OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Housing and Redevelopment Authority Meeting - December 17, 2025

City CouncilWednesday, December 17, 2025
BodySt Paul, Minnesota
SessionCity Council
DateWednesday, December 17, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record

STREAMING COPY IN PREPARATION — RECORDING AVAILABLE FROM THE ORIGINAL SOURCE

Transcript — Verbatim
2:03

The meeting of the housing and redevelopment authority to order roll call, please.

2:08

Louie, Coleman, Johnson, Joast, Kim, Naker, Yang.

2:15

Chair Johnson is excused.

2:17

Commissioners Bowie and Coleman are excused.

2:20

For present item number one, resolution 251963.

2:28

Resolution and appreciation of Paul Dubriel's 30 years of service to the city of St.

2:33

Paul.

2:35

Well, the first few items on our agenda today are recognizing folks that are um retiring here at the city of St.

2:42

Paul.

2:42

And so this resolution is to recognize Paul and Paul is not here today, but we will be sharing um a resolution with with Paul separately.

2:50

And so I'm really excited to uh recognize the folks and really appreciate their contributions um to our city.

2:57

So thank you.

2:59

Is there any discussion?

3:00

We're gonna actually think what we'll do, we're gonna save our discussion for the third item because we do have we do have uh Marie here with us today.

3:06

So that's that's what we'll plan to do.

3:07

That's all right.

3:08

Um so with that I'll take a motion from Council Vice President uh Kim to approve.

3:14

All in favor say aye.

3:15

Aye.

3:16

All those opposed.

3:17

Four in favor, none opposed.

3:19

The resolution is adopted.

3:20

Item number two, resolution 25-1976, recognizing Ross Courier's 11-year career with the Department of Planning and Economic Development.

3:31

Uh so again, this is a resolution that's recognizing uh Ross for all of his contributions to our city.

3:37

Um again, uh Ross is not here, but we will be giving Ross the resolution separately and really appreciate uh Ross's work.

3:45

So uh I'll take a motion from Councilmember Yang to approve this item.

3:49

All in favor say aye.

3:50

Aye.

3:51

All those opposed.

3:52

Four in favor, none opposed.

3:55

The resolution is adopted.

3:56

Item number three, resolution 25-1972.

4:01

Recognizing Marie Franchette for an extraordinary career with the city of St.

4:06

Paul and congratulating her on her retirement.

4:10

Um so this is a resolution to recognize Marie and her retirement, and I will turn it over to Director McMahon.

4:18

Sure, thank you so much.

4:20

I am so glad that Maria is here, and we are able in person to recognize her and celebrate her accomplishments and work with the city.

4:26

Um, I will read the actual resolution rather than describing the things because it's pretty amazing the breadth and the depth of the work that Marie has done.

4:34

So I want to make sure to go through and to note that.

4:36

But I also just wanted to note that I think it's a great um such a great example that you've led through the city, through the department, in the work you've done, not just in the outcomes, and we can talk a lot about the outcomes, but in who you are and how you are to work with.

4:51

And I know that has been deeply and greatly appreciated from colleagues that I have heard from about you, even before I came to PED and went in PD.

5:00

So thank you, not just again for the good work and for the outcomes, but for who you are, how you've showed up, and what you've done to help people in the city.

5:07

You know, I've heard a lot when former council president Amy Bremmolen would talk to folks and say, you know, you never really leave the city.

5:15

You are you're always part of the city.

5:17

But when you go around the city and particularly in the work you've done where there is this like physical manifestation of it, that you take the time and the opportunity, and maybe around the holidays, you can go look at holiday lights, but also go look at all of the work that you've done and you've contributed to it and be able to point at that and say, you know, I know stuff about that because I worked on it and I know the background and the history, and and I had a hand and I was part of leading that effort.

5:40

So thank you so much for that.

5:42

And I would like to formally present you with something to recognize your time with the city.

5:49

And I would like if the opportunity to read through it so we can all we can all hear exactly that breadth and depth of experience and work that Marie brought.

5:57

So recognizing Marie Franchette for an extraordinary career with the City of St.

6:00

Paul and congratulating her on her retirement.

6:03

Whereas Marie has had a long career in public service, starting at a nonprofit community organization in Chicago, providing economic development services before starting at the City of St.

6:13

Paul.

6:13

And whereas Marie's project management career and planning and economic development from 1992 to 2025 spanned the administrations of Mayors Norm Coleman, Randy Kelly, Chris Coleman, and Melvin Carter III.

6:26

And whereas Marie, known for her tough but fair negotiation skills, has worked on large scale redevelopment projects that involve the coordination of not only private developers, but several other city departments, such as parks and public works.

6:39

And whereas Marie has managed scores of projects representing tens of millions of dollars in public investment and hundreds of millions of dollars in total development costs, resulting in the creation and preservation of economic development opportunities and critically needed affordable housing for St.

6:55

Paul businesses and residents.

