Midtown Greenway takes step toward regional trail status
Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) staff are preparing a draft Midtown Greenway Regional Trail Plan that will be released for public comment later in June.
The draft plan will be open for public comment for 45 days. After that, a public hearing will be held, likely in the fall or early winter, and MPRB Commissioners will consider approval of the plan.
Midtown Greenway Regional Trail Plan FAQ
Project Background
This work stems from Resolution 2023-127, in which MPRB Commissioners directed staff to prepare a regional trail plan for the Midtown Greenway.
The Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority (HCRRA) or the City of Minneapolis, depending on the trail segment, are the underlying landowners of the Midtown Greenway. The City of Minneapolis owns the trail and both the HCRRA and City operate the trail, including providing trail maintenance.
The MPRB has not been formally involved in the Midtown Greenway since its inception, however, the MPRB is the only agency within the City of Minneapolis that is eligible for regional park and trail funding. So, the MPRB has been requested to get involved to obtain regional trail status for the Midtown Greenway and use some of that funding on the trail.
This trail planning process will result in a written and graphic document that fulfills regional plan requirements outlined by the Metropolitan Council. It will also include a Agreement between the City of Minneapolis, HCRRA, and MPRB that is focused on ownership, operations and use of regional funding for the Midtown Greenway if it receives designation as a regional trail.
The plan document will build on the design, community engagement, analysis, recommendations and completed projects by other agencies, organizations, and the community since the inception of the Midtown Greenway. The regional trail plan will also include MPRB adopted park plans for applicable locations being incorporated into the regional trail boundary.
Following guidelines outlined in Resolution 2023-127, community engagement for the draft plan document is focused on lower cost amenities, like portable restrooms, garbage and recycling bins, benches, drinking fountains, picnic tables, community gardens, wayfinding and ecological enhancements. Funding and community engagement for any higher cost capital expenditures like lighting, permanent restrooms, pavement repaving, and trail expansions will have to be covered by the current agency owners/operators or other interested parties.
If a Regional Trail Plan for the Midtown Greenway is approved by MPRB Commissioners and the Metropolitan Council, the Greenway would receive regional trail status and be eligible for regional funding sources. Additionally, as part of the regional park system, the Midtown Greenway would be incorporated into the Metropolitan Council’s Annual Use Estimates, Visitor Study, and potentially other Council research.