St. Cloud City Council Approves 70-Unit Apartment Complex and Commercial Space on Former Bank Site

(KNSI) – The last hurdle has been cleared for a four-story apartment building and commercial space in St. Cloud.

During Monday night’s public hearing, eleven people spoke in favor of the development on the former Wells Fargo Bank site on the corner of 3rd Street North and 33rd Avenue North. The St. Cloud Center for African Immigration & Refugees is developing the 3.5-acre parcel. The city council unanimously approved a Planned Unit Development for the project.

The PUD allows the project to exceed the height standard by seven feet and accept a $55,000 cash payment for only having 17% green space instead of the usual 33%.

CAIRO will tear down the old bank building and construct a 70-unit apartment complex with 25,000 square feet of commercial space and 5,000 square feet of event space. Executive Director Abdikadir Bashir spoke with KNSI News moments after the vote. “We are excited, but we are not honestly surprised, given the needs for housing in our city, in our community. I want to thank all the members from the diverse communities of St Cloud that came in support of this.”

He also thanked the council for supporting the plans. Bashir explained this is a new mission for the nonprofit. “It is our first housing development initiative. We’ve been working in the housing industry as a service provider, doing a lot of work. But now it is exciting to be part of the solution.”

The facility’s final designs will be chosen, and tenants could start moving into the building in 2026 or early 2027.

The plans call for 86 underground parking spots for renters, with ten percent of the units set aside as low-income housing. The rest will be market-rate.

CAIRO officials say the apartments will be available for rent to anyone, not just refugees. The nonprofit organization plans to hold classes for new renters to help educate them on how to care for their apartments.

Three people spoke against the project, expressing concerns over increased traffic on already busy streets and questions about whether the plans call for enough parking and a lack of parkland.

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