St. Paul in need of revitalizing its important downtown.

Little by little, more and more businesses and employees have been leaving the large office buildings, and the downtown area has become vacant, turning into a place for homeless individuals, making St. Paul a location where no one wants to invest, much less live.

A clear example of this occurred recently with the Lowry apartments, which received complaints from their tenants about neglect, insecurity, and poor management, leading to the appointment of a court-assigned person to oversee them.

This is just one case among many properties that are in poor condition, abandoned, or facing issues in St. Paul. The truth is that the downtown area also has a high vacancy rate due to the multiple sales of buildings that the city is experiencing today.

To take control of the city and improve downtown St. Paul, the mayor has gathered business, government, and nonprofit leaders to study and implement strategies that help revitalize the downtown, increase jobs, attract visitors, improve security, and create affordable housing to balance the city’s real estate market.

Currently, the housing real estate market is healthy and shows a marked occupancy volume, a situation that does not occur with office buildings, where the vast majority are experiencing a considerable increase in vacancy. Therefore, one of the strategies that the mayor and his team are working on the most is to convert office buildings into livable and affordable housing.

To turn this strategy into reality, the architecture firm Gensler has been hired to study the feasibility of the proposal after conducting comprehensive studies on the buildings that can likely be converted into affordable housing for residents and significantly transform the visibility of downtown St. Paul.

Like all housing projects, large financial resources are needed to develop and realize them; therefore, the representative of St. Paul will request a special tax credit with which he hopes to convert office buildings into housing, to increase occupancy and thereby revitalize the downtown area, which could ultimately transform it into a more attractive place for investors and businesses.

Although many people and real estate agents sympathize with the mayor’s proposal, they recognize that revitalizing downtown will not be easy or cheap, as high interest rates and construction costs are always significant obstacles to overcome when attempting to carry out large housing projects.

Available Foreclosure:

St. Paul: 150 homes available.

By Elías DaSilva | 21 de Noviembre de 2024.