Neighborhoods of Saint Paul

Saint Paul, Minnesota is noted for its neighborhoods. The city has been called "fifteen small towns with one mayor", owing to the neighborhood-based life of much of the city. Saint Paul is partially governed by not 15 but 17 City Districts.

On Saint Paul's largely blue-collar East Side alone there are more than two dozen well-known, historically significant neighborhoods within four City Districts. District 4, for example, has three historic neighborhoods: Dayton's Bluff, Swede Hollow, and Mounds Park. The most populous districts, 2 and 5, have more than a dozen neighborhoods between them.

While Saint Paul has long been recognized for its citizen activism, some neighborhoods receive more individual planning attention than others, because tax funds are doled out to annually elected volunteer neighborhood boards based on City District boundaries, not neighborhood boundaries. These boards are called District Councils.

The District Council system was established in 1975 to encourage grass-roots involvement. The Councils were also created to help spend federal funds through the recently created Community Development Block Grants. The District Councils share $1.2 million from the city of Saint Paul. In 2015, community participation funds given to the District Councils ranged from $51,873 to $109,475. The councils also have other revenue streams, such as grants and donations. Most councils have significant power on land-use issues.

Besides providing advisory recommendations to city officials on development issues, district councils also identify neighborhood needs, initiate community programs and recruit and nurture neighborhood leaders and volunteers.

These four neighborhoods make up District 1, the southeast corner of Saint Paul. They are predominantly residential communities that vary widely economically, geographically, and culturally. It is the site of both single-family homes on large lots and high density apartment complexes. Beautiful parks overlook the Mississippi River and Pig's Eye Lake, and nestle into 1960s-era neighborhoods. The area's riverfront is part of Saint Paul's working river.

The Greater East Side is among the city's largest, most populous and most diverse districts. It is in St. Paul's northeast corner. Boundaries are the city limits on the north and east; Minnehaha Ave. to the south; and Johnson Parkway to the west. It includes the neighborhoods of Frost Lake, Hillcrest, Prosperity Heights, Hayden Heights, Beaver Lake, Hazel Park, and Phalen Village. Built as bedroom communities for the industries located further south on the East Side (3M, Whirlpool, Hamm’s), the neighborhoods continue to include commuter homes with retail and service industries located on White Bear Avenue and in Phalen Village.

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