The Copenhagenization of Nicollet Avenue
Derek Holmer COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Acknowledgments
I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to my faculty advisor, Gayla Lindt, who has the
powers of Wonder Woman. Without her calm demeanor and guidance, this project would have
derailed long ago. Thanks are also due to my reader, Carrie Christensen. Her expertise, attention to
detail, and encouragement helped keep my eyes on the bigger picture. Finally, I would like to
express my gratitude to Katherine Solomonson. Her role as Devil’s Advocate kept my project
grounded from day one and allowed my argument to remain based on real issues facing American
cities today. I am indebted to each of you.
ii iii COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Abstract
This thesis investigates the potential for Nicollet Avenue in Minneapolis to become a bicycle-
and pedestrian-only corridor for a one and a half mile stretch from downtown south to Lake Street.
This investigation begins with the imagined, but very possible, scenario that the K-Mart building
that blocks the Nicollet Avenue corridor north of Lake Street has been removed. The avenue is
examined through the lens of Copenhagenization, as outlined in Jan Gehl’s book Cities for People.
These principles are most manifest along Nørrebrogade in Copenhagen, which serves as the
primary precedent for this investigation. Key concepts and design elements from this two and a
half kilometer (one and a half mile) Danish corridor are identified, analyzed, and translated into a
mid-western American context at a scale not yet attempted. The current Minneapolis Bicycle
Master Plan (2005) calls for no bicycles along Nicollet Avenue. This thesis demonstrates an
alternative vision that builds on Nicollet Avenue’s unique identity of Eat Street leveraging
Minneapolis’s nationally recognized bike system, resulting in a list of best management practices,
and design principles for a new American identity that develops a sense of place fostered by public
space, cycle, and transit infrastructure.
iv v COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Table of Contents
Introduction 1
Part 1. The Framework: Copenhagenization 5
Part 2. Existing Conditions 17
Part 3. Best Management Design Practices 29
Conclusion 47
Notes 50
Bibliography 52
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Introduction
Nicollet Avenue, in Southwest Minneapolis, is a typical American quasi-urban street (Fig.
1.1). It maintains a busy, yet quiet demeanor. Cyclists and automobile traffic share the same lanes,
battling buses for space and rarely yielding when they pull out from stops. Parking creates a wall
that separates the adequately wide sidewalks from the street traffic. Trees shade the walkways and
provide a pleasant pedestrian environment along the sporadic yet quaint storefronts. Eat Street, as
it is affectionately known from downtown to Lake Street, is walkable in 20 minutes, providing a
connection between downtown and the Midtown Greenway, a bikeway built into a depressed
former rail line. Established restaurants and cafes bring a regular crowd to the corridor, where
customers can park in front of their destination, pay the meter for an hour or so, and then walk
directly in the door. Some strolling occurs after dinner or lunch, but only until the end of the block,
where traffic lights likely flash a red hand inferring, “Turn around, your stroll is finished.” Nicollet
Avenue meets the status quo of standard cycle, pedestrian, and transit based traffic patterns.
viii 1 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Fig. 1.1: Nicollet Avenue looking south from 14th Street. Fig 1.2 (above): This K-mart store interrupts the ROW of Nicollet Avenue. Fig. 1.3 (below): Aerial Source: Photograph by the author. view of where reconnection would occur; the red line represents Nicollet Avenue. Sources: 1.2- Glen Stubbe, Minneapolis Star Tribune, 1.3 base- Google Maps, diagram by author.
The current treatment of Nicollet is not representative of its status in Minneapolis. Eat
Street is known throughout the city as foodie’s playground, with a collection of restaurants, cafes, and bakeries not found anywhere else. Thus, the design of Nicollet does not reflect its unique status. It does not facilitate active sidewalk cafes, interaction between bikers and pedestrians, or efficient transit options. In addition, this corridor has been identified by the city of Minneapolis as the locally preferred route for a new streetcar line, the city’s first in over 50 years.1 Couple these with the city’s cult-like bicycling culture and there is opportunity for a unique redesign of this street. Currently, Minneapolis’s Bicycle Master Plan calls for bike lanes on 1st Avenue and Blaisdell
Avenues, one block on either side of Nicollet. No bike lanes are present or planned on Nicollet. This project investigates the transformation of Nicollet Avenue into a pedestrian, bike, and transit corridor, demonstrating an alternative vision to the Minneapolis Bicycle Master Plan and leveraging This project begins with the assumption that the Kmart store (Fig 1.2-3) that currently both the established bicycle culture and the Avenue’s identity of Eat Street to create a uniquely interrupts the right of way (ROW) of Nicollet north of Lake Street has been relocated based on a American public space. range of possible scenarios. Reconnection would present many positive opportunities in addition
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to new constraints. One of these would be an increase in automobile traffic as drivers use the Fig 2.1- Cover of Jan Gehl’s book, Cities for People. Source- Gehl Architects, corridor as a new pipeline into downtown. This increase in traffic would degrade the pedestrian gehlcitiesforpeople.dk experience of Eat Street, increase congestion, slow buses and the potential streetcar, and destroy what currently makes Nicollet a relatively successful street. This project investigates a preemptive solution to this problem, seeking to present an alternative that would resolve these effects before they negatively impact the corridor.
This project is approached in three phases: (1) the first is the establishment of a framework;
(2) followed by an analysis of the existing conditions; and (3) finally a proposal of a set of best management design principles. The framework is based on an analysis of the concepts of Jan Gehl in his book Cities for People (2010). This project extracts three concepts of Copenhagenization as the lens through which it views the Nicollet corridor. These concepts are manifested most clearly along Nørrebrogade in Copenhagen, which serves as the primary precedent for this project. Here, specific ways in which the city of Copenhagen redesigned the corridor to improve urban life are highlighted, examined, and applied as possible improvements for Nicollet Avenue. The existing Part 1. The Framework: Copenhagenization Jan Gehl is a global pioneer in urbanism. An architect by trade, he has practiced and taught conditions analysis examines the current state of Nicollet, in addition to the proposed relink in Copenhagen during the city’s four-decade shift from an auto- to anthropocentric focus. Streets between 28th and Lake Street which does not currently exist. Every other aspect of the corridor were returned to pedestrian and cycles that spurred an urban design revolution dubbed remains the same as it is now. Thus, a site analysis of existing conditions lays the foundation upon “Copenhagenization.”2 As an umbrella term, Copenhagenization consists of numerous theories, which design interventions can be based. Following is a program analysis of the current function focuses, and influences. The term is not Gehl’s alone, but his work fully embodies this style of and identity of the corridor. The Eat Street identity, Minneapolis bicycle culture, and the city’s urbanization. In his 2010 book Cities for People (Fig 2.1), Gehl presents his seminal ideas on what planning department are examined as established factors upon which to leverage improvements. makes cities flourish within the public realm. He crafts an argument for “life between buildings”3 Finally, recommendations for best management practices for the entire corridor are proposed. involving more than transport. He frames this work within several key objectives, three of which— Looking in-depth at the ROW, cycle facilities, paving strategies, street furniture, plantings, and lively, safe, and sustainable cities—pervade his ideas. These concepts, together with their programming, this final section presents a new vision for Nicollet that will allow its identity of Eat implementation along the Nørrebrogade corridor in Copenhagen, DK, will serve as the lens through Street to thrive. which this thesis approaches Nicollet Avenue.
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Fig 2.3: Street life on Broadway in New York City. Source: Gehl Architects, gehlcitiesforpeople.com
Fig 2.2: Good edge condition along the Aarhus Å (River) in Aarhus, DK. Source: Photograph by author.
