Organizations Filed Purposes:
TO OPERATE FOR THE BENEFIT OF MODEL CITIES OF ST. PAUL, INC. AND MODEL CITIES COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION.
MODEL CITIES BROWNSTONE SITE, LOCATED AT THE VICTORIA STREET LIGHT RAIL TRANSIT (LRT) STATION OF ST. PAUL'S GREEN LINE, IS A 4-STORY, MIXED-USE TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT. THE NEW BUILDING INCLUDES 35 UNITS OF AFFORDABLE RENTAL HOUSING; APPROXIMATELY 20,000 SQUARE FEET OF RETAIL, OFFICE AND COMMUNITY SPACE; AND CLOSE TO 7,000 SQUARE FEET OF OUTDOOR SPACE DEDICATED TO A POCKET PARK. THE LEASED COMMERCIAL SPACE HAS BEEN DESIGNED TO ACCOMMODATE TWO EATERIES AND UP TO THREE OFFICE/RETAIL USES. THE BROWNSTONE DEVELOPMENT REPRESENTS A $14.9 MILLION INVESTMENT IN A COMMUNITY THAT HAS BEEN IMPACTED BY YEARS OF DISINVESTMENT, AND WILL SIGNIFICANTLY IMPROVE THIS SECTION OF THE CENTRAL CORRIDOR. THE IMPACT OF THIS PROJECT IS EVIDENCED AT VARIOUS LEVELS. AT THE NEIGHBORHOOD LEVEL, MODEL CITIES' BROWNSTONE PROJECT IMPROVES AN AREA NEEDING REVITALIZATION ALONG A MAJOR TRANSIT CORRIDOR BY BRINGING AN UNDER-UTILIZED PROPERTY TO ITS FULL ECONOMIC POTENTIAL. BROWNSTONE IS THE SIGNATURE GATEWAY TO THIS SECTION OF ST PAUL'S WORLD CULTURAL HERITAGE DISTRICT, A SECTION OF THE CENTRAL CORRIDOR THAT IS RICH IN THE ARTS AND CULTURAL DIVERSITY. IT ALSO MEETS A CRITICAL DEMAND FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING TO AN AREA WHEREIN A SIGNIFICANT PERCENTAGE OF THE LOW-INCOME HOUSEHOLDS ARE COST-BURDENED IN TERMS OF HOUSING. THE COMMERCIAL SPACE ON THE SITE PROVIDES AN OPPORTUNITY FOR SMALL-SCALE AND ETHNICALLY DIVERSE ENTREPRENEURS TO LOCATE THEIR BUSINESSES IN AN AREA WITH MUCH POTENTIAL FOR GROWTH. THIS DEVELOPMENT SHOULD ALSO SERVE AS A CATALYST FOR OTHER DEVELOPMENT IN THE AREA, IMPROVEMENTS TO ADJACENT COMMERCIAL PROPERTIES, AND START-UPS OF ADDITIONAL BUSINESSES ALONG UNIVERSITY AVENUE. IN 2019, 4 OF THE 5 RETAIL SPACES WERE LEASED TO LOCAL MINORITY BUSINESS OWNERS, THE 8609 APPLICATION WAS COMPLETED AND SUBMITTED TO THE CITY OF ST. PAUL FOR FINAL APPROVAL AND THE RESIDENTIAL UNITS MAINTAINED A 99.05% OCCUPANCY RATE BY YEAR END.
IN SEPTEMBER 2018, MODEL CITIES COMPLETED A $2.1 MILLION SUPPORTIVE HOUSING REHAB PROJECT. THIS INCLUDED THE REHABILITATION OF FIVE SUPPORTIVE HOUSING PROPERTIES LOCATED IN SAINT PAUL'S FROGTOWN NEIGHBORHOOD. THIS PROJECT, FUNDED BY MHFA, THE FEDERAL HOME LOAN BANK, AND PRIVATE DONORS MADE MUCH NEEDED ENHANCEMENTS TO ALL FIVE SUPPORTIVE HOUSING BUILDINGS. IMPROVEMENTS INCLUDED ENERGY UPGRADES, NEW BOILERS, NEW ROOFS, HEALTH AND SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS -- SUCH AS SMOKE DETECTORS, EMERGENCY EXIT SIGNS, AND HEAVY DUTY WINDOW SCREENS -- CERAMIC TILE ENTRIES, DRAINAGE IMPROVEMENTS, AND NEW FLOORING IN THE APARTMENTS.THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE PROJECT WAS THE INSTALLATION OF NEW PLAYGROUND EQUIPMENT AT SANKOFA AND 914 THOMAS, AS WELL AS A NEW COMMUNITY ROOM AT SANKOFA AND NEW COMPUTER EQUIPMENT AT ALL THE APARTMENTS. THE PROPERTIES HAVE SHOWN A MORE POSITIVE CASH FLOW SINCE REHAB WAS COMPLETED AND IN 2019, MODEL CITIES WAS ABLE TO OBTAIN ADDITONAL RENTAL SUBSIDIES FOR TWO OF THE PROPERTIES (SANKOFA) THROUGH THE HOUSING SUPPORT (FORMERLY KNOWN AS GRH) PROGRAM.
Executives Listed on Filing
Total Salary includes financial earnings, benefits, and all related organization earnings listed on tax filing
| Name | Title | Hours Per Week | Total Salary |
|---|
| Marilyn Porter | BOARD MEMBER | 0.5 | $0 |
| Juliet Mitchell | BOARD MEMBER | 0.5 | $0 |
| Peter May | BOARD MEMBER | 0.5 | $0 |
| Brenda Bolar-Ford | BOARD MEMBER | 0.5 | $0 |
| Judith Aminmentse | BOARD MEMBER | 0.5 | $0 |
| Mike Lafave | TREASURER | 1 | $0 |
| Kizzy Downie | CEO/BOARD SECRETARY | 14 | $0 |
| Osborne Strickland | VICE CHAIR | 1 | $0 |
| Brenda Bailey | CHAIR | 1 | $0 |
Data for this page was sourced from XML published by IRS (
public 990 form dataset) from:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/irs-form-990/202011779349300311_public.xml