Research by topic

The Twin Cities Greenhouse Gas Inventory—Interactive

Climate change is occurring all around the world, including right here in the Twin Cities region. Minnesota has already experienced more extreme rainfall and warmer winters due to climate change, and more changes are on the way. The good news is that local jurisdictions can take meaningful action now to address climate change. The Twin Cities Greenhouse Gas Inventory summarizes the sources of emissions by jurisdiction and tracks how greenhouse gas emissions are changing over time. Explore how and where local actions and strategies can reduce future greenhouse gases. 
 

Climate Vulnerability Assessment (CVA)—Interactive

The Climate Vulnerability Assessment (CVA) is a tool that can assist the Council and local planning efforts in preparing and adapting to climate change. CVA reveals what systems (infrastructure, population, operations, etc.) are most vulnerable to currently occurring and, to some extent, expected climatic changes, depending upon multiple factors.  

Learn more about the assessment and access interactive tools and stories. 




 

Regional Climate Vulnerabililty Assessment

The long-term trends of our Minnesota climate have been changing outside the bounds of typical, temporary variations. In the years and decades ahead, winter warming and increased extreme rainfall will continue to be Minnesota’s two leading symptoms of climate change. Heat waves will also likely occur with more frequency, coverage, and duration.

The Climate Vulnerability Assessment is a tool that can assist in Council and local planning efforts in preparing and adapting to climate change. The CVA reveals what systems (infrastructure, population, operations, etc.) are most vulnerable to currently occurring and, to some extent, expected climatic changes, depending upon factors such as asset exposure, sensitivity, and adaptive capacity. Learn more about the Climate Vulnerability Assessment

The Twin Cities Greenhouse Gas Inventory

Climate change is occurring all around the world, including right here in the Twin Cities region. Minnesota has already experienced more extreme rainfall and warmer winters due to climate change, and more changes are on the way. The good news is that local jurisdictions can take meaningful action now to address climate change. The Twin Cities Greenhouse Gas Inventory summarizes the sources of emissions by jurisdiction and tracks how greenhouse gas emissions are changing over time. Explore how and where local actions and strategies can reduce future greenhouse gases. 
 

Climate Vulnerability Assessment (CVA)

The Climate Vulnerability Assessment (CVA) is a tool that can assist the Council and local planning efforts in preparing and adapting to climate change. CVA reveals what systems (infrastructure, population, operations, etc.) are most vulnerable to currently occurring and, to some extent, expected climatic changes, depending upon multiple factors.  

Learn more about the assessment and access interactive tools and stories. 




 

Wastewater emissions by city and township

The Metropolitan Council Environmental Service (MCES) division treats wastewater to protect public health and the environment. Though critical to keeping our water clean, the treatment process emits greenhouse gasses (GHGs).
 
The leading source of MCES's greenhouse gas emissions (mainly CO2) comes from the energy used to heat our facilities and power our equipment. The next largest source of GHG emissions (mainly N2O) come from emissions that are released when microorganisms break down organic materials and pollutants in wastewater and/or from the incineration of biosolids. The treatment of wastewater also results in the release of biogenic carbon – that is, carbon that originates from biological sources like plant and animal matter.
 
Many of Twin Cities region's cities and townships include wastewater emissions in their own GHG inventories. To support these efforts, MCES calculates each jurisdiction's proportional share of total regional emissions: we multiply the total MCES greenhouse gas emissions by a given jurisdiction's percentage of total system flows as determined in the annual calculation of municipal wastewater charges.

Wastewater Emissions by City and Township, 2008-21 (excel file)
 

Residential Development Trends in 2020—slides

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic pausing housing construction briefly, the number of units added to region’s housing stock in 2020 was on par with recent years. Multifamily remains the predominate housing type, but fewer age-restricted units were added in 2020. New single family homes trending upward, other housing types low and stagnant. Lastly, new housing added across region’s jurisdictions since 2010, but volume in Minneapolis sets it apart from other places.