6:57

And whereas Marie was a PED project lead for the development of Alleans Field, she coordinated multiple organizations and stakeholders on public improvements, a stormwater treatment facility, land conveyance, and privately owned public park agreement, and transportation management plan for game days.

7:13

And whereas Marie, a dedicated environmentalist who advocates for climate resiliency and equity through UNITOS, Minnesota, was instrumental in the development of the first affordable passive house multifamily building in St.

7:25

Paul called Verdant, located in the Westside Flats.

7:28

This award-winning project demonstrated that a very high level of energy efficiency is achievable in affordable housing developments.

7:35

And whereas Marie was the lead project manager for the Westside Flats, the CD, the scenic located at Westside Flats, that resulted in 431 new housing units in the area.

7:46

And whereas at a time when downtown was seeking new market rate rental housing options in a large-scale grocery store, Marie stepped up to act as a lead developer on behalf of the HRA for the construction of the Penn Field, a 254-unit mixed-use building located at 101 10th Street East.

8:04

The project was eventually sold, and proceeds from the sale contributed to even more city projects.

8:09

And whereas Marie coordinated the redevelopment of City House that resulted in the preservation of a historic site on the Mississippi River, and whereas St.

8:17

Paul has benefited from Marie's commitment to quality, affordable, safe, and sustainable housing for residents of St.

8:22

Paul, including additional projects such as the development of the Jackson Street Village, 2700 University, Morro Apartments, 1222, St.

8:30

Paul Midway Residence, Sibley Park, Sibley Court, and most recently pre-development work on the Hams Historic Reuse Project.

8:37

And whereas Marie is a role model to all those on her team.

8:41

She is admired for her calmness under pressure and her ability to see a silver lining in all situations, traits that embody an ideal project manager.

8:49

And whereas Marie takes time to mentor new project managers to be an active part of the PED equity change team.

8:55

And whereas in retirement, Marie will be able to spend more time with her husband Paul and do the things she loves, including hiking, skiing, and spending time with family and friends.

9:04

And whereas, after 34 years with the city of St.

9:07

Paul, Marie is bringing her career in public service to a close.

9:10

And now, therefore be it resolved, in grateful and sincere recognition for her 34 years of dedicated public service to the city of St.

9:18

Paul, the Housing and Redevelopment Authority hereby honors Marie Franchette on the 17th day of December in the year 2025.

9:26

Congratulations and thank you so much.

9:35

Thank you so much.

9:38

Chair Jost and members of the HRA.

9:41

I want to thank you for honoring me with taking the time to honor me with this recognition.

9:47

You know, it's really been an honor and a privilege to work for the City of St.

9:51

Paul and the HRA for 32 years.

10:00

And I've always appreciated how hard working and upstanding the City Council and HRA members are, especially coming from Chicago originally.

10:08

And I've really appreciated how the HRA commissioners work to really understand complex redevelopment issues and ask challenging questions and help us do our job even better.

10:20

And I've also appreciated the support that the council and commissioners have shown to staff, which makes our job a lot you know easier, and we work together on getting these projects forward.

10:40

Also of the population of St.

10:42

Paul, and especially more having more women, all women on the city council.

10:49

So I've I feel really lucky to have been able to work for PED, which is a really nimble and creative department, I think.

10:58

And we've worked really hard to leverage a lot of you know other uh funding for the projects that we've been working on.

11:08

And so I'm sad to be leaving this challenging but really rewarding work.

11:13

Um most of which recently has focused on affordable housing, but I feel really good leaving particularly the housing team that has some really really brilliant project managers.

11:26

So I'm confident that uh a lot of these projects are gonna move forward.

11:30

So thank you.

11:33

Marie, thank you so much.

11:34

Um, and thank you to everyone that's here today.

11:36

Uh really appreciate everyone uh showing up to support Marie and also uh other folks that are retiring.

11:43

Um I guess I'll open it up to discussion comments from my colleagues.

11:48

Council President Acre.

11:50

Thanks, Chair Jost.

11:51

Um, I I really appreciate the opportunity to recognize three of our incredibly dedicated public servants.

11:56

I'll I'll have to follow up with Paul and Ross separately and tell them my comments face to face.

12:00

But um to you, Marie, just a huge, huge thank you.

12:03

I I had to smile a little bit when Dr.

12:05

McMahon read the uh tough but fair negotiation skills part.

12:08

Um because I remember I actually remember literally where I was in my house pacing around my office as we talked on the phone about a particular development very early on when I was on the council and HRA.

12:18

Um and I I don't know that I knew how um unrealistically tough I was trying to be on the developer.

12:25

I think uh you'd said something like, Well, they're gonna have 30 years of affordability, and I said, Yeah, what about 50 years?

12:30

Can we get 50?

12:31

And to your credit, uh, you didn't say go jump in a lake, you said, yeah, I think we can.

12:37

And we did.

