It was a moment that forever shaped the way I think about street reconstructions. A mom speaking at a public meeting, holding her child, asking the city’s public works department for a street with sidewalk space to push a stroller. Even more than that, she wanted a street designed with aspiration for the future – […]
Public art was a larger part of what I photographed this day compared with my first day walking the Lowry Hill East (Wedge) neighborhood. That was just a coincidental result of the route, which was planned with the mundane purpose of filling in the blocks I had previously omitted, aside from a couple that were closed […]
Only the northern tip of the Lowry Hill East neighborhood is east of Lowry Hill, which may explain why “The Wedge” is the more common name. Certainly it is more descriptive: the neighborhood occupies the wedge-shaped area between Hennepin and Lyndale Avenues north of Lake Street. I began and ultimately ended at the point marked […]
Hennepin Avenue South, between roughly Franklin Avenue and Lake Street, is within the Pedestrian Oriented Overlay district (“PO District”). However, walking along it, you would never know. Hennepin Avenue is a road that prioritizes cars over all other users. With the recent announcement of the Hennepin South (Douglas to Lake) Reconstruction project providing the greatest […]
Held on the last Saturday in April, Independent Bookstore Day is a national party celebrating the unique role booksellers play in communities across the country. The organizers of the annual event have a great description of indie book stores on their website: Independent bookstores are not just stores, they’re community centers and local anchors run by passionate […]
On Tuesday, November 1, the Minneapolis City Planning Commission will be voting on three important items that will help shape the future of the city. The first item is a measure to allow intentional communities in Minneapolis. MSPyimby supports the motion, which would create more flexibility for residents who want to live in Minneapolis. According […]
You may have heard about the proposal to re-zone the Lowry Hill East neighborhood of Minneapolis (commonly known as The Wedge, not to be confused with the defunct neighborhood newspaper or grocery co-op of the same name). Some people are opposed. I am one of them. I’ve been meaning to write something specific about the merits of […]
Today is the 15th Anniversary of the attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center. Although not usually the top headline, the attacks have also impacted the conversation on transportation and land use from security guidance in the American Planning Association policy guide to more obvious bollards and reinforcements around government buildings. Perhaps a streets.mn writer (or […]
This week on streets.mn, writers look at recent events (US Bank Stadium’s opening event), upcoming discussions (downzoning in the Wedge), and community engagement by the community; these posts continue conversations on streets.mn and we welcome your posts to keep the discussion going. Around the Twin Cities Sam Newberg went to the Chelsea v. AC Milan […]
Forty-one years after a rezoning left most of Lowry Hill East zoned low-density, the city of Minneapolis has put neighborhood rezoning back on the table. The current plan is nearly all downzoning, meant to clean up the few high-density scraps left over from 1975. It’s hard not to take this issue personally, because I live in one of the […]