Last month, the Public Works Infrastructure Committee of the City Council met with city planners to consider the Hennepin Avenue reconstruction project.
In preparation for designing this project, the City spent $1,124,589 on a transit-planning contract regarding engineering and design services with a company called Kimley-Horn and their subcontractors. The City spent NOT ONE CENT on experts who provide consultation regarding the effect of transit on commercial corridors — and it is certain that this failure will take a harsh toll on the scores of small businesses that comprise the commercial hub of our area of Minneapolis.
It was a mystery to me why a small business-killing plan would be adopted in Minneapolis. So, I did some investigating—and found a shocking answer. But first some background.
The proposed plan calls for a two-way bike lane separated by a concrete median, two car lanes separated by a median, 4 left turn signals per side, and two 24/7 bus lanes. From the beginning of public discussion about the 2040 Comprehensive Plan, many city residents have advocated for dedicated bus lanes, rather than dedicated bike lanes, on major streets. They say an improved bus service would be extremely beneficial for a racially and economically diverse population and would go a long way toward encouraging ridership.
However, the insistence on a dedicated two-way bike lane makes the improved bus plan unworkable. Ironically, only about 0.5% of the population uses bike lanes and a great majority of those who do are white males, hardly making them a worthwhile investment towards the goal of equity.
Under the current plan, 92% of on-street parking would be eliminated. City planners have insisted that there is an abundance of off-street parking, while failing to acknowledge that the bulk of it is for private use only. All the businesses on Hennepin are struggling after two-plus years of Covid, violent crime in the area, and exorbitantly high taxes. A number have left, leaving the street lined with empty storefronts.
Those who still survive will now be faced with another two-plus years of disruptive construction, for which they will, gallingly, be assessed for “street improvements.” Almost all of them have said loudly and repeatedly that their businesses will suffer and likely die.
Public Works suggested one modest change, which was considered by the committee. While maintaining the proposed bike lanes and bus lanes, it would add back much of Hennepin Avenue’s on-street parking by making the bus lanes available for parking except during rush hour in each direction. In addition, Public Works said that the City would lead an effort, together with the business community and residents, to identify additional off-street commercial parking and set up commercial loading zones on side streets—although how this would serve businesses in mid-block is unclear. It would, nevertheless, give planners time to evaluate the effect of the new design on ridership and assess the needs for the area post-pandemic, given how much has changed since the planning began.
Unfortunately, and predictably, the committee unanimously accepted the overall plan, rejecting even an opportunity to study its impact, and added a resolution supporting the 24/7 bus lane option rather than the modification, thereby continuing to make this a political issue rather than a search for the best and most practical plan.
Although the proposed change was minor and practical, it created a huge political backlash. In May a very large number of people showed up at City Hall demanding to keep the 24/7 bus lanes. Among the groups pushing for the 24/7 bus lanes is Our Streets Minneapolis, which is funded in part by the City (i.e., the taxpayers). They also have had support from the Sierra Club, a group not known for expertise in urban transit, and which seems out of touch with the environmental impacts of killing local businesses so that people must drive to the suburbs to shop. Every DFL legislator including, of course, Rep. Hornstein and Sen. Dibble, who represent the area, signed a letter demanding the 24/7 dedicated bus lane.
I’ve asked myself why, especially given the 2040 Comprehensive Plan’s goal of supporting small businesses, the negative impact on them would be ignored.
I got my answer.
Insiders at City Hall privately confirmed that proponents of the 2040 plan would actually consider the failure of these businesses an opportunity. Then the empty buildings can be torn down and replaced with more large apartment buildings that may have commercial spaces on the first floor.
Now I know why no money was allotted to identifying the impact of this plan on Uptown’s commercial corridors, and why there is such a lack of concern, to say the least, about the fate of small businesses on Hennepin Avenue.
