Turnovers on the West Side

The West Side (Saint Paul’s Planning District 3) is bordered by the Mississippi River to the north and the city limits to the south—it’s called the West Side because it sits on the west bank of the river, not because it’s in the western part of the city. In fact, it’s the only part of Saint Paul that lies west of the Mississippi at all. The neighborhood grew historically around the West Side Flats near downtown, a low-lying area prone to river flooding that was home to generations of immigrant communities, including many of Minnesota’s earliest Mexican immigrants. The Flats were eventually redeveloped into an industrial park protected by a flood wall, and the historic Wabasha Street Caves, carved into the sandstone bluffs, remain a well-known local landmark.

Housing Stock and What It Means for Turnovers

Today’s West Side includes a mix of housing types: original single-family homes later converted into duplexes or small multi-unit rentals, purpose-built smaller apartment buildings, and a range of building ages and renovation histories. Because so much of the neighborhood’s early development was shaped by its river-adjacent geography and periodic flooding, older buildings here sometimes carry moisture or foundation considerations that newer construction elsewhere in the city doesn’t have to account for.

• Single-family homes converted into duplexes or small multi-unit rentals
• A mix of older and more recently updated building stock
• River-adjacent properties where flood history is sometimes a factor in building condition

Getting Around the West Side

The West Side’s riverfront position gives it a distinct geography from the rest of Saint Paul—it’s connected to downtown by several bridges spanning the Mississippi, and the bluffs above the river offer views back toward the city skyline. The neighborhood’s identity has long been shaped by its immigrant history, visible today in local businesses and cultural institutions along its commercial streets.

Planning a Turnover on the West Side

The West Side’s identity has long been shaped by its immigrant communities, particularly its deep Mexican-American history, visible today in local businesses and cultural institutions along Cesar Chavez Street and neighboring corridors. Renters and owners here often have long-standing ties to the area, and multigenerational households are common, which can mean turnover requests sometimes involve properties transitioning between family members rather than a purely arm’s-length tenant change—worth flagging on the request form if it affects the scope or timeline.

Each unit is scoped on its own terms through our standard turnover process.