Praise and Pushback: How the Wedge Weighed In on the Hennepin Redesign

A neighborhood survey

As the city advanced its Hennepin Avenue South reconstruction proposal, the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood Association's community development committee conducted a survey to gather input from Wedge residents. The goal was to channel local opinion into the city's process rather than let the corridor be reshaped without neighborhood voice.

The proposal itself was divisive. The plan promised enhanced bus and bike lanes, but it also called for eliminating most on-street parking along the corridor, a trade-off that split opinion among residents and business owners alike.

Coverage at the time described a redesign that drew a mix of praise and criticism, a fair summary of how the Wedge itself received it.

Why the association got involved

For a neighborhood whose western boundary is Hennepin Avenue, the redesign was not an abstraction; it touched the daily commute of nearly everyone in the wedge. The association's involvement reflected a broader belief that residents should have a structured way to influence decisions made about their streets.

That advocacy is part of LHENA's stated mission to provide a structure for neighborhood leadership and participation.

A neighborhood that shows up with data and a clear position gets heard — even on a project it does not control.

How the Wedge weighed in

As the city advanced its Hennepin Avenue South reconstruction, the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood Association did what it tends to do with a big project on its border: it organized. LHENA — the Lowry Hill East Neighborhood Association, pronounced 'Lee-Nah' — is the volunteer-led nonprofit recognized by the City of Minneapolis as the Wedge's official neighborhood organization, one of dozens across the city. Its mission is to provide a structure for neighborhood leadership and participation, to facilitate the equitable sharing of resources, and to advance a vision for the neighborhood. Gathering and relaying resident opinion on a corridor that forms the neighborhood's western edge fits squarely inside that mission.

The redesign was genuinely divisive. The plan to convert general lanes into dedicated bus lanes and add a two-way protected bikeway won strong support from residents who wanted faster transit and safer biking, and drew pointed concern from others worried about parking, deliveries and access for the avenue's small businesses.