Residential Development

• Residential Development Trends in 2020 (slides)
• We still need more housing: The region’s residential development in 2018 (slides)
• Strong Residential Construction in the Twin Cities Region in 2016 (2017) (pdf)
• On the Rise: New Residential Construction in the Twin Cities Region (2015) (pdf)

Commercial, Industrial, Public and Institutional Development

• From Recovery to Resurgence: Nonresidential Construction in the Twin Cities Region (2015) (pdf)
• Bust Turned Boom: Industrial Construction in the Twin Cities Region (2015) (pdf)
• Commercial Construction Soars in the Twin Cities Region (2015) (pdf)
• Public and Institutional Construction in the Twin Cities Region (2015) (pdf)

Residential Development Patterns

The Residential Development Patterns interactive summarizes Twin Cities juridictions' building permits for new residential construction projects since 2010. This dataset is developed from an annual survey of local governments about construction activity, and further verified with federal data sources, like the Residential Construction Branch of the Manufacturing and Construction Division of the U.S. Census Bureau. This data may be periodically updated to reflect corrections. Users can: 

• Select a timeframe between 2010 and 2018 and a specific jurisdiction; 
• Focus on specific housing types, like multifamily housing or single family homes
• Narrow results to specific permit types: Were housing units added or lost? What was the net change? 
• Map these selections for all jurisdictions in the Twin Cities region

Development data available in Community Profiles

Our Community Profiles Tool provides trends for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. Building permits for residential and nonresidential development are available under the 'Land Use and Development' tab. 

Development data available in Download Data

Our Download Data interface provides time-series data for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. Building permit data are available to download as comma-separated values files (.csv) under sections: 

• Affordable housing production
• Building Permits, Residential
• Building Permits, Commercial, Industrial, Public and Institutional

The Regional Forecast Update: 2023

We have updated the regional forecast every two years since 2015, most recently in April 2023. 

Key findings of 2023 update include: 

• A slightly reduced forecast for population and jobs to 2050 (relative to the 2019 update). 
• The region will add 657,000 residents between 2020 and 2050, bringing the region's total population to 3.82 million. 
• The region's population is rapidly aging and diversifying. Both trends will transform schools and workplaces by 2050. 
• Less domestic migration is anticipated through 2040, largely due to low unemployment rates in metros across the U.S., diminishing one of the Twin Cities' historic advantages: a strong economy. 
• Workforce constraints limit job growth though most of the forecast period.

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Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO)—Data

The Census Bureau has published an update of EEO Workforce Statistics: Special Tabulations, 2014-2018. This is the data collection that the federal government considers to be the official benchmark for Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity uses. We are republishing the most commonly used tables for residents and workers living in the Minneapolis-St. Paul Metropolitan Statistical Area and MN counties in a more user-friendly format. 

Separate tables count 1) jobs at workplaces based in counties or the Twin Cities metro (the "W" tables) and 2) labor force residents residing in counties or the Twin Cities metro ("R" tables). The difference between the "W" and "R" concepts is inter-county or long-distance commuters, for example, people who work in the Twin Cities metro but live elsewhere. Each of these are offered by different groups of occupations, from detailed (256 occupation categories), to grouped occupations (14 categories), to EEO-4 groups (eight categories): 

• Table 1R: Residents of Twin Cities metro and MN counties, by Race/Ethnicity and Detailed Occupations 
• Table 3R: Residents of the Twin Cities metro and MN counties, by Race/Ethnicity and Occupation Summary Groups
• Table 6R: Residents of the Twin Cities metro area and MN counties, by Race/Ethnicity and EEO-4 Job Groups
• Table 1W: Workers at Twin Cities metro and MN counties workplaces, by Race/Ethnicity and Detailed Occupations
• Table 3W: Workers at Twin Cities metro and MN counties' workplaces, by Race/Ethnicity and Occupation Summary Groups
• Table 6W: Workers at Twin Cities metro and MN counties' workplaces, by Race/Ethnicity and EEO-4 Job Groups

We recommend choosing one occupational typology. For example, government agencies preparing EEO analyses typically use the EEO-4 State & Local Government Job Groups (tables 6R and 6W in the current collection). Documentation of the occupation typologies can be found in Census Bureau’s data dictionary: “EEO Tabulation 2014-2018 Documentation.”

