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Hennepin County authorizes transfer of three surplus North Minneapolis properties to HRA for affordable housing redevelopment
Summary
The county voted to transfer three long‑vacant surplus parcels in North Minneapolis to the Hennepin County HRA for disposition and redevelopment as affordable housing and active ground‑floor uses after a joint RFP process with the city of Minneapolis.
The administration operations & budget committee on April 21 authorized transferring three surplus county properties in North Minneapolis — 3200 Queen Avenue N, 3211 Penn Avenue N and 3206 Penn Avenue N — to the Hennepin County Housing and Redevelopment Authority for final disposition and redevelopment.
Staff said the three parcels have been vacant for more than 15 years and are adjacent to city‑owned parcels. A joint request for proposals with the City of Minneapolis solicited development concepts for parcels at the Penn‑Lowry intersection and the county’s recommended action is to transfer the parcels to the HRA so the authority can accept the transfer and recommend disposition based on the collaborative RFP.
Ryan Kelly of Housing and Economic Development introduced the item and staff explained that potential redevelopment aims to advance county priorities, including disparity elimination, affordable housing production, economic opportunity and climate resilience.
Commissioners acknowledged a long history of attempts to redevelop these lots and encouraged staff to look broadly at county surplus land to identify opportunities to bundle adjacent parcels and prioritize proposals that leverage county‑partnered land for greater impact. One commissioner asked whether the county could score proposals more favorably when they use county‑owned land to ensure housing outcomes on sites where the county holds leverage.
The motion to authorize transfer to the HRA was moved, seconded and approved by voice vote. Staff said a companion HRA action accepting the transfer and recommending final disposition based on the RFP will follow.
