City Council approves Downtown Improvement District expansion
The St. Paul City Council approved a plan last month to expand the existing boundaries of the St. Paul Downtown Improvement District (DID) eastward in downtown to and include residential properties in the new, larger district.
The expanded district will fund more street ambassadors, graffiti and litter pick-up, among other efforts to spruce up downtown Saint Paul. Additionally, the DID has earmarked funds to pay a community prosecutor dedicated to downtown livability issues.
The DID, which assesses property owners based on square footage and street frontage and uses those funds to provide additional services to the area, previously bisected downtown at Cedar St. and was limited to commercial properties.
An expansion of the district along West 7th failed in August of last year when business owners opted out of the voluntary program.
A Downtown Improvement District, also known as a Special Service District under Minnesota state law, supplements government services by providing enhanced services and programming within the public realm to a commercial district, including safety and security, outreach and wellness checks, graffiti and hazardous waste removal, and more.
DIDs are a self-imposed and self-managed program where property owners in a defined area agree to pay for enhanced services there. This revenue is managed by the property owners themselves, not by the city.
When the St. Paul DID was established, the state law regulating Special Service Districts allowed only commercial and industrial parcels to be included in a district. In 2023, that law was amended to allow for residential condos and multi-family properties to participate.
According to the St. Paul DID, since its launch in 2021, police calls for quality of life crimes and concerns fell by 40% within its boundaries, while they increased significantly in other parts of downtown.
The new district will take effect in 2025 and will double the annual budget.
Learn more: spdid.org.
