Off-Campus Housing
Near the University of Minnesota
A seven-minute walk to the East Bank campus. Furnished 1, 2, and 4-bedroom apartments with private bedrooms, individual leases, and a 24-hour study room.
Location Guide
Walk to campus. Skip the parking permit.
University Commons sits at 609 Huron Boulevard SE in the Prospect Park and Stadium Village corridor of Minneapolis. The community is a few short blocks east of Huntington Bank Stadium and the East Bank of the University of Minnesota Twin Cities campus, where the largest concentration of academic buildings, libraries, the Medical School, the Carlson School of Management, and the College of Science and Engineering sit. The neighborhood character is dense, walkable, and built around the university itself, with the METRO Green Line cutting through the spine of University Avenue and bus routes serving every commercial pocket within a few minutes’ walk.
For students at University Commons, the daily campus commute looks like a seven-minute walk along Huron Boulevard SE and Washington Avenue SE to reach the East Bank academic core, or a four-minute bike ride along the dedicated University Transitway and East Bank bike lanes. Stadium Village Station, the East Bank’s primary light-rail stop on the METRO Green Line, is roughly three minutes on foot. Residents commuting to the West Bank, where the Law School, Carlson School, and Humphrey School of Public Affairs are concentrated, reach campus by Green Line in under ten minutes door to door. Skipping the campus parking waitlist and the cost of a U of M permit is a meaningful financial and time difference over the course of an academic year.
Beyond campus access, the neighborhood gives students immediate reach to the rest of Minneapolis. The Green Line runs from Stadium Village west to downtown Minneapolis in roughly fifteen minutes and east to downtown Saint Paul in about thirty, opening up internship sites, hospital systems, and the entire University Avenue retail corridor. Tower Hill Park and the Mississippi River trail system are both within walking and cycling distance, and the Stone Arch Bridge sits at the western edge of campus for runs and recovery walks. Dinkytown, Stadium Village proper, and Surly Brewing’s industrial pocket of Prospect Park all sit inside a fifteen-minute walking radius for food, study spots, and a break from coursework.
Campus Access
From 609 Huron Blvd SE to anywhere on campus
Schools & Programs
Built for graduate and
professional student commutes
The University of Minnesota Twin Cities enrolls more than 56,000 students across nineteen colleges and schools, including more than 15,000 graduate and professional students. The list below covers the program clusters whose academic buildings, libraries, and clinical sites sit closest to University Commons.
The UMN Medical School is one of the largest M.D.-granting programs in the Midwest, with clinical training distributed across M Health Fairview University of Minnesota Medical Center, the Masonic Children’s Hospital, and affiliated specialty clinics. Students balance preclinical coursework in East Bank academic buildings with clinical rotations that begin in the second and third years and can run irregular early-morning and late-evening shifts.
From University Commons, the medical campus is roughly an eight-minute drive or campus bus ride via Washington Avenue SE, with the Green Line offering a backup route in poor weather. The 24-hour study room and private bedrooms with individual locks support the early call hours, post-call recovery sleep, and late-night exam prep that define preclinical and clerkship years. View floor plans with private bedrooms and bathrooms.
The UMN Law School sits on the West Bank near Mondale Hall and the law library. J.D. students balance heavy reading loads with on-campus journal work, moot court, and clinical placements at firms across downtown Minneapolis and Saint Paul. Quiet study space, reliable internet, and the ability to return home late after library closures shape where students choose to live.
From University Commons, students can reach the West Bank via a ten-minute Green Line ride from Stadium Village Station, with trains running until roughly midnight nightly. The community’s 24-hour study room provides a workable second study space when the law library closes, and the individual lease structure lets law students lock in a year of housing without coordinating with roommates from other programs. See community amenities.
CSE houses the engineering, computer science, mathematics, and physical sciences departments at UMN, with research buildings clustered around the East Bank including Walter Library, the Tate Laboratory of Physics, and Lind Hall. Graduate students in lab-heavy disciplines often work late hours and benefit from being able to walk home after the campus shuttle stops running.
