St. Paul Inheritance Fund welcomes its first recipient home

Devlin Epding, Pioneer Press
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As an 18-year-old college student experiencing homelessness, Anthony Bradford thought the idea of owning a home was a dream for others to experience. Four years later, Bradford became the first recipient of St. Paul’s Inheritance Fund program and on Wednesday cut the ribbon to make his longtime dream of homeownership a reality.

Bradford’s red-brick, two-story home sits in St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood, a historic Black community that for decades was a cornerstone for residents and businesses before Interstate 94’s construction in 1956 split Rondo in two, destroying families, homes and the neighborhood. Now, St. Paul’s Inheritance Fund aims to assist direct descendants of that neighborhood in reclaiming its wealth through homeownership.

After their 100-room hotel was burned down during the Tulsa Race massacre a century ago, Bradford said his family sought refuge up north before landing in Rondo. However, the family’s duplex and leather business were destroyed during I-94’s construction. Decades later, Bradford’s family history helped him secure a $90,000 loan to buy his new home through the program.

“I was lost in time,” Bradford said of receiving news he received the grant. “I couldn’t cry because I didn’t want my co-workers to know what big event just happened. However, I just got my first house.”

St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter introduced the $2.6 million program last year, which is funded through the Housing Trust Fund and Downpayment Assistance Program. The city will offer up to $110,000 in forgivable downpaynment loans on a home or $85,000 for home renovations to eligible applicants over the next two years.

Throughout years of construction, the I-94 project displaced more than 700 Rondo families and destroyed roughly $150 million in community wealth, according to Carter. However, St. Paul’s Housing Director Tara Beard said it is the government’s responsibility to repair the damage it has caused its residents.

“Government can be the cause of harm, and government can be the cause of mitigating that harm, of doing better,” Beard said. “In partnership with folks and community like Mr. Bradford, I know we can do even more.”

Beard first learned about Rondo’s story while studying at the University of Minnesota, and added she hopes more leaders can take lessons from the program to address historic inequities in other communities.

Although helping homeowners will quickly deplete the program’s funding, Carter said the program differs from previous economic assistance efforts by rebuilding sustainable wealth for Rondo residents and being a “chapter one” for inheritances for St. Paul residents.

“One of the things we’ve learned is that homeownership does not automatically mean wealth creation,” Carter said. “This program is designed not just to say that Mr. Bradford has his name on the mortgage, but it’s to say that we are being intentional about wealth creation and asset building through homeownership.”

As oversized ceremonial scissors split the red ribbon guarding the front porch, both Bradford and Carter began first chapters in creating new legacies for Rondo and the people who call it home.

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