Racial Equity Impact Analysis (REIA)

Participation in the 2025 PreserveMN conference will support both policy goals and operational goals. In support of the Built Environment & Transportation policy, sessions at the PreserveMN conference will contribute to the professional development of CPED’s historic preservation planners and HPC commissioners and their ability to contribute to thoughtful planning, design, and stewardship of the city’s historic properties. Similarly, in support of the Arts and Culture policy goal, learning from other preservation practitioners around the state will inform staff and commissioner understanding of the potential role of preservation in inclusive economic development and its central role in placemaking in our communities. Within the operational goals, participation in this conference will improve the capacity of the HPC to advance the City’s racial equity work. Applying for a scholarship will also help reduce the financial burden for HPC commissioners, who volunteer for this role, to access this professional development opportunity.

City staff member Erin Que is coordinating a session titled “Preserving the Past, Empowering the Future: Black Community Heritage” with three community members who served on the African American Heritage Work Group. This session will focus on the formation, implementation, and impact of the African American Heritage Work Group. Members provided input at key stages to shape the Minneapolis African American Historic and Cultural Context Study. Their insights were invaluable and helped ensure that the end products reflected the opinions and knowledge of Minneapolis’ African American and Black community. CPED has been working on this project since 2019. The context study was completed in June 2025 and funded by a grant from the Minnesota Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund.

Erin Que, Senior City Planner

This is a statewide conference that attracts individuals primarily from Minnesota and may attract some individuals from Wisconsin. The conference location changes each year so that participants from different parts of the region are better able to attend. For example, this year’s conference is in New Ulm. Last year’s conference was in Red Wing. Racial demographics of participants are not available.

Data is not available to address how constituents from BIPOC communities currently relate to the desired outcome as compared to white constituents. However, participation by staff and HPC commissions can contribute to better serving constituents from BIPOC and white communities through the historic preservation process.

The conference organizers do not collect demographic data on attendees.

This scholarship application and attendance at the PreserveMN conference will contribute to the professional development of City staff and HPC commissioners. It also gives City staff the opportunity to share more about the work we are doing to achieve racial equity. Potential indirect impacts could include retention of City staff and HPC commissioners and increased knowledge of how to achieve racial equity within historic preservation practices. This may include a greater understanding on how to achieve equity goals as stated in the heritage preservation policies in Minneapolis 2040. Additionally, City participation in this conference may influence future hiring decisions and encourage future applications to serve on the HPC.

Satisfaction about the professional development opportunity from existing employees who attended the conference and future employees who reference the PreserveMN conference as where they found out about working for the City of Minneapolis. Other success indicators and process benchmarks include fulfillment of action items and/or goals identified in Minneapolis 2040.

City staff provide updates to HPC commissioners at each biweekly commission meeting and semi-annual retreat.