Liveliness streets fall entirely into what Gehl refers to as the “edge zone.” Here is where “city meets building”4
Gehl’s first concept of Copenhagenization is the most encompassing: liveliness. This where direct interaction between pedestrians and facades dictates the liveliness of the space (Fig concept works under the knowledge that city life is a process which must be supported and 2.2). When the edge is neglected or—as occurred during the 20th Century in America—this theory encouraged by public space. Lively cities program public space as the stage upon which the theatre is inverted, space is obliterated, and the street becomes a series of buildings surrounded by empty of urban life unfolds. Streets are not simply traffic conduits; they are linear spaces within which space devoid of life. Gehl advocates a return to the tradition of considering urban life as the “life neighborhood life occurs. A lively public realm encourages social interaction, impossible when between buildings,” with the void deserving of equal attention, if not more, as the built form. streets are designed only for automobile traffic. Thus, the lively city encourages pedestrianism, However, space is dependent on an active edge. Christopher Alexander acknowledged this in his pedestrians activating a space. By Gehl’s definition, city spaces have two elements: theedge work A Pattern Language: “If the edge fails, then the space never becomes lively.”5 condition and street life. These principles work together to reinforce liveliness in cities. To ensure a successful edge, facades must blend inside with outside. Uses must be
Edge condition is particularly important in the activation of streets. As narrow spaces, pedestrian oriented (café, shop, bakery) and facades must include large windows and/or doors.
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This allows pedestrians to see into the store and customers to see out. Individual units must be Fig 2.4 (below): Copenhagen blue, increasing cyclists safety through intersections. Fig 2.5 narrow, no wider than 16-20 feet according to Gehl. “5-second facades”6 allow pedestrians walking (right): Copenhagen-style bike lanes (cycletracks) in Copenhagen, DK. Source: at an average of 3 mph to experience a new visual cue every 5 seconds. As opposed to a single Photographs by author. super block, the 5-second façade produces a much livelier block, enticing pedestrians to window shop, slow their pace, and engage with the edge. A good edge provides reasons for people to populate the street and, according to a popular Scandinavian saying, “people come where people are.” “One plus one quickly becomes more than three”7 and soon, people bring liveliness to the space. However, there must be something for people to do once there – there needs to be life on the street as well.
Street life, as the name implies, is the activity that takes place beyond the edge (Fig 2.3).
Gehl sums these up as social city activities which exist on a spectrum between necessary and optional activities. Necessary activities are those which must be done as a part of everyday life.
These do not depend on physical environment: grocery shopping, going to work or school, and running errands are examples of this. Optional activities are recreational in nature and depend has become lively, both in edge and street life. heavily on the quality of the urban environment. These include running, window shopping, and Safety having dinner at a sidewalk café. Lively cities foster activities across the entire spectrum, whether Safety responds to pedestrians themselves. Fear in American cities deters urban life: both walking to the corner market for a loaf of bread or enjoying a cup of cappuccino on a sidewalk fear of traffic and crime. Once people are no longer afraid to be on the streets, the city flourishes. table. When the urban environment becomes good enough to encourage optional activities, Safe cities know that pedestrians must feel safe within the public realm. Within the context of a necessary activities become much more pleasant. Soon, as Gehl predicted, one plus one becomes street, safety from traffic encompasses the interaction between automobiles, including transit, and more than three. pedestrians and cyclists (Fig 2.4). Speed is one component of safe streets. Slower traffic allows
In an effort to quantify the critical mass of social activity on a street, Gehl uses a creative more time to react, lessens impact should accidents happen, and forces higher attention from metric based on cappuccino consumption. The number of cups of cappuccino rises as the quality drivers and pedestrians alike. Another component of safe streets is appropriation of space within and liveliness of city space increases. For example, from 1986 to 2005, the number of café tables the corridor. The more space given to vehicles, the more dominant driving patterns become. On in Copenhagen’s city center more than doubled.8 This rising number of cappuccinos on café tables the contrary, the more space allotted to pedestrians, including narrower driving lanes with reflects an increase in the quality of urban space fostering higher numbers of optional activities. bumpouts, the more aware drivers tend to be. One solution Gehl proposes is a concept called When people populate a space because they want to, not because they are required to, the space
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shared streets. Streets can be safer when all users share the entire space. Cars slow, pedestrians heighten their awareness, and cyclists ride more defensively. This concept has yet to take hold in
America, but some translations are beginning to surface.
Cycling infrastructure is one of the most important features of a safe street. Gehl advocates the use of “Copenhagen-style” bike lanes (Fig 2.5).9 These lanes are separated from traffic by a physical barrier, whether a curb, parked cars, or planters and/or trees. In America, current practices do not encourage safe cities for cyclists. Bike lanes (where they exist) are separated from traffic by little more than a painted stripe on the asphalt. Recent studies show that this results in a high discrepancy in percentage of bikers using on-road vs. off-road facilities.10 Cyclists are pivotal in activating public space; they are not isolated from the space as automobile drivers are.Thus, Fig 2.6: Space needed to transport 60 people by different modes. Source: Cycling Promotion Fund, cyclingpromotion.com.au. Copenhagen-style bike lanes, known in American as cycletracks, are a compromise between the two. Cycletracks are technically on-street facilities, but feel more like trails due to the physical separation from traffic. Safer cycling equals safer streets. Sustainability Safety from crime has been a high concern since Jane Jacobs pioneered urban studies, Sustainability is at the forefront of many urban initiatives and design-based solutions for influencing Gehl’s own ideas. Fences, security cameras, and police presence can help, butan economic as well as environmental reasons. For designers of public space and urban life, this environment of security that instills fear is not one of vibrant urban life. The major crime deterrent important concept must be included in every design decision. Streets must foster the health of is a shift in culture. For this, Gehl embraces Jacob’s ideas of “eyes on the street.” To summarize this both the environment and citizens. Environmental concern is crucial in cities, where human complex concept, “a well-used city street is apt to be a safe street.”11 A well-used (lively) city street activities have the highest impact. Transportation options are fundamental to a sustainable street, can be designed, and Gehl provides many methods through which this can be done. Active facades partly because of the impact of the private automobile’s impact on density. A bus takes up the size are one. These are buildings in which life takes place at all hours, which often consists of retail at of approximately two cars, yet has a capacity 10-20 times greater than that of a car. Rail transit is ground level and residential above. Windows and lights remind pedestrians walking along the even more efficient. Cycling is one of the only wheeled forms of transportation a with zero carbon street that they are not alone. Another method involves informal security. Jacobs states that footprint (when not considering manufacturing the bike). Transit not only reduces emissions, but shopkeepers are the best street watchers available. The design of streets and spaces must make saves spaces on our streets that can be given to other uses, such as optional activities. For example, this activity as easy and effective as possible. Good lighting and clear sightlines are just two ways a typical two lane, two way street can carry a maximum of 1,000-2,000 cars per hour. 12 feet of bike this can be accomplished. Good design can foster security, both from traffic and crime, which in lanes can carry up to 10,000 cyclists an hour. 23 feet of sidewalk can accommodate over 20,000 turn fosters good public life.
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people an hour. 12 (Fig. 2.6) Lower density leads to increased sprawl, and increased sprawl is correlated with increased dependence on the private automobile. In addition to encouraging density, sustainable street design also includes features with a positive environmental impact, such as trees, permeable pavement, and storm water management that foster ecological health of our waterways, air, and landscapes.
