Two Block Parties Provide Opportunity for Reimagining Olson Memorial Highway
Our Streets is hosting two Imagine events this summer in Near North Minneapolis as part of the campaign to “Bring Back 6th.” The transportation advocacy organization started this event series in 2021, aiming to gain community input on Olson Memorial Highway while celebrating the neighborhood with live music, a small business market, art, and other family-friendly activities.
Imagine 6th Ave North: Heritage Park will be at Sumner Field Park on Saturday, July 12, and Imagine 6th Ave North: Harrison will be at Harrison Park on Saturday, August 9. Both events will begin at 11:00 a.m. and go until 5:00 p.m. The vendor application is live for local businesses, vendors, and organizations to participate in the fun. In addition to the festival programming, attendees will be prompted to share feedback on tangible street design alternatives “rooted in repair, reconnection, and community ownership.”
Those street design alternatives emerged from Our Streets’ collaboration with technical consultants earlier this month at Design Week, a week-long event co-hosted with community partners. Near North Minneapolis residents worked with planners, designers, and engineers to refine street design options that include new opportunities for green space, affordable housing, and multimodal transportation. The refined street design options will be displayed at both Imagine events for further community feedback and engagement.
Both Our Streets and the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) received federal funds through the Reconnecting Communities Program for work on Olson Memorial Highway. MnDOT is evaluating options for the corridor’s future in tandem with Our Streets. The agency has committed to incorporating the initial design concepts from Design Week into its process.
In partnership with Mapping Prejudice and the U of M Heritage Studies and Public History Department, Our Streets has conducted extensive public history research on how racial covenants affected the neighborhood and the subsequent displacement caused by the construction of Olson Memorial Highway. That history has informed the campaign to “Bring Back 6th,” advocating for safety improvements and a highway-to-boulevard conversion, an increasingly popular trend in transportation planning that addresses environmental and racial injustice.
The Minneapolis City Council passed a unanimous resolution in support of highway removal in 2023. In August of last year, transportation safety experts from the World Resources Institute (WRI) and New Urban Mobility Alliance (NUMO) toured the Olson Memorial Highway corridor to document safety failures and recommend interventions.
Our Streets is working with the following community partners: Harrison Neighborhood Association, Heritage Park Neighborhood Association, Urban Strategies, Green Garden Bakery, Summit Academy OIC, Phyllis Wheatley Community Center, and The Lao Center of Minnesota.
Our Streets is working with the following technical partners: Toole Design Group, NEOO Partners, Smart Mobility, and the New Urban Mobility Alliance (NUMO).
The Imagine 6th Ave N events are sponsored by The Minneapolis Foundation and Butler Family Foundation.