2025 Minneapolis Housing Questionnaire — Ward 3

Neighbors for More Neighbors has partnered with Inquilinxs Unidxs Por Justicia, Wedge LIVE!, The Housing Justice League, Housing in Action and BikeMN to sponsor a housing questionnaire for the 2025 Minneapolis Elections. You can see all responses (mayoral and city council candidates) here.

We sent this questionnaire to all candidates who filed campaign finance reports as of April 16, 2025. We received responses from Michael Rainville (Incumbent) and Marcus Mills.

The candidates are ordered alphabetically by last name, except for the incumbent, who is placed first. You may view the candidate responses to each question by clicking on the “+” icon to the left of the question.

Question 1: One way to create complete, walkable neighborhoods is to legalize local commercial use within those neighborhoods. The existing zoning code prohibits commercial use on approximately 89% of Minneapolis lots.

Will you vote for zoning changes to allow local, low-impact small businesses (e.g. coffee shops, restaurants, corner stores, etc.) to be built in residential neighborhoods throughout our entire city?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    Yes

    Marcus Mills
    Yes
    As a lifelong pedestrian, I’m wholly in favor of greater walkability and as a small business owner I want to see a greater degree of support, technical assistance and mutually beneficial zoning policy produced to serve both residents and small business owners, my only caveat is to make sure that such changes are beneficial to creating more housing (especially low-cost and affordable housing) in these same areas. The same benefits that we want to see spreading need to come along with more people able to enjoy those rising/increasing benefits.

Question 2: Some cities like South Bend, Indiana, have developed a set of pre-approved, residential project plans to help (1) lower the cost of construction by reducing design fees and (2) speed up approval times. These initiatives involve working with architects and engineers to develop a set of plans for one to six-unit homes that are permitted throughout the city.

Will you vote to create an accessible catalog of free or low-cost, pre-approved home plans for the City of Minneapolis?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    Yes
    This is a great idea and I will work with you to bring it to the City Council.

    Marcus Mills
    Yes
    This sounds like a dynamic structural shortcut to building more housing for homeowners. I’m in favor of the speed, though we do need to make sure that the designs are good for creating housing that is serviceable to many different classes of people, while still being affordable. I trust that N4MN is the kind of organization that means well by this policy design (the simplicity of the question leaves room for misuse or misunderstanding). With this stipulation in mind, I’d also suggest that such a plan might work for a similar strategy to be deployed for designs of apartment and condo units, as well.

Question 3: Given Minneapolis’s history of redlining, exclusionary zoning, freeway construction through historically Black & minority neighborhoods, slum clearance, and urban renewal, what are your goals to address historic & ongoing harms–in an equitable and restorative way–to build a better and more livable Minneapolis for all residents?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    As an outcome of segregation and redlining, Minnesota has one of the largest homeownership gaps between Whites and Blacks, Indigenous, and People of Color. We must do everything we can to ensure Blacks, Indigenous, and People of Color have the chance to build generational wealth through home ownership, as my family did. I deeply understand and appreciate the importance of stable housing in everyone’s lives, especially children. I am proud as Council Member for Ward 3 to support a diverse set of projects that increase options for underserved people, keep our neighborhoods affordable, and help those among us struggling with homelessness find housing. In the area of housing, I am working on expanding programs and partnerships that are working well, such as Stable Homes, Stable Schools, and Naturally Occurring Affordable Housing (NOAH) preservation strategies. I voted to add over $500,000 over two years for the Green Cost Share program which supports weatherization of 2,000 properties and 5,000 low-income rental units, primarily focused in the North and South Minneapolis Green Zones and cultural corridors. My long term vision for a more equitable Minneapolis is to continue my work to grow our affordable and deeply-affordable housing stock. I voted to increase the utility franchise fees to build out more weatherization in low-income neighborhoods. I have tried and will continue to try to change condominium warranty laws in order to increase affordability for all homeowners.

    Marcus Mills
    First, I’d start with the premise of bringing back the Right of First Refusal for renters to buy their buildings when the owner wishes to sell. We need to not only make sure that people are not priced out of their homes by a sale, or a buyer looking to gentrify. I also believe that the City’s Green Zones (designed with racial disparities in health, wealth and pollution in mind) should be a good guideline for deploying and piloting beneficial zoning, cumulative impact and business support policies. The City should be using current and historic racial and geographical policy guidelines to target specifically honed policies to close the wealth, education, health and opportunity gaps

Question 4: Minneapolis currently allows property owners to build triplexes on any residential lot. In practice, on an average 5,000 square foot lot in Minneapolis, each triplex unit is constrained to ~800 square feet due to other size and height limitations in the code (these are built-form restrictions & floor-to-area ratios). Most of the triplexes that currently exist were built decades ago and would not be allowed today under current rules.