Spaces must promote another factor through design: sustainability of citizens. In the wake of the global obesity pandemic, urban spaces should play a key role in promoting exercise as both a recreational opportunity and a vital part of everyday life. The recreational aspect comes from making exercise fun. The sustainable city, however, fosters exercise in everyday life. Safe routes for walking to school foster healthy communities. Bike lanes that are buffered from traffic encourage all levels of cyclists to bike to work, increasing their health. Cycling infrastructure is a relatively inexpensive investment that actually helps the economy by decreasing the loss from sick days taken.13 In the United States, a country that spends more on health than any other developed N Study Area City Center Public Space Rail Transit country, sustainable public spaces can help decrease health problems across the country. The more Fig 2.7: Norrebrogade’s location within Greater Copenhagen. The area surrounded by water is the historic center of Copenhagen. Source base: Google Maps, diagram by author. exercise, fresh air, and nature urban citizens are exposed to, the better their health will be.
Successful public spaces encourage people to leave their cars behind and cycle, walk, or ride transit the pedestrian realm, which was condensed to a narrow sidewalk and bike lane along the car to work, school, and optional activities. choked street. This traffic also slowed the city’s busiest bus line, causing major delays. Quality of In Practice- Nørrebrogade life along the corridor was not ideal. From 2008-2010, the city of Copenhagen completed a project Located in the diverse Nørrebro neighborhood of Copenhagen (Fig. 2.7), Nørrebrogade converting Nørrebrogade into a pedestrian, cycle, and transit corridor, transforming this corridor in connects the outer suburbs with the city center. As the main street of the district, it is the center of an innovative way.15 life for residents. As most roads in the Danish capital, it is a narrow corridor with 4 to 5 story The Nørrebrogade project had three goals: to beautify urban space and strengthen city buildings built up to the sidewalk. The street has minor curves, so that the view down the street is life, improve conditions for cyclists, and shorten journey times for transit and increase punctuality never reach the horizon. The ground levels of most facades are active, with shops, cafes, and other of buses. The city determined that the street’s design and equipment did not match its use.16 Thus, uses that often spills onto the sidewalk. Prior to the redesign project, the corridor handled 15,000 urban life was selected over traffic movement. All design decisions were aimed at reinforcing the cars, 30,000 transit riders, 27,000 pedestrians, and 33,000 bikers each day.14 Most of this car traffic corridor’s program as the main public space through the neighborhood. In order to reflect the was through traffic, with no business on the street. All these cars greatly degraded the quality of
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Fig 2.8: More room allows for plants along Nørrebrogade. Source: Cycling Embassy of Denmark, Fig 2.9: Transit stops places as island between cycletracks and transit lanes. Source: Cycling http://www.cycling-embassy.dk/. Embassy of Denmark, http://www.cycling-embassy.dk/.
liveliness of the Nørrebro along the corridor, sidewalks were widened in many locations to double stretch. No longer the shortest route into the city, all cars that use the street have business along their previous width. This improves circulation while providing a place to gather rather. Sidewalk the corridor within the neighborhood. In addition, cycletracks have been widened to better serve space, formerly in the path of the cycletrack, is activates with café tables. Where there is no street the 33,000-40,00018 cyclists who ride the route daily. Like most of Copenhagen, these cycletracks furniture, planter boxes with flowers and shrubs (Fig 2.8) liven up the concrete jungle of Copenhagen. are separated by grade from both the street and sidewalk with granite curbstones. This provides
Sidewalks and cycletracks continue across minor side roads and driveways allowing urban life to the physical separation from traffic that characterizes what Gehl calls “Copenhagen-style”19 bike continue uninterrupted for several blocks. The city life so important to this neighborhood finally lanes. Finally, transit stops are placed between the cycletracks and the street, reducing congestion has a place on its main street. when bus passengers disembark (Fig. 2.9). Rather than getting off into the flow of cycle traffic,
The next goal, improving conditions for cyclists, encompasses safety for all modes of transit riders have a safe area to wait. The street lighting scheme has also been altered to improve traffic. By designating two section of Nørrebrogade as “bus only,” the 10-20% of traffic that was safety from crime. Traditional street lighting in Copenhagen consists of a single file of street lamps through only has been eliminated and car traffic has fallen from 30-80%,17 depending on the hung above the street by wires. On Nørrebrogade, this scheme has been doubled, with the files
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aligned over the cycletracks. More light is cast upon the pedestrian spaces, where it is needed.
Finally, cafes have been encouraged to stay open later, placing more “eyes on the street” at all hours. These all factor into improved safety along the corridor.
The final goal concerns the sustainability of the corridor. The efficiency of transit along the corridor means less traffic, quicker travel times, and less noise and pollution, as well asmore passengers utilizing the corridor. The city of Copenhagen estimates the improved flow of buses saves 3 million kroner ($550,000)20 annually. This reduces congestion by lessening the emissions from buses that choke the narrow corridor. The wider sidewalks and cycletracks encourage increased walking and cycling, increasing the health and wellbeing of the citizens of Nørrebro.
There are small amenities that also make cycling more convenient. One small feature is the foot rest placed at specific intersections that allow cyclists stopped at a light to keep their feet out of the water or snow as well as remaining on their bike seat when stopped. Little features like this make cycling more attractive to a larger group of riders. N Study Area City Center Public Space Rail Transit
Overall, Nørrebrogade has been a resounding success. After the initial temporary Fig. 3.1: Nicollet Avenue’s location within Minneapolis. Downtown is top-center, the Midtown Greenway runs horizontally just below center, and the Chain of Lakes is on the left side. Source experiment was completed in 2009, 67%21 of residents polled hoped the transformation would base: Google Maps, diagram by author. become permanent. The most severe opposition was from shopkeepers, worried about deliveries Part 2. Existing Conditions and a lack of drive by business. However, an increase in parking along side streets and alleys Based in the scenario that K-mart has been moved allowing the reconnection of Nicollet including designated delivery zones and an increase in storefront traffic from pedestrians resulted Avenue, all other existing conditions remain unchanged. The physical nature of the street has not in a net loss of only 4 businesses along the corridor. During the recession, this was determined to been altered, with the exception of an extra block connecting 28th Street to Lake Street at the be on par with the rest of the city, consistent with the predicted change without the redesign. south. Thus, analysis of the current site and program of the corridor is the foundation for Nørrebrogade now serves as “the main nerve running through Nørrebro, where the pulse of understanding the current conditions of the Nicollet Avenue corridor upon which the subsequent Copenhagen can be felt and where there is place for variety, a place where Copenhageners as well design proposal is based. as visitors live and breathe.”22 This corridor showcases all three of Gehl’s concepts of Site Analysis Copenhagenization along a corridor of similar length to Nicollet Avenue. The focus of this project is Nicollet Avenue in Southwest Minneapolis, bound by Grant
Street at the north and Lake Street at the south. It is bound on the east and west by 1st and
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Blaisdell Avenues. There is one block between Grant Street and Nicollet Mall that allows traffic. Fig. 3.2a (left): Nicollet Corridor. Fig. 3.2b (below): Interstate 94 bridge. Fig. 3.2c (middle): This would block is incorporated in James Corner Field’s redesign of Nicollet Mall, thus guaranteeing Waldorf School at 24th Street. Fig. 3.2d (bottom): Ramp from Nicollet to the Greenway. a car free corridor from Lake Street to Nicollet’s terminus at Washington Avenue. While Eat Street Sources: 3.2a base- Google Maps, 3.2b-d: Photographs by author. and Nicollet Mall can play off each other’s successes, they are very different stretches and should
be treated in their own way. Moving south from downtown Minneapolis, the corridor contains
some cultural and neighborhood landmarks (Fig. 3.2a-d). The Music Box Theater, Interstate 94,
Plymouth Congregational Church, Minneapolis First Seventh-day Adventist Church, Waldorf School,
and the Whittier Clinic create a chain of landmarks down Nicollet. Careful consideration should be
taken in how to incorporate these locations into a redesign. The length of this corridor is one and
one-half mile long which takes 5 minutes to drive, 10 minutes to bike, and 25 minutes to walk. The
blocks vary greatly in the northern section becoming more regular the further south at an average
of a tenth of a mile each.
