F&C Top Projects: Wadaag Commons

Tuesday, July 7th, 2026

Wadaag Commons was selected as one of Finance & Commerce’s Top Projects of 2025, recognizing Minnesota’s top design and construction projects for the year.

An independent panel of judges selected 50 honorees for the annual program. Projects are judged on their degree of difficulty, creativity in design, innovative construction techniques, cooperation among contractors and management, and sustainability efforts. Congratulations to the entire Wadaag Commons team on this recognition!

Wadaag Commons
1900 E 22nd St, Minneapolis, MN 55404

In Somali, ‘Wadaag’ means to share. That’s at the heart of this affordable, family-oriented apartment community in Minneapolis. Noor Companies and Redesign, Inc. partnered to develop a transformative 39-unit affordable housing development offering one- to four-bedroom units. Wadaag Commons demonstrates leadership in four areas: affordability, innovation in design, partnerships, and cultural sensitivity.

This project is part of the larger Seward Commons development and provides much-needed affordable housing to the diverse South Minneapolis community. The project is the sixth and final phase of Seward Commons, a multi-phase, transit-oriented, mixed-use, mixed-income, master-planned redevelopment.

With a focus on sustainable, healthy, and cultural sensitivity, Wadaag Commons features six townhomes with walkout patios, a sensory-sensitive playground, raised planting beds, underground parking with EV charging stations and a community space with roof sun deck.

The project navigated several significant challenges. Each hurdle was overcome through nimble, responsive collaboration across the full team. Challenges included:

  • Wadaag Commons was the first project in Minnesota to receive a federal HUD funding appropriation—a milestone that required Noor Companies to work directly with HUD and the Secretary’s office to determine how the funds could flow into the project. The process took over a year and delayed the project start.
  • With $28 million in public investments from federal, state, county, and city sources, the financing timeline spanned more than four years and demanded exceptional persistence. During that period, the City of Minneapolis updated its comprehensive plan, changing the site’s zoning from a four-story, 32-unit building to a minimum six-story requirement—forcing a complete redesign on a constrained, steeply graded .44-acre site.
  • The redesign was delivered within months, a turnaround virtually unheard of in the industry. Federal funding also triggered a Section 106 archaeological review, a rare requirement that created significant schedule risk. Historically significant artifacts were found during excavation. Proactively engaging an archeologist early, the project stayed on track.
  • The extended timeline meant construction coincided with COVID-era material cost escalation, making precast prohibitively expensive and requiring a pivot to post-tension concrete.

PROJECT TEAM

  • Developer & Owner: Noor Companies and Redesign
  • General Contractor: Frana Companies
  • Architect & Interior Designer: Pope Design Group
  • Structural Engineer: ERA Structural Engineering
  • Civil Engineer & Landscape: Loucks
  • Mechanical & Electrical Engineer: Emanuelson-Podas

See the rest of this year’s honorees on the Finance & Commerce’s announcement.

This year’s Top Project will be celebrated at an upcoming event on July 23, 2026.

See more images of Wadaag Commons on our project page.

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