ST PAUL, Minnesota — Ramsey County officials have unveiled their plans to pour millions into downtown St. Paul as part of a larger goal to ease the property tax burden that residents in the county face.  

Tuesday, the Ramsey County Board unanimously approved the “Building Stronger Together” plan, which will invest more than $320 million into the county’s future. They say it will be done without additional increases to property taxes. 

“The investment we are talking about today will help bring more people, more energy, and more opportunity into the heart of our city,” said St. Paul Mayor Kaohly Her. 

The county’s plan emphasizes collaboration with cities, businesses, developers and community partners. 

During a press conference on Tuesday, Ramsey County Manager Ling Becker said the county is under unprecedented pressure. 

“We’re facing real and compounding challenges: A downtown still rebuilding momentum, a constrained tax base, rising service demands, and cost shifts being shifted by our federal and state governments. And all of this puts added pressure on our property taxpayers, and that is unsustainable,” Becker said. 

The plan centers on two key strategies: Revitalizing downtown St. Paul and selling county-owned land for redevelopment. 

“The county owns currently hundreds of acres of vacant underutilized land across the county that is truly ripe for redevelopment,” said Josh Olson, Ramsey County director of community & economic development. 

Out of the $320 million dollars in investments, Olson said $250 million is expected to go towards downtown. 

As part of “building a dynamic downtown,” the plan focuses on investing in properties like Park at RiversEdge; supporting downtown housing; improving public spaces; and attracting and supporting new businesses downtown. 

While officials said they will fund the plan through existing resources and bonding, there are still questions. 

For example, their Park at RiversEdge project — which would connect downtown St. Paul to the Mississippi River — still faces hurdles, including needing $20 million more in state funding. 

“We’re working very strong to get that support. My colleagues on the other side of the aisle have been adamant, they want a stronger downtown,” said State Rep. María Isa Pérez-Vega (DFL-St. Paul). 

Officials aim through these investments to expand the tax base and ultimately ease the property tax burden that Ramsey County residents are facing. 

“I really do understand that there might be sometimes a feeling of… there’s risk in doing these projects. The county’s putting its neck out there,” Becker said. “But if not us, then who? Because at some point, we are gonna tax our community to the point where they can’t live here and grow their families here.”