Report: St. Paul could add nearly 4,000 new housing units through office conversions [Video]

ST PAUL, Minn. — The City of St. Paul has the potential of adding nearly 4,000 new apartment/condo units in the coming years without breaking any new ground. That’s according to a new report that scored 20 downtown properties based on their compatibility for residential conversion.

The Saint Paul Downtown Alliance commissioned the new Office to Residential Conversion Study, which was completed by Gensler, an international architecture and design firm that has handled conversion projects worldwide.

It found that half of those properties, 10 total, are prime targets for conversion.

“We’ve always speculated that there’s some unique features to St Paul architecture that would be a competitive advantage for us,” said Joe Spencer, President of the Saint Paul Downtown Alliance, which commissioned the study. “What the report did, was really verify that. …