MINNEAPOLIMEDIA NEWS | Saint Paul's HmongTown Marketplace Faces Foreclosure as $6.6 Million Lawsuit Threatens Vendors

A foreclosure lawsuit involving HmongTown Marketplace has left longtime Saint Paul vendors concerned about their livelihoods and the future of a cultural gathering place that has served Minnesota's Hmong community for more than two decades.

SAINT PAUL, MN (October 8, 2026).

HmongTown Marketplace, one of Saint Paul's most recognizable Hmong commercial and cultural institutions, is facing possible foreclosure after a lender filed a lawsuit seeking approximately $6.6 million in unpaid loans, interest and fees.

The lawsuit has created uncertainty for the merchants whose businesses operate inside the marketplace at 217 Como Ave., where generations of Minnesota families have shopped for traditional foods, clothing, medicine, books and other products associated with Hmong culture.

Stearns Bank filed the foreclosure action in September against marketplace founder Toua Xiong, his wife Nou Vang and associated businesses. The dispute involves financing connected to both HmongTown Marketplace and a former Sears property in Maplewood that Xiong had hoped to redevelop as a second commercial destination.

The bank alleges the loans went into default during 2025. It has asked the court to appoint a receiver who could assume significant control over the property, including collecting rents and managing operations.

A hearing on the proposed receivership is scheduled for November 24.

Xiong has challenged the bank's allegations and filed counterclaims October 6. He contends that the lender failed to provide promised construction financing for the Maplewood redevelopment and that the resulting financial pressure threatened the original Saint Paul marketplace.

Those are contested allegations, and the court has not resolved the dispute.

The stakes extend beyond ownership of a commercial building. Xiong opened HmongTown Marketplace in 2004 as a place where newly arrived Hmong Minnesotans could establish businesses, support their families and preserve cultural traditions.

The marketplace originally accommodated more than 200 vendors. Its restaurants, shops and outdoor market have become familiar destinations for customers throughout Minnesota.

Vendors interviewed by Sahan Journal described the marketplace as both a source of income and a place where Hmong elders can shop, speak their language and maintain community relationships.

Some merchants fear that a change in ownership could disrupt their leases or eventually force them to relocate. Others worry that public discussion of foreclosure could discourage customers even while the marketplace remains operating.

Xiong's financial difficulties are tied partly to the attempted redevelopment of the former Sears property in Maplewood. He purchased that property in November 2023 for approximately $5.25 million, intending to establish another Hmong commercial center.

According to his account, renovation financing did not materialize as expected, leaving him carrying substantial debt while development stalled. He said resources that otherwise could have been invested in maintaining the Saint Paul marketplace were diverted toward obligations associated with the Maplewood project.

The reported financial pressure includes more than $550,000 in unpaid Ramsey County property taxes, including interest and penalties.

For vendors, the distinction between the two projects is consequential. Their businesses operate in the established Saint Paul marketplace, yet the financing dispute involving the Maplewood property now threatens the place where many have worked for years.

A foreclosure filing does not mean HmongTown Marketplace has already closed. The lawsuit and proposed receivership remain subject to court proceedings, and Xiong's attorney has said the parties are discussing ways to resolve the dispute without trial.

The coming weeks will determine whether those negotiations produce an agreement or whether the court grants the lender's request for greater control over the property.

For Saint Paul, the potential loss would reach beyond individual businesses. HmongTown Marketplace has become part of the city's cultural identity and an economic foothold for entrepreneurs whose work connects Minnesota with the history, language and traditions of the Hmong diaspora.

The immediate challenge is to preserve the livelihoods of vendors while the financial and legal dispute proceeds.

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