Minneapolis Duplex Construction Grows Under 2040 Plan

Met Council Chart of Minneapolis Duplex Permits

During the last week of the Minnesota state legislature’s session, a bill was passed to exempt Minneapolis and St Paul from the state’s Minnesota Environmental Rights Act (MERA).

MERA is the law the opponents of Minneapolis’ 2040 plan, which allowed duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, and apartment buildings to be built on lots previously zoned for single-family homes used to obtain a court-ordered injunction and halt the plan last fall.

Passed in 2018 and implemented in 2019, the hope was the 2040 plan would result in more multifamily properties built to provide variety and affordability in the city’s housing stock, increase density, and subsequently, help ease the housing shortage.

The hope is the legislature’s reprieve may result in more permits for small multifamily property construction being pulled.During both its initial implementation and the years since, the Minneapolis Federal Reserve devised a data dashboard to track the impact the policy had, and determine its efficacy.

According to data provided by the Metropolitan Council, and charted by the Minneapolis Fed, between 2019 and the injunction halting the plan in September of 2023, there wasn’t an enormous number of these properties built during that time.

In fact, between 2020 and 2022 a total of 20 duplexes, triplexes and fourplexes were built on lots previously allowing only single family residences. An additional 27 small multifamily properties were constructed during the same period on lots that allowed for for them even prior to 2040’s loosened restrictions.

While these totals may not be enough to make a substantive change to housing supply, as an aggregate they are higher than the number of new small multifamily properties built in years prior. For example, 2019, which was after the plan’s 2018 passage saw 19 new 2-4 unit buildings constructed. However, all were on lots that would have allowed them regardless of the plan passed the year before.

Prior to that, totals were significantly lower. There were 12 new 2-4 unit buildings constructed in 2018, 5 in 2017, 1 in 2016 and 4 each in 2015 and 2014. So it’s possible to infer the plan made a difference.

It will be interesting to see if Minneapolis duplex, triplex and fourplex infill construction starts back up because of the 204o plan, despite prohibitive construction costs.