Hiawatha Ave (Hwy 55) Construction Projects
PROJECT OVERVIEW
Hiawatha Avenue between I-35W and Hwy 62 needs to be resurfaced and three bridges in the project area need to be repaired. The project will be broken up into two sections, the northern half from Downtown Minneapolis to 32nd Avenue and the southern half from 32nd Avenue to Hwy 62. Work will take place starting in spring through fall 2022.
SUMMARY OF WORK
- Resurface Hiawatha Avenue between I-35W and Hwy 62
- Repair 3 bridges Hiawatha Avenue to 7th Street
- 8th Street to Hiawatha Avenue
- Southbound Hiawatha Avenue over Franklin Avenue
- Improve accessibility at multiple intersections
CONSTRUCTION IMPACTS
Spring 2022 through Summer 2022
Note: Closure time-frames are tentative and subject to change.
Road Closures
- Southbound Hiawatha Avenue between Downtown Minneapolis and Cedar Avenue will be closed for 4 months
- Franklin Avenue under Hiawatha Avenue will be closed for up to 12 days
- I-35W weekend closures for bridge removal
- Southbound Hiawatha Avenue between Cedar Avenue and 32nd Street will be closed for 2 weeks
- Northbound Hiawatha Avenue between Lake Street and 26th Street will be closed for 2 weeks
Ramp Closures
- Eastbound I-94 to southbound Hiawatha Avenue will be closed for 4 months
- 8th Street (from downtown Minneapolis) to southbound Hiawatha Avenue will be closed for 4 months
- Southbound I-35W to southbound Hiawatha Avenue will be closed for 4 months
- Northbound Hiawatha Avenue to downtown (7th Street) will be closed for 4 months
- Northbound Hiawatha Avenue to westbound I-94 will be closed for 2 weeks
- Northbound Hiawatha Avenue to northbound I-35W will be closed for 3 weeks
- Northbound Hiawatha Avenue to 3rd Street and Washington Avenue will be closed for one month
Late Summer 2022 through Fall 2022
Note: Closures will not occur at the same time. Closure time-frames are tentative and subject to change.
- Portions of southbound Hiawatha Avenue between 32nd Street and Hwy 62 will be closed for 10 days
- Portions of northbound Hiawatha Avenue between Hwy 62 and 32nd Street will be closed for 10 days
Nearby Construction Projects
The following projects will take place near Hiawatha Avenue construction. Plan ahead and stay informed if you travel in these areas.
- Hiawatha Avenue between I-35E and Bloomington Road
- Hwy 77 between Hwy 62 and the Minnesota River
PROJECT BENEFITS
- Smoother road surface
- Longer-lasting bridges
- Improved safety and accessibility at intersections
- Signal replacements at 35th Street and 38th Street
- Improved drainage within the project area
CONTACT
For more information and to sign up for email updates visit: www.mndot.gov/metro/projects/hwy55minneapolis. Leave a message for someone on the project team: 612-464-4005 or email: Connect@Hiawathaconstruction.com
Last Call for Board Nominations
To date, SNG has received 9 nominations for 9 open board seats for the upcoming election. SNG has decided to extend the deadline for nominations until 5:00pm, Tuesday, April 26. If you are interested in running for a seat on the SNG Board of Directors, please send an email to apply@sng.org to request a nomination form.
Our board members come from many different backgrounds and have a range of talents and experiences. Board members attend monthly meetings, help make organizational decisions, volunteer, and more. Seward residents and property owners are welcome to apply!
If no additional nominations are received, those currently nominated will be elected via proclamation at the SNG Annual Meeting on Wednesday, May 18. There will be no nominations from the floor at the Annual Meeting.
If additional nominations are received, the Board of Directors Election will be held Saturday, May 14 – Monday, May 16. Both on-line and in-person voting options will be available, and more information about voting will be available in early May.
Chard Your Yard garden beds available
Chard Your Yard is a program that provides 3′ x 5′ x 12″ installed garden beds for residents of and around the Greater Longfellow neighborhood. The gardens are provided at-cost to residents, and construction and delivery are provided by volunteers. There are options for discounted beds for persons with low-income and persons with disabilities.
In 2021, we expanded our program to include the Seward neighborhood. Right now the program is accepting orders for garden beds to be delivered in May of 2022.
Check out the website, and order soon as our program always sells out.
https://chardyouryard.com/
We’re also looking for volunteers to help with garden installs in May. If you are a high school student, your time counts as volunteer service hours.
Become a SNG Board Member!
We’re looking for community members to join our Board of Directors! There are nine open seats on the board, elected to staggered three-year terms. Our board members come from many different backgrounds and have a range of talents and experiences. Board members attend monthly meetings, help make organizational decisions, volunteer for committees and other initiatives, and more.
To request a nomination form please email apply@sng.org . Applications will be accepted until April 20. Seward residents and property owners are welcome to apply!
