urbanMSP

So they're just going to be regular concrete sidewalks now or what?

Honestly I kinda like it. It's much brighter.

I was thinking the exact same thing.

One thing I've noticed about this is that on every Facebook post or StarTribune article posted, people are less concerned about the switch from pavers to poured concrete than they are about the fact that buses and taxi's are still allowed on the mall. Can't say I blame them though...

Poured designed concrete is how they described it. Better textures and colors than just plain concrete.

Will the people upset about buses staying on Nicollet Mall express similar anger when the city will continue to allow cars on Hennepin Ave's upcoming rebuild?

i agree with lisa goodman. the pavers and the transit shelters were the two things I really liked about this design.

so we're getting a dumbed down pseudo pedestrian mall.

Will the people upset about buses staying on Nicollet Mall express similar anger when the city will continue to allow cars on Hennepin Ave's upcoming rebuild?

They don't attempt to brand it "Hennepin Mall". Getting cars off Nicollet Ave. 50 years ago was a huge win for that era that likely preserved some semblance of downtown retail until today. Getting buses off Nicollet was undoubtedly the #1 point of citizen feedback throughout the process, and really it's the next logical step to making the mall great again. Hennepin has been allowed to sit largely untouched since the beginning, Nicollet has been where the city and citizens have chosen to try and make something great for the last half century.

Nearly all of the comments on the Strib article are trash (per usual), but there was one critical of James Corner that I had to agree with at least a little bit. I think there's some truth to the notion that JCFO was the wrong firm for this project. They hit a big home run with the High Line, and were the super in vogue choice at the time (2 years ago or whatever), but were fundamentally wrong for this project. This just isn't their forte.

Having been in Denver last month, all we needed to do was copy the nearly perfect 16th Street Mall. That's it. Copy. Paste. Add MN filter.

And the 16th Street Mall has very frequent shuttle buses...

Umm, this is awful. Has everyone seen how the poured concrete made to look more decorative has held up on Hennepin? Around Block E? Even over in SLP around Excelsior and grand. It will need to be replaced regularly, and gets stained, tired and worn very fast. Salt makes it crumble. We are taking up very expensive granite pavers and replacing them with poured concrete. Very disappointing.

Very expensive, very slippery when wet granite pavers. I'm having trouble getting too mad about that.

I guess I'll look closer when I walk home today, but I haven't noticed any particular issues with the concrete around Block E=MC².

Oh it's in terrible shape, especially on the 1st ave side, and it is not that old. Take a look...drives me nuts every time I walk on it.

I'm just very disappointed in this, I just feel like poured concrete is a really big downgrade...not even stamped? I mean, I guess it is good they aren't cutting anything else in the already cut down design, so far...but poured concrete on what's supposed to be the city's showpiece street? Ugh. I think it's a big mistake to go with such a cheap finish on this...going to cost much more money in the future, and not look classy at all...and again, look like a big downgrade from what is there. I almost feel like we would be better off just revamping every sign, light and fixture on the mall, adding lots more space for trees and some of the new art planned and re using the current surface (too late for that, of course).

To be fair, they had samples of the concrete materials they were planning to use on the project at the event... and all poured concrete is not equal... just as anything else. they had VERY high quality materials there. (I say having worked in the masonry industry for over 10 years.)

That is good to know! I mean, the kind that looks a little pebble-y, to use a technical term, looks OK. What's that called? Aggregate?

They don't attempt to brand it "Hennepin Mall". Getting cars off Nicollet Ave. 50 years ago was a huge win for that era that likely preserved some semblance of downtown retail until today. Getting buses off Nicollet was undoubtedly the #1 point of citizen feedback throughout the process, and really it's the next logical step to making the mall great again. Hennepin has been allowed to sit largely untouched since the beginning, Nicollet has been where the city and citizens have chosen to try and make something great for the last half century.

I'd really like to see buses moved off Nicollet, but I don't know what to do with them. The "temporary" shift to Hennepin is not working well.

I'm having a hard time getting worked up about a sidewalk looking like a sidewalk.

I'm having a hard time not. It isn't supposed to be just a sidewalk. 16th in Denver that people keep comparing to is not poured concrete or just a sidewalk. We are talking about a big downgrade in finishes from what's currently there on a $50 million project.

I have no trouble getting worked up over the price tag.

After looking at more of the renderings though, and reading descriptions from the designers..I am a bit more optimistic.

http://www.journalmpls.com/news-feed/ci ... ollet-mall

Very expensive, very slippery when wet granite pavers. I'm having trouble getting too mad about that.

I guess I'll look closer when I walk home today, but I haven't noticed any particular issues with the concrete around Block E=MC².

It's pretty much crumbling on 1st & 6th. Also note, when Hennepin was redone back in 2002(?) , utility work almost immediately tore up sections that was replaced with plain concrete. Bugs me to this day.

Question! (If I've missed this already being answered somewhere, please redirect me.) Is the extensive utility work occurring right now going to leave Nicollet Mall streetcar-ready? Or are they tearing it up just to potentially tear it up again in a couple years?