12:39

Um, and you know a project I'm talking about, and anybody can data request for a project I'm talking about.

12:44

And I'm really glad that we got to that point because you were willing to um to take a shot at it and to really push back and get the best possible returns for the city and not just dismiss a baby council member uh off the bat.

12:56

So um thank you for everything that you've done and to Director McMahon's point.

13:00

Um, you don't actually have to drive around very far.

13:02

You could probably stand outside City Hall and just do a quick bird's eye, and you could see um dozens of projects that are wouldn't be here without you.

13:10

So thank you.

13:12

Any other comments from my colleagues?

13:14

Councilman.

13:16

Thanks, Chair Joel's.

13:17

Well, I've got to say, I am definitely not ready to get through this day because I know this will not be the first of um a plaque like this that we're handing out, and so it's very, very bittersweet.

13:27

And uh Marie, I want to say thank you for your service to our city.

13:30

I know that um as a council member who's only been here for five years.

13:34

I'm really getting to see, you know, the um the last few years of uh the work that you've done here in terms of like our work together, but what's really incredible is that um you know, during my time here, I'm able to really speak to so much of the great progress of our city because of the work that you contributed to.

13:51

And so I want to say thank you for being such an incredible building block for a city.

13:55

I know that you and everybody in PED is so invested in our vision to make sure that as a city we're always moving forward.

14:02

We're always um working to improve and make sure that people get the top-notch quality of life here that we can offer, not only in housing, but that they're also um being being able to live in housing that is dignified and affordable too.

14:15

And um, you are somebody who has helped make that possible.

14:18

And so I want to say thank you because that that is um um uh a mission that I know is deeply aligned with what residents in our city want to, and we could not have done it without you.

14:28

So thanks for um making our city um the wonderful place that it is to live in, and uh I have wish you a wonderful retirement and for you to have uh lots of um wonderful time making memories with your husband and your loved ones because I know you've given a lot of time to your city and you definitely deserve that time with your family too.

14:46

Thank you.

14:47

Thank you.

14:48

Um other comments.

15:00

I I really really appreciate your service to our city when I'm reading through the resolution in all the different projects that you've touched, and hundreds, I mean, we're talking hundreds of units of housing, uh, and and what that means for our our city and for our residents and in our our our goals as an HRA to build to build more housing.

15:11

Uh that really means a lot.

15:12

And I think I also um think about my job as an engineer and why I like that job because you get to see the things that you've done, you get to see the buildings and the projects you've done, and so for you, um like council president Naker said to people to go around the city and say, I helped with this, I helped with that.

15:26

I mean, it just it just speaks volumes to how how much you have shaped our city and your role here in PED.

15:35

And I'll also say that um Chair Johnson is not here today, um, but she was in several of the meetings where we prepared for this meeting today to recognize you and Ross and Paul, and she also really sends her appreciation um for your effort and and also just you know, in supporting her in her role as the HRA chair, and so thank you so much um for for your commitment to our city, and I also wish you the best in your in your retirement.

16:01

Um, I I see that you have a lot of really great hobbies and that hopefully you'll get to enjoy those for many years to come.

16:07

And so thank you so much.

16:09

Um, and with that, we have to take a vote.

16:11

Thank you.

16:12

Yeah, thank you.

16:13

Um, so with that, uh, I'll take a motion from Council President Naker to approve this item.

16:18

All in favor say aye.

16:19

Aye.

16:19

All those opposed.

16:22

Four in favor, none opposed.

16:24

The resolution is adopted.

16:26

Awesome.

16:33

Item number four, resolution 25-1966 resolution supporting the Ramsey, Washington Metro Watershed District Flood Mitigation and Green Space Improvement Project on HRA owned property.

16:48

So this is an item that was before us last week for a staff report and now is before us um for come uh for HRA action.

16:56

Um I'll take a motion from Councilmember Ying for approval.

17:00

Is there any discussion?

17:01

All right, all those in favor say aye.

17:03

Aye.

17:04

All those opposed.

17:05

Four in favor, none opposed.

17:07

The resolution is adopted.

17:10

Staff report, item number five, 25-271, 2025 HRA year-end report.

17:18

And I'll turn it over to Director McMahon to present to us with our present us our year-end report.

17:23

Thank you so much, Chair and Commissioners, for the opportunity.

17:26

You know, this is something that was done last year, and I know when we were talking as we were approaching the end of the year, this is something that would be of interest of you all to do again.

17:34

And I'm glad that you said yes, and we have an opportunity to go through everything in here because there is so much that happens in the day-to-day and behind the scenes, and sometimes taking a moment to celebrate the work of all the folks you see and many, many others that are part of PED and doing this good work.

17:50

And that's why I start with this picture, right?

17:53

I want to start with the team because that's who's behind everything.

17:56

That's who's doing everything, and that is the day-to-day.