Regional and Local Forecasts 

• The Regional Forecast Update: 2023 (pdf)
• The Twin Cities Region's Local Forecasts (2015) (pdf)

Economy

• The Economic Competitiveness of the Twin Cities Region (2015) (pdf)
• An Uneven Recovery (2013) (pdf)
• Income and Labor Force Participation During the Great Recession (2011) (pdf)

Nothing published yet

Jobs and Workforce data available in Community Profiles

Our Community Profiles Tool provides trends for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. Summarizing data from Minnesota's Department of Employment and Economic Development, Profiles have data about jobs, wages, and unemployment, 
 

Jobs and Workforce data available in Download Data

Our Download Data interface provides time-series data for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. Data range from job-worker locations and forecasts,to  employment and wage data and are available to download as comma-separated values files (.csv) under sections:

• Demographic, economic, and commuting characteristics from the U.S. Census Bureau
• Employment forecasts
• Employment 
• Wages

The following links offer additional research, tools, and other information relevant to economy and workforce in the Twin Cities region. Sharing does not imply endorsement or agreement with specific research findings or policy positions.

Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED)

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED)'s Data Center publishes a wide range of data tools and regularly updated reports on state and regional economic performance, labor markets, and other workforce and economic trends. 
 

GREATER MSP Partnership

GREATER MSP Partership's Regional Economic Indicators Dashboard tracks the region’s annual change on critical economic, environmental, and social outcomes relative to 11 U.S. peer regions. 
 

The Center for Economic Inclusion

The Center for Economic Inclusion is a cross-sector organization committed to strengthening the Minneapolis-St. Paul region’s civic infrastructure and collective capacity to disrupt systems and influence market forces to catalyze shared prosperity and advance an inclusive economy.

The Center and its partners developed
14 "Indicators of an Inclusive Regional Economy." Updated annually, these indicators disaggregate large regional economic trends by race and ethnicity.
 

Affordable Housing Production & Policy (2021)—Slides

The results from the 2020 Affordable Housing Production Survey highlight two key issues in regional housing policy

• The region fell short of meeting last decade's need for new affordable housing. Specifically, the region produced few units affordable for households at 30% of Area Median Income ($31,000 for a family of four in 2020), where demand is most urgent. 
• Increasing affordable homeownership opportunities 

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Twin Cities Rent Trends—Interactive

The Twin Cities Rent Trends interactive presents rent and vacancy trends for the Twin Cities region by jurisdiction or neighborhood, where available.

Timely data on rents can be difficult and costly to obtain, and different data sources can yield significantly different values. This interactive tool allows users to:

• View rents and vacancy rates trends between 2010 and 2019 at sub-regional levels
• Map rental costs region-wide
• Compare three popular data sources: Zillow, CoStar, and Rental Revue.
• Download the dataset, based on your selections

 

Affordable Housing Production

• 2020 Affordable Housing Production & Policy (slides)
• Affordable Housing Production in 2018 (slides)
• At a Loss: Affordable Housing Production in 2017 (pdf)
• A Step Forward: The Region's 2016 Affordable Housing Production (pdf)
• The Twin Cities Produces More Affordable Housing in 2015 (pdf)

Residential Development

• See Research by Topic > Development

Manufactured Home Parks

• Manufactured Home Parks in 2017 (pdf)
• A Resource At Risk: The Twin Cities Manufactured Housing in 2015 (pdf)
• Manufactured Home Parks in the Twin Cites Region in 2008 (pdf)

Metropolitan Council Area Trends, Preferences, and Opportunities: 2010 to 2020, 2030 and 2040

Commissioned by the Council's Community Development Committee in 2014, Metropolitan Council Area Trends, Preferences, and Opportunities: 2010 to 2020, 2030 and 2040 (pdf) discusses how the  demographic shifts over the next three decades in the Twin Cities region will affect housing preferences and development. 







 

 

Choice, Place, and Opportunity: An Equity Assessment of the Twin Cities Region

Published in 2014, Choice, Place, and Opportunity: An Equity Assessment of the Twin Cities Region is an in-depth discussion of the region's race and poverty trends in the context of housing choice. 

• Income and race can limit where people live. Since residents of color living in the Twin Cities region tend to have lower incomes than whites, income is more of a constraint for people of color when it comes to housing choice. Above and beyond income, however, race still influences where residents of color live in the region.

