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Thursday August 20, 2026

THE MINNESOTA HOUSING INDUSTRY NEWS SOURCE BY HOUSING FIRST MINNESOTA

Tag: Zoning

  • Housing supply solutions left on the table

    Housing supply solutions left on the table

    The 2026 legislative session wrapped with housing affordability and supply once again dominating conversations at the Capitol, but many of the state’s biggest housing proposals ultimately stalled before reaching the finish line. Throughout session, lawmakers grappled with budget pressures, political divisions, and competing priorities, while Minnesota’s growing housing shortage continued drawing attention from policymakers, industry… Read More

  • Recent report analyzes how zoning constrains housing production in Minnesota’s growing communities

    Recent report analyzes how zoning constrains housing production in Minnesota’s growing communities

    A recent report from the Housing Affordability Institute, Lot Sizes and the Supply Gap: Housing Production Constraints in Minnesota’s Growth Regions, analyzes zoning rules in three regions of Minnesota and how they prevent new housing production. The report argues that this underproduction cannot be overcome without underlying policy changes. The report used data from American… Read More

  • Q&A with Evan Roberts, Minnesota Zoning Atlas

    Q&A with Evan Roberts, Minnesota Zoning Atlas

    Evan Roberts is an assistant professor in the History of Medicine and Population Studies programs at the University of Minnesota, and he leads the Minnesota Zoning Atlas project. Roberts is a demographer and economic historian who has published broadly on topics including residential segregation, social influences on health, and social science data construction. Currently, he… Read More

  • Study: Land use reforms would increase housing production, lower construction costs in Minnesota

    Study: Land use reforms would increase housing production, lower construction costs in Minnesota

    Analysis shows proposed legislative framework would be major step in addressing the housing shortage The question of how to address Minnesota’s housing shortage has been front of mind for lawmakers for years, and a major study by the Washington D.C.-based think tank American Enterprise Institute (AEI) shows three land use reforms would go a long… Read More

  • Blaine rezoning lawsuit settlement highlights clash between housing demand, local control

    Blaine rezoning lawsuit settlement highlights clash between housing demand, local control

    The city of Blaine settled a lawsuit with a property owner who was denied a rezoning request to build apartments in the city, agreeing to pay $400,000 to the owner. The federal lawsuit was filed in 2023, arguing that the property owner’s equal protection rights were violated when the city denied a 196-unit apartment complex… Read More

  • Housing Affordability Institute hosts discussion on local housing action
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    Housing Affordability Institute hosts discussion on local housing action

    Housing Affordability Institute hosted a conversation on how cities are taking proactive steps on housing on Nov. 30 at Wandering Leaf Brewing Co. The event featured Richfield City Council Member Sean Hayford Oleary and Luke Hanson of Sustain Saint Paul. Council Member Hayford Oleary led from the front when Richfield implemented its modest densification policy earlier this year.… Read More

  • House passes housing omnibus bill, punts on zoning modernization

    House passes housing omnibus bill, punts on zoning modernization

    The legislature is spending the final weeks of the 2023 legislative session consumed with debate on various finance and policy omnibus bills. On Wednesday night, the House of Representatives heard the housing omnibus bill, HF 2335 (Howard). The bill would appropriate $1.07 billion over the 2024-25 biennium to housing-related programs. Amendments regarding zoning heard During… Read More

  • St. Paul Planning Commission approves zoning reform proposal

    St. Paul Planning Commission approves zoning reform proposal

    St. Paul’s Planning Commission approved the city’s Phase II zoning amendment, which would allow up to four-unit housing projects in areas of the city zoned for single-family housing.  Luis Pereira, planning director for the city of St. Paul, said the proposal is about increasing housing inventory in the city. He also noted the proposal does… Read More

  • Zoning modernization takes first steps at Capitol

    Zoning modernization takes first steps at Capitol

    As the legislature moves into its third month of the 2023 session, Minnesota’s crisis-level housing supply challenge took its first step forward. Rep. Steve Elkins (DFL-Bloomington) authored HF 2235, a zoning modernization bill, calling it the ‘Legalize Affordable Housing Act’. The measure cleared its first hurdle, passing out of the House of Representatives Housing Committee.… Read More

  • Bill on Zoning Changes Heard at the Legislature

    Bill on Zoning Changes Heard at the Legislature

    The leading zoning reform bill at the legislature, HF 2235 (Elkins), was heard in the Minnesota House Housing Committee on earlier this week. Among many things, the bill includes provisions that would: Nick Erickson, senior director of housing policy for Housing First Minnesota, was a testifier at the hearing and explained the significance of this… Read More

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