Minneapolis, MN

City council rejects plan for George Floyd Square, possibly setting work back years

Published

1 year ago

December 6, 2024

Press Room

City council rejects plan for George Floyd Square, possibly setting work back years

George Floyd Square plan rejected

The Minneapolis city council took a step back in the city’s progress to redevelopment of George Floyd Square.

The plan presented by city staff — which was finalized just about a month ago — had been crafted after years of community engagement. While a big part of the city’s plan puts a focus on making the area pedestrian-friendly, some council members want it even friendlier for walkers.

“I believe we have one shot to make this right,” Councilmember Jason Chavez said as he presented a resolution to kick back development discussion to committee. “I want us to be able to talk about making George Floyd Square a pedestrian mall,” he later added.

The plan rejected by the council at Thursday’s meeting would be more versatile. It would allow traffic to move through the intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue, now known as George Floyd Square.

As discussion was underway at the council meeting about the possible pedestrian mall, city planners already expressed concerns.

“There will be additional engagement, both with residents, community, business owners,” Tim Sexton, Minneapolis’ Public Works director, told councilmembers.

“There’s a process that we haven’t done before that we would have to undertake. “We would need to coordinate more closely with the fire department and other emergency services on the code,” Sexton said, adding, “There’s a lot of uncertainty with that pedestrian mall option.”

Part of that uncertainty would be when construction would begin. Sexton told the council that the city’s plan already had a tight window of time to try to start construction in 2025.

Not all council members supported the pause—councilmember Andrea Jenkins, whose ward George Floyd Square sits in, pointed out the extensive work that has been done to reach this point.

“It completely disregards thousands of hours of community engagement,” Jenkins said.

RELATED: Blueprint for the future: George Floyd Square redevelopment taking steps forward

That engagement, according to Mayor Jacob Frey, reached in the thousands of hours.

“The council asked for engagement. The staff did extensive engagement. The results were fairly clear [that] people wanted a versatile street,” Frey said.

The mayor said he doesn’t oppose a pedestrian mall but doesn’t support the council’s continuous indecision, as he fears this may set back any construction until 2028.

“What I don’t support is kicking the can down the road. Even more so when people in the community need change, they need to see progress,” Mayor Frey said.

The next time set for the city council to address the possible pedestiran mall will be at a January 9 committee meeting.

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Minneapolis, MN

San Antonio visits Minnesota with 2-1 series lead – WTOP News

Published

5 hours ago

May 9, 2026

Press Room

San Antonio Spurs (62-20, second in the Western Conference) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (49-33, sixth in the Western Conference) Minneapolis; Sunday,…

San Antonio Spurs (62-20, second in the Western Conference) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (49-33, sixth in the Western Conference)

Minneapolis; Sunday, 7:30 p.m. EDT

LINE: Spurs -4.5; over/under is 215.5

WESTERN CONFERENCE SECOND ROUND: Spurs lead series 2-1

BOTTOM LINE: The San Antonio Spurs visit the Minnesota Timberwolves in the Western Conference second round with a 2-1 lead in the series. The Spurs won the last meeting 115-108 on Saturday, led by 39 points from Victor Wembanyama. Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 32.

The Timberwolves are 31-21 against Western Conference opponents. Minnesota is sixth in the Western Conference with 33.0 defensive rebounds per game led by Rudy Gobert averaging 7.5.

The Spurs are 36-16 against Western Conference opponents. San Antonio is fourth in the Western Conference with 16.3 fast break points per game led by Julian Champagnie averaging 3.0.

The Timberwolves’ 13.8 made 3-pointers per game this season are just 0.8 more made shots on average than the 13.0 per game the Spurs allow. The Spurs average 13.6 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.5 more made shots on average than the 12.1 per game the Timberwolves allow.

TOP PERFORMERS: Julius Randle is averaging 21.1 points, 6.7 rebounds and five assists for the Timberwolves. Naz Reid is averaging 1.6 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games.

Wembanyama is averaging 25 points, 11.5 rebounds, 3.1 assists and 3.1 blocks for the Spurs. De’Aaron Fox is averaging 18.6 points and 6.2 assists over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Timberwolves: 6-4, averaging 111.1 points, 47.3 rebounds, 24.9 assists, 6.1 steals and 4.7 blocks per game while shooting 45.4% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 112.1 points per game.

Spurs: 7-3, averaging 116.9 points, 46.5 rebounds, 25.9 assists, 7.7 steals and 7.7 blocks per game while shooting 48.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 105.5 points.

INJURIES: Timberwolves: Donte DiVincenzo: out for season (leg).

Spurs: David Jones Garcia: out for season (ankle).

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

Copyright
© 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.

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Minneapolis, MN

‘The power of truth:’ How high school students reported on the ICE surge in their front yard

Published

17 hours ago

May 8, 2026

Press Room

‘The power of truth:’ How high school students reported on the ICE surge in their front yard

Student journalists at Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis witnessed federal agents shove staffers and students and deploy pepper spray on school grounds last January. That inspired them to report stories of how that event and the ICE surge impacted their colleagues and communities.

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