The Metropolitan Council on June 11 voted to award $1,000,000 in Livable Communities Act predevelopment grants to five projects and to change the City of Bloomington's award limit to $200,000 for round two of the 2025 predevelopment grants.

The action, introduced by Council Member Levitt, funds predevelopment work — feasibility studies, engineering, design and community engagement — for projects intended to advance affordable housing, homeownership, mixed‑use development and small business support across the region.

The grants review received six applications from Brooklyn Center, Bloomington, Hopkins and Saint Paul; five met minimum scoring criteria and were recommended for funding. The staff recommendation included exceeding the council's usual $300,000 per‑city limit for Bloomington for this round and lowering Bloomington's future per‑city cap to $200,000 in round two, a change supported by the city.

Council Member Wolf raised concerns about a $155,000 line item in Bloomington's request described as "project management mentoring for new or small developers," calling the proposal "very, very vague" and asking for either a two‑week delay for additional information or removal of the $155,000. Wolf said the deliverable described in the application looked like a record of payments and questioned how accountability would be enforced.

Emily Seddon, manager for the Livable Communities Act grant programs, told the council the mentoring funds are intended as consulting fees to pair more established consultants or developers with emerging developers and that the program is reimbursement‑based. "This is a predevelopment award, which is by its nature a little bit more uncertain and a little bit more risky for the council always," Seddon said, adding staff had reviewed the application and believed the Bloomington project was likely to move forward.

Council members pressed for accountability language. Council Member Morales asked that the grant agreement require reporting on how the mentoring funds were used and how emerging developers were engaged so the council could assess whether the funds created meaningful partnerships rather than transactional or clerical arrangements. Council staff agreed to add such deliverables to the grant agreement.

Supporters of the award said predevelopment grants are intended to position projects and emerging developers for later success and to build capacity in communities. Several council members asked staff to collect and share close‑out reports showing whether the mentoring approach could be replicated regionwide.

After the discussion and with staff agreement to include reporting and deliverables, the council approved the motion. The action authorizes the awards and the adjustment to Bloomington's future award cap; staff will incorporate the additional reporting requirements into grant agreements and work with Bloomington on program development details.

The council indicated it will review program alignment with Imagine 2050 and pursue outreach changes to increase applications in future rounds.