Summit Hill

Homestead Pride in Saint Paul's Summit Hill Neighborhood

The first mansions of Summit Avenue in Saint Paul started going up nearly 150 years ago, evolving over time to become one of the city's swankiest neighborhoods. Residents want to celebrate that history with house plaques that display when their homes were constructed.

The Summit Hill Association plans to connect homeowners with vendors and contractors qualified to install house plaques on their properties. Association members have said the plaques would likely resemble the markers typically associated with the National Register of Historic Places, regardless of whether the home actually sits within one of the area's two federally defined historic districts. The association — one of the city's 17 official planning districts — floated the idea in its newsletter last month. So far, 13 homeowners have signed up for more information.

The idea of encouraging homeowners to buy historic plaques isn't new. Throughout the country, historic preservation commissions often designate uniform designs for home plaques within historic districts. A private homeowners' group in the Summit Hill area, called the Ramsey Hill Association, followed a similar tack in the 1980s.

A sizable area around Summit Avenue lies within two different national and two different local historic districts. The Hill Historic District and the Summit Avenue West Historic Districts are the national designations. The Hill Historic District runs east-to-west along Summit Avenue from the St. Paul Cathedral to Lexington Avenue. The Summit Avenue West Historic District is an adjoining area along Summit Avenue from Mississippi River Boulevard to Lexington Avenue. The local districts include Summit Hill, a triangular region from Lexington Avenue on the west, Summit Avenue on the north, and the bluffs on the south, and Ramsey Hill, the area bounded by Summit Avenue, Dale Street, Interstate Highway 94, and a line running...

Saint Paul Real Estate Market Analysis for February 2009

According to the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors’ Market Update for 100 Twin Cities Communities, new posted listings for homes in St. Paul MN, decreased in February.  There were 480 new listings in Saint Paul throughout the month, compared to the 602 homes put up on the market during February 2008.  That is a decline of -20.3%.  In contrast, there were 548 new listings in January 2009.  The Merriam Park neighborhood and West 7th neighborhood of St. Paul experienced increases in posted new listings, while rest saw their listings decrease.

For the year to date posted new listings in St. Paul, the picture looks just a little different. For February and January, there were 1,027 new listings, compared to the 1,164 during the same time frame of 2008. That’s a -11.8% reduction.  The Greater East Side, Merriam Park, and West 7th neighborhoods saw a rise in listings up to +17.4%; other Saint Paul neighborhood listings dropped.

There were many homes sold in Saint Paul in February compared to 2008.  There were 202 homes sold throughout the month, a full +27.0% increase over the 159 homes sold in February of 2008!  Rates at which homes were selling varied from neighborhood to neighborhood, with the biggest differences seen in West Side/Cherokee...

Saint Paul Real Estate Market Analysis for January 2009

The first St. Paul real estate market analysis for the year of 2009! New posted listings for homes in St. Paul, Minnesota, decreased in January according to the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors’ Market Update for 100 Twin Cities Communities.  During the month, there were 548 new listings in Saint Paul, compared to the 562 homes put up on the market during January 2008.  That is a decrease of just -2.5%.  It was a mixed bag when the posted new listings are broken out by neighborhood, as some big increases while others saw decreases. Here is a breakdown of new listings by Saint Paul neighborhood:

The number of homes sold within St. Paul, Minnesota, in January 2009 is higher than the same month of 2008, a trend that has been running for a few months.  There were 170 homes sold throughout the month, a +7.6% increase over the 158 homes sold in January 2008.  Closed sales on homes for January 2009 in Saint Paul by neighborhood:

The prices of homes sold in St. Paul have continued to fall.  The average sales price of a home sold in January was $111,222, a negative change from the $205,897 of January2008.  That is a decrease of -46.0%. Only the West 7th neighborhood saw an increase in real estate prices in January. The percentage...

Saint Paul Real Estate Market Analysis for December 2008

This is the final St. Paul real estate market analysis for the year of 2008.  According to the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors’ Market Update for 100 Twin Cities Communities, new posted listings for homes in St. Paul, Minnesota, increased in December.  There were 399 new listings in St. Paul, compared to the 351 homes put up on the market during the same month of 2007, which adds up to an increase of +13.7%.  Unlike November, lots of neighborhoods in Saint Paul saw increases in new listings.  The increase is a little unusual, because December is obviously a month full of holidays and most people don’t want the hassle of putting their house up on the market.

There were 6,859 new listings of homes for sale in St. Paul that were posted within the 2008 year.  That is a decline of -8.8% from the 7,520 homes listed throughout the year of 2007.  The neighborhoods of Mac-Groveland, St. Anthony / Midway, and West 7th experienced the greatest declines in new listings.  The Phalen and West Side / Cherokee neighborhoods have been the only St. Paul neighborhoods that saw boosts in new listings compared to 2007.

There was a higher number of homes sold within St. Paul, Minnesota, in December 2008 than in 2007.  There were 217 homes sold during the month, +5.9% more than the 205 homes sold during December of 2007.  There were 3,046 closed sales in Saint Paul...

Saint Paul Real Estate Market Analysis for November 2008

New posted listings for homes in Saint Paul, Minnesota, decreased during November according to the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors’ Market Update for 100 Twin Cities Communities.  Throughout the month, there were 398 new listings in St. Paul.  In the previous year, there were 481 new listings during November.  That is a -17.3% reduction in new listings, comparatively.  The only neighborhoods of St. Paul which saw increases in posted new listings of homes for sale were Phalen and Merriam Park.  A drop off in new listings is to be expected now and over the next few months as the winter season really starts kicking up snow. 

