Updates

We’re co-hosting a Hennepin Avenue online listening session with Move Minnesota. Share your experiences and hopes for the future with elected officials this Thursday, January 20th! For meeting link, register for event.

This is your chance to tell policymakers what you think.

Are you looking forward to a faster commute with 24/7 bus lanes? A safer biking experience to access all the great local businesses on Hennepin Avenue? A more livable neighborhood? Sidewalk dining where you can actually hear the other people at your table? Safety features for pedestrians? A better driving experience? We know the current street doesn’t work for people who walk, bus, roll, bike or drive. It’s important that your voice is heard. The opposition is making plenty of noise.

One of our co-founders answered questions from the SW Connector:

Question: Please talk about who you are, how you are connected to this area, and how you use Hennepin Ave. 

Answer: I’ve lived in the Wedge neighborhood (just east of Hennepin Ave) for almost 10 years. I choose to live here because it’s walkable to grocery stores, shops and other destinations. It’s also served well by transit and has good biking infrastructure. I mainly experience Hennepin on foot or transit to access all our local businesses and to get to Lake of the Isles, Bde Maka Ska, Loring Park and the Sculpture Garden. I co-founded Hennepin for People because as a woman of color I know how our streets don’t serve everyone well. For generations, city streets were built solely with car travel in mind, at the expense of the Black, brown, and Indigenous communities who experience the most traffic related fatalities (followed by seniors and children). I want a reconstructed Hennepin that ensures safe and comfortable passage for everyone who uses the street on a daily basis, no matter how they travel . And if you depend on your car, I care about your safety too. Nobody is served well by the high speeds and reckless behavior encouraged by the existing design of this street.     

Read More »Q&A with Hennepin for People

Our deepest thanks to our dedicated volunteers who braved the cold (yes, even on days when the temps were in the negatives) to flyer our community in January. During a Minneapolis winter! You can show your appreciation by leaving a comment to support the Hennepin Avenue recommend layout and attending Thursday’s Hennepin Avenue Virtual Open House on January 13th at 4:30 PM, hosted by the City of Minneapolis. Encourage friends, family and neighbors to comment too!

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We have a lot of fun things planned for this round of engagement and can’t wait to share them with you!

Join us on Thursday, January 13th at 4:30 PM for a Hennepin Avenue virtual open house hosted by the City of Minneapolis! Meeting link can be found HERE (scroll down page).

With the Hennepin Avenue design proposal, Minneapolis Public Works has shown their commitment to city policies from climate action and racial justice to vision zero. We’re so grateful for the tireless (and often thankless) work, talent, and leadership of all the staff involved!

If you know Hennepin Avenue, whether you live on or near it, go to destinations on it, or travel along it, you know how stressful and unpleasant it is. And you know the kind of impact this design will have on not just your daily quality of life, but on our entire community!

Public Works’ choices and leadership shape our lives. Their innovative design for Hennepin Avenue is key to making Minneapolis an equitable, accessible, + sustainable city. It’ll impact us as we walk to get groceries, bike to the library, or bus to a party, whether we’re 8 or 80.

Public Works staff have spent years working on Hennepin Avenue since 2018. They’ve been the target of intense emotions that come with resistance to change and with the anxiety of a pandemic. They’ve heard a lot about what people hate/fear. We want to tell them what we love about their design!

Can you send a quick email today telling them how their innovative redesign will actually impact your life? What will it mean to you when you can:
…bike down Hennepin Avenue with your kids without fearing death?
…take transit zipping along in a dedicated lane?
…cross the street safely to get groceries?
…hear your friend while you dine on a patio?
…drive on Hennepin with less stress?

Contact the following people:
Senior Transportation Planner Hughes [email protected]
Interim Public Works Director Hjelle [email protected]
Deputy Director Dodds [email protected]
Director Hager [email protected]

On Tuesday December 7th, the Minneapolis Public Works Department put out their recommended layout for the Hennepin Avenue South reconstruction project from Lake Street to Douglas Avenue (construction is set to begin in 2024 and finish in 2026). We’re beyond thrilled to see the inclusion of 24/7 bus lanes, a sidewalk level bike path, and pedestrian improvements. We’ve spent many months organizing for an inclusive design. Thank you to our organizing allies at Move Minnesota, Our Streets Minneapolis, along with other local organizations and supporters. And thank you for paying attention, offering feedback, and raising the issue of Hennepin Avenue with city leaders! 

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Our thanks to the Minneapolis Public Works Department for adhering to our ambitious city policies found in the Transportation Action Plan, Vision Zero Action Plan, Complete Streets policy and Climate Action Plan. In the recommended layout we see priority for people, advancement of racial justice, and consideration of the climate crisis. This isn’t the final word, but for now, we’re celebrating this big victory. We’ll continue to examine the recommended design in more detail, but for now we want to pause and take this moment in. We’ll still need to get this across the finish line in 2022 — with a new City Council and new government structure to navigate. But for now we celebrate and savor this win of our priorities being reflected in the recommended layout! 

Save the Date: Hennepin virtual open house
January 13, 2022 at 4:30 PM
meeting link here (scroll down page)

Submit a comment
The Minneapolis Public Works department is accepting comments on the recommended layout until January 28, 2022. Make sure you submit a comment. This is not a done deal—the status quo will turn out against our inclusive vision for a street for people.

The Midtown Greenway Coalition is working on addressing issues from the recent Greenway repaving, from the Lakes to Midtown. Building safe biking infrastructure draws people to our city. The Greenway is a bike highway — and it can feed into local bike routes, bringing visitors and customers to our neighborhoods. People who bike within our city and those who bike into our city. The trail conditions aren’t currently good for people who bike, walk or roll. It’s uneven and rough.

Sign their petition to help fix the trail here!

The E Line BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) for bus route 6 is coming to Hennepin Avenue in 2025. Construction is set to begin in 2024. E Line BRT will run about every 10 minutes 7 days a week, while the local route 6 bus will run every 20 minutes. Metro Transit is currently accepting feedback on their Draft Corridor Plan through October 31.

Benefits of BRT:
💛 Faster, more frequent service
💛 Pre-boarding fare payment for faster stops
💛 Neighborhood-scale stations with amenities
💛 Larger & specialized vehicles
💛 Buses get traffic signal priority for faster trips
💛 Riders can board or exit from any of 3 bus doors (on 60 ft buses)
💛 Stations with heat, lighting, and real-time departure info

Read More »Transit riders deserve priority