How Mayor Frey fought rent control concerns behind the scenes
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Photo Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios. Photo: Nicholas Pfosi/Bloomberg via Getty Images
While the Minneapolis City Council was debating a rent control policy for the past two-and-a-half years, Mayor Jacob Frey was assuring developers behind the scenes that he'd never let it happen.
What happened: Between early 2021 and late 2023, Frey sent 10 letters to developers, investors, and real estate brokers that included a line promising them he wouldn't support "classic rent control."
- He also vowed to oppose any policy that didn't exempt new construction, according to correspondence obtained by Axios in an open records request.
Why it matters: The letters show how far Frey was willing to go to make sure housing development didn't slow in the city, with the belief that more supply would drive down prices.
- They also provide further confirmation that the mayor never planned to implement a strict rent control policy recommended by a working group made up of tenants and landlords.
Between the lines: Frey's back door rhetoric largely matched what he was saying publicly at the time. In a recent interview with Axios, the mayor said he wrote the letters at the request of developers, who needed them to assure investors, some of whom don't follow the news in the Twin Cities.
- "I wanted to very clearly lay out my position so that the pipeline of investment and supply wasn't cut off like we've seen in so many other cities," he said.
Zoom in: Frey sent one to Minneapolis-based Ryan Cos. and Kirkland, Washington-based Weidner Apartment Homes in December of 2021. Three months later, the two firms broke ground on a 25-story, 350-unit apartment tower next to U.S. Bank Stadium that will open next year.
What they're saying "Understanding Mayor Frey's perspective on rent control was helpful and was one of the many factors that contributed to the advancement of the Fourth and Park project," Ryan developer Tony Barranco wrote in an email to Axios.
The other side: Jennifer Arnold, executive director of Inquilinxs Unidxs Por Justicia (United Renters For Justice), an organization that advocates for a rent control policy, said Frey has been unwilling to engage on the topic, even though voters approved moving an ordinance forward in the 2021 election.
- "We expect our elected officials to listen to and work with all sides of issues facing the city to try to solve issues, not just hold the line for those with the most money and power," Arnold wrote in an email.
The intrigue: It's hard to know how much Frey's stance and the city's overall posture on rent control kept development humming over that time.
- Developers in 2022 were issued permits to build 3,681 housing units in Minneapolis, the second-highest total in at least 22 years, according to U.S. Housing and Urban Development data.
Yes, but: Housing starts have fallen off a cliff this year. Only 977 permits were issued through September, putting the city on pace for its lowest total since 2011.
Reality check: These things don't happen in a vacuum. Higher interest rates have driven down multifamily construction across the U.S. this year.
The bottom line: The city council killed putting rent control on the ballot for last fall's election.
- While that election moved the council further to the left, the progressive bloc doesn't appear to have the votes to override a Frey veto of a rent control ordinance.
Go Deeper: Read the letters.