urbanMSP

CONCLUSION In seeking injunctive relief under MERA, Smart Growth bore the burden of demonstrating that its requested relief was necessary or appropriate to protect the environment and would not cause unnecessary hardship to the city. We conclude that the district court erred by assigning the burden ...

The end of the opinion: “We conclude that, although the district court did not violate our remand instructions, the district court did abuse its discretion in ordering injunctive relief that is based on legal error, that is unsupported by the evidence in the record, and that imposes unnecessary hard...

The saga of low density affordable housing takes a new turn. https://finance-commerce.com/2024/05/minnetonka-oks-twin-homes-after-acreage-added-to-site/ Minnetonka city council approved this. But only because the church was forced to sell off the church playground to this development. Adding this ex...

Late amendment to preserve parking on The Mall despite the 2020 plan to focus of the park space being park space. https://wedgelive.com/plan-to-expand-forested-green-space-in-uptown-at-risk-over-parking-concerns/ The movement to hand over parkland for 24 hour residents parking making a stealth attack.

Finance and Commerce covered a CRE panel on the future of massive office campuses.

https://finance-commerce.com/2024/04/pa ... nversions/

To the surprise of few here… mixed use of the future.

Wat.

https://finance-commerce.com/2024/04/ef ... ota-house/

Dueling lobbyists at the end of it. The lobbyist against the bill clarifying that city plans do not need a deep environmental review claims there are not enough votes in the house to pass.

Working remote means I rarely visit downtown. I take in a Shakespeare play at the Guthrie once a year. Since last year I noticed 2nd St has had a two-way curb separated bike lane added. I kinda wish it was on the north side instead of the south. But it’s a really nice upgrade from paint and tickle s...

Citylab has a story on the removal in Rochester (NY)

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features ... ghway-dies

I kind of wish there was an admission that the greater Minnesota cities are highly dependent on large percentages of local government aid for basic operation of what those local governments already allowed to be built. To be charitable, it seems like there is an objection that infrastructure has cur...

The executive director of the Coalition of Greater Minnesota Cities opines that local governments try really really hard to actually allow development that makes sense. They put lots of thought in keeping more housing from being built where they don’t want more people to be. It’s not their fault reg...

Interesting attempt to rename different aspects of the national housing shortage ingredients.

https://www.liberalcurrents.com/the-vic ... n-housing/

But it seems as though the Eden Prairie Town Center Station will have no access to the north (Costco direction)? Really unfortunate if that remains the case, a situation that calls for some political pressure. The Emerson HQ is between the Asia Mall and Town Center station. Costco is a bit to the w...

It’s a good question. I’d guess a combination of a history of prioritizing the least possible sidewalk and boulevard space to maximum street width, plus excessive sidewalk salt use. So trees that are planted just die out after a few years. I can’t know for certain but I’d also wager that in seasons ...

The League of Minnesota Cities likes keeping a housing shortage status quo.

https://finance-commerce.com/2024/04/lo ... ning-bill/

The LMC heavily activated the exurban fear caucus to lobby against the bill for zoning reform.

Pretty pissed about “local control” arguments right now.

http://www.minnpost.com/state-governmen ... s-session/

I understand that this is the app for the co-op ride sharing service :

coop-rider.app.link/nhCldcELqIb

I don’t know if it is true, but apparently they need 10,000 Minnesotans to join by May for service to be started?

Monte, do you recall the fate of the bus stop on the northeast corner?