17:58

So I wanted to make sure to start by celebrating the team working in PED and everything that they truly, these next slides are everything that they have accomplished as a group.

18:08

Um so starting with some of those, you know, how we celebrate our bond rating, which I personally love, something that might not be getting a headline, but it's something that's incredibly impactful and incredibly important in the city.

18:21

There's a lot of things like that that happen within PED.

18:24

And so these are things that showcase the good work done again every other day.

18:27

Things like having successful audits, right?

18:29

Having that independent third party, verify that our standards and our practices that gives assurances to the public and provides that transparency needed as stewards of public dollars.

18:38

Um, and then you can see here as well the impact that our finance and grants team has done to support work across the department.

18:45

When we successfully complete compete for regional and state dollars, it gives our residents the tools that they need to continue their good work in community.

18:54

And I'm not going to read through every you've you've got it, and you can see all the detailed good things.

18:59

Some specifics, so looking at project openings.

19:02

So just a few of the projects that have opened in this past year are about to open.

19:05

You've got the Williams, which is 90 units between 30 and 60% AMI, and a lead silver building.

19:11

You've got the Harkin, which will be 60 units between 30 and 50% AMI, and the Marshall Avenue flats, of 98 units between 30 and 60 AMI.

19:20

That's also the B3 standard with the White Rough in terms of sustainability.

19:24

So not just new and additional housing units, which are always needed, but when you look at that deep level of affordability, which I know has been a priority of you all to have that as well, to make sure we're really providing opportunity across the economic spectrum for anybody who wants to live in St.

19:38

Paul to have an opportunity to live in St.

19:40

Paul, and it's really exciting to see the impact of that and homes for people.

19:46

Some projects that we closed on.

19:48

I know it's a project closings, but closed on the projects for them to move forward.

19:52

You have the opportunity for things like Kimball Court, which is a rehab of 72 existing units, constructing 26 new units.

20:00

Mary Hall, which is 88 units, closed that at the end of 2024, and you have Jackson, which was reported then later, but you've got Jackson Street Village refinancing, Sibley Park and Sibley Court subordination, which preserved affordability for 243 units for an additional 30 years.

20:17

We also have past pass-through grants.

20:19

And so you look at Hams Brewery, where the Westside Complex got almost $800,000, and the East End Building has gotten 1.51 million dollars.

20:28

But there's several other housing developments where we successfully competed and were able to get pass-through grants to help these developments move forward.

20:35

Places like Lexington Deluxe, the Beasley, 1036 Marshall, Gloryville, and face-to-face.

20:42

And additional, in additionally to supporting rental units, also home ownership.

20:47

We had additional units of homeownership that were moving forward through the inheritance fund.

20:53

There's down payment assistance with 24 closings and 1.1 million dollars that is committed in spending.

20:59

And so really again trying to provide opportunity across economic income levels, but also to provide both rental and home ownership for Willie, that generational wealth building that we want in our community.

21:11

We also have some major development sites.

21:13

We really are unique as a city, a fully built-out city to have opportunities with these multi-acreything from 30 or 40 to 100 acre sites moving forward.

21:22

Those are quite a challenge in terms of touching all sorts of city departments and PED really being able to track and ensure that we are moving efficiently and effectively to move these major sites forward.

21:34

You have United Village, and you know, when you go by the uh intersection of Snelling and University, a very visible sign of something new is a very large public art sculpture of the loon, which folks have all seen, whether near or far, probably due to its size.

21:48

But you also have construction of the office building and the restaurant plaza that commenced this year, and we expect construction of the hotel to begin next year.

21:55

The infrastructure work is ongoing and really seeing the cranes and seeing things move on that site is exciting.

22:01

There's a stadium to bring vibrancy, and now it's still continuing.

22:05

With Highland Bridge, you know, the actions that you took as HR this spring has resulted in visible progress now, restarting on that site.

22:12

Block two is well underway to provide additional housing on the site as well as retail on Ford Parkway.

22:17

And block 11, which is the wider multi-filled family building that you heard more about previously this year, is also in progress.

22:23

And on the heights, you have Habitat for Humanity, which is very exciting, has sold some of their first homes, and we have residents moving in to again those home ownership opportunities in St.

22:33

Paul.

22:35

And there's been a lot of work done on HRA owned land.

22:37

I know we've discussed that a lot, and I've been before you before, but creating that disposition strategy now having identified and categorized all HRA own land with that eye and that goal of disposition.

22:48

So you've already begun to see some of that work to come into fruition, even just in the last few weeks with actions that you've sold and transferred to HRA owned land, and we intend to keep bringing those disposition actions towards you throughout 2026.

23:02

The Cyber Attack delayed some of the work, but working on updating those maps to allow interested individuals, developers to click on properties directly and indicate their interest to really move forward again expeditiously to transfer to sell those units.

23:15

Nine projects that have been started in progress or completed in 2025.

23:21

And a lot of action downtown.

