Housing with no welcome mat

Harry Kaiser is active in social-justice issues at his church, so he's not entirely comfortable opposing the housing project that's planned across the street from his south Minneapolis house.

"It's really tough for me to come out against affordable housing," he said.

But the 30 apartments planned for a back lot of Mayflower Community Congregational Church don't fit the neighborhood, he and several dozen Tangletown neighbors contend. They've launched a website, installed lawn signs, hired a planning consultant and appealed to the City Council, saying the project has too many units and turns its back on neighbors.

Nevertheless, the city approved the project, making it one of a growing number of affordable housing projects breaking ground in middle-class areas of the city.

That's a turnaround from a few years back, when a majority of new units were built in areas of concentrated poverty and minority residency.

As recently as 2004, for example, more than two-thirds of new housing subsidized for people of lower incomes by a Minneapolis trust fund was built in core neighborhoods.

By last year, more than four of every five new units subsidized by the trust fund -- a total of almost 400 units -- were planned for middle-class areas. A similar pattern held true for new low-income units awarded federal tax credits.

Bonuses attract developers

The change has been nudged by a point system the city uses to evaluate projects. It gives extra points to renovation of existing affordable housing in areas of concentrated poverty, but projects for middle-class areas get bonus points if they're adding new units. That reflects a 2001 City Council goal that half of new affordable housing units go to middle-class neighborhoods.

Although the bonuses date to 2003, it has taken developers of affordable housing several years to catch up. Developing their projects outside core city areas can be more difficult due to higher land prices and less available land.

But dealing with neighborhood opposition isn't limited to middle-class areas.

Plymouth Church Neighborhood Foundation, developer of the Tangletown project, ran into opposition in 2001 with a plan to convert a former nursing home across from the church into housing for 40 formerly homeless people who are chemically dependent or mentally ill.

Opponents argued that the inner-city neighborhood near Franklin Avenue was already overburdened with similar group facilities. They argued that more subsidized housing ought to go to the fringes of the city. But the council approved the project, and a judge upheld the city when opponents sued.

The foundation since has rehabbed two other buildings for affordable housing just outside concentrated areas. Then came the Tangletown project, dubbed Creekside Commons.

The site was dictated by Mayflower's land donation. But it also makes sense because it's on a largely commercial block, has good bus and freeway access, is near several parks and is in a good neighborhood, Plymouth officials said.

It was proposed at four levels of housing with 40 units. Six of them will be public housing for people of the lowest incomes; replacement public housing by law must be outside concentrated areas. Remaining units are intended for households earning between $20,000 and $40,000 annually, a mix that Council Member Lisa Goodman describes as bus drivers, licensed practical nurses and lunch ladies.

"This is workforce housing. This is not housing for the homeless," said Goodman, a staunch supporter of affordable housing.

Height is a big factor

For developers, building more units provides economies of scale. But there are tradeoffs, said Matt Crellin, the foundation's housing development director. "You're not building in a vacuum, and you have to deal with the community," he said.

Neighbors primarily object to the building's height and reduced setback. Although Plymouth scaled the building back by a floor and 10 units, Kaiser said it's still out of place across 54th Street from his residential block. If it were located at the other end of the block on Diamond Lake Road, Kaiser said, "I don't think you would have heard from any of us."

That block has the church, a row of storefronts on Nicollet Avenue, two smaller apartments on 54th and two former gas stations that have reopened as retail. That feeds residents' anxiety about parking and traffic, said Council Member Scott Benson.

"It's not really an issue of whether it's affordable housing or not," Benson said. He points to resident opposition to a four-story luxury housing proposal farther south on Lyndale. "There's always an issue of height when you are putting a multi-story building next to residents."

Kaiser said he's convinced that residents would have fared better in opposing the project had it not been affordable housing. He sat through numerous meetings where the city considered zoning requests for a variety of parcels. "They seem a little bit selective on how strict they want to be," he said. The group is now consulting attorneys.

Steve Brandt • 612-673-4438