Department of Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED) Records
Description of Contents
This collection consists of 134 boxes of materials from the several iterations of the Minneapolis Department of City Planning and Economic Development (CPED). The materials are organized for the most part in the order in which they were received and include documents from Minneapolis Housing and Redevelopment Authority (MHRA), Minneapolis Community Development Agency (MCDA), and CPED. The date range of the collection is from the late 1940s to the early 2000s. Materials cover project planning and implementation, newspaper clippings, correspondences, organizational documents, thousands of photographs, other audio visual material, and realia.
Dates
- 1950s - 1990s
Access Restrictions
The physical collection is available for use in Special Collections during the department's open hours. Photographs from this collection are available in the Minneapolis City Planning Department Collection in the Hennepin County Library Digital Collections.
History
The Minneapolis Department of Community Planning and Economic Development’s (CPED) mission is to grow a vibrant, safely built, livable city for everyone. CPED creates and funds projects related to housing, employment, commercial, industrial, and neighborhood development. CPED is organized into four divisions: long range planning, housing development and policy, economic development and policy, and development services.
The first iteration of what evolved into CPED was the Minneapolis Housing and Redevelopment Authority (MHRA), founded in 1947. MHRA sought to eliminate urban blight through public housing and commercial and industrial development projects. In 1981 MHRA merged with Minneapolis Industrial Development Commission and the City Coordinator’s Development Office to create Minneapolis Community Development Agency (MCDA). In 1991, the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority (MPHA) separated from the MCDA, creating two independent agencies. In 2003 CPED was formed and integrated into city structure. CPED centralized the City’s planning and development departments, combining four entities under one organization: MCDA, the Planning Department, the Empowerment Zone (EZ), and Minneapolis Employment and Training Program (METP). These efforts to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the department are reflected in several internal and external studies, including the 1982 Task Force on Streamlining the Development Process, 1992-1993 MCDA Blue Ribbon Task Force, 1995-1996 MCDA ordinance revision, and the 1999 Focus MCDA report.
One significant project of CPED’s predecessors was the Gateway District redevelopment of the late 1950s and 60s. Under MHRA, Minneapolis’ skid row along Washington Avenue was demolished and replaced by new construction of housing and offices. Riverfront revitalization has been another major project for the department, beginning in the 1970s and continuing today. Riverfront development and preservation seeks to protect the Minneapolis segment of the Mississippi River as a natural and cultural resource. Additionally, the department has conducted resident surveys beginning in 2001, polling residents about general satisfaction and city services. See the Project series in the collection for additional issues addressed by CPED.
Extent
66 Linear Feet (134 boxes)
Language of Materials
English
- Title
- Department of Community Planning and Economic Development Records
- Status
- Completed
- Date
- September 2014
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Hennepin County Library Special Collections Repository
Minneapolis Central Library
300 Nicollet Mall
Minneapolis MN 55401 U.S.A.
612-543-8200
specialcoll@hclib.org