Minneapolis City Council President Elliott Payne, alongside Council Member Michael Rainville, has submitted a letter to the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) in support of the Art Walk on Central Avenue.
This letter marks a major step toward securing the Minneapolis City Council’s support for the Arts District’s Art Walk goals. The letter follows the Art Walk Committee’s efforts to contact their local politicians about the proposal. In their letter endorsing the Art Walk, Payne and Rainville expressed “the overwhelming desire of our community for an ‘ Art Walk’ along Central Avenue NE in Minneapolis.” “The Northeast Minneapolis Arts District has been consistently named the top arts district in the nation due to the concentration of world-renowned local artists and visionaries in our neighborhood. An Art Walk along the main cultural corridor in Northeast would reflect our community’s pride and identity as a vibrant, arts-driven destination,” the letter said.
“There is an opportunity for more robust discussions on how to solidify desires for widened pedestrian space and art pads at major intersections,” they wrote, reflecting the desires of Art Walk advocates to install public art along Central Avenue NE.
The Central Avenue Art Walk Committee continues to work with Central Avenue businesses and the surrounding community to discuss the potential for an art walk. The Committee meets every Thursday, 5:30 at Recovery Bike Shop, 2504 Central Ave. NE, as it has since last fall.
Since its formation, the Committee has expanded its scope, with members patrolling Central Avenue as they discuss the art walk. At their apex, during Operation Metro Surge, the Committee’s meetings have hosted 40 people. Over the course of the Surge, community members donated supplies to patrollers at Recovery Bike Shop. Local representatives, including Payne, State Senator Doron Clark, and Representative Sydney Jordan, both DFL-Northeast, dropped by as patrollers and walked the streets. According to emails from MnDOT, the “Visual Quality Advisory Committee” is “expected to provide aesthetic recommendations that incorporate cultural aspects, art, and landscape design while balancing corridor limits needed to support vehicle, bicycle, transit, and pedestrian needs.”
Art Walk Committee member Seth Stattmiller said, “A primary objective (for the Art Walk) is to create an additional four feet of space for art and culture opportunities.”
He also said the extra space brings other benefits, including outdoor seating for restaurants and the ability to host pop-up events. It would also provide space for tents at outdoor gatherings such as Open Streets, the Northeast Parade, farmers’ markets, and art events.
Art Walk Committee member Seth Stattmiller says, “A primary objective is to create an additional four feet of space for art and culture opportunities.” He also notes that the extra four feet bring several other benefits, including outdoor seating for restaurants and the ability to host pop-up events. Spaces available for tents at various community-oriented gatherings, including Open Streets, the NE parade, farmers’ markets, and art events.