• Looking at the Twin Cities region as a whole, opportunities such as jobs, high-performing schools and safe neighborhoods are unevenly distributed. Because of residential patterns, white residents and people of color live in different proximity to opportunity.

Twin Cities Rent Trends

The Twin Cities Rent Trends interactive presents rent and vacancy trends for the Twin Cities region by jurisdiction or neighborhood, where available.

Timely data on rents can be difficult and costly to obtain, and different data sources can yield significantly different values. This interactive tool allows users to:

• View rents and vacancy rates trends between 2010 and 2019 at sub-regional levels
• Map rental costs region-wide
• Compare three popular data sources: Zillow, CoStar, and Rental Revue.
• Download the dataset, based on your selections

 

Residential Development Patterns

The Residential Development Patterns interactive summarizes Twin Cities juridictions' building permits for new residential construction projects since 2010. This dataset is developed from an annual survey of local governments about construction activity, and further verified with federal data sources, like the Residential Construction Branch of the Manufacturing and Construction Division of the U.S. Census Bureau. This data may be periodically updated to reflect corrections. Users can: 

• Select a timeframe between 2010 and 2018 and a specific jurisdiction; 
• Focus on specific housing types, like multifamily housing or single family homes
• Narrow results to specific permit types: Were housing units added or lost? What was the net change? 
• Map these selections for all jurisdictions in the Twin Cities region

Existing Housing Assessments

Existing Housing Assessments are a useful starting point in understanding a jurisdiction's housing needs and current conditions. The data include: affordability level of existing housing units, tenure, housing types, publicly subsidized units, and housing cost burdened households. 

• Existing Housing Assessment for all cities and townships (excel file)
• Look up current housing policy data for a specific jurisdictions through Community Pages in the Local Planning Handbook

HUD Small Area Fair Market Rents for Metro HRA's service area

The Minnesota Geospatial Commons is a collaborative place for users and publishers of geospatial resources about Minnesota. The term “geospatial resources” refers to the wide variety of data sources associated with particular geographic locations.

• Recent changes adopted by the Council allow the Council's Metro HRA to adopt and implement Small Area Fair Market Rents (SAFMR). SAFMRs are rent limits by zip code instead of for the entire metropolitan area, allowing for the variation in rents across the region. Find the spatial file of 2020 SAFMRs at the Minnesota Geospatial Commons. 

Housing data available in Community Profiles

Our Community Profiles Tool provides trends for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. We have a wide range of housing data available in the 'Housing' tab, including housing stock and production, home values and sales, rents, tenure and vacancy. 

Housing data available in Download Data

Our Download Data interface provides time-series data for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. A range of housing data are available to download as comma-separated values files (.csv) under sections: 

• Affordable housing production
• Building Permits, Residential
• Demographic, economic, and commuting characteristics from the U.S. Census Bureau
• Housing Choice Vouchers
• Price of Existing Home Sales
• Housing Affordability Estimates
• Housing Stock
• Manufactured Home Parks
• Publicly Subsidized housing

The following links offer additional research, tools, and other information relevant to housing in the Twin Cities region. Sharing does not imply endorsement or agreement with specific research findings or policy positions.

HousingLink

HousingLink was organized in 1997 as a 501(c)3 organization to meet the affordable housing information needs of low- and moderate-income households. HousingLink provides affordable housing-related openings, data, information and resources, including 

• Streams, a searchable database of subsidized rental housing in the Twin Cities metro
• Housing Counts, an annual accounting of affordable housing production and preservation in the Twin Cities Metro, in partnership with Family Housing Fund.

Minnesota Housing Partnership 

Minnesota Housing Partnership's (MHP) community developers, researchers and communicators, and policy advocates strive to create timely research that advances affordable housing policy and community development. They summarize critical housing measures, like housing cost burden and changes in home values and rents, at the state, regional, and county level and by legislative districts in annual profiles, among other relevant research reports. 

Minnesota Housing

Minnesota Housing is the state’s housing finance agency. They publish research reports ranging from evaluations of state programs, services, and investments to the housing needs of specific populations and key issues and trends. 

