St. Paul has approved more than $3.3 million in Sales Tax Revitalization grants for neighborhood capital improvements and arts and cultural projects.
The 2026 awards include more than $2.1 million through the Neighborhood STAR program for 33 capital projects and programs, along with more than $1.1 million through Cultural STAR for 78 arts and cultural initiatives. The Cultural STAR awards place a particular emphasis on downtown’s cultural district while supporting events, facilities and organizational capacity across the city.
The City Council approved the grants July 8 after recommendations from the Neighborhood and Cultural STAR advisory boards.
City data show that 64% of Neighborhood STAR recipients are owned or led by people of color and 58% are owned or led by women. Among Cultural STAR recipients, 56% are led by women and 45% are led by people of color.
Recipients include small businesses, community organizations, festivals and cultural institutions. Projects cited by the city include a rain garden at Terra Firma Building and Remodeling, improvements to the St. Paul Farmers’ Market indoor space, climate-control upgrades for Northeast Seniors for Better Living and programming for ArtStart and the Lakeside Guitar Festival.
St. Paul has used a portion of a half-cent sales tax for STAR programs since 1995. Neighborhood STAR has provided more than $137 million to over 1,250 projects, which the city estimates helped generate more than $1.4 billion in private investment. Cultural STAR has invested more than $44.7 million in over 1,570 projects during the past 30 years.
The programs also make annual allocations for library materials and sidewalk repair. Additional information and recipient lists are available through the city’s STAR program webpages.
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