U of M Minneapolis Area Neighborhood Impact Report Wins Planning Award

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL (10/16/2007) — The U of M Area Neighborhood Impact Report, published by the Office of University Relations and prepared with assistance from CURA, earned a Merit Award for Outstanding Planning or Urban Design Project, Program, or Tool at the 2007 Conference of the Minnesota Chapter of the American Planning Assotiation.

In making the award, judges noted that “The [Neighborhood Impact Study] engagement process produced a thoughtful, highly readable report full of insights that celebrated the shared values and vision that emerged among the stakeholders. The researchers analyzed many safety, transportation and housing questions by conducting numerous meetings and interviews led by planners from the University and consultants over a four-month period, resulting in $750,000 from the state to implement some of the study’s recommendations.”

The Minnesota state legislature mandated the Neighborhood Impact Study in conjunction with its approval of funding for a new on-campus Minnesota Gopher football stadium. The study was to examine how the presence of the University of Minnesota affects the character and livability of neighborhoods adjacent to the University's Minneapolis campus, and recommend strategies to achieve a shared vision for the area. The state legislature called for the creation of a task force to complete the study and identified CURA as a collaborator to undertake research to inform the work of the task force. The project involved CURA staff members Barbara Lukermann and Elissa Mahlik, as well as consultant Dan Cornejo, the City of Minneapolis, the Stadium Area Advisory Group, and graduate students from the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs.

The Neighborhood Impact Study project was the subject of a recent CURA Reporter article. A copy of the full report and appendices (PDF) are available online.

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