News & Updates

Updates from the Coalition

GroundBreak Coalition Mid-Year Update

GroundBreak Coalition Mid-Year Update

As we find ourselves just past the mid-year point, the GroundBreak Coalition is inspired by our collective progress and ready to keep the momentum going. Together, we are on our way toward unlocking plentiful capital to expand wealth-building opportunities in our region – and toward keeping that capital flowing.

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Q&A with Jeff Aguy: GroundBreak’s Visionary Leader on Building New Financial Systems for Aspiring Entrepreneurs and Commercial Developers

Q&A with Jeff Aguy: GroundBreak’s Visionary Leader on Building New Financial Systems for Aspiring Entrepreneurs and Commercial Developers

Jeff Aguy joined the GroundBreak Coalition in March 2024 to help implement solutions that will unlock unprecedented capital for aspiring entrepreneurs and commercial developers. A born entrepreneur, Jeff is helping build innovative systems and teams that will enable more financing to flow toward new and growing businesses and neighborhood commercial developments in the Minneapolis-St. Paul region and beyond. We interviewed Jeff to learn more about what he sees on the horizon for GroundBreak.

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Advancing Black Homeownership through Partnership, Innovation, and Scale

Advancing Black Homeownership through Partnership, Innovation, and Scale

The Advancing Black Homeownership program was developed in partnership with aspiring and current homeowners and industry professionals in 2023. Supported by Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity and the Minnesota Homeownership Center, it helps mortgage-ready Foundational Black renters build generational wealth through homeownership. In 2024, the GroundBreak Coalition was proud to support Advancing Black Homeownership with an initial investment of $1.5 million in capital for the program, which expects to leverage support from multiple partners to provide down payment assistance for 110 new Black homeowners this year.

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In the News

In the News

Westminster Forum TownTalk

Building Black Wealth in Minnesota

Star Tribune

Why Minnesota’s biggest development initiative starts with Black homeownership

MPR News

Minnesota coalition gathers nearly $1B in pledges to help build wealth in Black communities

Sahan Journal

GroundBreak announces nearly $1 billion in investments to build Black wealth in Minneapolis, St. Paul

Star Tribune

Local coalition so far has raised nearly $1B to help Black homeowners, entrepreneurs

KARE 11

New $1B investment aims to help Black community build generational wealth

Black Enterprise

The GroundBreak Coalition Has Raised $1B In Funds To Help Boost Black Ownership of Homes and Businesses In Minneapolis

Yahoo! Finance

GroundBreak Coalition Announces Nearly $1B In Investments To Support Black Homebuyers And Entrepreneurs In Minneapolis

Philanthropy News Digest

GroundBreak Coalition announces investments totaling nearly $1 billion

MinnPost

First grantee of St. Paul’s Inheritance Fund gets down payment, and a small measure of justice

NCRC

Special Purpose Credit Programs Remain On Solid Legal Ground Despite SCOTUS Affirmative Action Decision

Business Journal

Most Admired CEOs: NEOO Partners CEO D’Angelos Svenkeson leads with a people-first mindset

Kare 11

Minneapolis Public Housing gets funding boost from city

Bloomberg

First American City to Tame Inflation Owes Its Success to Affordable Housing

Star Tribune

High mortgage rates aren’t stalling Twin Cities area home building

Forbes

Chicago TREND’s New Fund Aims to Boost Local Ownership of Shopping Centers

Minnesota Reformer

Minnesota among states with highest average household income, highest racial inequality

McKnight Foundation

Statement in Response to Supreme Court Affirmative Action Ruling

Star Tribune

New Voices: Supportive housing is nearing crisis

MPR News

Bush Foundation, Nexus Community Partners will give $50M to descendants of slaves

Sahan Journal

Green Bank to speed climate friendly projects in underserved communities

Star Tribune

Minnesotans testify about racial injustice to international audience: The U.N.

MinnPost

Minnesota legislative ‘big, big deal’ spends $1B on affordable housing, adds metro sales tax

FOX 9

Bill could give big boost to first-generation homebuyers in Minnesota

Star Tribune

Construction on $28M Coliseum redo now underway on Lake Street

U.S. Bank

Banker focuses on addressing wealth disparities among Black Americans

Mpls/St. Paul Business Journal

BMO extends homeownership grant to Minneapolis

Star Tribune

Silicon Valley Bank collapse concerns founders of color

New York Times

‘Excuse After Excuse’: Black and Latino Developers Face Barriers to Success

Greater MSP

Tonya Allen on the GroundBreak Coalition at 2023 Greater MSP Kick-off Event

Star Tribune

Program aims to close racial gap by helping prospective Black homeowners with down payments

Star Tribune

St. Paul soon to launch forgivable housing loan program for former Rondo residents

MPR News

Communities of color look to lawmakers to close gaps

Hawthorne Huddle with Al McFarlane

Closing Racial Wealth Gaps in Minnesota

Star Tribune

More than $100M in projects emerge this year from diversity funds pledged after George Floyd’s death

Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder

Day at the Capitol spotlights success and needs of Black businesses

Kare 11

Mayor Carter: City Council OKs fund to support residents of St. Paul’s Rondo neighborhood

Kare 11

MLK event focuses on quest for economic equality

Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder

First ‘Black Entrepreneurs Day’ scheduled at State Capitol

Star Tribune

Minnesota needs more than $3 billion for aging infrastructure

MPR

How the pandemic has and hasn’t changed the ‘Land of 20,000 Nonprofits’

MPR

Housing Commissioner Jennifer Ho has big plans to get more Minnesotans into homes

TCB Mag

Huntington’s Minnesota president seeks racial justice through banking role

MinnPost

Leaders at the Capitol say Minnesota has chance to ‘go really big’ on housing

Star Tribune

University of Minnesota to manage $34.5M in state funds for startup investments

Forbes

In An Increasingly Diverse Community, Sunrise Banks Removes Barriers To Homeownership

Project for Pride in Living

Tonya Allen on Rebuilding Community for Race Place Policy Podcast

MinnPost

As Congress jumpstarts climate action, states and local leaders must drive a just path forward

U.S. News

Minnesota Strives for an Equitable Economy

The Conversation with Al McFarlane

Building Wealth & Community featuring Alex West Steinman and Marion Greene

Minnesota Public Radio

In Focus: How housing can shrink the racial wealth gap

MinnPost

On the cusp of realizing shared vision of a revitalized Lake Street

Minnesota Public Radio

The successes and challenges of rebuilding on Minneapolis’ Lake Street

YWCA St. Paul

Herstory Podcast: How do we live in our values?

KARE 11

Twin Cities leaders launch effort to address racial disparities

Star Tribune

Public-private coalition plans $2B to revitalize Twin Cities

TPT Almanac

GroundBreak Coalition Addresses Equity

Star Tribune

Racial minorities much more likely to be denied mortgages

Children's Minnesota

Serving on the GroundBreak Coalition

Ramsey County

Ramsey County Partners with GroundBreak Coalition

Center for Economic Inclusion

Local diversity index finds U.S. Bank, 3M, Target, among those with best record

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