Impact in Action: Community & Economic Development
Our communities are nothing without their ability to work together.
Be it harnessing resources, engaging with the community or implementing sustainable economic opportunities. The Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation seeks to invest and partner in solutions informed and formed by the people facing the highest barriers to wealth creation, economic security and family-sustaining career pathways. This includes BIPOC, women, veterans, young people, people with disabilities, formerly incarcerated people and LGBTQIA+ people.
Our Commitment to Community & Economic Development
We recognize the importance of workforce and workspace development, as well as prioritizing employment avenues that meet the needs of individuals and workplace partners. This is why we support organizations and initiatives such as the Partnership for Equitable and Resilient Communities, the East Metro Main Street Economic Revitalization Program, Eastside Funders Group and the Saint Paul Downtown Investment Fund that address these needs of our communities.
How We Invest
Grantmaking
Grantmaking is one of the primary ways we support positive change to issues related to Community & Economic Development. Through our application-based grant program, we have made 280 grants totaling $9.9 million to 151 organizations in the Community & Economic Development space over the past five years.
Grants Given
Granted
Organizations
Donor-led Grants
Our fundholders care deeply about many issues, including Community & Economic Development. Over the last five years, our donor advised fundholders have recommended hundreds of grants to initiatives and nonprofits that support community and economic development.
Grants Given
Granted
Organizations
Partnerships & Collaborations
Additionally, we have partnered with philanthropic entities, business leaders and local government in key community initiatives like:
East Metro Main Street
To address the economic and redevelopment need that arose in the East Metro, the Foundation awarded grants to 42 nonprofit organizations and businesses through the East Metro Main Street Economic Revitalization Program.
In partnership with the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), we were able to award $7 million in state funding to projects in the Snelling-University-Rice Cultural District, the East Side community and along West Seventh Street in Saint Paul in 2023. We also raised and distributed an additional $2.15 million to further support applicants to meet program matching fund requirements and complete projects.
Eastside Funders Group
The East Side Funders Group was launched in 2014 with a focus on improving the economic vitality of the Dayton’s Bluff and Payne-Phalen neighborhoods located on the East Side of Saint Paul.
The Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation serves as one of the organization’s founding members and service operators.
Saint Paul Downtown Investment Fund
The Saint Paul Minnesota Foundation committed up to a $15 million investment in downtown Saint Paul in partnership with the Saint Paul Downtown Development Corporation, joining a redevelopment effort that has drawn more than a billion dollars in aligned public and private investment over the past two years. The commitment places Minnesota’s largest community foundation alongside Securian Financial and the Bush Foundation, which seeded the Saint Paul Downtown Investment Fund with $30 million in November of 2025. The Downtown Development Corporation, a real estate subsidiary of the Saint Paul Downtown Alliance, has used that capital to acquire and stabilize several of the distressed properties at the center of downtown’s vacancy problem.
The Foundation’s capital will move through several channels, including the Downtown Investment Fund, direct investment in specific downtown properties, and the Foundation’s community investment portfolios.
Want to support Community & Economic Development?
Are you interested in making an ongoing impact? Opening a fund with the Foundation can amplify your impact on community and economic development causes in our community.