The corridor is located in the larger area of Southwest Minneapolis, specifically the
Whittier and Stevens Square Neighborhoods. It is one of the major north-south corridors south of
downtown, along with Hennepin, Lyndale, Portland, Park, Chicago, and Hiawatha Avenues. It
crosses three major east-west corridors: Franklin Ave, 26th Street, and 28th Street. The Midtown
Greenway passes under the avenue one block north of Lake Street, with a ramp directly connecting
Nicollet to the most heavily cycled path in the city. Two major institutions are located a block east
of Nicollet: the Minneapolis Convention Center and the Minneapolis Institute of Art/Minneapolis
College of Arts and Design. Green space also permeates the neighborhood, with Washburn Park,
Steven’s Square, and Loring Park all in the vicinity. Beyond Lake Street, Nicollet continues
uninterrupted until the Minnesota River in Bloomington (approximately 9 miles). This route was
blocked by a Kmart store for nearly 40 years. Thus reconnection is the first time the entire Avenue
is continuous since the 1960’s.
The ROW is fairly wide (80 feet)23 with a majority given to the street. There is two-way
traffic, with one travel lane in either direction divided by a center turn-lane. Beyond the travel lanes
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intersections, bus stops, and the Interstate 94 bridge. The highest traffic counts are at the northern
end of the corridor, at Franklin Avenue. Here, approximately 12,00025 cars pass each day. Traffic
counts are smaller by half near the south end of the corridor.
This corridor is a heavily used transit corridor. Metro Transit routes 17, 18, and 568
currently run along this segment of Nicollet Avenue. The 18 is a high frequency route, running
every 10-15 minutes during the day. These buses stop sporadically, generally at each intersection,
skipping some, and a few mid-block stops. Currently, transit ridership is at 13,00026 per day. Due to
this high ridership, the city of Minneapolis has identified this stretch as the locally preferred option
for a street car line.27 This line would run the full length of Eat Street into downtown, stopping
every block or two. This would boost the transit function of the corridor as well as encourage
walkability.
The pedestrian realm (Fig. 3.3) is relatively pleasant due to the lack of through traffic along
the corridor. The sidewalks are relatively wide along most of the corridor and a steady line of trees
Fig. 3.3: Nicollet Avenue pedestrian realm. Source: Photograph by author. provides ample shade from the summer sun. There is room for modest café seating, generally consisting of one row of tables along the façade. There is a good mix of buildings along the corridor
with active facades. But these are broken in several places by surface parking lots, with driveways is a parking lane/bus pullover on either side of the street. The remainder of the ROW is sidewalk, carving the public realm and causing pedestrians to dodge cars entering and leaving these lots which varies in width along the corridor. Further south, the sidewalk is quite wide (13 feet in some mid-block. The corridor averages 1800 pedestrians per day,28 higher in the summer than winter. areas)24 but near Franklin Avenue there are areas where the width of the sidewalk narrows While the pedestrian environment is adequate, inconsistencies in sidewalks and buildings create a considerably. Trees planted in the middle of the sidewalk make them even narrower, down to 4 very uneven experience along the corridor. feet. There are only bike routes north of 15th Street. Southbound cyclers are encouraged to take Cycle infrastructure exists along the corridor in the form of a few bike racks. Otherwise, Lasalle and Blaisdell Avenues west of Nicollet and 1st Avenue to the east. Bike lanes return to cyclists must ride in the traffic lane dodging car doors and busses pulling over (fig. 3.4). In addition, Nicollet at 28th where they funnel cyclists to and from the greenway. there are no facilities at intersections, so cyclists must fend for themselves when the light turns Non-local automobile traffic is routed to 1st and Blaisdell Avenues. Most vehicular traffic green. Other than the Greenway, east-west bike connections are non-existent. Despite the lack of on the avenue is local. However, with the reconfiguration of Kmart and reconnection this could cycle infrastructure, it is still a good corridor to cycle due to lower traffic levels. The middle lane change. Parallel parking is allowed along the entire corridor, with the exception of major provides ample room for automobiles to pass cyclists, when necessary. Reconnection could destroy
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weather allows facades to open up, further activating the street. In the winter, most activity moves
indoors. There is still a group of bikers in the winter, but transit ridership becomes more vital to the
street. Minneapolis averages 54.4 inches32 of snow per year; most of this is plowed into the curb,
narrowing both the street and sidewalk. The sidewalk condition depends on individual businesses
and their snow clearing practices. In some areas, there is a path wide enough for only one person
to pass. In other areas, a majority of the sidewalk is cleared. Any redesign must take snow removal
into account in addition to the changing of seasons. Climate dictates activity along the corridor,
with the long, harsh winters changing the program of the corridor.
Program Analysis
The Nicollet Avenue corridor already has a strong program: Eat Street. Officially designated
in 1998 by the city,33 this name took hold and soon became the corridor’s identity from Grant
Street to 28th Street. These 13 blocks (the city considers it 17) contain a collection of over 50
restaurants representing the entirety of culinary diversity of the city of Minneapolis. Ranging from
Fig. 3.4: Cycling along Eat Street. Source: Photograph by author. Americana to German, Mediterranean to Vietnamese, all ethnicities are represented, as well as all budgets. The core of Eat Street is located between 25th and 29th Streets, designated an Activity
Center by the Minneapolis Plan for Sustainable Growth.34 This section contains the highest this by allowing more cars onto the ROW, crowding cycles out of the traffic lanes. Current cycle concentration of eating establishments (30) along the entire corridor. As the epicenter ofthe counts show 900 cyclists29 ride the route daily, with variations by season. This is notably lower than corridor, area must allow the greatest access by customers as well as maximum room for the some of Minneapolis’s most heavily used routes (Midtown Greenway at 3470 per day).30 Despite functions of Eat Street. The rest of the corridor still maintains the identity of Eat Street, but the Minneapolis’s status as a bike friendly city, this corridor in one of the city’s most bikable concentration of restaurants is slightly less. neighborhoods has been largely ignored in the city’s bicycle master plan. This quiet energy must be extended north, to connect with the renewed energy being The physical environment along the corridor is conducive to walking and cycling. Low brought to Nicollet Mall by Field Operations in 201535 and south to merge with the vibrant Lake grades, with a slight crest between 22nd and 24th, result in an easily walkable and cyclable route. Street corridor. Thus, in addition to a north-south cycle and green connection, Nicollet isthe The climate also plays an important role. Seasons vary greatly, with average winter lows in the missing link between the major activity centers of downtown Minneapolis and Lake Street. The single digits Fahrenheit and summer highs in the 80 degree Fahrenheit range.31 In the summer, design of the corridor must reflect this, encouraging street life and vibrancy not just in pockets, but building facades and street trees provide adequate shade for pedestrians. In addition, the summer along the entire length. Life on the street must be uniquely tailored to Eat Street, such as room for
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café seating, community gardens, fresh produce Bicyclists, gold ranking40 city has the terrain suited to easy cycling, mostly flat with few hills. This is
and farmers market, etc. Access from the true of Nicollet Avenue. In addition, the cycling network is becoming increasingly street-based,
neighborhood must be balanced with access with 92 miles of on-street bike facilities crisscrossing the city (Fig. 3.6). Working in conjunction with
from across the city. The space must provide for this network is the nation’s first large scale bikeshare program: Nice Ride. Begun in 2010, this
the entire range of demographics, similar to the program has grown to 1,550 bikes housed at 170 stations throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul.
