Located about a block east of the Marshall Avenue bridge, the 1921 Eastcliff mansion has overlooked the Mississippi River in St. Paul for the past century, having spent most of the past 70 years housing presidents of the University of Minnesota.
Its 20 rooms — including seven bedrooms and seven bathrooms — and Colonial Revival architecture recently hosted the family of Gov. Tim Walz for 19 months while the governor’s Summit Avenue residence was under repair.
University officials say they expect Eastcliff — originally known as the Edward Sr. and Markell Brooks House, and built by lumber magnate Edward Brooks — will continue to house U of M presidents for the foreseeable future, though it won’t necessarily do so under the auspices of the U.
Transfer to foundation
On Thursday, members of the university’s Board of Regents are expected to discuss and potentially greenlight a property sale to transfer ownership of 176 Mississippi River Boulevard N. to the University of Minnesota Foundation, a nonprofit philanthropy overseen by its own board of directors.
While officially independent of the U, the foundation’s primary mission is to support the university by receiving and managing gifts on behalf of the school and individual departments.
The $2.2 million sale would still allow the university to retain ownership of the land that Eastcliff sits on. That land would be leased to the foundation for 40 years, even as the foundation leases the historic mansion back to the school for 40 years rent-free.
In July 2024, the Eastcliff Property Task Force called for placing the mansion in philanthropic hands to remove capital and operating costs from public resources, according to a staff board report. The task force began mulling that possibility or a potential sale in December 2022, after concluding that maintaining the historic mansion at an annual operating cost of $300,000 was not central to the university’s mission.
Retaining Eastcliff as an asset
The U and Regent Board Chair Douglas Huebsch released a joint written statement on Tuesday noting that the decision, which is still pending, could actually strengthen the university’s commitment to retaining Eastcliff as a school asset.
“This transfer deepens the partnership between the University of Minnesota and the University of Minnesota Foundation,” reads the statement. “It allows the University to continue its fiscally responsible stewardship of public dollars while also ensuring that Eastcliff remains an important gathering place for the University community for many years to come.”
Still, the likelihood of a property sale has raised questions with some members of the Board of Regents, including District 4 Regent James Farnsworth, who represents the area. He said the item likely will be removed from the Finance and Operation Committee’s consent agenda, where votes are considered en masse, for individual discussion.
Under the proposed arrangement, the university would still be responsible for Eastcliff’s operations and maintenance expenses, so there would be no cost savings related to day-to-day upkeep.
“It’s a convoluted deal, and I’m not exactly sure why we would do it this way,” said Farnsworth, in a phone interview on Tuesday. “It does not appear to be about financial savings.”
In June, facing what they described at the time as an unprecedented fiscal climate, the Board of Regents agreed to hike tuition by 6.5% while making program cuts across all campuses in an effort to balance a $5.1 billion budget.
Donated to the U in 1958
The Brooks family donated Eastcliff to the university in 1958. Since 1961, the 10,000 square foot mansion has been home to eight university presidents and one governor, and hosted visiting dignitaries for special events, including the Dalai Lama in 2011.
The structure was added to the National Register of Historic Places in June 2000.
The Walz family relocated from Eastcliff in February, once the governor’s mansion was repaired. The property is now being prepared for the arrival of Dr. Rebecca Cunningham, the university’s 18th president, who began her appointment in July 2024.
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