 

Community Development Research and Place-Based Equity—Slides

Since 2014 the Council has published data and reports on the region's Areas of Concentrated Poverty as a metric of regional equity. However, researchers ask if the emphasis on concentrated poverty as an outcome fails to draw focus to the broader systems of inequality and historic root causes like racially discriminatory practices that have created and perpetuated concentrated poverty, especially among the region's communities of color.

Watch the video of the presentation to Metropolitan Council here. 

Concentrated Poverty

• Rethinking Areas of Concentrated Poverty (2019) (slides)
• Areas of Concentrated Poverty (2018) (pdf)
• Areas of Concentrated Poverty in the Twin Cities Endure (2017) (pdf)
• Concentrations of Poverty: Growing and Suburbanizing in the Twin Cities Region (2015) (pdf)

Income Inequality

• Income Growth and Inequality in the Region’s Cities (2022) (pdf)
• Income Inequality in the Twin Cities Region: Part I (pdf)
• Income Inequality in the Twin Cities Region: Part II (pdf)
• Income Inequality in the Twin Cities Region: Part III (pdf)

Choice, Place, and Opportunity: An Equity Assessment of the Twin Cities Region

Published in 2014, Choice, Place, and Opportunity: An Equity Assessment of the Twin Cities Region is an in-depth discussion of the region's race and poverty trends in the context of housing choice. 

• Income and race can limit where people live. Since residents of color living in the Twin Cities region tend to have lower incomes than whites, income is more of a constraint for people of color when it comes to housing choice. Above and beyond income, however, race still influences where residents of color live in the region.

• Looking at the Twin Cities region as a whole, opportunities such as jobs, high-performing schools and safe neighborhoods are unevenly distributed. Because of residential patterns, white residents and people of color live in different proximity to opportunity.

Nothing published yet

Income and Poverty data available in Community Profiles

Our Community Profiles Tool provides trends for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. U.S. Census Bureau data on income and poverty are available under the 'Income and Poverty' tab.

Income and poverty data available in Download Data

Our Download Data interface provides time-series data for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. Income measures and wage data are available to download as comma-separated values files (.csv) under sections: 

• Demographic, economic, and commuting characteristics
• Wages

Growing Greener, Getting Leaner: Land Use in the Twin Cities Region (2016)

As the Minneapolis-St. Paul region develops land to meet the residential and employment needs of its growing population, land use changes. To capture these changing patterns, the Metropolitan Council periodically takes a snapshot of existing land use, interpreted and classified from region-wide aerial photography.

The 2016 report showed two key trends: 

• The Twin Cities region now has the most park and recreation acreage in its history. The preservation of agricultural land ensures opportunities will remain long-term. New development, especially for residential purposes, is mostly occurring on previously undeveloped land and at higher densities.

• The region is "doing more with less" in that land consumption to accommodate new population and household growth has required less acreage compared with previous years and has not resulted in net losses of other land use types, like agricultural land.​

2016 Generalized Land Use Inventory

• Growing Greener, Getting Leaner: Land Use in the Twin Cities Region in 2016 (pdf)
• Release of the 2016 Generalized Land Use Inventory (2017) (slides)

Nothing published yet

Land use data available in Community Profiles

Our Community Profiles Tool provides trends for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas.

Developed from digital aerial photography and property information from local sources, our Generalized Land Use dataset allows users to summarize changes in urban growth and development over time. By tracking land use changes, the Metropolitan Council and local planners can better visualize development trends and anticipate future growth needs. The most current inventory was completed 2016: The next will take place in 2020, with data released in 2021.
 

Land use data available in Download Data

Our Download Data interface provides time-series data for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. Current planned land use and historic land use inventories are available to download as comma-separated values files (.csv) under sections: 

• Land use, regional planned (updated quarterly)
• Land use inventory

Youth & Parks: Connecting Young People to the Regional Park System—Study The Youth & Parks study was a research collaborative of youth-serving nonprofit organizations, youth and parent/guardian participants, university students, and Council research staff to explore access, priorities, and barriers experienced by youth.

 

Parks research reports and studies are located under Parks > Services > Parks Research (only select works are highlighted here).

