Congress passed and the President signed the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 (HERA) that allowed the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to provide a one-time $3.92 billion source of CDBG funds for emergency assistance to state and local governments to acquire and redevelop foreclosed properties that might otherwise become sources of abandonment and blight within their communities. The City of Saint Paul was allocated $4.3 million directly from HUD and another $6.3 million from the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency. 

In 2009, Congress appropriated additional Neighborhood Stabilization funds. On May 4, 2009, HUD released the Notice of Fund Availability (NOFA) for the Neighborhood Stabilization Program 2 (NSP2) under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, 2009. Under the program round in this notice, applicants competed for up to $1.93 billion of NSP2 funds to carry out neighborhood stabilization programs. The City was awarded $18 million of NSP2 funding by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development in January of 2010.

The City of Saint Paul received notification of an allocation of Neighborhood Stabilization Program 3 (NSP3) funding from the Department of Housing and Urban Development under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. An application for this funding was submitted March 1, 2011. The application was revised March 11, 2011.

Visit www.stpaulcommunities.com for available listings, down payment assistance program information and home buyer requirements.

Certification for Contractors
Contractors  who can get certified with the city Vendor Outreach Program (VOP) and Section 3 Program will greatly increase their ability to be awarded bids since the city has requirements for using certified contractors on the NSP projects. Contractors who are not yet certified with Section 3 and the VOP (small-, minority-, and women-owned business enterprises) and already have an affirmative action plan in place can contact:

1.  Vendor Outreach Program (VOP): Tisidra Jones, 651-266-8904
VOP is a member of the CERT Program, a central certification program for the City of Saint Paul, Ramsey County, City of Minneapolis, and Hennepin County. Certification is available for small businesses- (SBE) , minority- owned businesses- (MBE)  and / or women-owned business enterprises (WBE). Directories and application forms are available on the CERT Program website: www.govcontracts.org  

2. Section 3 Certification: David Gorski 651-266-8900

• Section 3 Forms
• City of Saint Paul and HRA Section 3 Plan Form
• Certification Form for Business Seeking Section 3 Status           
• Certification Form for Individuals Seeking Section 3 Resident Status

3.  Affirmative Action: Yia Thao, 651-266-8900
    An active Affirmative Action Plan is required.  It is good for 2 years, then renewal is needed.

Preparing to bid
Bids are only accepted from general contractors. If you are a subcontractor you'll need to submit your bid to a general contractor bidding on the project.

Contractors should be familiar with:

• The Housing and Redevelopment Authority's Minimum Contractor Qualifications for NSP Homes
• The Housing and Redevelopment Authority's Winter Work Policy for NSP Homes
• Section 3
• The Vendor Outreach Program
• Affirmative Action

Please contact Sarah Zorn at  or 651-266-6570 to be notified of upcoming bid opportunities.

Anyone interested in submitting a demolition bid must do so in writing to the Housing and Redevelopment Authority, 25 W. 4th Street, #1400, Saint Paul, MN 55102.  Bids my also be faxed to 651-228-3220.  Please contact Beth Ulrich with any questions on the bidding procedures at 651-266-6689 or .

Current Demolition Bid Opportunities

Recent Demolition Bid Activity

Please note that additional citywide contracting and bidding opportunities are available through Contract & Analysis Services.