restaurants along the corridor. Pedestrian realm Last year, over 300,000 trips were taken on Nice Rides, April through November.41 When touring
redesign can achieve many of these goals, but Minneapolis by bike to explore why the city was named top bike city in 2010 (and again in 2013)42
another program must also be leveraged to , Bicycle Magazine’s own Steve Friedman stated that “In Minneapolis, people ride and don’t
ensure the continued success of Eat Street. consider it that big a deal.”43
In 2010, Minneapolis was name the top In order to leverage this culture, Nicollet Avenue must become a cycle friendly corridor. The
bike city in America by Bicycling Magazine.36 The transition from off-street to on-street facilities has been slow for riders, due to a lack of investment.
breakthrough of the city’s bike culture was Most on-street bike lanes are a few feet of street gutter separated from traffic by a six inch white
complete, and the recognition gave momentum painted stripe. Eat Street is an opportunity to begin a gradual transition: by removing traffic, the
to increasing cycling’s presence on streets. corridor becomes similar to a trail but by maintaining transit and positioning the lane within the
Minneapolis’s bike culture began on off-street ROW, it becomes a cycletrack. Cycling must be safe, easy, and most of all, fun. Minneapolis bike
trails. Currently, there are 85 miles37 of off-street culture thrives due to a diverse cycle ridership. All riders must feel comfortable riding along Eat
trails within city limits. Cedar Lake trail is the Street, without fear of automobile traffic, overcrowding of the bike lane, and with opportunity to
nation’s first “bicycle freeway”38 and the park or rent a bike. Cyclists must be treated as pedestrians, activating the space, rather than mere
Midtown Greenway gives cyclists their own grade transients passing through. Gehl recommends bike lanes be separated physically from vehicular
at which to cross the entire city, east to west. traffic, including transit in the case of Nicollet Avenue.44 The lane should be paved in a smooth,
These projects have helped the number of continuous material that will allow for a comfortable ride on a lane that doesn’t buckle or crack like
citizens commuting by bike up to 4.5%, second asphalt.
highest in the nation.39 This League of American The city of Minneapolis has designated this corridor as an area for reinvestment. Since the
Nicollet Avenue Task Force released their 2000 report, the rehabilitation of Nicollet as one of Fig 3.5: Nicollet as a programmatic connector between activity areas. Source base: Google Minneapolis’s main streets has been a high priority of the city.45 However, the way the municipality Maps, diagram by author. sees the corridor functioning and its goal of rehabilitating the corridor are in conflict. The
24 25 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Fig. 3.6: Cycle routes in Minneapolis. Thicker lines are more heavily used. Concentrated cycling Fig. 3.7: A 5-second facade on Nicollet Avenue. Source: Photograph by author. locations are shown. Nicollet Avenue is highlighted in yellow. Source base: Google Maps, diagram by author.
Minneapolis Bicycle Master Plan46 calls for bike lanes on 1st and Blaisdell Avenues, but none on Current zoning code in Minneapolis is traditional Euclidean zoning, based on use. This ensures that
Nicollet Avenue, despite the direct connection to the Greenway. A lively Eat Street calls for a plan similar uses will occupy the space in a particular area of the city: for example, no heavy industry in variance, moving these lanes back to Nicollet Avenue and encouraging high cycle ridership along a residential neighborhood. Nicollet Avenue fits a particular market niche. As a commercial corridor, the corridor. In addition, the definitions of the street must be changed. Nicollet Avenue is a B-minor there is already demand for commercial uses. As Eat Street, there is a demand for restaurants. As arterial and a commercial corridor. The city defines this corridor as encouraging commercial and a potential streetcar route, there is demand for dense residential. Thus, zoning by use is redundant. mixed uses, including dense residential. It also calls for the balancing of through automobile traffic Form-based zoning dictates the form of the building, rather than the use. Active facades, limited with access to local businesses, both automobile and pedestrian.47 This thesis presents an setbacks, narrow articulations (Gehl’s “5-second façade” as seen in Fig. 3.7)48 are all factors that alternative vision to these definitions as well. A commercial corridor should be designated by the could be required by zoning code. This directly influences the edge condition, which is vital to lively amount of people moving through the area, rather than the number of cars. cities. In addition, a change in parking restrictions could allow buildings to be built with less parking,
Another need along the avenue to support the programmatic function is form-based zoning. or none at all. This directly supports the goals set out by the last two mayors of Minneapolis: to
26 27 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
grow the population without adding a single car.49 The proposed streetcar along the corridor also supports this goal.
Nicollet Avenue is not a corridor short on program. With identities such as Eat Street and
Nicollet Mall to the north, the city has put much effort into studying and guiding resources toward this corridor. Thus, the following proposal is not one to inject life into the street, to give people a reason to come to Nicollet; it is a call to design a space that adequately supports all these functions as efficiently as possible. This program includes prioritizing the pedestrian realm with distinguished walking and café seating spaces. Transit and cycling infrastructure make up the rest of the street.
Differentiation of the two commercial nodes with residential points in between will prevent design becoming mundane along the corridor and break it up into distinct sections. Nicollet Avenue will be a space where the public can access many of the treasured businesses currently along the corridor without fear of traffic, crime, and will turn park and shop into a leisurely stroll along
Minneapolis’ Main Street while maintaining the city’s goal of reconnecting the street grid. Part 3. Best Management Design Practices
Redesigning Nicollet Avenue would be a large and involved process. Much like Field
Operation’s redesign of Nicollet Mall, it would be a multi-year project involving the community,
city, and other stakeholders. Thus, Jan Gehl’s concepts of Copenhagenization would produce a
strong foundation of design factors, acting as a list of Best Management Practices that can be used
to reevaluate how streets are designed in Minneapolis. These are the alteration of the ground
plane/street section, creation of a cycle network, the “Nicollet Floor”, vertical elements (street
furniture and plantings), improvements to existing infrastructure, and programming/activation of
the corridor.
Ground Plane
The most significant change to the Nicollet corridor is the ground plane. The street section
will support the new function of a pedestrian, cycle, and transit corridor. What once gave 66% of
the ROW to vehicular traffic will be reduced to just 30%. This takes the form of a two lane transitway
28 29 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Vehicular Tra c Transit Network Cycle Network Pedestrian Network Exsisting Infrastructure ExsistingPedestrianEatTransitVehicularCycle Street Infrastructure Network Network Overview Network Tra c
Fig. 4.1a (far left): Fig. 4.1d (near right):
Grant Street Grant Street Grant Street Cross Traffic on Eat Pedestiran Facilities on Grant Street Grant Street Grant Street Street. Eat Street
15th Street 15th Street 15th Street Fig. 4.1b (middle): Fig. 4.1e (middle): 15th Street 15th Street 15th Street Transit Routes and Existing Infrastructure stops on Eat Street reconstructed on Eat Street Interstate 94 Interstate 94 Interstate 94 Fig. 4.1c (near left): Interstate 94 Interstate 94 Interstate 94 Cycle Facilities on Eat Fig. 4.1f (far right): Eat Street Street Overview showing concentration nodes.
