Nicollet Mall Project Update

Activity on Nicollet Mall to shift for construction

Work to redesign and improve Nicollet Mall begins soon. This season, crews will begin upgrading and relocating power, gas, telecommunications, sanitary sewer and water lines beneath the street in advance of the complete reconstruction. Over the next two years, the entire pedestrian and transit mall will be reconstructed, from building face to building face. More information on the new design, including renderings of how the new mall will look, is available at www.nicolletmallproject.com.

Because of this construction, there will be noticeable impacts on mall traffic and activities:

• Pedestrians - Pedestrian access will be maintained throughout construction. Sidewalks will remain open on at least one side of the street at all times, and customers and workers will be able to get to every business.
• Buses – Metro Transit plans to detour bus service from Nicollet Mall for construction later this spring, likely in May. Buses would return once the mall construction project is completed in 2017.
• Taxis – Taxis will not be allowed on the mall once construction begins. When the work is completed in 2017, Nicollet Mall will no longer have taxis north of 12th Street.
• Bicycles – Bike traffic will be maintained on the mall this year, but bikes will not be allowed in 2016 until the mall construction project is completed.
• Farmers Market – For the 2015 and 2016 seasons, the Thursday farmers market will move to Hennepin Avenue.
• Food vendors – Food trucks and other food vendors will move off the mall for this year and next year.
• Sidewalk dining – There will be sidewalk dining throughout the reconstruction. However, depending on where work will be taking place, restaurants may have outdoor seating temporarily removed during construction.

Plans call for a $50 million redesign of Nicollet Mall from Washington Avenue to Grant Street. The design includes features that prioritize the space for pedestrians, including hardier trees, enhanced sidewalk spaces, improved lighting and new places for people to enjoy the mall. The grand opening for the new Nicollet Mall will take place in 2017.

Since the 1880s, Nicollet Mall has been a retail and business hub for Minneapolis. Over the years, the mall has been through two major renovations: one in 1968 and one in the 1980s. Today the space is used by 130,000 Minnesotans daily and is home to events such as the Nicollet Mall Farmers Market. The City and the Minneapolis Downtown Council are in the process of redesigning the mall to make it an even better destination and a more powerful economic engine for the region and the state.