Hillcrest Golf Course is no more. From now on, the redevelopment project at St. Paul's far northeastern corner will be officially called "the Heights."

The new name for the 112-acre site was selected by a team of East Side residents who reviewed dozens of suggestions submitted online, the St. Paul Port Authority announced Tuesday.

Officials said back in December that they wanted to find a new name for the old course that recognizes the site's past and present while giving a nod to its future. Closed as a golf course in 2017 and purchased by the Port Authority for $10 million, the Heights is carrying some pretty lofty aspirations.

Officials want the site to include 1,000 new units of housing — rental and owner-occupied, deeply affordable and market-rate. They also intend for it to become an economic engine for a financially thirsty East Side, providing up to 1,000 well-paying jobs.

In addition to housing, the Port Authority hopes to attract light industrial businesses to the site.
In addition to housing, the Port Authority hopes to attract light industrial businesses to the site.

"We truly believe bright futures are within reach at the Heights. We support the city's vision for the master plan and are eager to get to work," Port Authority Interim CEO Todd Hurley said in a statement. "As an economic development agency, we look forward to bringing good-paying jobs and much-needed housing options to the East Side."

In addition to announcing the new name, the Port Authority on Tuesday released new renderings to show what a repurposed Heights could look like under the site's proposed master plan. Officials said the images were influenced by community engagement discussions throughout 2021 and do not represent final design decisions.

They also released a video, summarizing the project.

The site's ambitions are loftier than just providing jobs and housing. Officials are hoping over the next few months to lay the groundwork for the Heights to become the nation's first made-from-scratch, carbon-neutral, mixed-use development. Commercial and residential buildings would use rooftop solar arrays to generate electricity, a geothermal energy district for heating and cooling and modern building design to increase efficiency.

Officials said they hope to combine philanthropy with federal, state and local funding and bonding to attract businesses and residents dedicated to going green.

The 112-acre site will feature wetlands and other green spaces.
The 112-acre site will feature wetlands and other green spaces.

A new 5-acre park and another 15 acres of green space, including wetlands and trails, are planned.

In preparation for seeking city approval of a master plan for the site, the Port Authority forged two neighborhood workgroups — one focused on urban design, the other on sustainability. Meetings started in January and will continue through May. Two new workgroups — one for housing and the other for outdoor spaces — will kick off this summer and fall. Port Authority officials said they will begin recruiting community members this spring.