The apartment building boom is in full swing in Minneapolis' urban core.

Nearly everywhere you turn, major luxury apartment buildings are underway or preparing to begin construction. City housing policy director Tom Streitz says it's all a part of a residential "renaissance" in the city.

Some of the highlights:

• Nicollet Residences, a 330-unit, 33-story apartment building at 5th Street and the Nicollet Mall. Opus Development says construction is expected to begin in October, and finish in mid-2014.

• 222 Hennepin Ave., a 287-unit apartment complex on Hennepin and Washington avenues, which will include a Whole Foods grocery store. The project, now underway, is expected to be complete in the summer of 2013.

• Mill & Main, a 180-unit luxury apartment building a few steps from the Stone Arch Bridge on the East Bank of the Mississippi. Developers held a ceremonial groundbreaking this week, though construction is already underway. Expected completion date: summer 2013. Developers expect to begin a second phase featuring 185 units in 2013.

• 1368 Spruce Place, a 354-unit, 36-story apartment complex in Loring Park. Chicago-based developer Magellan Development said construction will begin in late summer of this year and finish in the spring of 2014.

• Velo Apartments, a 106-unit complex on 1st Avenue and 2nd Street North. Construction will start in late summer and finish in fall of 2013, said Dave Menke, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Opus.

Streitz said the city has issued permits for more housing units than any other city in the metro area for six years in a row.

"This year, 2012, will be a bonanza. We'll outproduce by far any other community. So there's a trend here."

Streitz said the new housing shows that people want an urban experience that features amenities and culture while being walkable and bikeable.

"People want to live in the city. You're seeing a return to urban America. This is a national phenomenon that Minneapolis is certainly at the epicenter of it in Minnesota."

Pictured: 1368 Spruce Place (project still unnamed)