Collection on the Minneapolis Model City Program

In 1966, in the midst of aggressive inner-city urban renewal projects and urban rioting, the Johnson administration devised a community-driven urban renewal policy through the newly-created Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Department. In 1967, the "Model Cities" program gave $11 million in grants to 65 projects in 63 cities across the country that ranged in size from New York City to Pikeville, Kentucky.

Beginning in 1968 and continuing into the mid-1970s, the Minneapolis Model City Program operated as free-standing entity with its own staff, working in conjuction with the City of Minneapolis to improve urban neighborhoods by involving residents throughout the planning, implementation, and evaluation process. Minneapolis selected a large portion of south central Minneapolis as its "Model Neighborhood Area." The program sought to address physical problems, such as substandard housing and deterioration, as well as social problems in education, heathcare, and other social services. Particularly in the initial planning process and in its final evaluations, the program recieved mixed reviews from local and national media. With constant cuts to funding, the program realized a fraction of its original goals, yet it ushered a new generation of urban leaders, especially those from communities of color.

Part of a larger urban renewal plan that included projects in north Minneapolis, the Gateway District, Como, and the St. Anthony-Main neighobrhoood, the "Model Neighborhood" project covered 3.9 square miles and several of the city's major instutitions, industries, shopping districts, and parks. Its borders were: Lyndale Avenue to the West; Franklin Avenue, 3rd Avenue S, 16th Street, Marquette Avenue, Fifth Avenue, Fifteenth Street, Portland Avenue, and Seventeenth Street to the north; Hiawatha Avenue to the east; and 32nd Street, 15th Avenue, and 36th Street to the South. Residents of the Central, Corcoran, Lyndale, Phillips, Powderhorn Park, Ventura Village, and Whittier neighborhoods all participated in the program.