Minneapolis Works To Rename Properties As Equitable Spaces

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — The City of Minneapolis this month announced its newest program, the Just Deeds Project, intended to help property owners reclaim their homes as equitable spaces for people of all races.

The project, led by the city attorney's office, aims to help property owners remove racial covenants from the deeds to their homes. Racial covenants, which began in the 1910s, legally prohibited people of color from buying, renting or using the property.

In a news release, the city said the deeds to over 8,000 properties in Minneapolis still contain racial covenants, according to University of Minnesota research.

According to the release, the covenants were used as a tool to force segregation in Minneapolis. Areas without racial covenants, where people of color were allowed to live, were redlined by banks and governments, preventing certain communities from accumulating property and wealth.

While the enforcement of racial covenants was barred from being enforced in 1968, Black, Indigenous and other communities of color continue to experience negative impacts.

According to the city's website, redlined neighborhoods occupied by communities of color during the period of racial covenants remain primarily Black today. Further, racially segregated neighbors typically have fewer parks and trees, more environmental hazards, less food security and poorly funded schools.

The impact also persists in overall homeownership rates. According to the city, only 25 percent of the city's Black population owned a home in 2019 compared to the white homeownership rate of 77 percent.

Also in 2019, Indigenous homeownership was 49 percent, Hispanic homeownership was 50 percent and Asian homeownership was 60 percent.

Under the new program, property owners can acknowledge and disclaim the covenants in their deeds by recording a discharge form against the deed, the city said. The city attorney's office is available to help residents complete this process on a first-come, firs-served basis based on availability.

Hennepin County has also waived fees associated with this process, making it easier than ever to reclaim property as an equitable space.

To qualify, properties must be in the City of Minneapolis and be shown in red on the Mapping Prejudice Map.

Residents can participate in the Just Deeds Program by filing an application online or by printing and mailing an application.