The Fort Road Federation represents part of the West 7th Street community, which offers numerous cultural and institutional amenities that enhances the livability of this area.
COVID-19 Resources for the West 7th Community
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ll be updating this page with information about how people in West 7th can help out and how you can receive help. (Updated 5/6/2020)
City Council Meetings During COVID-19 - Watch City Council meetings online or on local cable Channel 18. You can still submit comments for public hearings, if it's by Noon on the day before the meeting. Submit comments by email to Contact-Council@ci.stpaul.mn.us or by voicemail at 651-266-6805.
Get Help
211 - Dial 211 or text the letters MNCOVID to 898-211
Ramsey County’s Covid-19 page - Includes County services, health information, community resources, unemployment assistance, business resources, employee information
NEW! Saint Paul Public Library Social Worker offers phone support weekdays from 1-4 p.m. Get help with problem-solving, ask questions, find resources, or get support from a licensed social worker. Call 651-300-9305 or email ruby.rivera@wilder.org. Learn more at sppl.org.
Food
SPPS does weekly home meal delivery to SPPS families who are in need of food for their children. Meals are only for kids ages 18 and under, or those with a disability enrolled in a school program.
There will also be weekly curbside pickup available at select schools on Fridays, 10 am - Noon for those who would prefer to pick up meals. Please continue to check spps.org/covidmeals for the most up-to-date information about meals, including pickup times and locations.
City of Saint Paul weekly meal bags for households in need with children under 18, in partnership with Youthprise, Arts-Us, and the Sanneh Foundation. See details, times, and locations.
Hunger Solutions - Updated information daily for finding food assistance.
West 7th Community Center (Keystone Community Services) - Food shelves in Midway and on Rice Street, and their Meals on Wheels.
Meals on Wheels - Is accepting new customers. Meals are available on a short-term and long-term basis.
Open Arms of Minnesota delivers food that is medically tailored and shelf stable for people living with life threatening illnesses who often also have compromised immune systems.
Metro Mobility will pick up your grocery and household essentials orders for free. Learn about scheduling. "Certified Metro Mobility customers and existing Transit Link customers can now order groceries and household essentials online from a store that has online shopping and local pick up. We will pick your order up and deliver to your house."
Emergency food support: Due to COVID-19 pandemic, many Minnesota families face difficult times. It may be hard to pay bills and find food to stay healthy. If you or someone you know has been laid off from work or seen work hours cut, help may be available. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) can help you buy food while budgets are tight.
Other Needs
Unemployment Benefits - Workers impacted by layoffs, reduced hours and other interruptions to your paycheck as a result of COVID-19 may have options with Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development unemployment insurance. Unemployment information for employees and for employers.
Jewish Family Services - Though their building is closed, they continue to provide services, including: Community chaplaincy, emergency financial assistance, short-term tele-counseling, counseling and mental health services, Kosher meals on wheels, and connection to community resources.
Experiencing stress and mental health symptoms as a result of COVID-19? Call the county’s Crisis Team for support and resources. The county’s two crisis lines continue to operate 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
Children’s Mental Health Crisis Line: 651-266-7878.
Adult Mental Health Crisis Line: 651-266-7900.
AARP or the Minnesota Chapter of the AARP - Help specific for seniors: Request a call from a volunteer, coordinating care for a loved one, mutual aid documents.
Our community is facing unprecedented challenges. Serve Saint Paul: Neighbors Helping Neighbors is building a community of service in Saint Paul by connecting neighbors who could use a helping hand during the COVID-19 pandemic. In partnership with Cities of Service and AARP, this initiative engages volunteers to safely support community members who are experiencing barriers to meeting some basic needs due to age, mobility, income, or other factors. Working together as a community, our city will emerge stronger and more connected.
From West 7th Community Center (Keystone Community Services):
Give - Your financial support gives us the greatest flexibility to purchase food for our food shelves and keep our programs operational for our community. Give today.
Contribute - In-kind contributions of food and household items will be immediately distributed to neighbors in need. Donation bins are outside of our two community centers – West 7th Community Center (located 265 Oneida Street, St. Paul) and Merriam Park Community Center (located at 2000 St. Anthony Avenue, St. Paul) – and we are accepting donations. We are asking people NOT to donate at our food shelf sites due to the social distance guidelines we are following and to minimize interaction with the general public. Donation bins are available Monday - Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. Contribute in-kind items.
Our most needed items include: toilet paper, bar soap, hand sanitizer, peanut butter, canned tuna, soup, boxed dinners, cereal, snack foods.
Volunteer - Our volunteers are amazing and are stepping up in huge ways! If you find yourself with extra free time and want to start volunteering, please submit a volunteer application to get started.
At this time, we need volunteers primarily at our food shelves helping us pre-pack food bags for distribution. Volunteer shifts are Monday - Friday and shifts vary from 2-4 hours in length at our food shelves. Volunteer today.
Donate Blood - Memorial Blood Centers and The American Red Cross need more people to donate blood and platelets. They are asking that potential donors self-screen before making an appointment. Check the guidelinesif you are unsure if you should donate.
