About Us
OVerview
Who we are
We are a movement of individuals and organizations who share a common interest in making housing more affordable for all — by dramatically reducing the cost to build it.
Based in Minnesota, we are run by a Core Team of local leaders who came together organically around the call to action in the 2018 Governor’s Task Force on Housing report: to build 300,000 new homes by 2030 and position Minnesota as a national leader in the advancement of housing innovation and technology.
We are supported by an Advisory Group of local leaders, as well as a network of partners, and funded through the generous sponsorship of local construction firms, public sector entities, and philanthropy.
Our vision
By 2025, 10% of multi-family residential developments in Minnesota will meaningfully use advanced, offsite techniques.
Our mission
The Construction Revolution promotes the effective use of offsite construction techniques in Minnesota by facilitating learning opportunities, advocating for adoption, and increasing public knowledge.
Core Team
Mary Tingerthal
Mary Tingerthal led the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency from 2011 to 2019 and she has spent her professional life working to provide families across the country with better access to homes they can afford. Working as a volunteer, Mary organized the 2019 Construction Revolution Summit, recruiting sponsors to make the Summit possible.
Following the Summit, she continues to lead the Construction Revolution core team and advisory group to find the support to implement the action plan developed at the Summit. Mary also serves as a special advisor to Rise Modular, focused on bringing the innovation of modular construction to the attention of developers of affordable and workforce housing, with the goal of helping more communities develop the housing they need, quickly and at a lower cost.
Sarah Berke
Sarah Berke is a program officer at the Family Housing Fund, focused on strategies to build and preserve affordable housing across region. Sarah has more than fifteen years of experience in affordable housing, social enterprise, and community development finance, including as director of strategic partnerships at the Minnesota Housing Partnership and director of research and development for the national Housing Partnership Network’s Innovation Lab. She holds a Master of Public Affairs from the Humphrey School of Public Affairs at the University of Minnesota, a Bachelor of Arts in Russian and Political Science from St. Olaf College, and is an alumna of the U.S. Fulbright Program in Russia.
Stephanie Brown
Stephanie Brown is the Principal of Yellow House Ideas, a consultancy working to develop cross-sector solutions to pressing civic and urban challenges. Previously, Stephanie spent four years with McKinsey & Company, focused on infrastructure development and public sector transformations. With the McKinsey Global Institute, she co-authored Reinventing Construction: A route to higher productivity (2017) and was a member of the core team for A Blueprint for Addressing the Global Affordable Housing Challenge (2014). She holds an a MUP and MPA from Harvard University.
John Micevych
John Micevych is an independent strategy consultant whose work in Minneapolis-St. Paul has included supporting the founding of the Center for Economic Inclusion as well a major philanthropic partnership for criminal justice transformation.
John serves as project manager for the Construction Revolution, a role in which he has facilitated the design and execution of the 2019 Construction Revolution Summit. He has previously worked for two years at McKinsey & Company in Minneapolis and holds a Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service.
John Patterson
John Patterson is Director of Planning, Research & Evaluation at the Minnesota Housing Finance Agency. He has spent the last decade analyzing housing costs and strategies to contain them, leading to his involvement in the Construction Revolution. In his current position, he leads the Agency’s strategic and annual business planning and manages a staff that analyzes housing, economic, and community conditions/trends and evaluates the performance of Agency programs.
John previously served in the Minnesota Department of Human Services, Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor, and Congressional Budget Office. He received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Middlebury College in Vermont and a Master in Public Affairs from Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs.
Jamie Stolpestad
Jamie Stolpestad is a real estate entrepreneur, advisor and educator. His roles with Minnesota Opportunity Zone Advisors and YardHomesMN involve delivering a range of housing types. He is also an adjunct professor of finance at NYU Stern School of Business and a strong advocate for innovation and new pathways for young talent in the real estate industry.
Advisory Group
Cathy Bennett
Urban Land Institute Minnesota
Nichol Beckstrand
YardHomesMN
Gina Ciganik
Healthy Building Network
Scott Ewing
Dominium
Richard Graves
UMN Center for Sustainable Building Research
Maureen Kavanagh
3M
Harry Melander
Minnesota Building and Construction Trades Council
Scott McKown
Minnesota Department of Labor and Industry
Paul Mellblom
MSR Design
Jud Murchie
Wells Fargo
Mary Schumacher
Habitat for Humanity and Andersen Windows (Fmr.)
Cecil Smith
Minnesota Multi Housing Association
Remi Stone
Builders Association of Minnesota
Chris Wilson
Project for Pride in Living
Mark Wright
Federal Reserve Bank