23:22

So a lot of our work is done in collaboration with external partners, such as we've got the downtown alliance, you've got the chamber, a lot of external partners visit St.

23:32

Paul, but as well as internally with other departments as well.

23:34

So when a Madison Equities Property Alliance Bank came to an abrupt and sudden closure, we worked to ensure that those businesses had the opportunity to continue to operate in St.

23:43

Paul with relocation grants.

23:45

A lot of events you can see, you know, supporting business involvement and hoping that when we have an event like the Yacht Club Festival and when we have the upcoming World Juniors Tournament, that our local businesses here benefit from it, that they benefit from community being part of it, they benefit from customers being part of it, and they're essentially in on the action, right?

24:05

That they're part of it.

24:06

And if you want to, I know a lot of uh families looking for free activities for kids over winter break when school is out.

24:14

I would also put in a pitch for world juniors and all of the free activities downtown that folks can come and kids can enjoy, as well as bumper cars on ice.

24:22

So I'm just saying that is a fun and exciting opportunity.

24:25

I will definitely be partaking in.

24:28

Again, I talked about collaboration with partners, and you can see a lot of the partners there.

24:32

You can see the Pedro Park opening, a lot of things to support vibrant and um bustling downtown.

24:39

And then additional local business support outside of downtown, commercial corridors.

24:44

So in April, the city council approved the commercial corridor organization assistance program guidelines.

24:48

In May, the program was launched, and by July, PED had executed 18 contracts, one for each corridor.

24:55

That's phenomenal.

25:00

And so I do want to just take a moment and think about when you talk about one year in 2025 to go from establishing it, setting up, having guidelines, contracts out the door, and the money's being spent.

25:06

That's real impact on our corridors or commercial corridors in our neighborhoods and for small business owners, people who live in St.

25:12

Paul, own business in St.

25:13

Paul, work in St.

25:14

Paul.

25:14

So I really want to make sure to celebrate that impressive launch of that program.

25:20

Additionally, in planning and zoning, there's a lot of action going on in there.

25:24

You have the Hams, local designation, and rezoning, the Hamlin Midway plan, the T-zoning text amendments that you all most recently passed, additional dwelling unit toolkit, and then the Mississippi River Critical Corridor Area Zoning Merca, which is completed in 2025.

25:39

So I also want to take a moment to celebrate that because that has been a process, and it's wonderful to see it completed successfully.

25:47

And then I did want to take a moment again and note sustainability.

25:50

Sustainability is a hard one because it really is, it could have been on every single other slide, right?

25:54

So I call it out here in a separate slide, but it really is sort of throughout everything that we do.

25:59

So multifamily housing projects that we provide financial public financial support for comply with the sustainable building ordinance.

26:06

That requires rigorous green building and health requirements.

26:09

There's a healthy homes and power of home programs to provide things like pre-weatherization and weatherization.

26:14

And so we've got a great dedicated staff for sustainability within PED, but really the entire PED team on everything that they work for advances sustainability and resilience in our communities.

26:26

And again, I want to end with the team because all of those slides that you saw before it is all the great work that they have done.

26:31

So I'm glad that we had an opportunity to highlight some of the things.

26:35

It is not everything.

26:36

There's a lot, I'm sure that did not a lot I know that did not fit on the slides, but a lot of good work done, and I'm glad to have the opportunity to take a moment and celebrate it.

26:45

Thank you, Director McMahon.

26:46

Yeah, I really appreciate your work in putting this together.

26:48

I think it's so important to um to celebrate all of the work that we've done together this year and just to see it again.

26:54

I mean, sometimes we go through every week and we do so many things, and you're like, oh, we did this, we did that, and this is the impact, and this is you know what this means for our city.

27:02

So thank you so much for putting that together.

27:04

Um, are there any questions or comments from my colleagues?

27:08

Council President Nick.

27:09

Thanks, Chair Jost.

27:10

No questions, just a huge kudos to you, Director McMahon, and to your entire team.

27:14

It's been a year of transition of a lot of chaos all over our community.

27:20

Um, and seeing this work, as the chair just said, put all in one place, really um is powerful and it's incredible how much has been accomplished, kind of despite everything else that's been coming at us.

27:30

I I want to especially shout out to uh Rachel and the team at the inheritance fund.

27:35

We had a great celebration um on the West Side just this weekend.

27:38

Of I mean, I actually got to meet the some of the first recipients of inheritance fund funding on the West Side Flats, which was really um just just beautiful.

27:47

It felt like a homecoming, there were tears, there was joy, it was it was really wonderful, and it was um it made me really proud to be part of a city and and to be colleagues with a team that is doing such great work on that front.

27:57

So looking forward to more of that continuing.

27:59

I also want to shout out, and anybody I'm not shouting out to, I'm not not shouting out to you, but there are just some folks that I want to um Annie Byrne and the commercial corridor organization assistance program, which needs a new name.