Will you vote to change city built-form restrictions so that new triplexes could be built if they stayed consistent with existing forms?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    Yes

    Marcus Mills
    Yes
    We need more low-cost, quality housing. Period.

Question 5: The Minneapolis 2040 Plan has been highly successful in allowing more studios and 1 to 2 bedroom homes to be built in the City, primarily in buildings with 20 or more units. However, 3 or more bedroom homes in these same buildings are rare; meaning families with children are competing for a limited supply of single-family homes.

Will you vote to change zoning restrictions to encourage the development of 3-bedroom units–in multi-unit buildings–for growing Minneapolis families?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    Yes
    We must change the zoning restriction to overcome the unintended consequences of developers focusing on studio and one bedroom apartments.

    Marcus Mills
    Yes
    With this zoning change, we need to make sure that rents for a 3-bedroom apt are still successfully competing with the mortgage payment on a similar single-family home, after the changeover. Otherwise all we’re doing is turning the original competition into a first-come-first-served proposition regarding affordability. The family planning for expansion that needs low-cost possibilities should always have readily accessible rental options available to suit their needs, while the City should still be nimble enough to meet the more specific requirements of those impacted by misfortune.

Question 6: Across the country, many cities and states are updating their zoning codes to allow more homes near high-quality transit. For example, Washington State legalized six-plexes within a half-mile of major transit stops.

Will you vote for zoning reforms in Minneapolis to support more homes on all land within a half-mile of major transit stops, including LRT, BRT, and ABRT lines?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    No
    We need to increase the heights allowed close to major transit corridors as well as increase condo ownership next to major transit corridors.

    Marcus Mills
    Yes
    Absolutely! This can easily increase housing, mobility and decrease emissions in one fell swoop. These are the kind of multi-valance solutions I’m always in favor of.

Question 7: What specific anti-displacement measures will you support to ensure these zoning changes benefit existing residents and prevent displacement of low-income communities for current and future projects?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    As Council Member for Ward 3, I support the the City’s Unified Housing Policy amended and restated just this April of 2025. Housing is the foundation for health, well-being and success in education and employment. Involuntary displacement leads to disparities in health, educational and employment outcomes. Everyone must benefit from the City’s growth, which requires policies to minimize involuntary displacement of residents, particularly low-income residents, seniors, black, indigenous and people of color. I support the following anti-displacement measures:

    • Observe early indicators of neighborhood change and rents to determine where programs should be targeted;

    • Evaluate City investments to determine whether they will cause involuntary displacement;

    • Support the preservation and rehabilitation of naturally occurring affordable housing to prevent the displacement of existing residents;

    • Prioritize existing affordable housing;

    • Expand programs that support at-risk homeowners in affording and maintaining their home;

    • Prioritize the inclusion of affordable housing in development activity;

    • Analyze impact of property tax trends on displacing homeowners, and evaluate strategies to reduce displacement.

    Marcus Mills
    Again, I’m a major fan of “Renter First Right of Refusal” policy. The City should actively partner with our local financial institutions to make such transitions the first, most likely and most economically solvent step in a landlord divesting from a property.

Question 8: Minneapolis residents, City Council, and the current Mayor are all concerned with rising homelessness rates, which increase the prevalence of local encampments.

Do you support the current mayoral administration’s policy of encampment clearing?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    No
    We must address the affordable housing crisis in order to prevent and end homelessness our City and County. Scarcity of permanent affordable housing and permanent supportive housing, especially for households with an income at or below 30% of AMI, and households facing other housing barriers such as credit or criminal history or health conditions exacerbates homelessness in our City. There is a need for a metropolitan- wide response to address homelessness and supportive service needs of persons experiencing homelessness including higher density along major transit corridors.

    Marcus Mills
    No
    I couldn’t possibly agree with a policy of violently seizing people with nowhere to go, as they hold tight to each other in desperate solidarity and bulldozing what meager possessions and security they were able to scrape together.
    My policy choices to serve our house less neighbors are based in a Housing first approach. First we, as a City should find and designate safe and feasible sites to allow encampments to officially settle, in the meantime. We should deploy wrap-around services to these sites including physical and mental health, social services and employment assistance, along with food staple delivery (if possible/sustainable). These sites either need harm reduction station to be set up nearby so that non-users and service personnel can avoid physical and chemical hazards. Harm reduction stations are set up with trained personnel, testing tools, disposal safeguards & insurance. Longterm, solutions: MPHA Mini-unit housing w/ similar wrap-around services built in.

