Art Walk: The Future of Northeast Minneapolis

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If you’re not familiar with the Central Ave Art Walk, it’s probably because we don’t have one. Tens of thousands of people drive, walk, and bike down Central Ave every day and have no idea they’re in the best arts district in the country.

Central Ave is the front door of the Northeast Minneapolis Arts District. The Twin Cities should know it. The world should know it. Let’s show off!

With the 2028 reconstruction of Central, we have a once in a lifetime opportunity to build something worthy of our world-class artists who are making world-class art every day right here in Minneapolis. This is our chance to support this local community, our great small businesses, and our neighbors. The Central Ave art walk could be our showcase. It can be our gallery.

We’ve been talking about the art walk for decades. The Central Ave reconstruction means now is the time.

25,000 potential shoppers and art patrons blaze through Northeast every day on their way downtown or back out to the suburbs, past all of our great businesses, through America's best arts district without stopping. Why?

First, where would they stop?

Central Ave crammed with cars 12/8/24

Parking spots in any successful business district are generally in short supply. Central Ave is no exception. Central Ave’s fast and heavy traffic makes slowing and searching for scarce parking intimidating. And when people do stop, they are greeted by one of Minneapolis’ loudest traffic corridors.

It is no fun to walk on Central Ave. It is no fun to BE on Central Ave. We need to bring Central Avenue’s noise down. We need to bring the speed down. Art does that. Interesting streets engage drivers. Engaged drivers pay attention to the conditions around them. And they slow down.

And when streets are more comfortable, customers stroll, and strolling customers find more shops and more reasons to spend money even after they got what they came for.

Gathering on Central Ave in front of Recovery Bike Shop 6/15/25

Not only will slower cars give drivers more time to see our businesses, slower cars provide a much more comfortable condition for drivers to find a parking spot. And slower cars create less noise.

But this doesn’t give us more parking. Frankly, we are never going to have more parking than we have now (without bulldozing something that doesn’t want to be bulldozed).

Some believe parking is the limiting factor for business on Central. Not only does this imply that our business district will never do better than it is doing now, it also suggests that there is no reason to invest because we can’t outgrow the available parking. Of course this is terrible advice. We simply need to be better than our parking.

And the truth is, we have plenty of parking. A world-class art walk from our world-class artists provides an incredible reason to put up with parking a block away.

Nowhere else has our artists. Nowhere else can do what we do. Art-a-Whirl draws tens of thousands of people from to the District once a year. We could be pulling those people into Northeast Minneapolis every day.

An art walk addresses another critical concern on the Avenue. Vibrant streets feel safer.

Central Ave, like all of Minneapolis (and many other cities in the US), has our share of nuisance activity. And this activity is turning people off from visiting the Avenue and visiting Northeast.

An art walk would create a bustling corridor with walkers and art appreciators moving through our spaces. Crowds shield us from the activities that make us uncomfortable. We just need more people on Central Ave so that everyone feels more comfortable being there.

This is our chance to redefine Central Avenue and reshape Northeast Minneapolis. The neighborhood has been calling for this art walk since the 2008 Central Ave Small Area Plan and beyond.

It’s time for people to know the Arts District is here. It’s time for people to know our businesses are here. It’s time for the Central Ave art walk.

The Mpls Chamber installed 7 murals on Central in 2022 (Pilllar Forum)

Work with us to create the Central Ave Art Walk