![The former Hillcrest golf course site in St. Paul's northeast corner. ] LEILA NAVIDI • leila.navidi@startribune.com](https://arc.stimg.co/startribunemedia/XAO3IKLXSULEUR7R73MR74FMWY.jpg?&w=1080)
So it could be again if the St. Paul Port Authority — developer of the former Hillcrest Golf Club — has its way. As officials firm up plans to redevelop the 112-acre site to provide 1,000 jobs and up to 1,000 units of largely affordable housing, they also are exploring ways to ensure that Hillcrest residents get a fair shot at working there. The Port Authority’s goal is to attract light industrial businesses that not only offer good wages and solid benefits, spokeswoman Andrea Novak said, but also are willing to train an inexperienced workforce.
“On the East Side, we have a very heavy immigrant, refugee and working-class community area. A lot of folks don’t get the proper investment that they need to get jobs with Fortune 500 companies,” wrote City Council Member Nelsie Yang, who represents the area. “[Hillcrest] is such a wonderful start to that.”
Rachel Speck, employer liaison for the East Side Employment xChange, pairs employers with area job-seekers and will be working with the Port Authority to find workers for Hillcrest. It’s not enough to hold a job fair or post positions on a jobs website, she said.
“When there is an opening, how do I even know it’s a job I can do, especially for entry-level positions that don’t require a lot of experience?” she asked, posing the question of qualifications.
Even the design of the facilities can be key to connecting jobs with residents, Speck said. Seeing their neighbors through facility windows, entering through the front door, sends a message that area residents are welcome to work there.
Warners’ Stellian has its distribution center and corporate headquarters in a Port Authority business center in St. Paul’s Frogtown neighborhood near where the old Great Northern Railroad shops were located.