Question 9: What will you do to protect people who see encampments as their only option, while increasing and expanding access to stable, permanent and deeply affordable housing for all people in Minneapolis?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    I support a Housing First policy which places no judgement on the people it serves but meets them where they are. These are our brothers and sisters and we must care for them. We need a comprehensive strategy revolving around policy changes, investment in low-cost housing, and a broad support system to help with the transition out of homelessness. I am an advocate for down payment assistance for any resident prepared to own a home. I am a proponent of the city’s Homeowner Opportunity Minneapolis program which offers downpayment assistance with zero percent interest and no monthly payment. The loan is 100% repayable at the end of the life of the first or refinanced mortgage or when the homeowner ceases to occupy the home as their primary residence. I strongly support the office space to affordable and deeply-affordable housing conversion projects which will be vital to our Downtown revitalization. I consistently vote to support the Affordable Housing Trust Fund (AHTF). This year, the AHTF will invest $17 million into 10 housing projects which will add 803 affordable units in Minneapolis. I also support affordable housing through the authorization of Low-Income Housing Tax Credits. These 9% credits provide a reduction in federal income tax to developers of low-income rental housing help increase our stock of affordable units. I continue to lobby the Federal, State and County governments for more resources to help those living in encampments.

    Marcus Mills
    My policy choices to serve our house less neighbors are based in a Housing first approach. First we, as a City should find and designate safe and feasible sites to allow encampments to officially settle, in the meantime. We should deploy wrap-around services to these sites including physical and mental health, social services and employment assistance, along with food staple delivery (if possible/sustainable). These sites either need harm reduction station to be set up nearby so that non-users and service personnel can avoid physical and chemical hazards. Harm reduction stations are set up with trained personnel, testing tools, disposal safeguards & insurance. Longterm, solutions: MPHA Mini-unit housing w/ similar wrap-around services built in. Ii accomplish this by promoting an Inclusive Financing (Pay-As-You-Save Model) pilot program for MPHA, which will rapidly diminish their existing housing upgrade backlog, freeing up a substantial portion of their annual budget for new low-cost housing. Their first builds should be mini-unit developments for our unhoused neighbors.

Question 10: Tenant Opportunity to Purchase Act (TOPA) gives current tenants the first right to purchase the property that they live in should their landlord want to sell. A policy such as TOPA advances opportunities for community ownership as well as a transfer of wealth back to renters. If you are elected, will you vote to advance TOPA?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    Yes
    This is a great idea to increase home ownership. I would like to learn more about what other cities are doing.

    Marcus Mills
    Yes
    TOPA which my opponent voted down in previous years, is precisely the kind of “Renter Right of Refusal” policy I referenced above. It and policies like it are some of the best wealth stabilization and anti-displacement measures a City can implement. I’m similarly in favor of worker co-op development policies for when business owners wish to sell a business. While housing is one of my most important topic, as you can see with some of my earlier responses, when something is a good idea it can be useful to see if other issues can sue it as a solution as well. These are also win-win style solutions. I’ve been finding and deploying win-win solutions wherever I can, it’s my specialty. As an elected official, you’ll get that skill directed toward your most stubborn problems.

Question 11: Will you support using city resources to establish locally-owned housing–sometimes referred to as social housing–that is permanently affordable, protected from private market forces, publicly owned, and under democratic governance by the tenants?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    Yes
    This is another good “Housing First” idea.

    Marcus Mills
    Yes
    Community or Social Housing is usually the most successful form of housing cooperative in practice. I, personally, have several friends who are in such arrangements now, or have been (to their eternal benefit) in the past. I support such solutions vehemently, and I support policy that the City should actively promote this as a housing option/solution.

Question 12: Today, city property taxes are set primarily on the “improvements” or value of the buildings on land. As a result, “low value” land with parking lots or vacant lots pay very little in taxes while making surrounding neighborhoods less livable. This incentivizes low-value land owners to engage in land speculation for years or even decades until they get a big payout. A Land Value Tax (LVT) doesn’t change their taxes to the city; it shifts how taxes are set to be primarily based on the value of the land to discourage land speculation.

