Posts Tagged ‘Minneapolis Downtown Council’

Ending Homelessness: A National and Local Objective

Wednesday, January 18th, 2012

This article was written by Catherine Davies-Nelson, a student in the UST MS degree in Real Estate.

Over 20 million awarded to Homeless Programs in Minnesota for 2012

Ending Homelessness2Minnesota homeless programs were awarded nearly 21.5 million dollars by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to renew funding across the 163 homeless programs operating in Minnesota.  Secretary Shaun Donovan, said the grants awarded “will literally keep the doors of our shelters open and will help those on the front lines of ending homelessness do what they do best. It’s incredible that as we work to recover from the greatest economic decline since the Great Depression, the total number of homeless Americans is declining, in large part because of these funds.”

Ending homelessness has been set as a top priority both nationally and locally. The Obama Administration’s plan Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness, set the goal of ending chronic homelessness and homelessness among veterans by 2015, and ending homelessness among families, youth, and children by 2020. (more…)

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Intersections 2025 – Minneapolis’ New Urbanism

Monday, January 16th, 2012

Intersections 2025 -1

This article was written by Catherine Davies-Nelson, a student in the UST MS degree in Real Estate.

Eighty (80) leading civic and business leaders, including Herb Tousley, director of the Shenehon Center for Real Estate and MS degree in Real EState have announced their vision for Minneapolis 2025.  The comprehensive development report, Intersections 2025 illustrates 10 key points, in recreating a vibrant downtown Minneapolis.

The new downtown envisioned by the plan leaders is a “striking departure from today’s Minneapolis”.  The vision for 2025 can be summed up as: “thriving, livable, connected, green, exciting and welcoming.”

The report initially summarizes the effect of past recessions and global forces which have, and continue to, reshape downtowns and communities in order to meet new economical demands.  The authors point to the 1870’s, where cities remade themselves to meet the demands of the Industrial Age.  In this era, office buildings and retail were developed in the center of Minneapolis connected by a transportation network (street cars) to the surrounding industrial sites and residential neighborhoods.  Following the Great Depression of the 1930s, pent up consumer demand coupled with the enticement of “elbow space” and federally subsidized freeways and mortgages pushed homes and business outward.  Again, cities were changed. (more…)

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