A Coalition of
Neighbors4
NRP
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COOPER
• Midtown YWCA – Residents in five Minneapolis neighborhoods invested more than $1 million of NRP funds in the construction of a new $21 million Midtown YWCA Community and Urban Sports Center that provides youth, childcare and fitness programs to thousands of residents. Construction of the Midtown YWCA helped fuel development on a previously neglected stretch of Lake Street.
• Midtown Greenway Bicycle and Pedestrian Path – Residents in six Minneapolis neighborhoods invested nearly $90,000 in NRP funds to convert an unused sunken rail corridor into the 2.8-mile Midtown Greenway Bicycle and Pedestrian Path. When complete, the Midtown Greenway will extend all the way from Minneapolis’ western border to the Mississippi River along 29th Street.
• Brackett Park Recreation Center and Park Renovations – Longfellow residents invested $677,000 of NRP funds to help bring a new $1.2 million recreation center to Brackett Park. The 5,300 square-foot recreation center replaced a 70-year old park structure that was in need of major renovation. In addition, the neighborhood used NRP funds to create and support community programs for children, families, and seniors at Brackett Park.
• Mississippi River Gorge Stewardship Initiative – Using the River Gorge Master Plan as its guide, the Longfellow Community Council (LCC) created the Mississippi River Gorge Stewardship Initiative. The initiative consists of projects that have made and will continue to make aesthetic, accessibility, and environmental improvements to the Mississippi River Gorge area. The improvements include bluff stabilization and erosion prevention, blight and debris removal, trail restoration and access, savannah and prairie restoration, bridge repair, and river access. The 35th Street Overlook (a beautiful new overlook with benches) and the 27th Street Stairway (a stairway that gives residents access to a mid bluff area above the river) are two visible results of the initiative.
| PROSPECT PARK
• Mississippi River Gorge Regional Park – The neighborhood invested some of its NRP funds in improving pedestrian access to the Mississippi River by adding stairs from the parkway to the riverbank and constructing a connecting path to existing access ways downriver. The improvement project was coordinated with existing MNDot work on the I-94 bridge and resulted in a unique elevated walkway along the riverbank to the U of M.
• Pratt School Renovation and Reopening – Neighborhood efforts to foster community-based learning led to the reopening of Pratt School in 2000 after it had been closed for 18 years. The neighborhood invested $437,000 of their NRP funds in major improvements including the addition of an elevator to increase accessibility, a playground, a “village green,” a performance amphitheater, and an update to the facility’s mechanical systems and grounds.
• Southeast Seniors Program – Residents in the Prospect Park, Marcy-Holmes, and Southeast Como neighborhoods invested $128,140 from Phase I and Phase II of NRP in the Southeast Seniors Living at Home Block Nurse Program. The program enables seniors in the three neighborhoods to continue living in their own homes rather than face moving into assisted-care facilities. Seniors participating in the program can access in-home nursing services, certified home health aides, homemaker assistance, and companionship from visiting volunteers. In addition, the program helps seniors with transportation, meals, and other chores.
| SEWARD
• 26th and 26th Redevelopment –The neighborhood invested $625,000 of their NRP funds to acquire and redevelop commercial/industrial properties at 26th and 26th, a key intersection at the southwest corner of the neighborhood. With assistance from Seward Redesign, NRP and MCDA, Koeschel Peterson Advertising and Design and The New French Bakery relocated and expanded their business operations at the intersection -- replacing blighted and incompatible uses with growing businesses that generate increased taxes and jobs. Funds were used to help with a variety of costs associated with site assembly and landscaping enhancements.
• Franklin Avenue Redevelopment –The neighborhood invested over $550,000 of Seward NRP action plan funds and $260,000 of NRP Transition Funds to help existing neighborhood businesses grow and new businesses come in and enhance the overall character of this important neighborhood corridor. The critical theme of this investment has been helping existing businesses expand and become more profitable. NRP funds have been used for redevelopment planning, streetscape enhancements, parking improvements, gap financing and building improvements to help the following businesses: Blue Nile Restaurant, Seward Coop Grocery, Welna Ace Hardware, West Bank Karate School, Northern Clay Center, the Playwrights Center, Zipp's Liquor, Smiley Point Clinic, and Crown Video.
• Matthews Park/Seward Montessori School – The neighborhood invested $370,000 to enhance the facilities and equipment available at the Matthews Park/Seward Montessori School complex. The complex is a hub of community activity in the Seward neighborhood and NRP dollars were used to: improve lighting, drainage and circulation in the parking lot; enhance the storage facilities, circulation, and accessibility at the recreation center; install a new floor in the gymnasium; acquire new volleyball and other equipment for the park; and, purchase video and computer equipment for the media center.
• Home Improvement Programs – The Seward neighborhood has invested nearly $2 million of their NRP funds in a wide variety of housing improvement programs. This investment has leveraged an additional $7 million worth of improvements to the housing stock
| SOUTHEAST COMO
• Van Cleve Park Improvements - NRP funds made possible a variety of improvements to Van Cleve Park, the park building and the pool. New playground equipment was installed, along with benches, a sign, a computer lab, and increased programming.
• Southeast Seniors Program – Residents in the Marcy-Holmes, Southeast Como and Prospect Park neighborhoods invested $128,140 from Phase I and Phase II of NRP in the Southeast Seniors Living at Home Block Nurse Program. The program enables seniors in the three neighborhoods to continue living in their own homes rather than face moving into assisted-care facilities. Seniors participating in the program can access in-home nursing services, certified home health aides, homemaker assistance, and companionship from visiting volunteers. In addition, the program helps seniors with transportation, meals, and other chores.
• Southeast Pollution Prevention Project – Surrounded by industry and freeways, Como residents take a particular interest in air quality. The result is the first Minneapolis on-line environmental inventory (see www.secomo.org). The inventory identifies the environmental impacts of over 70 facilities in and around Southeast Minneapolis. In addition, Como's environmental efforts have resulted in 2 Good Neighbor Agreements that reduce or eliminate more than 730 tons of solvents from entering the neighborhood and $1 billion in pollution equipment upgrades at area power plants. The Southeast Como NRP neighborhood action plan provided the initial funding for a fulltime Environmental Coordinator. The position has been continued with the help of $125,000 in grants from the Headwaters Foundation, the Bush Foundation and the Minnesota Office of Environmental Assistance.
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