Como is a place of cozy homes, tree-canopied streets and delightful gardens, where people come and decide to stay for generations.
The people of Como - families, owners, tenants, landlords, and businesses - are committed to cooperatively working together to continue to improve the quality of Como as a secure, comfortable, and vibrant place to live, work, invest, play and study.
Como is conveniently located and pedestrian friendly, where residents and businesses are good neighbors in a healthy environment. Our school and park are great and the opportunities for the people of Como are getting better every day.
Location & Boundaries
The Como Neighborhood (also called Southeast Como) is in southeast Minneapolis about one mile north of the Dinkytown commercial area and the east bank campus of the University of the Minnesota.
Como is transected by its namesake Como Avenue and by East Hennepin Avenue.
Its boundaries are the city limit to the east (near Highway 280), the Southeast Industrial Area to the south of Elm Street, Interstate 35W and the Burlington Northern mainline to the west, and the Mid-City Industrial Area to the north.
Neighborhood Description
The high-traffic business roads, industry, abandoned industrial sites, and active railroads that surround Como contrast sharply with the residential character of the neighborhood.
The housing stock consists of modest early 20th-century bungalows and Victorian and twenties-era homes mixed with a scattering of newer duplexes and single family homes. Some areas (e.g. along Como, 15th and Hennepin Avenues) have post-60's two-story walk-up apartment buildings.
Within Como are Tuttle Elementary School, the large public Van Cleve Park, a new University child care center, and Como Student Housing.
Commercial activity is focused on Como and East Hennepin Avenues. The neighborhood is served by two convenience grocery stores (including one with a laundromat and deli) and a number of small service businesses, including a hardware store, a barber, a dentist, two coffee houses, three bar/restaurants, a diner, a video rental shop, an electronics repair shop, a resale shop, three printers, a car parts store, several auto repair garages, and several gas stations.
Como is home to three churches and a mosque.
Demographics
According to 2000 census figures, 5,691 people make their homes in the Como neighborhood, in a total of 2,376 housing units. Of these, 36% were owner occupied homes and 63% were rental units (1% of the housing units were vacant). In 2009, City of Minneapolis Assessor data showed that Como had 1304 residential parcels, and that 49% of these parcels were homesteaded. 2010 data shoes that there are currently 642 rental licenses active in the Como neighborhood, equating to 49% of the 2009 parcels.
The ethnic/racial makeup of the neighborhood is 80% Caucasian, 10% Asian American, 6% African American and 1% Native American.
According to the census, 76% of Como was under 35 years old (24% at 25-34 years old) and 5% is 65 or over.
Neighborhood Organization
The Southeast Como Improvement Association (SECIA) has actively advocated for neighborhood issues for more than 25 years. SECIA is open to anyone who lives in the neighborhood or who represents a business, church, civic organization, or other entity located within its borders. Over the years, membership and board representation have come primarily from homeowners and businesses.
Neighborhood Revitalization Process top of page
In 1994-95, Como's Neighborhood Revitalization Program (NRP) process began when Southeast Como Improvement Association (SECIA) developed and entered into the Participation Agreement with the City of Minneapolis.
Throughout the summer of 1995, SECIA distributed fliers and recruited volunteers to serve on the NRP Steering Committee. The first Town Meeting was held on October 5, 1995 at which time the process and purpose of NRP were introduced, issues brainstormed, more volunteers were sought, and the Steering Committee was elected. Following that meeting the Steering Committee met monthly to organize the NRP in Como, hire a part-time staff and get the wheels rolling.
Neighborhood Task Forces & Developing a First Step Plan
A second Town Meeting was held on October 29, 1996 where the results of the survey were presented and eight task forces were formed on: housing, environment, parks, schools, public safety, community services, transportation, and business/economic development.
Over the next six months, the task forces identified and researched neighborhood issues and opportunities and developed proposed goals, objectives and strategies. These were presented at a third Town Meeting on May 20th, 1997 where over 150 participants cast their straw vote indicating their priority objectives and ones which raised red flags.
Each task force used this response to focus on a selected number of goals and objectives for the First Step Plan. The task forces spent the summer of 1997 further researching appropriate strategies, identifying implementation partners, and developing budgets. The task forces combined their proposals into the draft First Step Plan which was presented to the neighborhood at the Fourth NRP Town Meeting on November 18, 1997 and overwhelmingly approved by the attendees.
In 1998, SECIA and its NRP Steering Committee and task forces started to develop the full Neighborhood Action Plan while beginning to implement the First Step Plan. Among the first accomplishments of the First Step Plan were the volunteer-based construction of the Tuttle School playground in September and Unitree/Minnesota RedLeaf tree planting in October.
A workshop for SECIA Board members, committee and task force members on November 8, 1998 kicked off the Action Planning process. All committees/Task Forces worked throughout the winter and spring investigating and preparing their Action Plan proposals. In addition Como participated in a major joint Thoroughfare Study and held the cooperative Como-Tuttle Shebang event attended by more than 170 residents.
The Housing Loan Program was kicked off with a large open meeting on February 10, 1999. The draft Neighborhood Action Plan was distributed to every household (via the Comotion newsletter) and was presented at a Town Meeting on June 15, 1999 where participants cast their straw vote indicating their priority objectives and ones which raised red flags. The committees/task forces then refined their proposals, reached consensus on the budget, and presented the plan at an All Task Force Meeting on September 30,1999. The Action Plan has gone through NRP staff and legal review. The neighborhood approved the plan on November 30, 1999, with 70 people attending and only 1 dissenting voter.