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Housing development near Stone Arch Bridge faces opposition
A new plan almost 20 years in the making could remake the view at one end of the Stone Arch Bridge. A former city council member is trying to get the space re-zoned so he can build a housing development. FOX 9's Corin Hoggard shows us the new plans and why they're running into opposition again.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - A new plan almost 20 years in the making could remake the view at one end of the Stone Arch Bridge.
A former city council member is trying to get the space re-zoned so he can build a housing development.
Remaking the view?
What we know:
On one side of Main Street in Minneapolis sits a row of apartments facing the east end of the Stone Arch Bridge.
On the other side of Main, there’s the 8-acre Father Hennepin Bluff Park and a triangle-shaped parking lot where the Minneapolis Parks & Recreation Board has recently changed its position about opposing a housing development.
"This is a 140-year vision for this to be a park. And I'm not quite sure why the park board's position has changed," said Colleen O'Connor Toberman, land use director for Friends of the Mississippi River.
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Potential changes for neighborhood near Stone Arch Bridge
There could be changes in a neighborhood near the Stone Arch Bridge. FOX 9's Corin Hoggard has more.
What's new?:
Steve Minn and his partners built the Stone Arch Apartments on former industrial ground about 25 years ago.
But his plan to build a high-rise apartment across Main St. on the river side was rejected, largely because the area is designated for future use as parks and open space.
His latest offer came with a sweetener for the park board, though.
If he gets to develop a five-story, 104-unit affordable housing complex for seniors, he’ll also build and maintain a trail for bikes and pedestrians along Main St.
"They get what they want, which is a trail facilitation without having to spend a dime," Minn said. "I mean, it's a win for them, just as much as it's a win us and a win the neighborhood."
Is it a good deal?:
Some neighbors are skeptical about its value.
They say the proposed new trail part doesn’t get the city any closer to connecting to the next segment of trail on the other side of the University of Minnesota campus.
And It’s only about 30 yards away from a trail bicyclists and runners already use to go in that direction.
Neighbors also worry that once the city agrees to re-zone, the plan could switch from affordable senior housing to something more profitable.
"When we commit to affordable housing, we'll make a 30-year commitment and we'll put restrictions on our deeds that obligate us for that 30- year commitment," Minn said. "And we'll have a permanent easement on the trail to the park board, to the public."
What's next:
City planners say the developers haven’t submitted civil plans or complete architectural plans and they have some concerns about the re-zoning request.
For now, they’re asking for more feedback and no decisions will come for months.
"It's a pretty substantial change for the city to rezone this property for development when it's been envisioned as park land for so long," said O'Connor Toberman. "That's not a decision that they'll take lightly."
Minn recently rescheduled a public hearing about his plans until late next month. (https://www.eastbankmpls.org/calendar/presentation-600-main-street-se-development)
What we don't know:
Public hearings haven't started, so we can't confirm or refute Minn's claims about critics that "the voices might be loud but not necessarily numerous."