What’s happening with the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan?

Since the adoption of Minneapolis 2040, residents, business owners, developers, staff, and elected officials have worked to implement the vision found in the plan of a more racially equitable, affordable, and environmentally friendly city.

What is the Minneapolis 2040 plan?

The Minneapolis 2040 comprehensive plan is the city’s roadmap for how public and private investment should shape the city’s future. Comprehensive plans are required of all cities in the 7-county metro area and some cities in greater Minnesota. Such plans help cities get ready for the future, by giving thought to things like housing growth, jobs, and the environment. It’s a big policy document that guides how decisions are made locally. 

Why is it important to keep the 2040 plan?

Comprehensive planning, and the Minneapolis 2040 plan in particular, is the right tool to drive key housing reforms forward because it has evaluated the impacts of projected growth on environmental and infrastructure systems to ensure growth can be effectively accommodated in the years to come. Unfortunately, the City of Minneapolis is currently appealing a court ruling that requires the city to use the older, expired 2030 Comprehensive Plan. This ruling increases uncertainty in the housing development process and slows the production of multi-unit affordable housing.

The 2040 Plan includes 14 goals with an overarching theme: Minneapolis’ growth must address racial disparities by creating equitable access to housing, jobs, and investments, while also improving our local and regional environment. The 2040 Plan features 100 policies with action steps outlining ways to achieve the plan’s goals.

One important focus of the plan is to create more housing, including affordable housing. Take for instance the Belfry Apartments, located at the corner of 39th Street and Chicago Avenue. This project created 41 units of deeply affordable housing in combination with new construction and adaptive reuse of the historic Calvary sanctuary and school. This project, which stabilized the existing church building, added safe, dignified housing for those most in need, and helps continue providing important neighborhood services, would not have been possible without changes to zoning that were recommended as part of the Minneapolis 2040 plan.

Another example of housing created because of the Minneapolis 2040 plan is the Akin Apartments, in south Minneapolis. This 6-story, 204-unit apartment building would not have been allowed under the previous comprehensive plan. Now, the community members living in this building have easy access to public transit and many amenities in walkable distance.  

If you’d like to see more videos on recent developments in the City of Minneapolis, check out this article from early February in the Sahan Journal. Or, go to the city’s website where the videos are presented in an interactive story map, hosted on the Minneapolis Forward website. For more information about any of the city’s programs, visit the City’s website.