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Nokomis
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On Aug. 14, 2025, the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) published new proposed designs for Hiawatha Links, a project that is filling in the details for the long-term plan for Hiawatha Golf Course and surrounding parkland approved in 2022.
"Three design concepts explore varied approaches to thoughtful compromise that balance all interests at the park while making Hiawatha Golf Course more resilient to flooding," according to a MPRB release. There's one week left to provide feedback on the designs.
Use the links below to view the design concepts and give feedback.
All designs include a high-quality, flood-resilient, 9-hole, par 36 golf course with a driving range and new golf amenities. Each hole contains multiple tees and large greens that allow for two pin placements. This unique, but not unprecedented configuration allows golfers to play the course twice for an 18-hole round that offers a different experience the second time through.
Successful examples of this style of alternate routing can be found at Bobby Jones Golf Course in Atlanta, Ga., The Course at Sewanee in Sewanee, Tenn., and Sweetens Cove Golf Club in South Pittsburg, Tenn.
New amenities being considered include practice holes, a new youth learning facility, and a large putting green with varied terrain modeled after the famous Himalayas Putting Green at St. Andrews.
The historic character of the course and Solomon Hughes Sr. Clubhouse will be respected in accordance with its placement on the National Register of Historic Places. "The MPRB is proud of the history of Black golfers at Hiawatha and the recent clubhouse renaming and associated interpretive signs with information on the history of Black golf in Minneapolis and at Hiawatha. Hiawatha Links will continue to build on that legacy," according to MPRB.
Designs aim to increase and improve wildlife habitat and ecology in the area. This is accomplished through expansive and diverse wetlands and woodlands, lakeside or creekside activity centers, and improved natural corridors connecting to Lake Nokomis.
Restoring wetlands will drastically increase flood resiliency, according to MPRB. Groundwater pumping is expected to be reduced but continue where required to protect nearby homes to the same degree they are protected today. Pumped water could be reused for sustainable heating and cooling, grey water use and snowmaking for ski trails.
Hiawatha Links intends to welcome more people to the park, and create better connections between Hiawatha Golf Course, Lake Hiawatha, surrounding neighborhood and parkland, and the regional trail system, according to MPRB.
Connections and recreation opportunities are created through improved park paths and regional trail upgrades, lit cross-country ski trails with snowmaking, and new picnic and play spaces. Large patios or plazas tie everything together by connecting the park and golf course.
Hiawatha Golf Course suffered four major floods in the last 75 years. After the last flood, in 2014, the MPRB was informed it was pumping more than 240 million gallons of groundwater annually to keep the course dry, without a permit from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
MPRB Commissioners voted to approve resolutions that directed staff to develop a plan that reduces groundwater pumping and creates a more flood-resilient golf course.
These concept designs accomplish the direction provided by MPRB Commissioners. The designs were created through years of analysis and design, dozens of public meetings, specialized focus groups, and discussion with a wide range of stakeholders.
Feedback on the designs will be accepted through Aug. 31, 2025. Project staff will use feedback to hone the designs into one preferred concept for consideration by MPRB Commissioners, expected in early 2026.
After a final concept is approved, the MPRB will seek funding from a variety of sources. Hiawatha Golf Course will remain open until funding is secured and construction begins on the new designs. Project staff estimate the earliest construction could begin is 2030.
Anyone interested in the project is encouraged to explore the Hiawatha Links StoryMap, which has answers to lots of commonly asked questions and great background information on the course, land and process that led to this point.
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