Franklin Ave Franklin Ave Franklin Ave Franklin Ave Franklin Ave Franklin Ave
24nd Street 24nd Street 24nd Street 24nd Street 24nd Street 24nd Street
26th Street 26th Street 26th Street 26th Street 26th Street 26th Street
28th Street 28th Street 28th Street 28th Street 28th Street 28th Street
Midtown Midtown Midtown Midtown Midtown Midtown Greenway Greenway Greenway Greenway Greenway Greenway
Lake Street Lake Street Lake Street Lake Street Lake Street Lake Street
N N N N N N
End of trip End of trip facilitiesTransit Island Transit Island facilities NiceRide Stations NiceRide Stations
30 31 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
down the center, featuring two 12 foot lanes with the possibility for embedded streetcar lines. Fig. 4.2a (top): Typical Existing Street Section Pulling the transit as far as possible from the building facades will promote a safe and serene Typical Minneapolis street section. pedestrian realm. Buses and streetcars share the same space, but with proper scheduling as well Fig. 4.2b (middle): as serving the same stops, this will create no issues. Without automobile traffic, travel times will Eat Street Seciton actually decrease, increasing the efficiency of transit along the corridor. Fig. 4.2c (bottom): Eat Street in plan
Beyond the transitway are two, 9 foot cycletracks separated by curbs and a grade change Sidewalk Parking Travel Lane Turn Lane Travel Lane Bus Pullover Sidewalk 13.5’ 10’ 11’ 11’ 11’ 10’ 13.5’ of 6 inches. This curb acts as the physical barrier so important to the Copenhagen-style bike lane. 53’ Road
In addition, this allows the bike lanes to serve more like an off-street facility, which studies have 80’ ROW shown are much more likely to attract American cyclists. While they are still on-street, they are protected by a buffer of curb with less traffic. These lanes will be one way on either side of the Eat Street Section street and are a similar width to the cycletracks on Nørrebrogade (3 meters). “Conversation lanes” enhance the experience of cycling from simply commuting to recreation, a pleasant form of transportation allowing two friends to cycle while carrying a conversation or a couple to cycle while holding hands. Cyclists are pedestrians in this scheme.
The remaining ROW is given to the star of Nicollet’s show: the pedestrian. This equates to Sidewalk Cycletrack Tranist Lanes Cycletrack Sidewalk 19’ 9’ 12’ 12’ 9’ 19’ 19 feet of sidewalk on either side of the street, again separated by a curb 6 inches in height. This 80’ ROW area is what makes Eat Street unique in Minneapolis. The first 9 feet from the build-to line is the utilitarian zone. This space is kept clear and open for pedestrians strolling along the corridor. Users Eat Street Plan window shop, promenade, or jog outdoors without fear of vehicular conflict. Outdoor sale of goods is restricted to the first 3 feet, with a minimum of 6 feet free at all times. The remaining 10 feet of sidewalk space is the active zone, with programmable uses to suit the location. This space is used for café seating near restaurants, movable furniture (per Gehl), or open plantings in less active zones. This is the zone where trees are planted, with tree trenches extending full blocks. Capping this with permeable pavers reduces runoff and allows trees and plantings to receive adequate Clear Street Car Lines Program Sidewalk Embedded in Street Zone water. Together, this area provides more than just a conduit for foot traffic. The sidewalk is a Zone 10’ 9’ promenade with gathering spaces and areas where the unique social and ecological functions of
32 33 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Eat Street Section with Eat Street Intersection with Cross-Traffic Plan Transit Island
Sidewalk Cycletrack Tranist Lanes Cycletrack Sidewalk 19’ 9’ 12’ 12’ 8’ 6’ 14’
Transit Island
80’ ROW
Grade seperaton disappears through intersection Transit Island Plan
Franklin Ave
Paving carries through intersection
Cafe Tables Bus Transit Island 8’ Fig 4.3a (top): Transit Island on Eat Street in section. Fig. 4.3b (bottom): Transit Island on Eat Street in plan.
Transit Island positioned Fig. 4.4 (opposite): Intersection with Traffic in plan (Franklin Avenue shown) Nicollet Ave before intersection
34 35 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Eat Street can take place.
The most unique change to the street section is the introduction of transit islands (Fig
4.3). Every other block, there are pedestrian islands between the cycletracks and transit lanes.
These 8 foot wide islands provide a protected place for transit riders to wait for buses and streetcars as well as provide a safe landing zone for disembarking. It also prevents the transit vehicles from crossing the bike lanes to reach the curb. This solution is taken directly from Nørrebrogade, but also offers an ideal resolution in this American context. The points on the cycle track where the islands occur will narrow by 3 feet (to 6 feet) and the sidewalk by 5 feet (to 14 feet).
These transit islands occur every other block before intersections allowing traffic. These are Grant, 15th, Franklin, 26th, 28th, and Lake (24th is a busway to the west). (Fig. 4.1a-b) These intersections are designed to provide minimal interruption to east-west traffic, but to provide a continuous platform upon which Eat Street flows. Transit islands provide protected waiting space for pedestrians waiting to cross Nicollet, as well as shortening the distance they must cross. The narrowing of the cycletrack as a result slows bike traffic and heightens awareness before reaching the intersection. The cycletracks also level out with the road to prevent rough crossing for automobile traffic on the cross streets. However, the paving of Eat Street continues through the intersection, to remind cars they are leaving their realm to pass through this corridor. (Fig. 4.4)
Cycle Network
Integral to the success of Nicollet Avenue is a well-connected cycle network. The ramp from the Midtown Greenway to Nicollet connects the avenue to the most heavily used cycle corridor in the city, providing the base needed for a successful cycle network. This hinge in the
Minneapolis bicycle system allows cyclers traveling east-west along the greenway direct access into downtown and Southwest Minneapolis. The cycletracks along the avenue provide a safe and smooth route for cyclists to ride through the area. In addition, elevating them above the road Fig. 4.5a (top): Current view north from 26th Street. Source: Photograph by author Fig. 4.5b (bottom): Rendering of redesigned Eat Street north from 26th Street. allows them to participate in city life along the corridor. Cyclists are much more likely to see an item through a store window and stop than car drivers. Thus, these users must be supported and
36 37 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
welcomed into this new public space to foster social and economic vitality.
One way this occurs is the placement of ample Nice Ride stations (Fig 4.1c). The number of stations along the corridor doubles to 6 total, placed at key intersections that will capture the most riders via visibility and ease of use. One example is Franklin Avenue. This key transit node is a major traffic artery. Thus a Nice Ride station at this intersection would be highly visible to many people, especially those who do not drive cars. For those who own bikes, parking is vital. Without ample bike parking, cyclists are less likely to stop. End of trip facilities, including bike racks, are located at each intersection as well as midblock will allow cyclists to park near where they want to go, but still encourage walking along the avenue. The width of the cycletrack ensures there is room for cyclists to stop midblock and get off their bikes onto the sidewalk, and minimizes bike on bike conflict. The final element that encourages cycling is the repair station located sporadically along the corridor. These are similar to those located along the Greenway and provide tools and air to Fig. 4.6: James Corner Field Operations diagram showing the Nicollet Floor proposed for Nicollet Mall. Source: James Corner Field Operation, Nicollet Mall Project, nicolletmallproject.com. assist cyclists should their bikes require maintenance while riding along Nicollet.