28:09

Um, but is it just as you just said, I mean, having 936,000 dollars out the door, um, and and we've heard about it, like we've seen, we've heard from our district councils from our community members um about the direct on-the-ground impact that's making, and it's wonderful now to be able to say when folks say, Well, do you have a fund to do X, Y or Z?

28:26

And before I would have said, 'Well, I have capital dollars.

28:28

Now I say, 'Yeah, actually, we do, and in fact, it might be in the hands of the district council or business association in your neighborhood.

28:34

Um, finally, finally, the one thing I want to um hope hope to see in this presentation next time.

28:39

I think when our economic development strategy is done, it will help with this.

28:42

Um, but attracting jobs and and businesses to our community.

28:47

We we see the housing is going great, and I think then the other side of that coin is making sure our residents have great jobs nearby.

28:54

Um, so hoping that we can see some more of that reported on next year.

28:57

Um, but thank you mostly just for all the work.

29:01

Thank you, Council President.

29:02

Uh Councilman Rayang.

29:04

Thanks, Churchill.

29:04

So I really appreciate the presentation.

29:07

I am so grateful to everybody in PED for all of their work on these important projects.

29:12

And so I want to extend a thank you to everybody here for the developers in my ward who have projects that are um are still they're still working to get to the finish line.

29:22

I really appreciated that during my check-ins, like they're always mentioning, yeah, you know, we each just had a meeting with the with the city staff about it, and so it um they they feel supported too, and so I just want you all to know that.

29:34

I was wondering, uh, Director McMahon, if you would just be able to uh share with us briefly about the status for for healthy homes and power of homes.

29:45

I know we recently got an email, got an email about that like during the the end of the budget season there, but I'm wondering what we should anticipate going into next year for those two programs.

29:57

Yeah, it's exciting that they're moving forward and continuing for that.

30:00

I can get you more details in terms of specifics with how many individuals or individual properties are served, etc.

30:09

As that continues moving through, Kurt and Dave are doing a great job getting that program really again launched and set up as another example of launching setting up and really the action for next year.

30:20

Okay, great.

30:21

Yeah, Lee, if we can um get some sort of briefing about that going into next year, that'd be really great.

30:27

Yeah.

30:28

Follow up.

30:29

Great.

30:30

Any other comments from my colleagues?

30:33

Um, I uh Director McMahon, I really appreciate the presentation and uh especially appreciate our um HRA's action this year on Highland Bridge.

30:42

I was just out there last week during the blizzard uh to tour the construction site at Block 2, which is coming along very quickly and it's going very well, and then also tour the rest of the site and uh with the new mayor elect, and so that was really um just it I think it's great to see every time that we're building these projects, just see how they're moving along, and then when they open to see uh to see you know what that means for everyone and and our residents, they really appreciate appreciate the work that all of us do.

31:12

And I'll also second what the council president said about commercial corridors.

31:16

I was just talking to one of our district councils, and they had tons of people that were interested in all these ideas with the money for the commercial corridors, and so that really makes such a big impact in our communities, uh, and they really just very appreciative of that.

31:31

Um, and I also am excited about the world juniors and thanks for sharing the activities.

31:37

I was just looking at those myself and also saw the the bumper cars.

31:41

Um so I don't know if those are just for kids, but I'm hoping to check that out.

31:45

So thank you so much to you uh for all your work this year, and also really just appreciative of all the staff, and it's great to see everyone here.

31:52

Um you've been very supportive too in my role as HRA chair, uh uh stepping into the role from Chair Johnson's maternity leave.

31:59

So I just want to thank you all as well.

32:01

So the next item on our agenda, we're actually going to take a recess and reconvene um to discuss the next resolution at the city council meeting, um, which is where we'll be taking action and having a public hearing on that item.

32:15

Um so with that, the HRA is in recess.

33:07

Uh Vice Chair Jost is chairing RHA, so I will uh gabble out.

33:11

Council meeting is in recess.

33:15

Uh like to call the meeting of the housing and redevelopment authority to order roll call, please.

33:20

Yay.

33:21

Here.

33:23

Coleman.

33:23

Here Johnson.

33:25

Joast.

33:25

Here.

33:26

Kim.

33:27

Here.

33:27

Council, or I guess I should have done you less.

33:29

It's okay.

33:30

Uh Naker.

33:30

Here.

33:31

Six and uh six six present, one absent being Councilmember Johnson, and she is excused.

33:38

Uh item number one is or item number six, I should say, is uh resolution 25-1960 approving and authorizing the establishment of the Grand and Victoria Redevelopment Project Area, a redevelopment plan there for the establishment of the Grand Victoria Tax Increment Financing District, a tax increment financing plan there for an HRA budget amendment and the execution of a tax increment development agreement and related documents.

34:04

Thank you, Greg.

34:05

This is basically an execution of um of that agreement, and we're taking this action at the HRA.

34:10

So I'll take a motion from Council President Naker to approve this item.

