 Join Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins and Co-host Mayor Jacob Frey for Afternoons with Andrea: Celebrating Minneapolis Black Business Week! July 21-27
When: Friday, July 19th, 12-1:30pm
Where: Mama Sheila’s Soul Food Kitchen, 3744 Bloomington Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55407
Connect with business leaders to hear about their unique experiences including highlights, challenges, growth and perspective on opening, operating and expanding business in Minneapolis. We will also hear from City staff with expertise in the areas of procurement and economic development.
The best way to support Black Business is to buy from Black Business, there will be an opportunity to purchase lunch while supplies last!
Minneapolis Black Business Week, July 19-27th, kicks off early with our Afternoons with Andrea event on July 19th and runs through July 27th. There will be a myriad of events, promotions and opportunities in support of black businesses in Minneapolis. Please visit www.MinneapolisBlackBusinessWeek.com for more information.
We hope you will join us for this panel discussion on July 19!
 I can’t begin to express my enthusiasm in attending the METRO Orange Line Bus Rapid Transit Full Funding and Groundbreaking ceremony on Wednesday! Read the full news release below:
July 17, 2019 (MINNEAPOLIS) Cities thrive when people have access to reliable, safe, accessible transit options. This morning Minneapolis City Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins attended the METRO Orange Line Bus Rapid Transit Full Funding and Groundbreaking ceremony, along with leaders from Metro Transit, the MN Department of Transportation, the Metropolitan Council, Hennepin and Dakota Counties and City leaders from Minneapolis, Burnsville, Bloomington and Richfield.
The METRO Orange Line is a 17-mile bus rapid transit route that connects Burnsville, Bloomington, Richfield and downtown Minneapolis, providing faster, more frequent bus service to tens of thousands of riders every day.
Background: Planning for the METRO Orange Line project began in 2003. While construction began in 2017, full federal grant funding was just awarded last month. Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins has represented residents of Ward 8 and greater Minneapolis on the Orange Line’s related I35-W Lake Street Transit Access Project, including service on the project advisory committee, over the past 15 years. “This project is one of the most important public transit improvements of our time and I am extremely proud to have been a fierce advocate for the I35-W and Lake Street transit access improvements, and the commute will provide new opportunities for employment and affordable housing options for Minneapolis residents,” stated Jenkins.
Initially, the plan included the addition of a highway exit ramp from I35-W directly to the 28th Street Wells Fargo campus, bypassing our local neighborhoods and serving, primarily, only those commuters from outside of our city. Thanks to community organizing and the leadership of former Minneapolis Council Member Robert Lilligren, the benefit to Minneapolis residents became integral to the project. Lilligren was a key strategist for transforming previous plans into a major improvement for Minneapolis -- the 35W Lake Street Transit Access Project - which includes a transit-only access ramp between downtown Minneapolis and I-35W and a new, safer Lake Street Station with greater accessibility, amenities and high quality design for riders. “Not only will the new Lake Street transit access station improve bus service but it also means better bicycling and walking connections to local streets and the Midtown Greenway,” said Lilligren.
Former Council Member Elizabeth Glidden, also a champion of the 35W Lake Street Transit Access Project, worked diligently to ensure the needs of Minneapolis transit users remain of utmost importance throughout the planning and design stages. “After decades of community activism, I’m pleased to see the Orange line fully funded and on the way to completion. Prioritizing transit, and a connection to the Lake Street community, is the right thing to do for communities forgotten for decades behind the freeway wall. Congratulations to all - organizing works,” stated Glidden.
| 
