🏢 Who bought the Sears?

The Nonprofit Reshaping Rondo

Rondo Community Land Trust is an organization dedicated to creating permanently affordable housing for the community in the Rondo neighborhood. They have been helping people become homeowners in Rondo since 1993, and they recently bought the Sears site in St. Paul, which has sat vacant for years. [🎧 City Cast Twin Cities]

• What is a Community Land Trust? It's a nonprofit organization that buys land in an area for the purpose of permanently providing affordable housing and community assets. The trust will always own the land itself, but people can purchase houses and own buildings built on the land as long as they agree to sell the home at an affordable price in the future, ensuring permanent accessibility for low-income buyers. [U.S. Environmental Protection Agency]
• Why Rondo? The Rondo neighborhood of St. Paul was home to 90% of the Black population in St. Paul before it was bulldozed for the construction of I-94 between 1956 and 1968. The impacts continued to displace people from their homes through the 1980s, and the CLT was formed by community members to preserve affordable housing. [Reconnect Rondo / 🎧 City Cast Twin Cities]
• Why buy the Sears? I-94 didn't just destroy houses; it also took out many independent businesses. The Rondo CLT started acquiring commercial properties to provide leases for far cheaper than market value to allow more businesses to move in. They haven't announced exact plans for the Sears site yet, but executive director Mikeya Griffin said it will be a "dynamic, high-density, mixed-use development." [🎧 City Cast Twin Cities / MPR News]

Un-banning bathhouses: As Minneapolis considers lifting its decades-old ban on bathhouses, a look back shows the prohibition was rooted in fear during the HIV/AIDS crisis of the 1980s. Adult bathhouses were spaces historically frequented by gay men where individuals could engage in sexual activity, relax, or find sanctuary due to unsafe situations at home. Officials at the time saw closures as a public health measure, but some experts and advocates argued they pushed sexual activity underground, making outreach and HIV prevention harder. [MPR News]

O'Hara or No'Hara? Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O'Hara was voted in unanimously by the city council in 2022, and his profile is now higher than ever after appearing in multiple national media outlets throughout Operation Metro Surge. Even still, it's uncertain if he'll keep his job as Mayor Jacob Frey has yet to nominate him for reappointment, and both progressive and centrist members of the city council have soured on him in recent months. [Star Tribune]

Convicted: A jury found Firomsa Ahmed Umar of Fridley guilty of arson for throwing two Molotov cocktails at Fletcher's ice cream on Oct. 19 and 20 of 2025. The jury also concluded that his actions were "motivated by bias against actual or perceived gender identity or sexual orientation." The owner of Fletcher's suspects the shop was targeted for the massive Pride flag hanging above their door. [Star Tribune]

R.I.P. cheap oysters: Coastal Seafoods and the Dive restaurant in St. Paul will close after tomorrow’s service. Today's episode of our podcast features a members-only segment mourning the loss of the popular seafood spot and recommending alternatives to get your oyster fix once they're gone. For ad-free listening to our podcast and access to bonus content like this, you can sign up here.

Pod update: City Cast's national podcast, "Your City Could Be Better," has been dropping in our feed every weekend for the past few weeks, but we're pausing that! For now, you can follow along with weekly episodes on the show's YouTube feed, or wherever you get your podcasts. If you haven't listened yet, check out the first episode featuring our host Sean McPherson!

Friday, Apr 10

• 🎨 St. Paul Art Crawl | St. Paul Wards 1,3,4
• 🍴 West Bank Food & Culture Talks | Tamu Grill
• 🆓 Uŋči Said So Opening Reception | All My Relations Arts
• 🎭 Manners & Misconduct: Improvised Jane Austen | Bryant Lake Bowl
• 🧑‍⚖️ LAW & ORDER The Unscripted Parody | Strike Theater
• 🎼 Happy Birthday, Merle Haggard! | Main Stage Showroom at Crooners
• 💃 Call of the Loon | Tapestry Folkdance Center
• 🎨 Art by MPLS Youth Affected by the ICE Occupation | May Day Cafe

Saturday, Apr 11

• 🌍 International Festival of Minnesota | St. Paul RiverCentre
• 🎂 Moona Moono 1st Birthday | Moona Moono
• 🚲 Ride For Rent | MLK Park
• 🍽️ 15th Annual Vegan Chili Cook Off | North Star Ballroom at Saint Paul Student Center
• ⚔️ Armored Combat | Socialable Cider Werks
• 🆓 Community Walk | Seven Points Uptown
• 🎤 Somali Millennial Night | Amaal Event Center

Sunday, Apr 12

• 🏃 Goldy's Run | Huntington Bank Stadium
• 🐊 Minnesota Reptile Show | North End Event Center at MN State Fairgrounds
• 🥕 Gather, Graze & Grow | Diane's Place
• 📚 Hot Reads and Sweat Hearts Romance Book Fair | BlackStack Brewing
• 🎤 Sun Wave Mountain Cave: Riffs for Rent Relief | Amsterdam
• 🎸 Women's Rock n Roll Retreat | James Ballentine "Uptown" VFW
• 💋 LUSH Employee Charity Drag Show | LUSH Lounge
• 🎸 *RESCHEDULED* Southside Student Mutual-Aid Matinee Fundraiser | Hook and Ladder

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• Finance & Operations Manager at Native Governance Center | $70k – $75k per year