The Metropolitan Council (Met Council) plans to award $27.5 million in Livable Communities grants in 2023. The Met Council has awarded more than $450 million in funding to participating communities in the 28 years since the program went into effect in 1995.
“These grants, over time, are making a significant difference in the vibrancy of communities and the well-being of residents and families,” said Met Council Chair Charlie Zelle. “The grants themselves represent a small portion of the overall investment needed for specific projects, but they help fill funding gaps and leverage additional dollars from other public and private sources. It takes partnerships to get these deals done, and the Council is at the table.”
Funds available in 2023 from the three accounts in the Livable Communities Fund:
- Tax Base Revitalization: $5.5 million
- Livable Communities Demonstration Account: $16.6 million
- Local Housing Incentives Account: $5.4 million
“Today we boast hundreds of funded projects across the region, from Gladstone Crossing in Maplewood to Brooklyn Center’s huge ‘Opportunity Site’ redevelopment and the City Square West housing development in Chaska. I credit the vision of the elected officials who created the program and the partnerships with local officials for all the successes. We share goals of reinvesting in community centers and gathering places, providing safe and affordable places to live for families and households with lower incomes and ensuring the efficient use of land that supports all the ways we travel and move about our communities, including walking, biking and transit,” said Lisa Barajas, Met Council’s community development director.
