Why is Public Works and the City trying to destroy Quincy Street?

October 29, 2026

By Josh Blanc

The battle about Quincy Street is at an inflection point. Public Works narratives have changed multiple times over the past two years. Multiple designs have been proposed, all of which have been rejected by the Logan Park Industrial community, artists, building, and business owners.

The latest friction centers on the Right-of-Way on the west side of Quincy Street, which means that, from the buildings out into the street, 2/3rds is private property. The remaining ⅓ is the public right of way, meaning that the ⅓ foot portion is public property, and private businesses should not be able to use it as their own. When cars park perpendicular to the building, they stick out into the public right-of-way. City planners want to rectify this situation, stating consistency is their goal, no matter the cost to businesses.

Early on in this saga, the City’s curb manager stated that future businesses were more important than current ones, and that this is how the City must think about the area. The posture of the Public Works has not changed since the city official made this statement.

Ultimately, the right-of-way concept for Quincy Street is a made-up issue to fit the narrative they want to meet. Coming 92 years later and saying this is a top priority for the City, consistent with their street development, shows single-minded blindness to culturally significant areas.

The 2040 plan specifically points out the cities to protect and enhance these cultural areas. Public Works is also following the 2040 plan, but much more through an engineer’s lens. The two concepts are not meshing well. The responsibility lies with the City to find a compromise and common ground to reach a solution that does not put an entire community at risk.

So many of the businesses on Quincy St. receive deliveries of supplies that require large semis and regular trucks, bringing in thousands of pounds of clay, wood, metal, beer, food, and ice for the restaurants and event centers. Jono Query says, “For this project to truly succeed, the City needs to see artists and arts buildings as partners with a shared interest in each other’s long-term health and viability. “

Playing out the issue: if the current businesses cannot get true access to their parking, consider that if other businesses moved in, they too would not be able to function. We are taking hundreds of thousands of square feet of property with three or four loading docks, and the business will lose almost 50% of its parking on Quincy Street with the current plan. The question is why would the City of Minneapolis want loses millions of dollars of tax revenue each year, and Public Works will wipe out a culturally significant area of the City?

We are down to the Mayor and City Council deciding whether he wants to destroy Quincy Street or drop the project until the city can put together a team of urban planners to properly address this cultural jewel of the Arts District

What do the Arts Community and Business owners want?

Update curbless cobblestone streets to allow for walkable and bikeable streets, with easy delivery access for loading and unloading materials for artists and businesses.
Fix the plumbing of the street so it properly drains
Make the street accessible to all
Save taxpayer money and time by keeping the character of Quincy Street.

There are simple solutions to this issue. We need the community to continue to Write to the Mayor and City Council to voice your concerns and demand the best outcome for Quincy Street, the Gem of our city streets in Minneapolis.