34:13

Uh roll call, please.

34:15

Yang.

34:16

Aye.

34:16

Bowie?

34:17

No.

34:18

Coleman?

34:18

Yes.

34:19

John Jose.

34:20

Yes.

34:21

Kim.

34:21

Yes.

34:22

Naker.

34:22

Aye.

34:23

Five in favor, one opposed.

34:24

That being Councilmember Bowie, the resolution is adopted.

34:28

Uh with nothing else to come before us, the HRA is adjourned.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Affordable Housing█████████████████████████████████33%
Personnel Matters█████████████████████21%
Procedural███████████████15%
Economic Development██████████████14%
Public Works████████8%
Housing███████7%
Environmental Protection██2%
Summary of Proceedings

Housing and Redevelopment Authority Meeting - December 17, 2025

The Housing and Redevelopment Authority (HRA) convened to recognize three long-serving city employees, approve a flood mitigation resolution on HRA property, review the 2025 Year-End Report, and authorize the Grand Victoria Redevelopment Project Area. A significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to celebrating the 34-year career of Marie Franchette, with commissioners expressing deep appreciation for her contributions to affordable housing and city development.

Consent Calendar

  • Resolution 251963: Adopted unanimously (4-0) to recognize Paul Dubriel's 30 years of service to the City of St. Paul (motion by Council Vice President Kim). Note will be shared with Dubriel separately.
  • Resolution 25-1976: Adopted unanimously (4-0) to recognize Ross Courier's 11-year career with the Department of Planning and Economic Development (PED) (motion by Councilmember Yang). Note will be shared with Courier separately.
  • Resolution 25-1966: Adopted unanimously (4-0) supporting the Ramsey, Washington Metro Watershed District Flood Mitigation and Green Space Improvement Project on HRA owned property (motion by Councilmember Yang).
  • Resolution 25-2027 (Item 5 in transcript, referenced as staff report): The 2025 HRA Year-End Report was presented by Director McMahon; no separate vote was taken on the report itself as it was for informational purposes.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Marie Franchette (HRA Employee Retiring): Expressed gratitude for the 32 years spent with the HRA and the City of St. Paul. She described the work as "challenging but really rewarding," specifically highlighting recent efforts in affordable housing. She voiced confidence in the current housing team's ability to move projects forward. She noted appreciation for the HRA commissioners' diligence in understanding complex redevelopment issues and asked challenging questions. She expressed sadness at leaving but excitement to spend more time with family, hiking, and skiing in retirement.
  • Council President Naker: Stated she is not ready to end the day due to the bittersweet nature of the recognition. She thanked Marie for being an "incredible building block" for the city, praising her role in ensuring dignified, affordable, and high-quality housing. She acknowledged the support of HRA members and staff.
  • Councilmember Joast: Complimented Marie's "tough but fair negotiation skills," recalling a specific early instance where she successfully pushed back to extend affordability from 30 to 50 years on a project. He emphasized that one could see dozens of projects from City Hall that would not exist without her work.
  • Councilmember Kim: Expressed appreciation for the breadth of projects reviewed in the resolution, noting the impact of hundreds of housing units on city goals. As an engineer, she highlighted the value of seeing physical manifestations of one's work and the role Marie played in shaping the city.
  • Council President Nick: Shouted out the inheritance fund team for a recent successful celebration and the commercial corridor program for direct on-the-ground impact. He expressed a future hope to see more reporting on job and business attraction as the city continues its housing growth.
  • Councilmember Yang: Thanked the entire PED team, including developers and staff, for their support in completing projects. He requested a future briefing on the status of the "Healthy Homes" and "Power of Homes" programs.
  • Councilmember Naker (Second comment): Expressed excitement about the progress at the Highland Bridge construction site (Block 2) and the commercial corridor program's impact on district councils and community members. He also noted his appreciation for staff support during his temporary role as HRA Chair.