Catholic Charities of St. Paul and Minneapolis (Dorothy Day Center) needs people to help with a wide and growing list of needs: making sandwiches and meals, laundry (CDC requires separate people for dealing with dirty vs clean sheets), delivering meals as they encourage housing residents to stay in place.
Shop online or via phone. Many of downtown’s [and West 7th's] retailers have online shopping available; our local and independent shops will help you get what you need via phone, Facetime, or other methods, if necessary.
Purchase custom or corporate gifts from retailers who can handle orders over the phone or online.
If you typically order wholesale products with local retailers later in the year, place your orders now.
If you do not need anything specific at the moment but still want to support local, buy gift cards to spend later in our various storefront businesses.
You can also buy gift cards for many local restaurants, or annual memberships at many of our local museums and cultural institutions.
For restaurants, order takeout or delivery and tip the same amount as you would dining in.
Supporting Local Musicians - If you love the Twin Cities music community, and you have the means to, please consider donating to theTC Music Community TrustEntertainment Industry relief fund.
The City of Saint Paul has an ongoing need for local vendors that can provide supplies for the response to COVID-19. Small, minority, and women-owned businesses are encouraged to register with the City as a CERT-certified business. The CERT programs works to increase local small business participation in local public contracting opportunities. Learn more at StPaul.govor call 651-266-8966.
NewSave Small Business Fundby the US Chamber of Commerce - They award grants for $5,000 weekly, with a very short application. They will award grants as long as they have funds to do so.
The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) - As of 4/20/2020 current loan requests have exceeded capabilities.Emergency loan program to help Minnesota small business owners who need immediate assistance to meet their families’ basic needs during COVID-19 closures. Small Business Emergency Loan Program by making available $30 million from special revenue funds. These dollars will be used by DEED’s lender network to make loans of between $2,500 and $35,000 for qualifying small businesses.
Saint Paul businesses impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic are now eligible for low interest SBA loans. The loans are for working capital needs (payroll, inventory, receivables, occupancy expenses). The loans can be for up to $2 million, with a 30 year term at 3.75% interest. Applyonline.
City of Saint Paul The City of Saint Paul offers a wide variety of information and programs for residents of the city, including housing programs such as homeowner resources, homebuyer incentives, mortgage foreclosure assistance and more. www.ci.stpaul.mn.us
Neighborworks Homepartners Our mission is to promote community development through education and affordable housing programs in the neighborhoods we serve. We believe long-term homeownership helps build strong communities. Our services include Homebuyer Education and One-on-one Pre-purchase Counseling, Home Improvement Lending and Construction Management Services, and Foreclosure Prevention Services
Community Reporter www.communityreporter.org For more than 40 years, the Community Reporter has provided news coverage of historical, cultural and artistic event that make the West End neighborhood such a dynamic community. For questions regarding editorial content, email editor@communityreporter.org. For information on advertising opportunities with the Community Reporter, email ads@communityreporter.org
Czech and Slovak SOKOL Minnesota 383 Michigan St. 651-290-0542 www.sokolmn.org The historic Česko-Slovanský Podporující Spolek ( C.S.P.S.) Hall is home to Czech and Slovak Sokol Minnesota, a social, cultural, educational and gymnastic organization, since its construction in 1887, and the focal point for our activities in Saint Paul. It was declared a National and State Historic Site in 1977, placed on the National Register of Historic Sites, and is the longest serving Czech-Slovak cultural center in the United States, as well as oldest theater and national hall in Minnesota.
Salvation Army Community Center 401 West 7th Street 651-224-4316 www.salvationarmynorth.org/community/st-paul-w-7th-street Our center helps area residents through a wide range of basic needs programs, including a weekday breakfast, an end of the week grocery distribution called Friday Food Fare and an emergency food shelf. Help is provided in English, Spanish and Hmong to anyone in need, without discrimination. We also operate a thriving preschool center, an after-school program and a variety of youth and adult ministries throughout the week. On Sunday, we teach Sunday School, and our Salvation Army officers lead worship services.
West 7th Business Association www.w7thba.org The West 7th Business Association works to strengthen the commercial, professional and marketing interests and opportunities in the West End through representation/advocacy, networking, promotion, and community outreach. We are a prosperous, diverse network of innovative and established businesses working through a series of committees and task forces. The West 7th Business Association welcomes all businesses and professionals serving the arteries of West Seventh Street in Saint Paul.
West Seventh Street Library 265 Oneida St 651-298-5516 www.sppl.org/about/locations/west-7th The West Seventh Branch Library is located within the West Seventh Community Center. It serves a diverse neighborhood of families, seniors, students and teachers along the West End area of Saint Paul. The West Seventh Branch Library presents preschool story times, referral services, children’s Summer Reading Program activities and outreach efforts to neighborhood groups, recreation centers and nearby public, private and charter schools.
West 7th Community Center 265 Oneida Street at St. Clair Avenue 651-298-5493 www.west7th.org The Center, located in the heart of this urban Saint Paul community has focused throughout its history on providing broad, holistic services that empower people of all ages to be both self-sufficient and connected with their neighbors and community. West 7th Community Center is a private, nonprofit human service organization with 40 years’ experience creating success stories in the West 7th and surrounding neighborhoods of St. Paul, for people of every age and need.