I am a member of the Above the Falls Citizen Advisory Committee which is a 30 person board with two sets of alternates. Our representatives include representatives from neighborhoods, environmental groups, and businesses- including heavy industry that use barges.
I don't mean to speak for everyone in the group but I would like to tell folks on this list a little about the vision of this thirty year plan. To see the entire plan-http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/citywork/planning/planpubs/ above-falls/report/upper-river-master-plan.pdf - size 12.8K
If you look at the city's web page and search Above the falls there are also shorter summaries.
The plan is the result of many years and many conversations.
Major plan objectives:
Provide public access to river.
Create a system of Riverway Streets
Enhance the ecological function of river corridor.
Link Upper River to Grand Rounds parkway system.
Realize the area’s potential for economic development.
Establish urban design guidelines.
Major Benefits of Plan Implementation
90 acres of new park
15 miles of bike lanes and recreational trails
4 miles of restored riverbank
5.25 miles of parkway and boulevard
2,500 housing units in new riverfront neighborhoods
2,000 net additional jobs
Over $10 million in additional annual tax revenue .
This is the plan that the City and Park Board have approved and is our mission to implement.
It is encouraging to see conversations about the dynamics of the river on the list. Hopefully we can continue this conversation and look at some of the specifics of the plan.
Everyone on the committee is working on the improved health of the river and improving the wealth of the river experience above the Falls.
I find it very rewarding to look at the river as it was and how some of the ecological functions could be restored.
The recent presentation from the visioning group which includes the Army corps of engineers is really interesting for a variety of reasons.
Their presentation of restored river function did not eliminate the Barge Channel.
The Upper Harbor terminal will become a centerpiece of some of these discussions. We, as a city, have to figure out what to do with it. We need to look at it functions and finances.
If I can be of more assistance-Please contact me off list.
The next Above the Falls Citizen Advisory is Nov. 26 6-9pm at the Eastside Neighborhood Services 1700 2nd. St. NE
I am also trying to assemble a list of neighborhood groups working on watershed issues in the Middle Mississippi Watershed aka Mississippi Watershed- which is the Minneapolis watershed that isn't in the Minnehaha Watershed district.
Thanks,
Scott Vreeland Seward, Ward 2
Seward Neighborhood Group
River Gorge Stewards
Above the Falls Citizen Advisory Committee
