The Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board (MPRB) has div- ided the Missing Link into four segments. The portion that would run through St. Anthony Village is in segment A. (MPRB)
The Missing Link may be coming to St. Anthony Village.
The long-planned but never built final segment, or missing link, of the Minneapolis Grand Rounds trail system could take a turn into St. Anthony in the future.
A public open house, put on by the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board (MPRB), attracted about 40 St. Anthony residents on Monday, Feb. 3 — some of whom were not happy with the project.
There was no presentation at the open house. People gathered around a series of posters and photographs and drawings that explained the project and talked with representatives of the Park Board, landscape firm and the city. The residents were encouraged to write their concerns on sticky notes and paste them on the posters.
Eavesdropping on conversations, one complaint was that this is a Minneapolis city project and why should it go through St. Anthony? Residents suggested that the trail system go down Stinson Boulevard, the eastern border for the city.
Another concern was that the new trail along St. Anthony Boulevard would affect the privacy of homes adjacent to the route. In some cases, the new trail would be built on the government-owned right-of-way land not far from homes.
The Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway was the 1893 brainchild of Horace Cleveland, a landscape architect. He envisioned a “green necklace” of parkways and open space around Minneapolis. Up through the 1920s, Minneapolis acquired the lands needed for Grand Rounds, except for a gap through Northeast and Southeast Minneapolis.
This gap is now known as the Missing Link. As the city grew, that part of Northeast became heavily industrialized, and a parkway system didn’t mesh well with the character of the neighborhood.
In 2008, the city planned a route through Northeast, but the plan failed when the Metropolitan Council turned it down because all the partners weren’t working together.
In 2018 the Legislature granted $5.5 million for the project and MPRB prioritized funding for the link. In 2023, the Met Council adopted the Missing Link plan.
Above, a St. Anthony Village resident talked with City Engineer Justin Messner, who works with St. Anthony about the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board’s plan for the “Missing Link,” part of which will run through St. Anthony. (Al Zdon)
The new plan would extend the trail system, which already runs along St. Anthony Boulevard in Minneapolis, past Stinson Boulevard, through St. Anthony and past the 35W freeway to Industrial Boulevard in Minneapolis.
The Missing Link would then snake its way south through the industrial corridor following Hennepin Avenue, 27th Street and eventually cross over a large railroad yard — a difficult task — and then pass through the University of Minnesota and over the Mississippi River where it will join the rest of the Grand Rounds on the south side of the river.
The entire project will cost upwards of $30 million.
The state money has been allocated at up to $1.5 million per year for four years, ending in 2027.
The St. Anthony portion would pass through a residential neighborhood along St. Anthony Boulevard, cross over Silver Lake Road and New Brighton Boulevard (Hwy. 88), and pass between Gross Golf Course and the Sunset Memorial Cemetery. It will then cross over 35W and head south on Industrial Boulevard.
Andrew Montgomery, a senior associate with Damon Farber, the landscape company hired to plan the route, said the project was at the 10% design stage. The St. Anthony route is called “Segment A” in the planning documents.
The route will pass by Trillium Park where a loop will be built to gradually raise the trail so it can pass over Silver Lake Road and Hwy. 88. Changes will be made at the intersection to improve safety.
For the most part, the trail will be 12 feet wide and will serve both pedestrians and bicyclists, with a line down the middle.
Montgomery said construction on parts of the project could begin in the next couple of years. But he also said the present design was a “preliminary concept” and that the Park Board and Damon Farber were still gathering input.
Those attending stayed about an hour. Many seemed to just be curious about the project, while others had strong feelings. One resident called it a “terrible idea.” A woman whose home abuts the planned trail on the boulevard said people on the path already look in her window, but now the trail will be even closer to her house.
Julie Aldrich, the project manager for the Park Board, assured one resident that there will be no St. Anthony taxpayer money used in the project. Aldrich said, “The opportunity to engage with the public is really important.”
Mayor Wendy Webster, who attended the open house, said the city had been approached by the Minneapolis Park Board about 10 years ago, but the St. Anthony council had no interest at that time.
This past year, she said, the city was able to see some preliminary drawings on what the Missing Link would look like if it included St. Anthony Boulevard through the city, and she said she became interested in the new design and how it might help the city.
“There are a few things that St. Anthony needs, and one is for the city to become more walkable for people, and also to become safer for bicyclists.”
She called the project planning “very preliminary” at this time, “But I was happy to see and hear people interact with the designers and give them some feedback.”