No consensus on vision for GF Square

Two groups held separate meetings in July to discuss the future of George Floyd Square.

The Community Visioning Council (CVC) is a community-led group, and there was a visioning workshop led by the city of Minneapolis with 4RM+ULA and the Cultural Wellness Center.

Each group began meeting after the city-appointed Co-Creation Team dissolved late last year to expand the conversation beyond the road right of way to include the memorial and Peoples’ Way (the abandoned Speedway gas station, now owned by the city). Despite an ambitious timeline established by the city that would present a “Final Vision Report” to the City Council on Nov.12, there is no consensus on a shared vision for 38th and Chicago.

 

A few dozen neighbors met at the Belfry Apartments/Calvary Church space (3901 Chicago Ave.) on July 20, where about 15 people took turns describing what it takes on a daily basis to care for the Square, the memorials, community members and visitors.

They spoke of general upkeep that includes picking up litter, straightening up the Book Shelf free library and organizing the Peoples’ Closet 24/7 free clothing exchange. They provide ongoing maintenance and repair of structures, like the greenhouse and fist sculptures, and tend to the multiple planters and gardens throughout the space. They even fundraise to keep two porta potties on site.

Different online chat groups meet outside of the twice daily in-person meetings at the Peoples’ Way. One, called the “Nerd Herd,” was described as “community available for research and deep dives,” and another as a forum to assess which of the 24 Demands of Justice Resolution 001 (bit.ly/georgefloydsquare-a) have been met and how to meet the rest.

Jeanelle Austin, executive director of Rise and Remember (formerly called George Floyd Global Memorial), spoke of two principles that guide their work: 1. Everything is someone’s offering, and 2. “We are people over property, all day every day.”

“Conservation is not just the ephemeral objects, but the story,” Austin pointed out. “It’s so important that we get the story correct.” This includes the experiences of Black neighbors, Black protesters and Black community members who put their bodies on the line to create the Square and keep it safe, but who can’t come into these meeting spaces because their trauma is “that real.”

Austin also shared that Rise and Remember has had four Black youth interns on board who are learning cultural and arts preservation.

“This is an industry where Black people are underrepresented, so it is so important,” she said.

Members spoke of leading pilgrimages, holding vigils and bringing faith communities to the space. They also greet people from all over the country and the world who continue to visit the site daily to pay their respects to George Floyd and other lives taken at the hands of police. Still others mentioned the importance of being visible in protest, community care, and the power of art to uplift people.

Butchy Austin and Raycurt Lemuel of Brass Solidarity, a community band that plays at the Peoples’ Way Mondays at 5:30 p.m. in an “active sonic occupation” of GFS, spoke of the power of using music to engage people and support the movement.

“I found my voice in a spiritual way,” said Lemuel. A transplant from Washington, D.C., he’s heard the saying “We Shall Overcome” for years. “My grandma was there at the Capitol doing the same thing. It’s like generation after generation. This is a very important moment for Minneapolis.”

For CVC Co-Chair Jennie Leenay, it was important to show the wide range of things already happening in the Square. “We are not starting from zero by any means. We have been doing this for almost five years now, and what I want us to do is continue this work and build up and connect with each other in all our different facets,” said Leenay. “No one’s going to take care of our community better than we can.”

Attendees took part in a brief online exercise that captured their sentiments on a number of topics (including their favorite thing about the Square, important thing(s) the Square does) and generated word clouds based on responses. The word “community” stood out for many of them. 

To the question “What is your why?”, the word most used was “love,” showing a passion for the work that extends well beyond questions of buildings, busing and businesses.

 

A few days after the CVC meeting, about 60 people including city staff and consultants attended the city’s third visioning workshop held at The Square event space (3736 Chicago Ave.) wherein preliminary design ideas for the roadway and Peoples’ Way were shared.

Nathan Koster of public works presented three options for the streets and sidewalks that make up the right-of-way: open, transit mall and pedestrian plaza. All retain the roundabout at the intersection of 38th and Chicago and allow traffic and buses (the 23) traveling east-west on 38th St. All incorporate green space and wider sidewalks; none include bike lanes. The open option would allow two-way traffic along all of Chicago Ave., while the transit option would allow only transit on Chicago north of 38th St. The pedestrian option would make that same block of Chicago a cul de sac that would close off traffic for the space between the Peoples’ Way and UNITY (formerly CUP) Foods. In this option, the buses on Chicago (the D-Line and 5) would detour as they do today.

During a question and answer period, Jay Webb said the meeting should have started in a different way and led attendees in saying the name of Sonya Massey, a Black woman who was killed on July 6 by a deputy who entered her Illinois home after she called 911 about a possible prowler.

“See we’re here, we wanna re-envision something. We can’t re-envision Sonya Massey,” said Webb. “So let’s not get it twisted. Stop killing Black people.” This sentiment was echoed by others in the room.

Minneapolis Community Planning & Economic Development’s Rebecca Parrell shared five building options for the Peoples’ Way, ranging from single to six stories high, each with varying degrees of green space. Building frontage would be on Chicago Ave. for all of the concepts but one, whose main entry would be on 38th St.

Parrell said the city plans to issue a request for qualifications this year, which is the city’s process for requesting applications from those who wish to become an owner, developer or steward of the site. The city could either own and lease the property to a business, nonprofit or LLC, or sell it.

Meeting attendees then formed smaller breakout groups to discuss the concepts.

 

Questions and comments revolved mostly around the right of way, with no clear favorite among the three options. This is consistent with the previous workshop (Visioning Workshop #2), the summary for which reads: “There is no consensus on whether the Square should be closed, limited or open.”

A spokesperson for the first group stated that most of its members expressed disappointment in the pedestrian mall design, which devoted a lot less space to pedestrians than envisioned. The Square has long been defined as “fist to fist”: Chicago Ave. from 37th to 39th streets and 38th St. from Elliot to Columbus avenues – so four full blocks rather than one end of just one block – and includes the Peoples’ Way and Say Their Names Cemetery.

Another group felt the concepts were very “car forward” and out of keeping with city policy to prioritize pedestrians first, then bicycles, then transit, then vehicular traffic.

Others spoke to the need for transit access and parking, with one group describing the challenge of accommodating the “internal community,” some of whom want drivability and park-ability, and the “external community,” where transit malls and pedestrian plazas make more sense.

There were concerns about disrupting the Mourning Passage, the names of lives lost to law enforcement that are painted along Chicago Ave., and about how long construction would take and its impacts on neighbors and visitors.

There were also calls for environmental impact statements to assess the various environmental impacts of any proposed scenario.

 

Overall, people spent much less time discussing concepts for the Peoples’ Way. One group reported wanting to maintain the space for community, whether it was green, covered or closed. Another shared both the feeling that the community is already using the space and attracts people as it is, as well as the opinion that building up would give the opportunity to provide the kinds of programs that will help move forward the vision of people who are already active in the Square. Another group wanted the space to be used by a nonprofit so the community has more say in its operations. Attendees also wanted to ensure the building was open to the public beyond just “museum hours,” and there were calls to maintain 24-hour bathroom access.

General concerns were voiced as well, such as whether the 24 Demands have been met, and the difficulty of separating the art and social justice from the place in a discussion focused on technical perspectives. There was concern over the city taking ownership of art and spaces that were created in protest against the same city.

 

The CVC meets at 10 a.m. on third Saturdays (next on Sept. 21) at Belfry Apartments /Calvary Church (3901 Chicago Ave.). The next city workshopis Sept. 24.