. Lee Cunningham, the senior pastor. "What a great time to be a seven-day-a-week faith community amid a lot of other activities, all aimed at providing a seamless response to life in the inner city," he said.

As an adjunct to the project, the church will retain ownership of its current sanctuary at 2504 Columbus Av. S. and convert it into a public charter high school called Augsburg Fairview Academy.

Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin, who is serving as co-chairman of the fundraising campaign, joked that his status as "a former Catholic altar boy shows that this isn't just for Lutherans."

"It's an incredible vision," he said. "It's going to allow people to transform their own lives."

Jeff Strickler • 612-673-7392

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