From University Commons, the East Bank engineering corridor is a seven-minute walk via Washington Avenue SE. The four-minute bike commute makes mid-day lab visits feasible, and the proximity to Stadium Village Station provides a Green Line backup during Minneapolis winters. Furnished units with internet included let new graduate students move in and start research without staging the apartment for the first month. Browse furnished 1, 2, and 4-bedroom floor plans.
The Carlson School sits on the West Bank along the Mississippi River, with the full-time MBA program ranked among the top in the country and the part-time MBA consistently in the top ten nationally. Graduate students balance coursework with internships at Twin Cities employers including Target, US Bank, Cargill, UnitedHealth Group, and General Mills, most of which sit either downtown or in the surrounding metro.
From University Commons, Carlson is a nine-minute Green Line ride from Stadium Village Station, and downtown Minneapolis internship sites are reachable in roughly fifteen to twenty minutes door to door without a car. The on-site garage parking is available for students who need a vehicle for off-site placements or commutes to the western suburbs. Schedule a tour.
The UMN health science programs, including the School of Public Health, School of Nursing, and College of Pharmacy, share the East Bank health sciences district with the Medical School. Students in these programs balance didactic coursework with clinical placements at M Health Fairview, the VA Medical Center, and community sites across the Twin Cities.
From University Commons, the health sciences district is roughly an eight-minute walk or a short campus bus ride. Early clinical shifts that start before bus service ramps up are walkable in good weather, and the Green Line provides a winter option when temperatures drop. Private bedrooms with locks support the irregular schedules of clinical rotation students and matter when roommates are on opposite shift patterns.
The College of Design houses architecture, graphic design, interior design, and apparel design programs in Rapson Hall and McNeal Hall, while the College of Liberal Arts spans the largest footprint on campus with humanities, social sciences, communications, and arts departments. Studio courses and lab sections often run late, and library and archive access matters for upper-division and graduate students.
From University Commons, design studios and CLA buildings are reachable in a five-minute bike ride or a short Green Line ride, depending on which side of campus the department sits. The 24-hour fitness center and study room let students who keep odd hours stay on a schedule that fits their work, and the courtesy patrol officer on-site adds an extra layer of presence for residents coming home late from a studio. Read the neighborhood overview.
Getting Around
No car needed — here’s why
Prospect Park and Stadium Village were built around the University of Minnesota. The METRO Green Line runs through the spine of the neighborhood, the U of M Transitway connects East Bank to Saint Paul campus, and the local bus network reaches every major district in Minneapolis. Residents at University Commons can live a full academic year without a personal vehicle and still reach everything they need.
The Neighborhood
Stadium Village,
Prospect Park & Dinkytown
University Commons sits at the intersection of three of the most student-dense neighborhoods in Minneapolis. Stadium Village is built for game days and weeknight study breaks, Prospect Park leans residential with breweries and parks, and Dinkytown is the historic four-block heart of off-campus food and music. Every grid below is within walking distance or one quick Green Line stop.
- Bordertown Coffee 5 min
- Punch Pizza Stadium Village 5 min
- Stub & Herbs 7 min
- Al’s Breakfast (Dinkytown) 12 min
- Blaze Pizza 5 min
- Kimchi Tofu House 6 min
- Surly Brewing Company 8 min
- Sally’s Saloon 6 min
- Weisman Art Museum 10 min
- Northrop Auditorium 12 min
- Varsity Theater (Dinkytown) 13 min
- Huntington Bank Stadium 10 min
- Tower Hill Park 8 min
- East River Flats Park 10 min
- Stone Arch Bridge 15 min
- Mississippi River Trail 10 min
- St. Anthony Falls overlook 15 min
- Target Dinkytown 12 min
- Walgreens (Washington Ave) 8 min
- Stadium Village Market 5 min
- Fresh Thyme Market 10 min drive
- U.S. Bank (Stadium Village) 5 min
FAQ
What students ask before signing a lease
Is University Commons close enough to walk to the University of Minnesota?