Discussion Items

  • Recognition of Marie Franchette: Director McMahon read Resolution 25-1972, detailing Franchette's career from 1992 to 2025. Highlights included:
    • Management of scores of projects with tens of millions in public investment.
    • Leadership on major projects including Alleans Field, the Verdant affordable passive house (Westside Flats), 431 new housing units at Westside Flats, Penn Field (254-unit mixed-use), and the redevelopment of City House.
    • Specific accolades for her "tough but fair" negotiation skills and mentorship.
    • Council President Naker and Councilmember Joast verbally recounted specific instances of Franchette's effective negotiation strategies.
    • Councilmember Kim (as Chair) noted that Chair Johnson (excused) had also prepared for this recognition.
  • 2025 HRA Year-End Report: Director McMahon presented the report, covering:
    • Bond Rating & Audits: Successful maintenance of bond rating and successful third-party audits.
    • Housing Projects: Openings of The Williams (90 units), The Harkin (60 units), and Marshall Avenue Flats (98 units) alongside completions like Kimball Court and Mary Hall.
    • Preservation: Refinancing at Jackson Street Village and subordination at Sibley Park/Court preserving 243 units for 30 years.
    • Grants & Homeownership: $2.3 million+ in pass-through grants and $1.1 million committed in down payment assistance.
    • Development Sites: Ongoing work at United Village (Highland Bridge progress, hotel construction next year) and Habitat for Humanity home sales.
    • Land Disposition: Updates on the strategy for HRA-owned land, including map updates following a cyber attack.
    • Economic Support: Relocation grants for Madison Equities tenants and the rapid launch of the Commercial Corridor Organization Assistance Program (18 contracts executed).
    • Sustainability: Compliance with sustainable building ordinances and weatherization programs.
  • Grand Victoria Redevelopment Project: Discussion regarding Resolution 25-1960, authorizing the establishment of the Grand and Victoria Redevelopment Project Area, a TIF district, and an HRA budget amendment. Councilmember Bowie opposed the item, while the rest of the board expressed support for the plan.

Key Outcomes

  • Resolution 25-1972 Adopted: Unanimous approval (4-0) to recognize Marie Franchette's extraordinary career and retirement after 34 years of public service.
  • Resolution 25-1960 Adopted: Approved (5-1) to establish the Grand Victoria Redevelopment Project Area and execute the Tax Increment Financing District plans. The single opposition came from Councilmember Bowie.
  • Strategic Directives:
    • Councilmember Yang requested a briefing on the status of "Healthy Homes" and "Power of Homes" programs for the next meeting.
    • Council President Naker noted the need for future reporting on job creation and business attraction alongside housing development.
  • Meeting Adjournment: The HRA meeting was adjourned following the vote on Resolution 25-1960.

Meeting Transcript

The meeting of the housing and redevelopment authority to order roll call, please. Louie, Coleman, Johnson, Joast, Kim, Naker, Yang. Chair Johnson is excused. Commissioners Bowie and Coleman are excused. For present item number one, resolution 251963. Resolution and appreciation of Paul Dubriel's 30 years of service to the city of St. Paul. Well, the first few items on our agenda today are recognizing folks that are um retiring here at the city of St. Paul. And so this resolution is to recognize Paul and Paul is not here today, but we will be sharing um a resolution with with Paul separately. And so I'm really excited to uh recognize the folks and really appreciate their contributions um to our city. So thank you. Is there any discussion? We're gonna actually think what we'll do, we're gonna save our discussion for the third item because we do have we do have uh Marie here with us today. So that's that's what we'll plan to do. That's all right. Um so with that I'll take a motion from Council Vice President uh Kim to approve. All in favor say aye. Aye. All those opposed. Four in favor, none opposed. The resolution is adopted. Item number two, resolution 25-1976, recognizing Ross Courier's 11-year career with the Department of Planning and Economic Development. Uh so again, this is a resolution that's recognizing uh Ross for all of his contributions to our city. Um again, uh Ross is not here, but we will be giving Ross the resolution separately and really appreciate uh Ross's work. So uh I'll take a motion from Councilmember Yang to approve this item. All in favor say aye. Aye. All those opposed. Four in favor, none opposed. The resolution is adopted. Item number three, resolution 25-1972. Recognizing Marie Franchette for an extraordinary career with the city of St. Paul and congratulating her on her retirement. Um so this is a resolution to recognize Marie and her retirement, and I will turn it over to Director McMahon. Sure, thank you so much. I am so glad that Maria is here, and we are able in person to recognize her and celebrate her accomplishments and work with the city. Um, I will read the actual resolution rather than describing the things because it's pretty amazing the breadth and the depth of the work that Marie has done. So I want to make sure to go through and to note that. But I also just wanted to note that I think it's a great um such a great example that you've led through the city, through the department, in the work you've done, not just in the outcomes, and we can talk a lot about the outcomes, but in who you are and how you are to work with. And I know that has been deeply and greatly appreciated from colleagues that I have heard from about you, even before I came to PED and went in PD. So thank you, not just again for the good work and for the outcomes, but for who you are, how you've showed up, and what you've done to help people in the city. You know, I've heard a lot when former council president Amy Bremmolen would talk to folks and say, you know, you never really leave the city. You are you're always part of the city. But when you go around the city and particularly in the work you've done where there is this like physical manifestation of it, that you take the time and the opportunity, and maybe around the holidays, you can go look at holiday lights, but also go look at all of the work that you've done and you've contributed to it and be able to point at that and say, you know, I know stuff about that because I worked on it and I know the background and the history, and and I had a hand and I was part of leading that effort. So thank you so much for that. And I would like to formally present you with something to recognize your time with the city. And I would like if the opportunity to read through it so we can all we can all hear exactly that breadth and depth of experience and work that Marie brought. So recognizing Marie Franchette for an extraordinary career with the City of St. Paul and congratulating her on her retirement.

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