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First Avenue Walkway

Concept Origin: The Warehouse District is home to many of Downtown's highest-capacity venues and some of its more narrow sidewalks. The current configuration of First Avenue North is controversial. 

Why It Matters:  Narrow sidewalks outside high-capacity venues can lead to concerns about pedestrian safety and crowd control. 

Experiment: Beginning August 10, 2015 and running through mid-October, MDID partnered with the City of Minneapolis and the Warehouse District Business Association on a pilot project that created more space for pedestrians along 1st Avenue North. The project reconfigured the west side of 1st Avenue between 5th and 6th Streets with more pedestrian space where a bike lane had been, and shifted that bike lane out in place of a secondary travel lane. The project partners tracked the outcomes and impacts of this project to inform the conversation about the design of this important downtown street.