The past year has not been kind to downtown Minneapolis.
Workers and tourists have been mostly kept away from the area due to COVID-19 ceasing downtown draws such as dining out, musical and theatrical performances, along with sporting events. On the other hand, crime and civil unrest have added to the turmoil facing downtown Minneapolis.
Despite those challenges, Minneapolis Downtown Ambassadors are still working hard to make sure those who are in downtown, feel welcomed.
Timothy Pearson, a south Minneapolis native, has spent nearly a decade as a Mpls DID Ambassador. Even with pedestrian traffic dropping of significantly over the past year, Pearson's message to those he sees on the streets hasn't changed.
"If they're down here, just a smile and friendly reminder that, 'Hey, everything is going to be alright," Pearson said. "We want to help. Whether it's cleaning or directions, anything we can do."
The Mpls DID Ambassador program has evolved since it began in July 2009. Originally, it was a clean and safe program. Since then, environmental maintenance has become a major part of the job.
"We want anyone who comes to downtown to have as positive of experience as possible," said Jeff Heinrich, the Block by Block regional vice president. "We do that by picking up trash, removing graffiti, power washing sidewalks, watering flowers, or even escorting people to downtown destinations."
In a given year, 50 to 80 Ambassadors are sprawled out across downtown blocks, depending on the season.
Heinrich, who oversees the Mpls DID Ambassadors, says the COVID-19 pandemic presented a challenge, but it also brought an opportunity.
"In a regular day, Ambassadors can get lost in the mix of all that is downtown," he said. "Once we got into a more regular operations flow during COVID-19, we saw an opportunity to help those who are still downtown and encourage the comeback, when that is going to occur."
COVID-19 wasn't the only challenge facing downtown Minneapolis in 2020 and into the new year. Riots, looting, and reported crimes have all taken a toll on the reputation of downtown Minneapolis.
"During that period we were focused more on recovery and so when the issue of looting and rioting happened in downtown, Ambassadors were there the next morning working in-hand with the business community," Heinrich said. "Business holders and stakeholders would tell you by 10 a.m. the next day, minus the boarded up windows, it didn't look like anything had happened down here."
Downtown Ambassadors also act as the eyes and ears when events are taking place. They are able to radio into a central operations center when an even is taking place. That operations center can then communicate with law enforcement or other groups if more action is necessary.
"If we see it, we'll radio in and let people know and others can respond appropriately. It's not our roll to get involved in any of those situations," Heinrich said. "We're a neutral organization. If you're doing everything as you're supposed to in accordance with the law, we don't have anything to say about that."
Ambassadors like Pearson say they don't feel any sense of danger when it comes to spending hours on the streets of downtown Minneapolis, even with all that's taken place in the last 12 months.
"Looking around all of our surroundings and we're good," he said. "It's a safe place to be."
When it comes to staying safe, the Mpls DID Ambassadors do not carry weapons and they are not trained in hand-to-hand combat.
Heinrich says there have been some tense situations, however the main goal is get everyone home in a safe manner.
"Covid was a weird blessing when it comes to personal safety. We all became aware of our six-foot bubble," he said. "When Ambassadors engage with people they make sure there's distance. Our employees know when to back up and get out of the situation. Their first responsibility is their safety and that they know when to leave."
Even as more businesses opt to extend at-home working situations for their workers, there is hope that downtown life will return to normal sooner rather than later.
"We've been 100 percent with downtown, cleaning and doing what we need to do, waiting for them to comeback and revamp," said Pearson.