If the state passes legislation to allow it–pending special session outcomes–will you vote to pilot a LVT to encourage development of under-used land in Minneapolis?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    Yes
    We are wasting valuable housing space by not building on under-used land.

    Marcus Mills
    Abstain
    My only misgivings about this idea is its possible effects on Land Trusts. City of Lakes Community Land Trust has been an ally and helper to many homeowners in the area. In my experience they are a boon to efforts to achieve affordable housing, especially in very specific circumstances, until I know the effects on and opinions of these helpers to the cause, I’ll stay out of direct commentary on the topic. Except to say I’m cautiously optimistic.

Question 13: Rent stabilization continues to be considered in Minneapolis. Supporters hope to discourage unfair rent gouging and displacement. Opponents worry it could stifle the development of new homes.

How would you evaluate rent stabilization policy? What components could you vote for and which would you not be able to vote for?

Examples of policy components include, but are not limited to: a specific percentage cap on rent increases, a new construction exemption, vacancy decontrol, just cause eviction, etc.

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    I believe that the production of affordable and market rate housing decreases rent prices through increasing supply. I do not support a rent control policy such as the one passed by St Paul because it has lead to a very large reduction in the amount of new housing being built there. I support the Oregon model of rent stabilization. It has not stopped building in that State and developers and financers are satisfied with it.

    Marcus Mills
    As a 24 year renter in the same Marcy-Holmes apartment, I’m in favor of rent control, much like Plan 5 that was voted down by my opponent in the Summer of 2023. I favor the percentage cap, especially, as well as many other parts of the plan, but I don’t believe that we should implement it in a vacuum. These measures must be put forth alongside incentives to build more housing that includes low cost housing, this helps ease the need to half-measures like new construction exemptions (maybe enough, maybe not, but worth the exploration, first).
    My solution is to partner rent control with permitting requirements for luxury new construction buildings requiring the luxury developer to partner with an affordable housing developer for 15-25% of the units to be designed and built by the affordable developer (the City should subsidize the difference in material costs for the affordable housing developer), thus the luxury developer doesn’t have to pay to build the units it isn’t responsible for, the affordable developer get a huge windfall when the building is sold and the City gets significantly more affordable housing, a win-win-win. This is the engine that keeps the housing market at reasonable levels while implementing rent control policy. My opponent wants to make renters suffer to pay for a market they can’t control, I want to make it work for everyone involved (without suffering… if at all possible).

Question 14: Evictions in Minneapolis have skyrocketed since the eviction moratorium was lifted and far too many renters are one paycheck away from losing their home.

What ideas do you have to reduce evictions in our communities?

  • Michael Rainville (Incumbent)
    Renters make up more than half of the population of Minneapolis and are a vital force in the economy of our City. Property owners contribute to the vitality of the City through property taxation. The City’s Housing Liasions help Minneapolis renters and rental property owners by listening, understanding the issues, and working with governmental and other partners to find the best solutions for rental housing issues including evictions. Ultimately, however, to avoid evictions stemming from economic difficulties, we need more affordable and deeply affordable housing and assistance for renters especially for those households with an income at or below 30% of AMI. I have voted in support of every proposal for affordable and deeply affordable housing that has come to my desk. It is not the fault of working class people that rents have become affordable.

    Marcus Mills
    Streamlined assistance programs and requirements that landlords and eviction law enforcement back off of an in-process assistance record. The rental assistance systems are often too late to keep someone from being evicted. Signs or written indications of an assistance process begun should be more than enough to terminate an eviction order. For something as drastic as eviction just for economic reasons, I’d be willing to promote requirements to prove that the tenant is not currently eligible for economic assistance to pay their rent to get an eviction order processed and executed. Remember if this is legitimately only about money, then why should the landlord care where the money is coming from. They should only care that they get what is owed, in a reasonable period of time.
    I also have several concepts like Inclusive Financing for energy improvements that could prove to place even renters (especially if it could be deployed to pay for community solar gardens subscriptions) , that could help to provide folks with that slight economic edge to keep them afloat or help them over the hump to self sufficiency. While these are solutions from my work in Energy and Environment, the ramifications of slight improvements in economic stability can be the difference between needing to avail oneself of eviction protections and never needing them at all. Misfortune strike everyone, but it is often in the little details and choices made by a family, a community or a City that make the difference as to whether or not one can ride it out or it make them falter. I choose to deploy all the win-wins I can find to ensure the former. Thanks for listening.