Shopping center seeking community investors to build generational wealth in north Minneapolis

A first-of-its-kind opportunity is taking root in north Minneapolis.

A shopping center project is inviting residents to become owners, not just customers as the developer aims to build community wealth.

Just minutes from downtown Minneapolis, Hawthorn Crossings is set to become Minnesota's first community co-owned shopping center.

"People in neighborhoods never get intentionally invited to own a shopping center. And if people have a little ownership stake, they'll patronize and protect and respect it in a different way," said Lyneir Richardson, CEO of TREND, a commercial real estate developer buying and revitalizing neighborhood shopping centers.

The Chicago-based company is inviting residents to invest as little as $1,000 alongside institutional investors and become co-owners of Hawthorn Crossings.

According to the business plan, that investment is projected to more than triple over 10 years through annual distributions and eventual sale of the property. As with any investment, there is risk involved and those returns are not guaranteed.

"After George Floyd was murdered, I remember seeing a man standing in front of his store saying 'don't wreck my store. It's Black owned,'" said Richardson. "If we're gonna create new possibilities and economic mobility for people, we gotta help people own assets that appreciate over time."

Richardson says he's in talks with a national pharmacy to get essential services and healthcare in the building. Richardson say community investors will also have a voice in what happens next.

"This is not simply an investment notion This is an empowerment notion. This is a breaking out of the box of a limited vision notion for people. So it's a specific opportunity, but the implication of it is much broader and much deeper than that. This is the invitation into dreamland," said Rev. Alfred Babbington Johnson, who is investing in the property.

Supporters hope those blooms become more than just a sign of summer. They hope community ownership cultivates lasting investment in north Minneapolis.

The crowd-funding investment deadline is July 31. But the sale is set to move forward regardless of how much is raised.