“Hennepin Avenue is finally opened.”
Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey made the deceleration Friday during a ribbon cutting that wraps up a considerable construction project on one of the city’s busiest thoroughfares.
The redesigned Hennepin Avenue and 4th Street bring protected bike lanes, crosswalks, and other improvements.
“What this street sets up, is a safe way to get from point A to point B, regardless of how you're getting from point A to point B,” says Frey.
Mayor Fry and City Councilmember Lisa Goodman praised the many agencies who helped make the $23 million project happen.
“You've done a street for the moment that you're in,” Goodman says.
Public Works Director Margaret Anderson Kelliher explained why Friday's celebration is important.
“Streets really bring life to the city, and that is why it's important to celebrate these grand reopening’s,” Kelliher said.
Hennepin Avenue in downtown Minneapolis attracts more than 50,000 trips per day, including 8,100 transit trips, 7,600 pedestrian trips and 730 bicycle trips according to the city. It had been over 30 years since it had seen any significant improvements. It was never set up to provide access for bicycles, pedestrians and buses.
Mayor Frey said that the avenue is one of the most important in the city and needed to be refreshed.
“This is a gem of our city, it deserves to be celebrated,” says the mayor. “It deserves to be showcased. That’s been a big part of what this street improvement and full rehabilitation has been about.”
The project was funded in Minneapolis’ five-year Capital Improvement Program. It was funded with city, state, and federal transportation dollars. Construction began in 2019. The project stretched ten blocks from 12th Street to Washington Avenue.
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