Youth & Parks: Connecting Young People to the Regional Park System—Study The Youth & Parks study was a research collaborative of youth-serving nonprofit organizations, youth and parent/guardian participants, university students, and Council research staff to explore access, priorities, and barriers experienced by youth.

Park Use Estimates Reports

• 2019 Park Use Estimate Summary
• Other Regional Park Use Estimates are available at Parks > Publications and Documents

Regional Parks and Trails Equity Tool—Interactive The Regional Parks and Trails Equity Tool provides an interactive interface to explore demographic data to help make choices on regional park agency planning, outreach, programming, and research. It is available for anyone who wants detailed information about demographic and housing data surrounding existing and future regional parks and trails. We encourage its use in completion of the Equity Analysis Requirement for park and trail master plans (PDF, Question 1 Project Data).

Several park datasets are available by request; please contact Darcie Vandegrift. 

The Regional Forecast Update: 2023

We have updated the regional forecast every two years since 2015, most recently in April 2023. 

Key findings of 2023 update include: 

• A slightly reduced forecast for population and jobs to 2050 (relative to the 2019 update). 
• The region will add 657,000 residents between 2020 and 2050, bringing the region's total population to 3.82 million. 
• The region's population is rapidly aging and diversifying. Both trends will transform schools and workplaces by 2050. 
• Less domestic migration is anticipated through 2040, largely due to low unemployment rates in metros across the U.S., diminishing one of the Twin Cities' historic advantages: a strong economy. 
• Workforce constraints limit job growth though most of the forecast period.

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Census Data for the Twin Cities Region—Interactive

This interactive summarizes the most relevant information from the 2020 census data released on August 12, 2021, including total population counts, breakdowns of race with Hispanic/Latino ethnicity, and average household sizes. Trend data back to 1990 are available for census block groups, tracts, cities and townships, and counties. All geographic boundaries in this tool are from 2020, making it easier to see change over the decades. Borders for small areas like census tracts and block groups have changed considerably over time, and some cities have annexed parts of surrounding townships.

 

Regional and Local Forecasts

• The Regional Forecast Update: 2023 (pdf)
  • ​Regional Forecast Update: Population and Employment Growth to 2050 (slides)
• The Twin Cities Region's Local Forecasts (2015) (pdf)

Population Estimates

• A Decade of Growth: 2019 Population Estimates (slides)
• We have more people (who need housing): 2018 Population Estimates (slides)
• What a Difference a Rate Makes: Population Growth, Housing Production, and Vacancy Since 2010 (2018) (pdf)
• The Last Five Years: Population Growth in the Twin Cities Region Since 2010 (2016) (pdf)
• The Twin Cities Region Reaches Three Million Residents (2016) (pdf)

Census Data for the Twin Cities Region—Interactive

Our census interactive, which provides detailed trends in standardized census geographies to allow accurate comparisons over time, is currently under revision to incorporate new data and geographies. Additions include:      - Political districts
   - Homeownership rates
   - Same-sex households
   - more trends by race/ethnicity

Until then, this tool is offline. Thank you for your interest (and patience) while these updates are made. 

Long-range Forecasts and Population Estimates for small areas

The Minnesota Geospatial Commons is a collaborative place for users and publishers of geospatial resources about Minnesota. The term “geospatial resources” refers to the wide variety of data sources associated with particular geographic locations.

• Transportation Analysis Zone (TAZ) Forecasts by TAZ and Jurisdiction. This excel file breaks down the most current Transportation Analysis Zone forecasts by TAZ and jurisdiction (i.e. city, townships and unorganized territories). The TAZ system upon which this spreadsheet is based is the most recent, official TAZ system (with 3,030 zones).
• Annual Small Area Population and Household Estimates. This dataset consists of housing unit, household, and population estimates for census tracts, census block groups, and Transportation Analysis Zones (TAZs) in the Twin Cities Region.

Also, we publish simple formats (.pdf and excel files) of the most current long-range regional forecast and annual population estimates by jurisdiction on their respective web pages, or you can use the resources below to access this data.

Population data available in Community Profiles

Our Community Profiles Tool provides trends for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. U.S. Census Bureau data on population characteristics are under the 'People' tab. Also under that tab are the Council's annual Population Estimates and long-range forecasts of people and households.

