Citing rent control, Luther Seminary freezes plans to sell lower campus for housing
Jan. 7—Seven months after announcing it had partnered with developers on the sale of its lower campus for new housing, Luther Seminary indicated Thursday that those plans are on hold.
In a post to its website, seminary officials said "Inland Development Partners has determined the project is not currently economically viable" due to increased costs and changes in city policy, including a new rent control ordinance approved by voters in November.
In late May, the seminary, which is located east of Minnesota Highway 280 at 2481 Como Ave., announced that Inland would coordinate a "thorough review of the infrastructure and unique attributes of the site" and support efforts to sell parcels of land for redevelopment, including affordable housing and housing connected to new retail or commerce. That partnership now appears to be over. Calls to the developer were not immediately returned Thursday afternoon.
"We remain committed both to selling the land in order to better fulfill our mission and future development that furthers the city of St. Paul's goal to provide affordable and mixed-use housing," reads the latest announcement. "Luther is in a strong position to wait until the environment is more favorable."
Since December 2020, Luther has leased Stub Hall to Ramsey County to temporarily house homeless women and couples. The shelter, which can house 50 people, will remain open through May 31, when the county's lease expires. The largest building on the lower campus, Northwestern Hall, has been vacant for roughly a year.
