CASE STUDY
Heritage Greens | Cambridge, Minnesota

An Outstanding Model Neighborhood with Affordable & Market Rate Housing Results from Strong Community Vision

Supported in part by $1 million in McKnight Challenge funds, Heritage Greens is a model GMHF's Growth Corridor Initiative (GCI) project that has engaged over 150 community residents in a broad-based participatory planning process. The result of these efforts is a remarkable vision for the abandoned 86-acre old state mental hospital site in Cambridge.

The vision for Heritage Greens is a new urbanist community that integrates 292 mixed-income housing units with open green space and commercial land uses. The project is currently under construction and four affordable starter homes went up for sale in July 2005. Heritage Green is a strong example of smart growth planning in a rapidly growing “collar county” community and is an excellent model for future GMHF projects in Minnesota’s growth corridor. The highlights of this project include:

• Combination of single-family homes, for-sale and rental townhomes for families and seniors.
• High-quality home designs on compact lots with alleys.
• Pedestrian-friendly streetscape with sidewalks, trails street trees, and linkages to surrounding neighborhoods.
• Preservation of open space and a central park.
• Sites allocated for community center and library.
• Connections to adjacent neighborhoods and existing infrastructure.

The Vision of Local Leadership

The community, Cambridge city officials, and the development team are committed to features of Traditional Neighborhood Design, including the principles of the Building Better Neighborhoods program. With a commitment to making a substantial number of the housing units affordable, the City will be incorporating a Community Land Trust (CLT) to keep 30 owner-occupied homes permanently affordable.

Key Partners Help Realize Community's Vision for Growth

More than 150 community members have participated in a community planning process that began in April 2001; additionally Cambridge was an early participant in the Central Initiative Foundation’s Healthy Communities Program. GMHF has assisted this development with BBN Technical Assistance, funding for master planning the project and $1 million in McKnight Challenge funds for land acquisition, construction and homebuyer gap financing.

In addition to the McKnight Challenge funds, the Blandin Foundation awarded a $375,000 grant to Cambridge to help with early site acquisition, demolition and planning.

Heritage Greens is an excellent example of how GMHF works with local communities to bring together technical and financial resources from a combination of sources, including local public financing and a variety of philanthropic resources to assist local officials in implementing critically needed affordable housing that would have not otherwise been realized.

Combining community resources with GMHF’s technical assistance and project financing, this development models best practices in community participation, mixed-use development, land use planning, home design, and partnerships among public, private and philanthropic funders to achieve a broadly supported community vision for growth.