Population data available in Download Data

Our Download Data interface provides time-series data for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. A range of population data are available to download as comma-separated values files (.csv) under sections: 

• Demographic, economic, and commuting characteristics
• Population and household estimates
• Population and household forecasts

The following links offer additional research, tools, and other information relevant to population characteristics and population change in the Twin Cities region. Sharing does not imply endorsement or agreement with specific research findings or policy positions.

Minnesota Compass at Wilder Research

Minnesota Compass is a social indicators project that measures progress in our state and its communities. Led by Wilder Research, Minnesota Compass provides nonpartisan, credible information and tracks trends in topic areas such as education, economy, workforce, health, housing, and a host of others.

Geographic Profiles are available for the state as a whole, the seven regions of the state, Minnesota's 87 counties, and all cities with populations of 1,000+. Each profile contains demographic information and data across Compass topic areas, drawn from U.S. Census datasets, among others.

Census Reporter

Census Reporter is a funded project designed to make it easier for journalists to write stories using information from the U.S. Census Bureau—and us researchers like it too. 

Place profiles and comparison pages provide a friendly interface for navigating data, including visualizations for a more useful first look. Sve the data you’re viewing in comma-separated value (.CSV), Excel (.XLS) or a variety of geographic data formats.
 

IPUMS National Historical Geographic Information System at the Minnesota Population Center, University of Minnesota

The National Historical Geographic Information System (NHGIS) provides easy access to summary tables and time series of population, housing, agriculture, and economic data, along with GIS-compatible boundary files, for years from 1790 through the present and for all levels of U.S. census geography, including states, counties, tracts, and blocks. 

COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Traffic Tracking Tool—Interactive

The COVID-19 Traffic Tracking Tool uses traffic data from the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) to evaluate the impact of recent physical distancing efforts on regional and statewide travel. Using a modeling approach that relies on historical traffic data to estimate typical travel, Council researchers have shown that travel across the region’s freeways has declined in the weeks following the first COVID-19 case in Minnesota, on March 6th. This interactive is updated weekly. 

Transportation reports and studies are located under Transportation > Planning.

COVID-19 (Coronavirus) Traffic Tracking Tool

The COVID-19 Traffic Tracking Tool uses traffic data from the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) to evaluate the impact of recent physical distancing efforts on regional and statewide travel. Using a modeling approach that relies on historical traffic data to estimate typical travel, Council researchers have shown that travel across the region’s freeways has declined in the weeks following the first COVID-19 case in Minnesota, on March 6th. This interactive is updated weekly. 

Transportation data available in Community Profiles

Our Community Profiles Tool provides trends for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. U.S. Census Bureau data on transportation and commuting are under the 'Commuting' tab. 
 

Transportation data available in Download Data

Our Download Data interface provides time-series data for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. A range of transportation and commuting data are available to download as comma-separated values files (.csv) under sections: 

• Demographic, economic, and commuting characteristics
• Travel time to selected destinations
• Commuting data

The following links offer additional research, tools, and other information relevant to transportation in the Twin Cities region. Sharing does not imply endorsement or agreement with specific research findings or policy positions.

Center for Transportation Studies, University of Minnesota

The Center for Transportation Studies is the hub for transportation research and education at the University of Minnesota. It supports research in many disciplines, cultivates the transportation workforce, and shares new thinking with various stakeholders and audiences.

Visualizing Regional Inequities—Interactive

Explore three decades of metro-level quality of life indicators disaggregated by race and ethnicity in the Visualizing Regional Inequities interactive. The 16-county Twin Cities metro area continues to rank highly among other U.S. metros for our impressive economic performance and relative housing affordability. However, underlying these high-level measures reveals that not all residents experience the overall successes of our metro area. Disparities in employment, poverty, income, and homeownership by race and ethnicity persist in the Twin Cities and — in some cases — are the largest nationwide.

