Current Projects

In April of 2023, Whittier Alliance and Alliance Housing Inc formed a new partnership to provide creative housing solutions and broad community benefit in new Whittier development.

The Whittier Alliance (WA) neighborhood organization and Alliance Housing Inc have established a new partnership to bring low-barrier affordable housing, community meeting and event space, and new office space for both organizations to the vacant site at 2116 Nicollet Ave. The acquisition of the space by Whittier Alliance in the spring of 2021 was inspired by a long-time intention of the organization to purchase and activate property for community benefit.

In the fall of 2021 after a competitive application process, WA convened a volunteer steering committee to define the vision/values/goals for the site, develop a process for community engagement, draft and release a Request for Proposals (RFP), and ultimately, to make a recommendation to the WA Board of Directors for the preferred development partner from the proposals received. Community engagement work throughout the summer of 2022 further clarified the priorities that residents and other nearby stakeholders wanted to see most in the project.

Through the RFP process, Whittier Alliance was thrilled to select Alliance Housing Inc as their partner in this important project after clear demonstration of an alignment in values, objectives, and organization mission.

Alliance Housing creates affordable, low-barrier housing that is accessible to all members of the community. The new project at 2116 Nicollet will be a mixed use building housing 54 units of affordable housing and approximately 4,200 square feet of leasable commercial space and a community meeting space, that will be shared by Whittier Alliance and Alliance Housing. Single adults will occupy the mix of single room occupancy (SRO), efficiency, and one bedroom units. The first floor space will welcome neighborhood residents in for a variety of neighborhood focused events and meetings. 

In 1977, Kmart and SuperValu leased 10 acres of land after the City of Minneapolis sold the site to real estate investors. This development closed the block of Nicollet
Avenue between 29th and Lake Street, creating a barrier that affected the community, local businesses, and the
landscape of south Minneapolis.
​
Today, the City owns this site again, and plans to construct Nicollet Avenue to reconnect with Lake Street. With community input, the site will once again serve as a commercial and cultural crossroads, reflecting the needs of the community who currently lives here.

Guiding Documents

The City of Minneapolis' Kmart Project Expectations document describes what we know will happen on Nicollet Ave and the Kmart site based on established City policies including the 2040 Comprehensive Plan, the Transportation Action Plan, and many others.

​The Kmart Public Engagement Framework goes into detail about how the City of Minneapolis is asking the public and key stakeholders to play a role in redeveloping the former Kmart and reconnecting Nicollet Ave.

The Desired Outcomes Document outlines the most important elements to prioritize and achieve through this redevelopment process as identified by community members during the first phase of the public engagement process in August 2022 through January 2023.

Overview

The Whittier Housing and Land Use Committee is a group of committed volunteers collaborating with each other, with developers, and other organizations to impact Whittier's housing climate in a positive way. The Committee meets on the 3rd Tuesday of each month  to collaborate on and provide community updates on projects ongoing, to facilitate discussions with developers, and hear from elected officials on housing policy.

Community-led Visioning Sessions and subsequent meetings in 2018 laid out a clear vision for the work of this Committee in the coming 5 years as a part of the Whittier Alliance's overall organizational strategic plan: Protect and Expand the variety of housing options in Whittier for people at every life stage and economic condition.

As you may have noticed, there’s a lot of road work happening (or coming soon) in the neighborhood! You can find out more about current and upcoming projects at the links below.

• Lyndale Ave

• Franklin Ave

• 1st Ave

• Nicollet Ave

• Whittier Safe Routes to School

Several different Whittier neighborhood parks are being (or will be) revamped. Learn more about those plans below.

• Clinton Field

• Whittier Park

• 28th St Tot Lot

• Soo Line Garden