“Nicollet Floor” the precast concrete pavers are used in the clear zone, the “promenade.” Nicollet Floor ensures The paving of Eat Street takes inspiration from the Nicollet Mall proposal by Field that not only does Eat Street feel like a cohesive space, but all of Nicollet Avenue feels like a Operations. What they call the “Nicollet Floor” consists of a series of concrete pavers, treated continuous corridor, bringing vibrancy and unity to the entire stretch. differently depending on the function of the pavement. The building frontage is paved with a tactile Vertical Elements warning strip for the visually impaired. Pedestrian zones are paved in a precast concrete unit paver. While necessary to activate the space, too many plantings, signs, and street furniture can There is porous bonded aggregate in the planting zones and trench drains along the curbs.50 This clutter a space and crowd the pedestrian space. Thus, these elements will be limited to the program system of paving is continued through the intersections to produce a consistent “floor” from façade zone of the sidewalks and used sparingly. Trees run the entire length of the avenue, providing a to façade, Washington Avenue to Grant Street. This language of paving continues along Eat Street, pleasant canopy as well as shade from the summer sun. In residential blocks, this zone is open and though in a slightly different application. Due to the position and grade change of the cycletracks, filled with native and drought resistant plantings. These are used to soften the hard edges of the there is slightly more interruption in the flow of the material. The cycletracks are paved with a streetscape with individual businesses allowed input on placement within their café seating areas. smooth concrete in order to ensure a comfortable ride for cyclists, rather than the rough paving Street furniture is limited to a few permanent benches and fixtures per block. Remaining system used elsewhere. The trench drains are placed along both sets of curbs: the transit lanes and space is given to businesses, for items such as café tables for restaurants and stands for shops and cycletracks. The permeable aggregate is used along the programmable space of the sidewalk and
38 39 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
markets. The rest will be movable furniture, akin to Gehl’s observation that movable chairs allow
people to create their own informal groupings. Without automobile traffic, the need for signs is
reduced. The lighting scheme along Nicollet is reduced to one set of lamps serving both the
vehicular scale and pedestrian scale. Each lamp-post has two levels of lights, one higher to light the
transitway and cycletrack, another to lower to light the sidewalk more efficiently. The corridor is
safer in the dark hours with more even lighting placed in a more efficient scheme along the avenue.
Existing Infrastructure
Removing vehicular traffic from Nicollet Avenue requires improvements to existing
alleyways and side-streets to account for deliveries, garbage removal, parking, and emergency
vehicles. Most of Nicollet, on both sides, has an alleyway running midblock (Fig 4.1e). These are
vital to deliveries, garbage collection, and parking. Improving these, as well as retaining side street
access to this network will replace on street deliveries for businesses. In addition, emergency
vehicle access is maintained at the intersections of Grant Street, 15th Street, Franklin Avenue, 24th
Street, 26th Street, 28th Street, and Lake Street. 24 feet of ROW is ample room for the maneuvering
of emergency vehicles down the street to their destination. With this support network of alleyway
infrastructure, the avenue still functions as before, ensuring equal access to all businesses for
deliveries and the like. The half blocks between the adjacent streets and the alleys is repurposed
as parking spaces for the businesses along Nicollet. The pavement is widened to allow for driving
and parking, with a drainage/planting area in the middle with trees. All of the parking surfaces is
permeable, to allow storm water to reach tree roots.
Program/Activation
The final element to an active and vibrant Eat Street is in regards to program. With the
extra room, there are ample opportunities for programming, such as art fairs, food fairs, sidewalk
Fig. 4.7a (top): 25th Street east of Nicollet as it appears today. Source: Photograph by author. sales, runs, cycle races, among others. These large events welcome and introduce the entire region Fig. 4.7b (bottom): 25th Street was of Eat Street as a pocket park with parking. to this amenity. The most important programming, however, is the everyday activities. Moving café
seating outside, setting up racks of clothing in front of a store, displaying produce on stands all
40 41 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Pocket Park and Parking in Plan
Split Parking
Programmable Space
25th Street
Split Parking
Nicollet Ave Alley 1st Avenue
Fig. 4.8: Pocket Parks with Parking in plan (25th Street shown). Each side street will be programmed individually to work with the corridor.
work to activate the space on a daily basis and bring everyday business out into this public space. a day or two day pass for Nice Rides in order to give visitors direct access to Eat Street. With the
Eat Street becomes a place where people live their lives rubbing shoulders with their neighbors, safer corridor for biking, all users feel welcome and Eat Street provides a public space for people enjoying a stroll to their destination, rather than park and shop. A commute becomes an enriching from across the country and world. MIA and MCAD pull classes and exhibitions a block west to conversation with the corridor, reflecting the pride of Minneapolis. Eat Street is a unique place, and Nicollet, grounding these institutions in the fabric of Eat Street. with a unique treatment, can become a new type of American public space. The pocket parks are an important programmable element. With 18 possible pocket
Another type of programming is working with institutions along the corridor to activate parks, ample opportunity exists to provide spaces for the need or enjoyment of the community and the space. The Minneapolis Convention Center is one of the leading draws for tourists with its corridor. Features common to all pocket parks are the extraction of Eat Street perpendicular to the many conventions throughout the year. The convention center offers incentives to guests, such as main corridor, providing pools of calm along the flow of activity. The sidewalks are pulled back and
42 43 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
treated as a space in and of themselves. Beyond that is the programmable space between Nicollet and the alleys, the former ROW of the cross streets. This grassy area, once planted with trees becomes a fenced in dog park or a community garden. One is a fresh garden to restaurants along the corridor to grow fresh ingredients. There is performance space in one, with a slight slope incorporated as an amphitheater. All programmed space works to foster and engage the identity of
Eat Street, resulting in a cohesive and active public space within the renowned park system and cycle network of Minneapolis.
Fig. 4.9a (top): 14th Street east of Nicollet as it look currently. Source: Photograph by author. Fig. 4.9b (bottom): 14th Street east of Eat Street as a pocket park.
44 45 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Conclusion
Jan Gehl advocates a very particular form of urbanism focused on the pedestrian. This
directly conflicts with traditional auto-centric American planning practices. The current challenge
is merging the two, translating Gehl’s concepts into cities designed for automobile traffic. Streets
cannot simply be traffic corridors; they must be treated as public space. Pedestrian and cycle
friendly streets lead to lively, safe, and sustainable cities. Copenhagenization has become a world-
wide phenomenon, but when translated into a Midwestern American context, it must present
flexible and adaptable solutions. This project proposes one set of practices which are by no means
a definitive answer. It is one of many ways in which these concepts could be translated and applied
to Eat Street in Minneapolis. One thing is for certain: beginning with a street already endowed with
a strong identity and programmatic function allows for experimentation with the knowledge that
Fig. 4.10a (top): Nicollet south of the Greenway. Currently a K-mart store. Source: Photograph by people will use the space. Once these practices become more developed with proven results, they author. Fig. 4.10b (bottom): Eat Street south of the Greenway post-reconnection. can become methods for injecting life into neglected streets, making them into vibrant spaces.
