What the Neighbors Want:The Neighborhood Revitalization Program's First Decade

Abstract

This article examines the first decade of Minneapolis' Neighborhood Revitalization Program. It seeks to frame the endogenously derived wishes of the city's residents within the power and resources given them by this unique citywide program. We review the completed neighborhood plans and funding allocations, revealing the patterns therein for insight about what is most important to current city residents. Some requests were reasonably predictable: improved housing, more policing, and improved commercial streets. Others were less expected: traffic calming, wetland promotion, and varied neighborhood identity efforts. In their great social and economic diversity, the 66 neighborhood plans hold great insight into the residents' ideas about contemporary city living. In addition, these plans, and residents' expectations, illuminate some contemporary tensions between what is wanted at the local level and what is needed at a larger city level.