Housing and Redevelopment Authority Meeting Date: October 20, 2026
To: Members of the Housing and Redevelopment Authority
From: Scott Wopata, Community Development Director
Emery John, Interim Program Coordinator
Title
Staff Updates
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Action Requested:
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Summary Report:
Community Land Trust
- Scott Wopata is participating in conversations surrounding the emerging collaborative work to form a Community Land Trust in Rice County. The City of Northfield and the HRA will eventually need to consider participating.
- No financial commitments have been made at this time.
- Staff will continue to monitor and will bring information for discussion and decision when appropriate.
Stepping away from property ownership
- The HRA has been selling or transferring properties over the past 5 years to ensure that housing units are put to better use by partners and members of the community.
- This reflects a strategic direction to offload property management so that staff and resources could be more focused on larger projects and initiatives.
- One example of this is the sale of 517 Washington St to CAC after years of leasing it to CAC or Three Rivers while the HRA maintained the responsibility of property management.
- After an extensive listing period over the course of the last year, the HRA finally sold 2330 Elianna Drive on September 16, 2026 with final sale price of $273,000. It was purchased for about $120,000 in 2009.
- 2330 Elianna Drive is the final “rental” property owned and operated by the HRA.
- The HRA does still own two “vacant” homes on 2nd St and on Cherry St.
Down Payment Assistance (DPA) program
- Another DPA was awarded in July, representing another household who has been able to relocate to Northfield and purchase a townhome.
- The DPA program continues to prioritize more equitable access to the benefits of homeownership in Northfield.
Looking Forward to 2027
- Reviewing and realigning the responsibilities and powers of the HRA with the EDA
- Upcoming grant opportunities for housing infrastructure, unlocking potential future development on HRA and City owned properties for residential development. This will prioritize direct partnerships with Three Rivers Community Action Program and Rice County HRA.
- Exploring HRA and EDA alignment to incentivize density and downtown redevelopment
Community Development Staffing Update
- Community Development is fully staffed for the first time since the department began consolidating and re-organizing in mid-2025.
- Holly Hansen will be starting in early November as the new Community Development Manager. She comes with extensive experience related to redevelopment projects and economic development in Northern MN. This position is the consolidation of two previous positions including Housing Coordinator and Economic Development Coordinator.
- Tyler Severson started in early October to fill the open Building Inspector position.
- Mikayla Schmidt, City Planner, is expected to return from Family Leave in early November.
- Fun fact and media: Community Action Center’s affordable and sustainable housing projects in both Northfield and Faribault were recently featured by Minnesota Public Radio. The next project in this effort will be at 1000 Division St in Northfield through a Workforce Housing Grant secured between CAC and the City of Northfield.
City Plans & Policies Relevance:
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Financial Impacts:
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Tentative Timelines:
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