46 47 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Moving forward with this paradigm shift occurs in three scales. For the Copenhagenization of
Nicollet Avenue, this project works under the assumption that the K-mart blocking the Nicollet
ROW has been reconfigured, allowing the street to reconnect to Lake Street. Next, the city needs to put a new emphasis on urban design, rather than simply on traffic planning. This crucial step has been taken with the recently created Urban Designer positions within the Community Planning and Economic Development Department. Expanding this to a broader scale, the city needs to acknowledge the fundamental differences in the investment in on-street and off-street facilities.
The investment in cycle-specific infrastructure in the form of trails has brought Minneapolis bicycle culture to the forefront of the Grand Rounds. Moving forward, the city needs to bring cycling to the forefront of the urban street grid, giving the same investment to on-street facilities as they do off-street. Creating spaces based along a new an improved cycle network would elevate Minneapolis to a leader in the Midwest, if not the nation, in cycling culture. As a representative of the average
American city (excluding anomalies such as New York), Minneapolis is the perfect testing ground for this shift from auto- to anthropocentric urban design.
This paradigm shift reflects Gehl’s call to return cities to people. In the automobile culture, people become so transient that they have no real connection to place. By removing the metal cage and placing two feet on the sidewalk, pedestrians become grounded in a place. When one walks or cycles through a well designed public space, they are connected to that place. This activates the city by encouraging people to participate in the theatre of urban life. As Danish philosopher Søren Aabye Kierkegaard said,
“Above all else, do not lose your desire to walk. Every day I walk myself into a state of well-being and walk away from every illness. I have walked myself into my best thoughts, and I know of no thought so burdensome that one cannot walk away from it.”51
48 49 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
Notes http://www.minneapolismn.gov/publicworks/public-works_traffic-counts. 26. Metro Transit, “Metro Transit Arterial Transitway Corridors Study,” Metro Transit, http://www. 1. City of Minneapolis, Public Works Department, “Nicollet-Central Modern Streetcar,” City of Minneapolis, metrotransit.org. www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us. 27. City of Minneapolis Public Works Department, “Nicollet-Central Modern Streetcar.” 2. Jan Gehl, Cities for People, (Washington DC: Island Press, 2010). This section will repeatedly refer to Gehl’s 28. City of Minneapolis Public Works Department, “Minneapolis Bicyclist and Pedestrian Count Report,” City ideas, all from this book. Only items given in Gehl’s own words will be cited. For more details on Gehl’s of Minneapolis, http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/pedestrian/index.htm. complete concepts, see Cities for People, Chapter 3: The Lively, Safe, Sustainable, and Healthy City, 62-115. 29. Ibid. 3. Ibid., 19. 30. Ibid. 4. Ibid., 75. 31. Minneapolis/St. Paul Metro Area Climate Page, http://climate.umn.edu/doc/twin_cities/twin_cities.htm. 5. Christopher Alexander, A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Constructions, (New York: Oxford University Press, 1977) 600. 32. Ibid. 6. Gehl, Cities for People, 77. 33. Marjorie Pearson, Penny Petersen, and Charlene Roise, “The Evolution of the Whittier Neighborhood,” Whittier Alliance, http://whittieralliance.org. 7. Ibid., 65. 34. City of Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development Department, “The Minneapolis 8. Ibid., 146. Plan for Sustainable Growth,” City of Minneapolis, http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/cped/planning/plans/ 9. Ibid., 94. cped_comp_plan_2030. 10. Gulsah Akar, Kelly Clifton, “Influence of Individual Perceptions and Bicycle Infrastructure on Decision to 35. City of Minneapolis, Nicollet Mall Project, www.nicolletmallproject.com, (accessed April 30, 2014). Bike,” Transportation Research Record, 2140, 165-172. 36. “Top Bike Cities,” Bicycling Magazine, http://www.bicycling.com, (accessed April 30, 2014). Jason Borah, Steve Hankey, Kristopher Hoff, Greg Lindsey, Brad Utrecht, Xize Wang, and Zhiyi Xu, “Estimating 37. City of Minneapolis, “Bicycling in Minneapolis,” City of Minneapolis, http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/ Use of Non-Motorized Infrastructure: Models of Bicycle and Pedestrian Traffic in Minneapolis.” Landscape bicycles/ (accessed April 30, 2014). and Urban Planning, 170(2012), 307-316. 38. Cuningham Groups, Maxfield Research, Quam Sumnicht and Associates, and Short Elliot Hendrickson Theresa Carr, Jennifer Dill, “Bicycle Commuting and Facilities in Major US Cities.” Transportation Research Inc., “Midtown Greenway Development Plan,” City of Minneapolis, http://www.minneapolismn.gov/cped/ Record, 1828, 166-123. planning/plans/cped_midtown-greenway. Jennifer Dill, Nathan McNeil, Christopher Monsere, “Multiuser Perspectives on Separated, On-Street Bicycle 39. City of Minneapolis, “Bicycling in Minneapolis.” Infrastructure,” Transportation Research Record, 2314, 22-30. 40. League of American Bicyclists, “Awards Database,” League of American Bicyclists, http://bikeleague.org/ 11. Jane Jacobs, The Death and Life of Great American Cities, (New York: Random House, 1961), 34. bfa/awards#community (accessed April 30, 2014). 12. Gehl, Cities for People,105. 41. Nice Ride Minnesota, https://www.niceridemn.org/ (accessed April 30, 2014). 13. Jeff Mapes, Pedaling Revolution: How Cyclists are Changing American Cities, (Corvalis: Oregon State 42. “Top Bike Cities,” Bicycling Magazine. University Press, 2009), 237. 43. Steve Friedman, “#1 Bike City: Minneapolis,” Bicycling Magazine, http://www.bicycling.com/news/ 14. Klaus Grimar, “More City Life on Nørrebrogade,” Walk21 Conference, http://www.walk21.com/. featured-stories/1-bike-city-minneapolis. 15. Ibid. 44. Gehl, Cities for People,Ch 3: The Lively, Safe, Sustainable, and Healthy City. 16. Ibid. 45. Nicollet Avenue Task Force, “Nicollet Avenue Task Force Report,” City of Minneapolis, http://www.ci. 17. Klaus, “More City Life.” minneapolis.mn.us/cped/resources/reports/cped_nicollet_index. 18. Ibid. 46. Don Pflaumm, “City of Minneapolis Bicycle Master Plan,” City of Minneapolis, http://www.ci. minneapolis.mn.us/bicycles/projects/plan. 19. Gehl, Cities for People,146. 47. City of Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development, “The Minneapolis Plan.” 20. Klaus, “More City Life.” 48. Gehl, Cities for People, Ch 3. 21. Ibid. 49. See RT Rybak’s State of the City speech at http://themayorblog.wordpress.com/2013/04/11/ 22. Ibid. minneapolis-in-2025-more-people-more-jobs-every-person-every-place/ and Betsy Hodges’s Inauguration 23. Design Center for American Urban Landscape, “Nicollet Avenue Urban Design and Transportation Plan,” Address at http://www.minneapolismn.gov/mayor/news/speeches/2014inaugural-address. http://kingfield.org/wp-content/uploads/2010/04/Nicollet-Avenue-Urban-Design-and-Transportation-Plan. 50. For more on Field Operation’s “Nicollet Mile” proposal, see their most recent presentation, available at pdf. The Design Center for American Urban Landscape is now the Metropolitan Design Center at the http://www.nicolletmallproject.com/gallery. University of Minnesota-Twin Cities 51. Gehl, Cities for People,V . 24. Ibid. 25. City of Minneapolis, Public Works Department, “Traffic Count Management System,” City of Minneapolis.
50 51 COPENHAGENIZATION OF NICOLLET AVENUE DEREK HOLMER
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