I am skeptical of whatever logic the City is using in the redesign of Hennepin Avenue. They want it to be a dedicated busway—with a new bike lane only blocks from one that already connects downtown to Uptown.
The City spent $1,124,589 on consultants for this project. I am not an urban planner, but if I were, I would have spent some of that money to find out what its impact would be on the existing commercial corridor.
The amount they did spend to answer that question was—zero!
As an aide to then-Congressman Martin Olav Sabo, I helped establish the requirement that the U.S. Department of Transportation have staff dedicated to biking and walking. I also worked on the initial Hiawatha Avenue light rail line. These are important modes of transportation that I support—with the proviso that they complement the areas they serve, not dominate, or destroy them.
Sadly, we are today watching a precious asset of the Minneapolis Park system be destroyed in order to shove SWLRT between Lake of the Isles and Cedar Lake. We are also witnessing a poor decision to accommodate yet another Met Council, Hennepin County, and Minneapolis transit corridor on Hennepin Avenue, less than a mile from the new SWLRT. I shake my head wondering why we are not trying to encourage people to ride the LRT versus creating a dedicated busway so close to this $2.75 billion project.
Our community supports all modes of transportation, but we must also encourage livable communities. That includes restaurants, retail, and other services to which we can walk, bike, ride or drive. But the City is poised to charge forward on Hennepin Avenue with a plan to cut maybe a minute or two off the bus ride between Lake Street and Douglas Avenue South with seemingly no regard for what it will cost the residents who own a business on this section of roadway.
The City’s high-priced consultant claims that there are over 2,000 off-street parking spots along the corridor. Wow, you say? That’s what I said, too.
Then I looked to see where they were located—more than half at Seven Points, the YWCA, MoZaic and Lunds. Do those planners really expect you to park at the MoZaic ramp and walk a half mile to grab a cup of coffee at Spy House Coffee? I guess you could use one of the 11 spots counted at the Holiday Gas Station or 17 at the Balloon Shop, but that might require you to pick up your car at the new City Impound Lot building after coffee or a bite at Nico’s Tacos.
Our community has gone through significant and challenging changes these past two-plus years. We continue to battle a pandemic that has reshaped how people work. We have seen civil unrest damage countless businesses, including many on Hennepin Avenue in Uptown.
We have also seen a sensible arrangement in which street lanes are used as dedicated busways during rush hour and parking spots the rest of the day. That is Hennepin Avenue today. When I ask why this can’t remain the plan, the only answer seems to be: We have studied this and so this is the plan. Will a redeveloped Hennepin Avenue be the next SWLRT?
We do need the City to fix Hennepin, put in dedicated turn lanes, and accommodate buses during rush hour. But we don’t need a dedicated bike lane when there’s one just a couple blocks away. And what’s the point of a 24/7 busway when the buses don’t even run 24 hours a day?
We could be arguing between a “plan A and plan B,” but the planners chose to only present the City with one plan. I hope the City asks them for another.
We can and should do better by all members of our community.
