2025 Minneapolis Housing Questionnaire — Ward 9

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 Jason Chavez (Incumbent).

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    Yes
    Residents throughout Ward 9 would benefit greatly from having easy access to such amenities. The ability to access local low-impact small businesses is an issue of equity and accessibility, and having them close to where people live is a recipe for building community.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    Yes
    At a time when new housing projects are slowing to a crawl in the city and the need for affordable, accessible housing continues to grow, we should be looking at every potential solution to the crisis before us. Innovative programs like South Bend’s could open up doors for both new developers—particularly BIPOC-owned ones—looking to break into the market as well as established companies looking for savings before they move forward with further developments.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    In the past, I authored a legislative directive and secured funding to initiate a real Truth and Reconciliation process. This was not in the context of housing, but I believe the same principles apply and such a process could be useful in understanding the harms that have been done via land use policies. After the fall of apartheid in South Africa, the government did something similar there in District 6 of Cape Town, where 20,000 people of color were displaced from their homes.

    While the historic harms here in Minneapolis are not a direct analogue of what happened there, the South African model could help us develop a roadmap. The first step is to set up a process to listen to those who have been directly affected by the racist policies of the past and still exist today. There, subsequently, the government came to a settlement agreement with those who were displaced, which established the framework for equitable development. I can’t say whether the political will exists here to undertake such a process, but we already have a framework for equitable development with the Twin Cities Boulevard, which I strongly support.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    Yes
    I can’t say with any certainty whether such a policy will be included in the 2050 comp plan, but I will advocate for its inclusion.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    Yes
    As I mentioned in an earlier answer, we should be looking at myriad policy changes to address our housing shortage, and this is one that I support.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    Yes
    The built form regulations on transit corridors within the 2040 Plan were positive steps forward, and I support further reforms to support more homes near major transit stops. As our transit infrastructure continues to be built out with new BRT and aBRT lines, so too should we make it easier to build more homes near them.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    As we continue to support efforts to increase housing supply, we must also increase renter protections. I support just cause eviction protections that restrict landlords from evicting tenants without a legally recognized reason and preventing retaliation. Further, we should pass a tenant opportunity to purchase act policy that can prevent displacement and increase homeownership.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    No
    The mayor’s policy of evicting encampments with no plan beyond moving people on to the next one has been a failure. Unlike the current administration’s approach, I believe in addressing homelessness with compassion. My approach to addressing the rising homelessness rates is comprehensive.

    I have authored a number of renter protections, meant to prevent homelessness before it occurs. To help those who are experiencing homelessness, I authored a budget amendment that provides resources for an adequate public health approach to encampments. I’ve also authored and supported countless other policies and budget items, including increased shelter funding, expanding the Stable Homes Stable Schools program, an encampment removal reporting ordinance, and a resolution to amend the Minneapolis Advisory Committee on Housing’s membership by adding two seats for individuals who are currently or have formerly been unhoused among many others. I believe in an encampment response policy that is humane, provides public health services, storage of personal belongings, timing, and housing alternatives.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    Together with Council Vice President Chughtai and Council Member Chowdhury, we authored three ordinances to address the mayor’s failed encampment policy. The first one, on which CM Chowdhury was the lead author, established a comprehensive reporting framework for all removals of encampments within the city. This came about from concerns regarding the transparency and accountability of encampment removals and the impact on individuals experiencing homelessness. It was passed last fall.

    The second ordinance, led by Council Vice President Chughtai, will move the City’s approach to addressing encampments from punitive and ineffective encampment clearings to a consent-based public health model. It will require a written pre-closure notice, personal property storage, restrictions on encampment closures, and guidance on how encampment closures should be staffed. We are still finalizing this ordinance.

    The third ordinance, on which I am the lead author, will provide for Safe Outdoor Spaces and Safe Parking. A safe outdoor space is a facility that provides short-term, temporary shelter using portable shelter structures, outdoor tents, or park trailers. Safe outdoor spaces have been called “authorized or sanctioned encampments” and, according to researchers, “have four standard components: a community of unhoused people, present by permission of the landowner or local ordinance, on land owned by someone other than themselves, and with formal operating and governance structures.” Safe parking programs, such as the one in Duluth, are parking lots that allow people experiencing homelessness living in their vehicles to park overnight.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    Yes
    I have been a longtime supporter of TOPA.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    Yes
    I authored a budget amendment for a study to learn how the City could support the development of social housing. I believe the city needs to take initiative in building social housing.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    Yes
    In the Intergovernmental Relations Committee, I amended the City’s legislative agenda so that our advocates at the legislature would support Land Value Tax authorization for cities.

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.

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    I support rent stabilization. In 2021, more than 70 percent of Ward 9 voters voted in favor of Question 3, which authorized the City Council to regulate rents on private residential property. Throughout my conversations with my constituents, I have heard of the need to build an affordable city that does not displace residents. In 2023, I voted in favor of referring framework 5 to the committee, but it was killed by my colleagues while Muslim Council Members were observing Eid. As the work on this continues, I will continue to hear from Ward 9 residents on the type of policy they want to see.

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?

  • Jason Chavez (Incumbent)
    I authored an ordinance that extended the pre-eviction notice from 14 to 30 days, giving renters more time to access rental assistance programs or resolve issues with their landlord before a formal eviction is placed on their record. This is a major first step in preventing homelessness. I authored a budget amendment to establish an Early Childhood Prevention Program and a Middle School Program (Stable Homes Stable School) to reduce evictions, thus homelessness, in Minneapolis Public Schools. I’m working on an ordinance that would mandate that landlords inform applicants and tenants of their rights related to application denials and evictions, along with resources for assistance. I would like to see a just-cause notice ordinance, which would require landlords to explain non-renewals, provide ample notice, and offer relocation assistance to renters being asked to leave.