The West Side Scorecard team will be presenting their evaluation on a new proposed development at 102 & 150 Water Street, and listening to community feedback on whether this development aligns with our vision. Join them for a Q&A with the developer at our Voices forum.

Purpose of this report

STRENGTHS AND VULNERABILITIES OF RENTAL HOUSING IN SAINT PAUL’S WEST SIDE NEIGHBORHOOD, is part of a funded project between the City of Saint Paul’s Human Rights and Equal Economic Opportunity Office (HREEO) and the West Side Community Organization to explore rental housing issues, and engage and organize renters on their rights and fair housing practices.
Over the past year, WSCO staff have compiled and distributed resources for tenants and conducted “Know Your Rights” trainings to renters on the West Side. They’ve facilitated action and resolution between renters and landlords. This work continued through the COVID-19 pandemic, where existing housing issues, especially concerning adequacy and affordability, became more pronounced.

Here are some job openings we have heard of here on the West Side!

Happy Valentine's day!

Let's show some love for our neighbors working to keep the roads clear and safe for all of us!

Important cold-weather update from the City of St. Paul on support for unsheltered residents:

With the ongoing extreme cold weather, all partners serving our residents experiencing homelessness have continued to actively coordinate support and services to ensure additional resources are available - including additional overnight and day-time capacity.

Dr. King’s Housing Justice Journey

We are inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s work for housing justice, a crucial part of the broader struggle for racial justice in the U.S.. Dr. King spoke out against the “dilapidated, inadequate housing” in African American communities when he moved to the Midwest to organize the Chicago Freedom Movement. He led a powerful multiracial coalition of Black, Latino, Polish, and Jewish renters who laid the foundation for passing the Fair Housing Act, a victory he referred to as “the first step in a 1,000-mile journey.’’

El camino hacia una vivienda digna

Nos inspira el trabajo de Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. en la lucha por una vivienda digna, una parte esencial del movimiento por la justicia racial en los estados unidos. Al mudarse al Midwest para organizar el Chicago Freedom Movement, Dr. King denunció las condiciones “ruinosas e inadecuadas” en las comunidades Afro-americanas. Dirigió una coalición multiracial de inquilinos Negros, Latinos, Polacos, y Judíos que construyeron una base para luego pasar la ley de Vivienda Justa (Fair Housing Act). Fue una victoria que él nombraba “el primer paso en un camino de 1,000 millas.”  

Photo by Bao Chau on Unsplash

A message to our neighbors about staying safe this weekend:

We want to share an update from local public officials about potential high-risk events happening January 16th and 17th in Saint Paul. Two events are being planned by “Hold The Line MN,” an extremist group that organized a “Storm the Capitol” event last week and harassed our local representative Carlos Mariani in his home. For a full statement from WSCO on recent white supremacist threats to our democracy click here.

[Read English statement here]

A nuestros vecinos, vecinas, y vecinxs del West Side: 

Cuando hay amenazas hacia nuestras comunidades, no podemos guardar silencio. Hace una semana, hubo un ataque de grupos de supremacistas blancos en el capitolio de Washington, D.C. Aquí en el West Side, pocos días antes, el hogar de nuestro representante Carlos Mariani estaba rodeado de un grupo grande de personas blancas, armadas, con banderas de Trump * (como vean en la foto). Estos grupos de odio siguen agrediendo a comunidades de color, mientras la policia no nos defiende a todos por igual. ** Pero tenemos un mensaje claro y firme para nuestros vecinos: el pueblo respalda al pueblo. 

[mensaje en español aquí]

To our neighbors on the West Side,

When our communities are threatened, we can’t remain silent. It has been a week since the attack on the Capitol in Washington, D.C. by white nationalist mobs and militias. Days before, right here on the West Side, Representative Carlos Mariani’s home was surrounded by a large group of armed white people with Trump flags (pictured here).* As hate-fueled groups continue to target communities of color, and as law enforcement fails to serve and protect all of us equally,** we have a message for our neighbors: we’ve got each other.