A Model For The Nation

Opportunity Crossing is a national model of how to build projects by, with and for community.

Built on a block once devastated in the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder, Opportunity Crossing is one of the largest affordable housing projects in the City of Minneapolis and represents a transformative new chapter for the Lake Street community and everyone who calls it home. Today, the building offers 110 unit of affordable homes and ground-floor commercial spaces available for local entrepreneurs to own.

Before design began, PPL held listening sessions with residents, small business owners and neighborhood stakeholders. What they asked for is what was built: affordable places to call home, support for local business, public art and space to gather.

Unique to an affordable housing development, Opportunity Crossing also features  8,400 square feet of first-floor commercial space dedicated to wealth-building opportunities for emerging businesses to strengthen neighborhood entrepreneurship and economic mobility. The commercial condos are sold, not leased, so the entrepreneurs who move in build equity in a corridor where that opportunity has been rare. Geothermal wells, rooftop solar and rainwater harvesting support the building's operations and lower energy costs across the board.