CommunityScale

Minneapolis-St Paul Regional Housing Nexus Study

The Metropolitan Council selected CommunityScale to lead a region-wide housing nexus study for the seven-county Twin Cities metropolitan area. This study will provide the data and methodology needed for local governments across the 118-city region to adopt and implement inclusionary housing ordinances and other impact fee programs that advance affordable housing goals.

The project will establish the legal and administrative framework that cities need to create an “essential nexus” between market-rate development and affordable housing requirements. This includes developing a comprehensive regional housing needs assessment, analyzing impacts on employment and infrastructure, and conducting financial feasibility analyses—all critical components for defensible inclusionary housing policies.

CommunityScale is partnering with Jeff Levine of Levine Planning Strategies, a graduate of the University of Minnesota’s Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs. Jeff brings extensive firsthand experience developing and implementing inclusionary zoning policies as former Planning Director in Portland, ME, and continues to advise municipalities on inclusionary housing approaches through his consulting practice and as a professor at MIT.

The study will deliver more than just analysis—it will provide a practical process for cities to generate their own local nexus studies and feasibility assessments using regional data. To support implementation, the work will inform an interactive tool that local governments can use to assess housing needs and calculate appropriate fees based on their specific market conditions.

Key deliverables include:

  • Regional housing market assessment with data at both regional and municipal scales
  • Standardized methodology for calculating maximum supportable inclusionary housing requirements and in-lieu fees
  • Guidance on how local governments can customize the approach for their communities
  • Interactive tool approach to help municipalities develop and maintain their own nexus studies
  • Recommendations for how the Metropolitan Council can maintain and update this resource over time

The work will be completed through an intensive collaborative process including coordination meetings with Met Council staff, stakeholder workshops with cities and external partners, and extensive data analysis drawing on the Metropolitan Council’s rich datasets on housing, demographics, and development patterns.

This project comes at a critical time as communities across the Twin Cities region work to address affordable housing shortages while managing new growth. By centralizing data and methodology at the regional level, the Metropolitan Council is removing a significant barrier that smaller cities and townships face when considering inclusionary housing policies.

The project will conclude in 2026 with comprehensive documentation of findings, methodologies, and implementation guidance designed to empower local action on affordable housing production across the region.

By

Jeff Sauser, co-founding Principal at CommunityScale, has over 10 years experience leading urban design and planning projects for public and private sector clients in complex urban contexts across the country. His work emphasizes the role of housing policy and production in driving economic development progress and creating opportunities for socioeconomic mobility across the community. He is particularly interested in applying emerging big data resources and AI tools to help clients and communities plan smarter and more proactively.

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Nels Nelson, co-founding Principal at CommunityScale, is passionate about planning happier, healthier, and more resilient places. His goal today? Optimizing community strategies with data-driven techniques. His diverse clients appreciate his swift, accurate, and transparent insights.