Regional disparities by race and ethnicity

• Missing Opportunities: Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Twin Cities Metro in 2016 (pdf)
• Behind the Curve: Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Twin Cities Metro in 2015 (pdf)

      Diving Deeper Series (2016)

• Summary (pdf)
• Understanding Disparities between Black and White Residents (pdf)
• Understanding Disparities between Latinx and White Residents (pdf)
• Understanding Disparities between Asian and White Residents (pdf)
• Understanding Disparities between Indigenous/American Indian and White Residents (pdf)

Regional disparities by disability status

• Understanding Disparities by Ability Status in the Twin Cities Region (2017) (pdf)

Income Inequality Series (2017)

• Income Inequality in the Twin Cities Region: Part I (pdf)
• Income Inequality in the Twin Cities Region: Part II (pdf)
• Income Inequality in the Twin Cities Region: Part III (pdf)

Choice, Place, and Opportunity: An Equity Assessment of the Twin Cities Region

Published in 2014, Choice, Place, and Opportunity: An Equity Assessment of the Twin Cities Region is an in-depth discussion of the region's race and poverty trends in the context of housing choice. 

• Income and race can limit where people live. Since residents of color living in the Twin Cities region tend to have lower incomes than whites, income is more of a constraint for people of color when it comes to housing choice. Above and beyond income, however, race still influences where residents of color live in the region.

• Looking at the Twin Cities region as a whole, opportunities such as jobs, high-performing schools and safe neighborhoods are unevenly distributed. Because of residential patterns, white residents and people of color live in different proximity to opportunity.

Visualizing Regional Inequities

Explore three decades of metro-level quality of life indicators disaggregated by race and ethnicity in the Visualizing Regional Inequities interactive. The 16-county Twin Cities metro area continues to rank highly among other U.S. metros for our impressive economic performance and relative housing affordability. However, underlying these high-level measures reveals that not all residents experience the overall successes of our metro area. Disparities in employment, poverty, income, and homeownership by race and ethnicity persist in the Twin Cities and — in some cases — are the largest nationwide.

Disaggregated population data available in Download Data

Our Download Data interface provides time-series data for the seven-county region and sub-regional areas like jurisdictions, Thrive MSP 2040 Community Designations, and transit station areas. A range of population characteristics, like race/ethnicity, disability status, and household incomes, are available to download as comma-separated values files (.csv) under sections: 

• Demographic, economic, and commuting characteristics

Historic Home Owners' Loan Corporation Neighborhood Appraisal Map

In 1934, the Federal Housing Administration created a financial mortgage system that rated mortgage risks for properties based on various criteria but was centered on race and ethnicity. This rating system propagated racial segregation that in many ways persists today.

Digitized from a photographic image, this spatial allows users to compare historically characterized neighborhoods in relation to current demographic trends. The HOLC Appraisal Map is available to download at the Minnesota Geospatial Commons.

The following links offer additional research, tools, and other information relevant to racial disparities in the Twin Cities region. Sharing does not imply endorsement or agreement with specific research findings or policy positions.

Mapping Prejudice Project, University of Minnesota 

The Mapping Prejudice Project uses digital mapping software to organize, analyze and display historic data about the widespread practice of racially-restrictive deeds in twentieth century real estate transactions. Covenants were embedded in property deeds all over the country to keep people who were not white from buying or even occupying land. These restrictions served as powerful obstacles for people of color seeking safe and affordable housing. They also limited access to community resources like parks and schools. 
 

The Center for Economic Inclusion

The Center for Economic Inclusion is a cross-sector organization committed to strengthening the Minneapolis-St. Paul region’s civic infrastructure and collective capacity to disrupt systems and influence market forces to catalyze shared prosperity and advance an inclusive economy.

The Center and its partners developed
14 "Indicators of an Inclusive Regional Economy." Updated annually, these indicators disaggregate large regional economic trends by race and ethnicity.

 

Disability Employment Statistics (MN DEED)

The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development's Labor Market Information Office publishes a bi-monthly report on the state's disability employment statistics: "In 2018, Minnesotans living with disabilities continued to face significant barriers to realizing their full economic potential."
 

PolicyLink's National Equity Atlas

The National Equity Atlas was developed as a tool to create a more equitable, sustainable, and resilient economy. It is a comprehensive resource for data to track, measure, and make the case for inclusive growth in America’s regions, and states, and nationwide. The Atlas contains data on demographic change, racial and economic inclusion, and the potential economic gains from racial equity for the largest 100 cities, largest 150 regions, all 50 states, and the United States as a whole.