Owner of Huntington Place Apartments Urges City To Allow Pending Sale
CCX News previously reported that Huntington Place Apartments in Brooklyn Park, the second largest apartment complex in the state, is in the process of being sold.
Now, for the first time, elected officials gave their views on the potential sale at this week’s Economic Development Authority meeting.
For the sale to go through, it would require a big concession from the city. Aeon, the current owner, needs the $5 million loan from the city to be forgiven.
“This is a pretty significant decision in front of you here today,” said Tim Gladhill, the city’s community development director.
Aeon, a Minneapolis-based nonprofit housing company, bought the six-building complex in 2020. More than 2,500 hundred tenants live there, as large as the entire city of Osseo. The purchase was done as the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, economic challenges sunk in and the state’s temporary eviction moratorium was put in place.
Amid those challenges, Huntington Place Apartments experienced a surge in crime in 2021. Gladhill said efforts by the city, proactive tenants and security investments by Aeon contributed to a drop in calls.
City police statistics show a 59 percent reduction in police department calls since 2021 and a 65 percent reduction in calls related to serious crimes.
But unless the sale goes through, there’s concern those efforts could be undone.
“Essentially a foreclosure might limit our possibility of bringing those dollars back in,” said Gladhill. “The act of a foreclosure would have a larger impact to the community itself that we definitely want to try to avoid.”
‘Zombie Property’ Concern
Aeon officials discussed the potential sale with Brooklyn Park City Council members, who also serve as EDA commissioners at their Monday meeting.
Eric Johnson, the company’s CEO, said the nonprofit can no financially operate the complex.
“This is our last stand. We have no more options after this,” said Johnson.
Without the debt forgiveness, Johnson said the sale will not go through and the property would face an unsettling future.
“It becomes a zombie property, because Aeon can no longer invest in it,” said Johnson. “It becomes a place where all security is basically gone from the property.”
It’s a request the city will now consider.
“I think that there’s a lot of Brooklyn Park residents who would find this a pretty bitter pill to swallow, forgiving this debt,” said Christian Eriksen, Brooklyn Park City Council member and EDA commissioner.
“I am not against a full forgiveness, but I would not prefer it,” added XP Lee, Brooklyn Park City Council member and EDA commissioner.
Aeon President and CEO Eric Johnson speaks at Monday’s EDA meeting.
Buyer’s Background
Aeon officials named the buyer as New York-based MAS Capital Group. According to terms of the pending sale, the new owner would be required to keep an affordable housing covenant at the complex through 2050.
“This is a family-owned business that focuses on affordable housing,” said Johnson, describing MAS Capital. “It’s what they do.”
The sale terms would also let Aeon stay on as a limited partner with the new owner for two years to ensure a smooth transition.
The question now is whether the city will let go of recouping its investment.
“We will be working behind the scenes to look at the numbers and figure this out, the various options and what we can do to make this work,” said Brooklyn Park Mayor Hollies Winston at Monday’s meeting.
The city is tentatively scheduled to make a decision on whether to sign off on the debt forgiveness at the Nov. 18 EDA meeting.
Huntington Place Apartments in Brooklyn Park
Also See: Huntington Place Apartments Update: Progress on Repairs, Outreach
