Shakopee officials plotted to stop affordable housing project

Shakopee City Officials Attempt to Block Affordable Housing Project

Shakopee city officials devised a plan early this year to block an affordable housing project in the face of increasing public pressure against the development, according to emails obtained by Sahan Journal.

Shakopee leaders knew they could legally jeopardize the city by attempting to reverse a City Council vote in 2020 that rezoned land for a development by Beacon Interfaith Housing Collaborative. Yet they decided to proceed.

Beacon Plan

The email’s subject line read, “Beacon Plan.” Beacon develops affordable housing across Minnesota, and serves a rental clientele that is about 90 percent people of color.

The Shakopee City Council voted in June 2020 to rezone a plot of land at 4th Avenue East and Sarazin Street from B1 to Planned Unit Development (PUD) to allow Beacon to pursue its Prairie Pointe development. Three years later, Reynolds and city staff proposed in April that the city rezone the area back to its original status. Although rezoning would allow Beacon to proceed with a scaled-down version of the project, Beacon has said it would erase years of planning and would delay or potentially kill the project.

The city’s planning commission was scheduled to vote this week at its August 3 meeting whether to rezone the project site. A city communications manager told Sahan Journal late Monday afternoon that the vote would be moved to a September meeting so the commission could review new materials about the project.

1. If you will recall, we had a rezone with PUD so Beacon could meet their parking requirements,” Reynolds wrote in his email, referring to the city council vote in 2020. “This will change the property back to B1, which they can then have an apartment building by right BUT this will negate the agreement with the church to use their parking for residents. Meaning that they will not meet code. Of course I expect they would ask for a variance – which can be denied by council.”

Public Pressure Prompts City Action

The City Council’s June 2020 vote to rezone the project site for Prairie Pointe allowed for greater flexibility on parking spaces shared with a nearby church, and increased the number of housing units in the development.

Beacon wants to build an apartment complex with 46 affordable housing units for families who make 50 percent or less of the area median income. Some of the units would be reserved for families who make 30 percent or less of the area median income, which is about $35,000 for a family of four, according to Beacon.

The project sits on empty green space next to Resonate Community Church–its closest neighbor.

A Partial Timeline of Events in the Prairie Pointe Project

2020:

1. A senior city planner tells Beacon Interfaith Housing Collaborative that because of COVID-19, a required neighborhood meeting about Beacon’s proposed Prairie Pointe housing project will be replaced with online input from residents.
2. The Shakopee City Council votes to rezone land for Beacon’s housing project, allowing for more units and flexibility to accommodate parking.

December 2022:

1. Beacon publishes a blog post that addresses issues facing residents at its property, Kimball Court, including unsafe living conditions and a lack of repairs.

April 2023:

1. FOX9 reports that residents face violent squatters and unresponsive management at The Lonoke Apartments, a Beacon co-owned property.
2. Shakopee residents email city staff raising concerns about the news report and Prairie Pointe.
3. “We are getting hit with a lot of complaints about the Beacon Housing project that is to be built,” Shakopee City Administrator Reynolds emails City Attorney James Thomson.
4. City Administrator Bill Reynolds emails the City Council and Mayor Matt Lehman saying the city will rezone the project site, which would limit and potentially end Beacon’s project.

May 2023:

1. Director of Planning and Development Michael Kerski emails City Administrator Bill Reynolds saying that City Attorney James Thomson is “nervous” about the plan to rezone the project site. “I told him the worst-case scenario is they will sue,” Kerski writes.
2. Reynolds replies back, “Let them sue, but the reality is that they are having troubles with the properties they currently have.”

June 2023:

1. Beacon sends the city a letter opposing the attempt to rezone the project site, arguing that doing so would be “an unlawful action and in direct conflict of Minnesota law.”
2. The Shakopee Planning Commission is scheduled to vote whether to rezone the project site. Its agenda notes that Beacon never held a neighborhood meeting on the project, so the City Council’s 2020 vote was an “error.”
3. The planning commission postpones the vote.

September 2023:

1. The planning commission is expected to vote whether to rezone the Prairie Pointe site. No public hearing will be held on the matter at the meeting.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators

1. No Poverty

• Target 1.3: Implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and the vulnerable.
• Indicator 1.3.1: Proportion of population covered by social protection floors/systems, by sex, distinguishing children, unemployed persons, older persons, persons with disabilities, pregnant women, newborns, work-injury victims, and the poor and the vulnerable.

5. Gender Equality

• Target 5.4: Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work through the provision of public services, infrastructure and social protection policies and the promotion of shared responsibility within the household and the family as nationally appropriate.
• Indicator 5.4.1: Proportion of time spent on unpaid domestic and care work, by sex, age and location.

10. Reduced Inequalities

• Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status.
• Indicator 10.2.1: Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income, by age, sex and persons with disabilities.

11. Sustainable Cities and Communities

• Target 11.1: By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums.
• Indicator 11.1.1: Proportion of urban population living in slums, informal settlements or inadequate housing.

16. Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

• Target 16.6: Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels.
• Indicator 16.6.2: Proportion of population satisfied with their last experience of public services.

Analysis

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

The SDGs that are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article are:

– SDG 1: No Poverty

– SDG 5: Gender Equality

– SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

– SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

– SDG 16: Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

Based on the article’s content, the specific targets that can be identified are:

– Target 1.3: Implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and the vulnerable.

– Target 5.4: Recognize and value unpaid care and domestic work through the provision of public services, infrastructure and social protection policies and the promotion of shared responsibility within the household and the family as nationally appropriate.

– Target 10.2: By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status.

– Target 11.1: By 2030, ensure access for all to adequate, safe and affordable housing and basic services and upgrade slums.

– Target 16.6: Develop effective, accountable and transparent institutions at all levels.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

Yes, there are indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets. These indicators include:

– Indicator 1.3.1: Proportion of population covered by social protection floors/systems, by sex, distinguishing children, unemployed persons, older persons, persons with disabilities, pregnant women, newborns, work-injury victims, and the poor and the vulnerable.

– Indicator 5.4.1: Proportion of time spent on unpaid domestic and care work, by sex, age and location.

– Indicator 10.2.1: Proportion of people living below 50 percent of median income, by age, sex and persons with disabilities.

– Indicator 11.1.1: Proportion of urban population living in slums, informal settlements or inadequate housing.

– Indicator 16.6.2: Proportion of population satisfied with their last experience of public services.

Table: SDGs, Targets and Indicators