Saint Paul’s new listings of homes for sale from for the year-to-date from January through November are at 6,460.  That is a decrease of -9.9% from last year’s 7,169 for the same time frame.  Southeast, St. Anthony / Midway, and West 7th neighborhoods are continuing to experience great declines in homes being listed for sale.  The Phalen and West Side / Cherokee areas have been the only Saint Paul neighborhoods to see boosts in new listings through the month of November.

And now the part that you’ve been waiting for: the good news.  The number of homes sold within St. Paul, Minnesota, during November...

Saint Paul Real Estate Market Analysis for October 2008

New listings for homes in Saint Paul, Minnesota, fell again during October according to the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors’ Market Update for 100 Twin Cities Communities.  Throughout the month, there were 515 new listings in St. Paul.  During October of 2007, there were 603 new listings.  That is a decrease of about -14.6%.  Normally, I list the neighborhoods here that saw the greatest decreases in new listings, but there are many which saw decreases of 20% to over 45%.  The only neighborhoods which saw any significant increase of new listings were the Phalen and Merriam Park neighborhoods of Saint Paul

Posted new listings of Saint Paul real estate for the year to date were at 6,062 from January through October.  That is a decrease of -9.4% from last year’s 6,688 during the same time period.  Merriam Park, West 7th, and St. Anthony / Midway continue to experience great decreases in new listings.  The Phalen neighborhod and West Side / Cherokee neighborhoods are the only ones to have seen any increases in new listings for the year to date.

Now for a really good number: The amount of homes sold within Saint Paul, ...

Important Decisions This November

Nope, I’m not talking about the presidential elections.  Since this is a blog that provides information about the St. Paul community, I’m of course referring to something much closer to home.

Linwood and Monroe schools in St. Paul, newly merged this year, are in need of a name to reflect its formation.  The two schools will make ballots available to students and community members November 4 to pick a name and school colors for the combined school.  Its curriculum offers arts-focused programs for students in pre-kindergarten through eighth grade. The Linwood school is located in the Summit Hill neighborhood of St. Paul while the Monroe school can be found in the West 7th neighborhood of St. Paul.

Responses from the two school communities suggested that people wanted both school names reflected in the joint name. The name choices are Linwood Monroe Arts Plus; Arts Plus at Linwood and Arts Plus at Monroe; and Linwood Monroe PreK-8. The color choices are green and blue or green and yellow. Linwood's colors had been blue and yellow; Monroe's were green and white.

Monroe, which is located at 810 Palace Ave., will be open to the public that day because it is a polling place for the national and local elections. The ballot box for the school name and colors will be near where people cast their votes for the election. At Linwood, 1023 Osceola Ave....

Saint Paul Real Estate Market Analysis for September 2008

Changing from what has been happening in recent months, new listings of homes for sale in Saint Paul, Minnesota, rose during September according to the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors’ Market Update for 100 Twin Cities Communities.  During the month, there were 621 new listings in St. Paul.  Throughout September of last year, there were 602 new listings.  That is equal to an increase of about +3.2%!  The Phalen and Highland Park neighborhoods of St. Paul experienced the greatest increase in new listings during September at +44.3% and +32.4% respectively. On the contrary, the West 7th and Merriam Park neighborhoods saw declines in new listings of -45.0% and -50.0% respectively during September. 

Posted new Saint Paul real estate listings from January through September for the year to date were at 5,543.  That is a decrease of -8.9%.  The month of September’s rise in new listings helped to raise that number up a bit that from August’s -10.2%.  If the trend continues in October for new listings in Saint Paul, the real estate market might be on par with posted listings for last year.  Saint Paul's Merriam Park and St. Anthony / Midway had the most extreme decrease in new listings.  The Phalen and West Side / Cherokee neighborhoods have seen...

Summit Avenue a Top 10 Great Street For 2008

The American Planning Association has named Summit Avenue as one of 10 Great Streets for 2008 through APA’s Great Places in America program. APA Great Places exemplify exceptional character and highlight the role planners and planning play in creating communities of lasting value.

The APA says that Summit Avenue represents the nation’s most intact Victorian-era Boulevard.  Summit Avenue was selected because of its breathtaking vistas, park-like traits, and long history of planning measures, community participation, and private stewardship that have kept Summit’s unique qualities intact.

APA Great Places offer excellent choices for where and how people work and live. The areas given this designation are enjoyable, safe, and desirable locations. They are places where people want to not only to visit, but to live, work, and play every day. America’s greatest streets are characterized by many criteria, including architectural attributes, accessibility, functionality, and civic involvement. Through Great Places in America, APA recognizes distinctive and authentic features found in three essential components of all communities - streets, neighborhoods, and public spaces.

To understand how Summit Avenue received this designation, it helps to know how this area of ...

Saint Paul's Grand Old Day

The Grand Avenue Business Association would like to invite you to the 35th annual Grand Old Day celebration on Sunday, June 1.  This is St. Paul's first rite of summer, and it takes place along the city’s historic Grand Avenue annually on the first Sunday in June.  Grand Old Day is the Midwest's largest one-day festival and includes a parade, sporting events, live music on 7 stages, art fair, family fun zone, teen battle of the bands and international performance.  Because this year sees the 35th Grand Old Day, the theme of this year's celebration is "Flashback to the '70s" to celebrate the festival's 1970s roots.  Organizers hope that festival-goers will don their bell-bottoms and platforms. 

Of course, there will by a “groovy” parade along Grand Avenue in the Summit Hill-Crocus Hill neighborhoods of Saint Paul.  There will be dog competitions, art cars on display, children's activities, street performances, and lots more events and activities.  All of the street’s stores and restaurants will be open for food, drink, and shopping.  For the day, Grand Avenue will be divided into five sections: 

  • The Sporting District will feature, well, sports!  There will be an 8k inline skate, an 8k run, a ¼ mile and ½ mile youth run, a 5k walk/jog, and the strongest woman and man on Grand competition. ...
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