Minneapolis City Planning Department Records

The Minneapolis City Planning Department was established in 1921. Staff included a City Planning Engineer, assistants, draftsmen, architects, and surveyors, all housed in Minneapolis' Municipal Building. In 1918, the City Planning Act for Minnesota and the City Planning Commission were established, but before that date there was no concerted approach to city planning in Minneapolis.

Throughout its existence, the City Planning Department worked alongside the Planning Commission, preparing comprehensive, long-range plans and studies, conducting research to identify priorities for community improvements, and coordinating social and physical improvement programs both inside and outside city government. Unlike the Planning Commission, which consisted of individuals appointed by the mayor and others serving on the City Council, School Board, Park Board, and County Board, individuals in the City Planning Department were staff of the City of Minneapolis.

In 1958, the Planning Department hired Lawrence Irvin, who served as the Department's Director for over 20 years. Throughout the 1960s, the Department was involved in numerous neighborhood urban renewal and downtown planning projects. Based on the Community Improvement Program (CIP) study conducted by the Department, the City Council initiated a program called "Decision '67, Action for Better Living," consisting of three main projects aimed at improving physical, social, and economic conditions - the Pilot City Program, Model City Program, and Downtown Business District. The Planning Department was particularly effective in obtaining federal grant money to execute the City's improvement projects. However, by the mid-1970s, federal funding models had shifted and neighborhood groups became more directly involved in planning programs, diminishing the need for such extensive coordination with the City Planning Department.

In 1968, the City Coordinator's Office, led by Thomas Thompson, was reorganized to include the City Planning Department, which then became known for a time as the Planning and Development Division, with separate Planning and Development Departments operating within it. Lawrence Irvin remained Division Director, Ralph Quiggle served as Director of Planning, and Delroy Peterson as Director of Development. The Division consisted of numerous other professional and clerical staff, including planner Richard Heath, who joined the Department in 1964 and was heavily involved in the Community Improvement Program study. In 2003, the Planning Department, along with three other City agencies - the Empowerment Zone, Minneapolis Community Development Agency, and Minneapolis Employment and Training Program, were combined to form the Department of Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED).