urbanMSP

https://mplsdowntown.com/nicollet-sprin ... nnicollet/
this is going on today. It's a bit crazy. There is the big band stage, but then they also have 4-5 solo acts around the space and they have powered amps. Just creates a lot of noise. I'm glad I wasn't trying to have lunch on the patio.

https://mplsdowntown.com/nicollet-sprin ... nnicollet/

this is going on today. It's a bit crazy. There is the big band stage, but then they also have 4-5 solo acts around the space and they have powered amps. Just creates a lot of noise. I'm glad I wasn't trying to have lunch on the patio.

Walked by today and buses were having issues turning onto/off of Nicollet. One one hand, I like having more activity along Nicollet. On the other, it sucks to disrupt transit.

On yet another hand, transit on Nicollet moves so slowly, thanks to stops and lights, that it's pretty much impossible not to pass any bus you encounter on a bike.

Nicollet buses need some sort of signal priority or they'd probably be better off elsewhere.

Reason #2324 that the buses should have just stayed on Hennepin.

Just look at that turn out!

In their defense, it hadn't started yet at 10:30. There were a hundred or so people there when I went by at 12:30.

The lights on 5th, crossing the tracks, are terrible. Every morning people stand on all four corners looking around because no people, cars, trains, or buses are moving or seem to have a light. Seems to be a trend as the pedestrian signals on 3rd Ave N around the light rail are terrible too.

Yeah. The issue seems to be that the trains get a fairly long dedicated phase (which is good!), but it always happens in the sequence whether there's a train coming or not. Since even during rush hour there's only a train coming through every 2.5 minutes, there's a lot of wasted time there. Seems like it shouldn't be too hard to only trigger the train signal phase when there's a WB train sitting in Nicollet Station or an EB train leaving Hennepin station, but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

The downside is it conditions people to just cross at a red light, because it is obvious no one else is moving (plus there is only one lane of car traffic in one direction).

They're blocking the street! Arrest them all!

The leaves are really filling in now after the water has been turned on. Rain helped too.

The leaves are really filling in now after the water has been turned on. Rain helped too.

Happily, some of the trees have revived. However, I'm still noticing quite a few dead or visibly distressed ones, although I'm guessing some of that should be expected the first year given transplant "shock". I'm sure they'll replant and replace over the summer...

'

Okay I see now. The trees in front of Daytons have lushed out, which is awesome for the locations future use, but City Center almost predictably has bad trees. I'm going to guess their excessive salt use is playing a role.

City Center is where downtown goes to die, even the trees.

Maybe the cloudy day doesn't help, but even with the trees it still seems pretty gray.

It'd be so easy to fix... Wrapping poles in brighter colors, more storefront having garden spaces, MORE GLASS (honestly, glass can be many colors and they'd break up the tans, grays and browns.

It'd be so easy to fix... Wrapping poles in brighter colors, more storefront having garden spaces, MORE GLASS (honestly, glass can be many colors and they'd break up the tans, grays and browns.

Good suggestions! And frankly , filling all those empty storefronts between 8th and 5th streets would be a huge help to animate that section. The Mall definitely looks much more colorful between 8th and 12th with all the flower beds planted along the perimeters of the sidewalk cafe's. At night , the LED conical caps on top of the light poles change/alternate colors and looks great. How about brightening up more storefronts with multicolored Christmas lights during the winter?

Next time Nicollet Mall needs repaving, I really suggest using some warmer colors than just cool greys and dark browns. To be honest , I'm rather surprised the landscape architect chose such an austere color palate for the Mall's flooring in a city famous for its long , cold, and sun deprived winters.

Follow the yellow brick road, and the red one and the green one too.

Some flower beds/planter boxes would make a big impact. Also, while most of the birches have budded, some are definitely dead. Counted about 6 of them this morning. Sad.

Am I the only one who thinks this lacks the punch of a $50M+ project? It's basically a glorified bus route