A friend compiled this series of Google Earth images. I scanned them, and intended to get on with my work, but I just couldn’t. I went through them again. And then again. I found myself rethinking the city I live in.
Most people think Minneapolis looks like this:
Downtown Minneapolis
Or this:
Minneapolis Neighborhood
But, when you step back, you actually see this.
As I scrolled again and again, I asked myself:
- What does our choice to build and maintain this in the heart of Minneapolis this say about our values?
- What would it take to reclaim this land, land that in the past housed and employed people and paid property taxes, for people-supporting uses?
- How many billions of public dollars did we use to build these massive monuments?
- Who uses these spaces? Who was displaced to create these spaces?
- If we were willing to allocate this much space (and money, and concrete, and structural steel) to drivers of cars, what will we be willing to allocate to making biking and walking for transportation more inviting & practical & safe?
- What would be possible in Minneapolis if we reclaimed five percent of this land for people who live here? Ten percent?
- When Minneapolis 2040 says it will “Restore and maintain the traditional street grid,” just how seriously should (may) we take that statement?
What questions does it raise for you?