Public Safety Update with Ward 2 Council Member Robin Wonsley Worlobah
Join Council Member Robin Wonsley Worlobah for an update of what she has learned about public safety and the Minneapolis Police Department during her first two months in City Hall. While this event will primarily serve as an update for constituents, she will also lay out ongoing and possible upcoming policy work aimed at creating a humane and effective public safety system that works for all Minneapolis residents.
Register to get your zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/…/tZMsfuisqjIvHNZkyQAu…?
Please submit questions for the Council Member here: https://forms.gle/uH9BSYcK4fEDQKj18
Council Member Wonsley Worlobah represents Minneapolis Ward 2, which includes Cooper, Longfellow, Seward, Riverside, Prospect Park, Augsburg, UMN, and Como. This event will be livestreamed and is open to all.
For reasonable accommodations or alternative formats please contact ward2@minneapolismn.gov. People who are deaf or hard of hearing can use a relay service to call 311 at 612-673-3000. TTY users call 612-263-6850.
Para asistencia, llame al 612-673-2700 – Rau kev pab 612-673-2800 – Hadii aad Caawimaad u baahantahay 612-673-3500.
Energy Assistance Program
The Energy Assistance Program helps pay for home heating and water costs and furnace repairs for income-qualified households.
https://mn.gov/commerce/consumers/consumer-assistance/energy-assistance/
SNG Bylaw Changes
On September 22, 2021, the SNG board of directors formed a bylaws working group to do a comprehensive review of the organization’s existing bylaws and suggest changes.
The bylaws working group has met several times since October and has developed new proposed bylaws based on current nonprofit best practices, input from board members, and vigorous discussion and debate. The SNG Board of Directors has reviewed the proposed new bylaws and the new bylaws will be up for final adoption at the SNG board meeting on February 23.
Prior to final adoption, SNG is hosting two information sessions via Zoom for the community to learn about, ask questions about, and/or comment on the proposed new bylaws:
12:00noon – 1:00pm, Wednesday, February 9
Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/89070935000
6:00 – 7:00pm, Wednesday, February 9
Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/81769277720
If you have any questions or comments about the new proposed bylaws, but are unable to attend either information session, please contact to Paul Landskroener, Chair of the SNG bylaws working group: paul@sng.org.
Related documents:
Current SNG Bylaws
Proposed SNG Bylaws – DRAFT
Rationale for New Proposed Bylaws
Summary of Bylaw Changes
Summary of Bylaw Changes – Somali
Summary of Bylaw Changes – Oromo
Artist Neighborhood Partnership Initiative Small Grant Program Request for Proposals
CURA’s Artist Neighborhood Partnership Initiative (ANPI) provides small grants to artists of color and Native artists working in neighborhoods in Minneapolis, St. Paul and the surrounding suburbs. ANPI grants recognize the valuable role that artists and the arts play in the work of fostering neighborhood wellbeing, and are intended to support the leadership of artists in these efforts. This grant program is particularly focused on directly funding individual artists or groups of artists working to build a more equitable Twin Cities.
Renter Opportunity to Purchase (OTP) Ordinance
Stakeholder feedback on the draft ordinance
October 2021 – December 2021
Stakeholder feedback on the draft ordinance is important to the City.
Take the survey by Friday, January 7, 2022
Two public information sessions were held online. Recordings of the events will be available.
December 3, 2021
9:00 a.m. – 10:30 a.m.
December 8, 2021
2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
From SNG’s President
Dear Neighbors,
As many of you know, SNG’s former Executive Director, Sam Taitel, resigned on March 31, 2021, after five months with the Seward Neighborhood Group. Before resigning, Taitel filed a complaint against two members of the Seward Neighborhood Group executive committee, alleging that certain actions they took that made it impossible for her to do her job.
At that time, SNG contracted with Tabitha Montgomery, Executive Director of the Powderhorn Neighborhood Group, to investigate this complaint and to assess the situation. Tabitha submitted a preliminary and final report, but given the large number of resignations from the SNG board during the spring and summer of 2021, the board was unable to consider and act on the report until recently. Because much of Tabitha’s report deals with specific personnel issues that impact the privacy of several individuals, we do not believe that it is appropriate to release the entire report, but we are providing this summary of how the SNG board is responding to the report’s findings and suggestions.
Tabitha met with representatives of the board and our interim executive director in September to discuss her findings. She found that the root of the complaint centered on the board of directors and the executive committee not understanding and following SNG’s bylaws and the fundamental principles of how the governing body of an organization should interact with its executive director. Tabitha’s report also cited gaps in SNG’s governing documents that created ambiguity that contributed to the conflict. Specifically, the report found that the board never reached a clear consensus for determining the executive director’s duties and how to supervise their work. This resulted in unilateral actions by individual board and executive committee members that led Sam Taitel to resign and file a grievance.
Over the past few months, the SNG board of directors has begun to review the bylaws and several other policies with an eye to amending them to clarify how the executive director will be hired and supervised. In addition, the board has committed to providing initial and on-going training for all new board members so that board members understand the fundamental principles of how the governing body of a nonprofit community-based organization like ours should work with its staff to accomplish the organization’s goals.
Best wishes,
Lisa Boehlke, President
Seward Neighborhood Group
