Frequently asked questions

A locally run, nonprofit district that replaces the city's Special Service District (SSD) fee and puts that money to work making Uptown cleaner, safer and busier, with Uptown property and business owners in charge.

Nothing for residents: owner-occupied homes, condos, duplexes and triplexes, rentals under 20 units and 4d affordable rental housing aren't charged. Commercial property and rental buildings with 20 or more units pay a service charge in place of today's SSD fee, worked out by net tax capacity.

Not expected to. The UCID replaces SSD fees: what owners pay the SSD today would go to the UCID instead, and funding is estimated to be no more than that. A nonprofit district can deliver more services for the same dollars than government.

Commercial properties and rental buildings with 20 or more units. Owner-occupied homes, condominiums, duplexes and triplexes, and 4d affordable rental housing are left out.

Each property pays its share of the budget by net tax capacity, as Minnesota Statute 428A sets out. The City calculates each charge, mails owners a notice and holds a public hearing, and Hennepin County collects it with the property taxes of only the properties that pay it.

Both are funded the same way, by a service charge on commercial property. An SSD is run by the City's Public Works department and limited to what Public Works does: snow, sweeping, banners and greenery. The UCID is run by a nonprofit controlled by Uptown's owners, so it can also do safety ambassadors, events, marketing, business recruitment and grant applications.

An 11-member board, with at least 60% commercial property owners as state law requires, sets a plan and budget each year. An executive director runs the day-to-day work, mostly through contracts with local vendors.

No. There are more than 1,000 improvement districts in the United States, including the Minneapolis Downtown Improvement District and districts in Rochester and Duluth. New York City has 76.