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For release: May 17, 2014

Contact: 

Peter McLaughlin, Hennepin County Commissioner: 612-348-7884
Carolyn Marinan, Public Affairs: 612-348-5969
Kayla Bromelkamp, Public Affairs: 612-348-8536

News release

Hennepin County, partners and community celebrate opening of Target Field Station

Minneapolis, MN -- Today Hennepin County, its many partners, and the community celebrated the grand opening of Target Field Station. Connecting people and places, the new multi-modal transportation hub offers public green spaces, connections to the Metro Blue and Green lines and to Northstar Commuter Rail, and access to the North Loop community. 

“Target Field Station is the first major component of the 2025 regional plan to be built,” said Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin. “It provides a critical connection for our regional transportation system.”

This new public space will connect 500 trains daily from the Metro Blue LRT (Hiawatha), Metro Green Line LRT (Central Corridor), Northstar Commuter Rail, the future Metro Green Line LRT extension (Southwest) and the proposed Metro Blue Line extension (Bottineau).

“This space is truly transforming,” said Hennepin County Board Chair Mike Opat. “Target Field Station was a visionary project intended to connect multiple regions while giving essential improvements to transit riders.”  

Target Field Station’s more than 104,000 square feet of space include a public plaza for year-round special events and activities, green space, a 1,000-seat amphitheater, office space, retail shops and a 286-car underground parking garage. The Minnesota Twins, Target and Hennepin County will offer programming and special events in the public space.

Thanks to additional investments by the Minnesota Ballpark Authority, the Minnesota Twins, United Properties and Target, the space includes a large granite mural on the wall of the amphitheater, a sculpture at the driveway entrance, a Daktronics video board, nine LED light “totems” and iconic Target Field Station signage.

Environmental features

Hennepin County is seeking certification from both the State of Minnesota’s B3 Guidelines and the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED® Rating System for Target Field Station’s innovative design that reduces environmental impact.

The public plaza surfaces will remain clear in winter thanks to more than 23 miles of radiant heat tubing that will melt snow using excess heat generated by the neighboring Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC).

Storm water will be collected in underground storage systems capable of holding 40,000 gallons for reuse at the HERC. The storm water project was supported by the Mississippi Watershed Management Organization.

About Target Field Station

Target Field Station is a project of Hennepin County, the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority and the Hennepin County Housing and Redevelopment Authority. A mix of federal, state and local sources funded the $79.3 million project. More than half of the project is funded by local government.

The station was built by Knutson Construction and designed by Peter Cavaluzzi, FAIA of EE&K a Perkins Eastman company.

Maintenance of the station will be handled by Metro Transit,the Minnesota Twins and United Properties. 

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Look for more news on the Hennepin County website at www.hennepin.us/news.