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Minnesota Housing: public‑housing preservation program meets greater‑Minnesota need but demand outpaces funds
Summary
Minnesota Housing presented a history of the Publicly Owned Housing Preservation program, said the governor recommends $7 million for 2025 and described heavy demand and a multi‑round 2023 allocation process that left many projects unfunded.
Jennifer Ho, commissioner of Minnesota Housing, briefed the Capital Investment Committee on Feb. 27 about the publicly owned housing preservation program and the governor’s $7 million proposal for 2025.
Ho said Minnesota has about 21,000 publicly owned units serving roughly 36,000 residents, many of them seniors, people with disabilities and households with extremely low incomes. She told the committee that these buildings are old—“most of the units are over 40 years old”—and that federal capital funding for public housing has not kept pace with physical needs.
Nut graf: Commissioner Ho emphasized that preservation funding addresses health and safety issues—boilers, plumbing, elevators, roofs and asbestos abatement—and that demand for preservation funds in Minnesota has consistently exceeded available resources.
Ho summarized the program’s history, noting $23 million invested between 1992 and 2014 for 75 projects and recounting a large 2023 legislative authorization that combined cash and general obligation bond resources. She said the 2023 authorization created two funding rounds; round one awarded roughly $39.5 million while later rounds used available cash‑in‑lieu resources. Ho said Minnesota Housing had received more than $100 million in requests for a roughly $40 million round, underscoring unmet need.
Ho showed example projects (Red Wing, Wabasha and Saint Paul high rises) that addressed leaking roofs, failing boilers and exterior deterioration that threatened envelope integrity and resident safety. She said Minnesota Housing simplifies applications for small public housing authorities and offers technical assistance, and she encouraged jurisdictions to apply.
Ending: Commissioner Ho offered to provide maps and lists of public housing locations and said the agency is actively running an RFP for remaining 2023 cash resources.
