The Lowry Ave NE for People work group met on Monday, February 22nd and 28 people attended the meeting. This work group is part of our County Streets for People campaign to transform Minneapolis streets owned by Hennepin County.
At the meeting, we heard from Kelly Agosto (Hennepin County), Forrest Hardy (City of Minneapolis), and Kadence Hampton (Asakura Robinson, consulting firm) about their planning, design, and outreach process so far. They presented a slideshow from Hennepin County detailing some initial, preliminary street designs based on the 2015 Lowry Ave Northeast Corridor Plan. Then, Kadence explained the engagement ideas and techniques Asakura Robinson and Hennepin County plan to do, both virtually and in-person, to get feedback about the project. They also noted that they plan to engage with businesses along the corridor through a survey. Based on their answers when specifically asked, there's no clear indication on how they'll actually incorporate the feedback they gather into the design.
Then, the subcommittees reported out their progress from their initial meetings and we determined next steps based on their recommendations. Our goal is to hold Hennepin County accountable to what the 2015 corridor plan details, and to ensure that the community feedback process is equitable and taken into consideration on final design of the corridor. The work group plans to engage both County Commissioner Irene Fernando and Council Members Kevin Reich and Steve Fletcher in our work in the coming months.
This was the second official meeting for the work group and it is clear that there are passionate people in the Northeast community who want to advocate for safer county streets that prioritize walkers, rollers, transit riders, and cyclists. If you want to get involved in making Lowry better for people, please fill out this form here. The Lowry Ave NE for People Work Group meets the fourth Monday of each month and the next meeting is scheduled for March 22nd from 6:30-8pm. See you next time!
Christina Perfetti is the executive director of St. Anthony East Neighborhood Association (SAENA). SAENA partners with Our Streets Minneapolis on our County Streets for People project.
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