Small business incubator, training center opens on St. Paul’s East Side
Dayton’s Bluff Neighborhood Housing Services of St. Paul, in partnership with Neighborhood Development Center (NDC), opened a small-business incubator and training center in the summer of 2017 at 809 E. Seventh St.
The primary focus is minority neighborhood entrepreneurs who own small and start-up contractor businesses. Several open in the center, employing about 20 area residents. They include Green Light Architectural Sheet Metal, Everest Cleaning Systems, Ideal Commercial Interiors and Intown Sushi.
The facility also includes a YouthBuild training facility.
University Enterprise Labs
UEL financed a new addition with 19,500 additional sq. ft of available innovation space.
Dorothy Day Opportunity Center
In 2017, NMTC-financing supported the construction of a new 60,900 SF service center targeted to very low income and homeless individuals co-located with housing designed to transition people from homelessness to stability. The first two floors of the newly constructed six-story building consist: a 29,000 SF dining hall and community meeting space operated by Catholic Charities; a 22,400 SF computer lab and supportive service center operated by Catholic Charities, Ramsey County and a number of other service providers; a 5,700 SF health center and dental clinic to be operated by Westside; and 2,250 SF for another social service use to be determined after closing or operated as a social enterprise café. An additional 1,500 SF of storage space is located in the basement of the building.
The project will provide comprehensive support services for very low income and homeless individuals, including primary healthcare; dental care; mental and behavioral health services; adult education and workforce development programs; financial counseling; public benefits/entitlement services; community integration; housing placement services; meal service; and laundry and other personal care services/facilities. By integrating housing and services at the same site, it is expected that the project will provide the support necessary to achieve self-sufficiency and create true pathways out of poverty and homelessness. It allow Catholic Charities to better serve its clients by allowing it to consolidate its services in St. Paul to a single location and to expand services offered on-site by partnering with other service provider.
Open Cities Healthcare, Northend Clinic
Recognizing the need to expand services along the Rice Street corridor, Open Cities Healthcare purchased a building at 916 Rice and has renovated and opened its second clinic at this location. The facility at 916 Rice is 19,000 sq. ft. compared to the 7,500 sq. ft. at Rice and Manitoba, and allows the clinic to provide a greater number of services and serve an increasing number of individuals and families in need of affordable, quality health services.
Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity Headquarters
In 2012, the Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity was looking to build a new headquarters building to house its staff, coordinate volunteers and provide space for educational and advocacy programs. The new construction would be located in St. Paul, in a central location accessible by the city’s light rail transport system. The new facility would provide the organization with an enhanced base of operations through which it could offer more support to families in need. But that new capability would come at a cost: a total of $9.5 million would be needed to build the Twin Cities Habitat’s new home. And in making that investment, Habitat leaders were determined not to compromise the organization’s existing programs and services.
Groundbreaking took place in May 2013. The new headquarters facility, consisting of more than 27,000-square-feet of office and meeting space, was completed in early 2014. And true to Habitat for Humanity’s commitment to green building and making the most of recycled materials, it makes generous use of recycled windows, doors, carpets and other components.
