City Planning Commission postpones Democracy Center vote


MinnPost’s Twin Cities Documenters program trains and pays community members to take notes at local government meetings. Below are Documenter Judy Hanks’ summary and observations from the May 18 Minneapolis Planning Commission meeting. You can find Judy’s full notes here, which include links to the agenda and video.

Summary 

  • The commission approved a public land sale for numerous properties in North Minneapolis. This was a consent agenda item, which means there was no discussion. 
  • The commission approved a new, six-story, 90-unit building by the Project for Pride in Living and Noor Companies at 3033 Blaisdell Avenue, which is adjacent to PPL’s newly completed Opportunity Crossing building. Previously, this site was home to a Wells Fargo branch, which was destroyed during the unrest following George Floyd’s murder in 2020.
A sketch showing the portion of the alley that is proposed to be vacated as part of the redevelopment for the new Democracy Center at the former Minneapolis police Third Precinct.
A sketch showing the portion of the alley that is proposed to be vacated as part of the redevelopment for the new Democracy Center at the former Minneapolis police Third Precinct. Credit: City of Minneapolis
  • The commission postponed a vote on plans for a new Democracy Center at 3000 Minnehaha Ave. and 3033 Snelling Ave., the former Minneapolis police Third Precinct building.
    • Several nearby business owners or staff spoke during public comment expressing opposition to relocating the public alley between Snelling and Minnehaha Avenues. Multiple speakers said their business was not contacted by the city about these plans. 

Observations and follow up questions: 

Accessibility: Did you face any challenges that made it harder to document the meeting or that may have made it difficult for others to attend?

Scene: About how many members of the public attended the meeting? If watching virtually, what was the livestream count (if applicable)? Was anyone protesting outside? 

  • There are 184 streaming views as of May 21, 2026

How to get involved:

When is the next meeting for this board/committee? Any upcoming public hearings? Online surveys? 

The Planning Commission next meets June 8.

More context:

Read Documenter Judy Hanks’ full notes here, which include links to the agenda and video recording. View our full database of notes here.

Want to become a Documenter? You can start by making an account here.



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