Yes. University Commons sits at 609 Huron Boulevard SE, roughly a seven-minute walk to the East Bank academic core via Huron Boulevard and Washington Avenue SE. Most academic buildings on the East Bank, including Walter Library, the College of Science and Engineering corridor, and the health sciences district, are reachable in seven to ten minutes on foot. By bike, the campus is closer to four minutes via the U of M Transitway and East Bank bike lanes. Students living at University Commons typically do not need a campus parking permit because the daily commute does not require driving.
How far is University Commons from the Medical School and the M Health Fairview hospital?
The UMN Medical School and the M Health Fairview University of Minnesota Medical Center sit on the East Bank health sciences district, roughly an eight-minute drive or campus bus ride from University Commons via Washington Avenue SE. On foot, the walk is closer to fifteen to twenty minutes depending on which building is the destination. The Green Line from Stadium Village Station also reaches the West Bank Medical Center campus in under ten minutes for residents whose rotations cross the river. Students with early clinical hours commonly use the Green Line in winter and walk or bike in fall and spring.
What bus or light rail goes from Prospect Park to the University of Minnesota?
The closest transit option is Stadium Village Station on the METRO Green Line, roughly three minutes on foot from University Commons. The Green Line runs between downtown Minneapolis and downtown Saint Paul with trains arriving roughly every ten minutes during peak hours, and the East Bank, West Bank, and Stadium Village stations all serve the University of Minnesota directly. Local bus routes 2, 6, 33, and 121 (the U of M Campus Connector) also stop within three to five minutes of the community, along with the METRO E Line bus rapid transit on University Avenue. See the full neighborhood guide.
Is it safe to walk to campus from University Commons at night?
The walking route between University Commons and the East Bank campus runs along Huron Boulevard and Washington Avenue SE, both of which are well-lit pedestrian corridors maintained as city infrastructure with consistent street lighting and crosswalks. The Stadium Village commercial district along Washington Avenue keeps regular foot traffic through evening hours during the academic year, and the University of Minnesota runs a Safe Walk program and campus security services that extend to the perimeter of Stadium Village.
For later returns from campus, the Green Line runs from Stadium Village Station until roughly midnight nightly, which gives residents a transit alternative when walking is less appealing due to weather or time. University Commons also has a courtesy patrol officer on-site as an added layer of community presence. Students returning from late clinical shifts, library sessions at Walter or Wilson, or evening lab work commonly use both the walking route and the Green Line throughout the academic year.
Can I live at University Commons without a car as a UMN student?
Yes, and many residents do. The seven-minute walk to East Bank academic buildings, the three-minute walk to Stadium Village Station on the Green Line, and the local bus network covering routes 2, 6, 33, 121, and the METRO E Line mean that the daily campus commute does not require a car. Downtown Minneapolis is roughly fifteen minutes on the Green Line, and downtown Saint Paul is around thirty minutes door to door, which covers most internship and clinical placement commutes. Garage parking is available on-site for residents who do own a vehicle, but it is not a requirement to live in the community comfortably.
What does off-campus student housing near UMN look like at University Commons?
University Commons offers fully furnished 1, 2, and 4-bedroom apartments designed for the way students live, with private bedrooms and bathrooms available in shared layouts and individual leases for each resident. Each apartment includes internet, hardwood-style flooring, and a full-size washer and dryer. Community amenities include a 24-hour study room, 24-hour fitness center, resident lounge, hot tub, grilling station with firepit, and a 24-hour game room with a pool table. The community is pet friendly, garage parking is available, and on-site management and maintenance support residents year-round. View 1, 2, and 4-bedroom floor plans.
Walk to class. Come home to more.
Furnished 1, 2, and 4-bedroom apartments with private bedrooms, individual leases, and a 24-hour study room — seven minutes on foot from the East Bank of the University of Minnesota.
View Floor Plans Schedule a Tour609 SE Huron Blvd · Minneapolis, MN 55414 · M–F 10AM–6PM · Sat 10AM–5PM · Sun Closed