'Who are they building that for?' | Local News

Leonnel Davis sees change in Rochester and wonders what it means for her new neighbors.

"I see growth in the community but not growth around where I live," she said.

Up until about three months ago, Davis was living in a home in northeast Rochester, which she was hoping to buy through a contract for deed. However a pending divorce changed her plans, and she moved with her two grandchildren, one 12 and the other 15, to a three-bedroom apartment in the Andover Apartments complex in southeast Rochester.

It wasn't the first choice for the 53-year-old grandmother, but searches for three-bedroom apartment kept coming with price tags as high as $1,900 a month in buildings near the city's core.

"Who are they building that for? They couldn't be building it for me," she said, noting she pays $900 for rent in her new apartment as she points to needed repairs and cites safety concerns. "I'm on disability, and I'm a single grandparent."

When rents aren't too high, Davis said other barriers stand in the way of many people who are looking for suitable housing, whether it's high security deposits, strict background checks or, in her case, the fact that a 2001 conviction for a drug felony looms over her.

"That was 17 years ago, and I'm still being judged for it," she said, noting it's important to understand people in the community have made past mistakes but are trying to live good lives.

Davis said she looks around her new neighborhood, where children ride bikes past people suspected of using drugs, and she wonders about the legacy being left as other parts of the city change under Destination Medical Center plans.

She said she doesn't want to send a message to her grandchildren that they need to lower their expectations when it comes to finding a suitable place to live.

A Rochester resident since 1997, Davis met a CURE representative who was going door to door at the Andover complex and his message hit home. She said she saw a need to take action to create a better environment for her grandchildren, as well as neighbors.

"I guess this is my first step to doing that," she said, noting she is part of a small CURE group organizing its first communitywide meeting, which will be at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday in the Eagles Club, 917 15th Ave. SE.

She's working to get family members and others in the neighborhood to attend.

"There is power in numbers to make things happen," she said.

'Pushed out of Rochester'

Nancy Adams, another CURE member, said the numbers will be needed, but she has confidence in the group.

"I really haven't encountered a group that I had as much hope in for accomplishing great things," she said, noting the need is widespread.

"Every place I go, I find people who are saying they are having a hard time finding a place they can afford to rent," she said. "It's like the people who are low income are being pushed out of Rochester."

The CURE group Davis and Adams represent is one of three in Rochester. Each is tasked with determining the issues it will tackle.

"It's from the bottom up," said Thomas Molina, the community organizer for the group discussing affordable housing on Tuesday.

Other CURE members, based in a mobile-home park along Marion Road in southeast Rochester, are working with another community organizer to tackle public safety concerns, and a third organizer is working with members in northwest Rochester, Molina said.

While the CURE representatives will have some potential solutions on hand Tuesday, their primary goal is to hear from residents about concerns surrounding the issue of affordable housing.

"Ultimately, we hope to relay the concerns of working people, lower-income people who feel that they never have a say in the community," Molina said.

Adams said she want to see more engagement with the powers behind DMC, including Mayo Clinic.

"The Mayo Clinic need to give something back to the community and become an advocate for affordable housing," she said.

Molina said CURE's ground-up approach seeks to show decision makers the importance of considering DMC's impacts on all Rochester residents.

"Many people feel left behind, without a voice and a seat at the table," he said.

No DMC meetings yet

DMC officials indicated there is room to hear CURE's concerns.

"We are not familiar with CURE, but we would welcome the opportunity to connect to learn more about the organization and their goals for Rochester," spokeswoman Sarah Oslund stated in a written response to a request for comment. "Housing is one of the top-tier priorities for the DMC initiative and we know we need a strong mix of housing options, especially affordable housing, to serve the expanded workforce and support the new jobs that will be created in our community as a result of DMC."

While the CURE group hasn't taken action to meet with DMC officials yet, Molina said he hopes that will happen as goals are solidified.

"We've been attending the (DMC Corp.) board meetings to get more details," he said, noting organizers have also met with other community groups to compare notes.

He said the goal is to ensure various groups in the community have a voice, and he acknowledged that doesn't come without a cost. CURE offer memberships with a $5 monthly fee to help cover some of those costs, but the fee can be waived for those who can't afford it, he said.

Davis and Adams said the added voices are needed amid doubts regarding the intent of DMC's changes.

"I drive around and see the buildings put up," Davis said. "I see the beautiful, beautiful high-rises, but I don't think I will be able to step foot in any of them, so that change wasn't for me."