Minneapolis, Minnesota

Minneapolis, Minnesota

Infobox Settlement
official_name = City of Minneapolis
settlement_type = City
nickname = City of Lakes, Mill City, Mini-Apple, Twin Cities (with St. Paul, MN)
motto = "En Avant" (French: 'Forward')


imagesize =
image_caption = Downtown Minneapolis in July 2008



image_




mapsize = 250px
map_caption = Location in Hennepin County and the state of Minnesota


mapsize1 =
map_caption1 =
subdivision_type = Country
subdivision_type1 = State
subdivision_type2 = County
subdivision_name = United States
subdivision_name1 = Minnesota
subdivision_name2 = Hennepin
government_type =
leader_title = Mayor
leader_name = R. T. Rybak (DFL)
established_title = Incorporated
established_date = 1867
area_magnitude = 1 E8
area_total_sq_mi = 58.4
area_land_sq_mi = 54.9
area_water_sq_mi = 3.5
area_water_percent =
area_total_km2 = 151.3
area_land_km2 = 142.2
area_water_km2 = 9.1
population_as_of = 2006
population_footnotes = cite web |title=Table 2: Minneapolis (city) QuickFacts from the US Census Bureau |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |url=http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/states/27/2743000.html | date = 2008-07-25 |accessdate=2008-09-20] cite web |title=Table 2: Population Estimates for the 100 Most Populous Metropolitan Statistical Areas Based on July 1, 2006 Population Estimates: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2006 |publisher=U.S. Census Bureau |url=http://www.census.gov/Press-Release/www/releases/archives/cb07-51tbl2.pdf | format = PDF | date = 2007-04-05 |accessdate=2007-04-16]
population_total = 372,833
population_metro = 3,175,041
population_density_km2 = 2595
population_density_sq_mi = 6722
timezone = CST
utc_offset = -6
timezone_DST = CDT
utc_offset_DST = -5
postal_code_type = ZIP codes
postal_code = 55401 – 55487
area_code = 612
latd = 44 |latm = 58 |lats = 48.36 |latNS = N
longd = 93 |longm = 15 |longs = 50.76 |longEW = W |longs = 6.72
elevation_m = 264
elevation_ft = 830
website = [http://www.minneapolismn.gov/ www.minneapolismn.gov]
blank_name = FIPS code
blank_info = 27-43000GR|2
blank1_name = GNIS feature ID
blank1_info = 0655030GR|3
footnotes =

Minneapolis (pron-en|ˌmɪniˈæpəlɪs) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and is the county seatGR|6 of Hennepin County. The city lies on both banks of the Mississippi River, just north of the river's confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Saint Paul, the state's capital. Known as the "Twin Cities", these two form the core of Minneapolis-St. Paul, the sixteenth-largest metropolitan area in the United States, with 3.2 million residents. The United States Census Bureau estimated the city's population at 372,833 people in 2006.cite web|title=Minneapolis city, Minnesota|url=http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ACSSAFFFacts?_event=Search&geo_id=&_geoContext=&_street=&_county=minneapolis&_cityTown=minneapolis&_state=04000US27&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&pctxt=fph&pgsl=010|publisher=U.S. Census Bureau|date=2006|accessdate=2008-03-02] Minneapolis and Minnesota celebrate their sesquicentennials in 2008. The city's celebration coincides with the 150th anniversary of its first town council meeting thought to have been held July 20, 1858. [cite web|author= |title=Minneapolis City Council Official Proceedings: Regular Meeting of July 20, 2007 (Resolution 2007R-370)|publisher=(published 2007-07-28, in Finance and Commerce)|url=http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/council/archives/proceedings/2007/20070720-proceedings.pdf|format=PDF|accessdate=2007-08-12 and cite web|title= 150 Years of Statehood| publisher= Minnesota Sesquicentennial Commission| url=http://www.mn150years.org/| date= | accessdate= 2007-07-21]

The city is abundantly rich in water with twenty lakes and wetlands, the Mississippi riverfront, creeks and waterfalls, many connected by parkways in the Chain of Lakes and the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway. Minneapolis was once the world's flour milling capital and a hub for timber, and today is the primary business center between Chicago, Illinois, and Seattle, Washington. Among America's most literate cities,cite web| publisher= Central Connecticut State University| title= American's Most Literate Cities| url= http://www.ccsu.edu/AMLC07/Default.htm| date= 2007| accessdate= 2008-02-04] Minneapolis has cultural organizations that draw creative people and audiences to the city for theater, visual art, writing, and music. The community's diverse population has a long tradition of charitable support through progressive public social programs and through private and corporate philanthropy. [cite news|author=Nocera, Joe|title=The capital of corporate philanthropy|url=http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/12/20/business/wbjoe22.php|date=December 22, 2007|work=International Herald Tribune|publisher=The New York Times Company|accessdate=2008-01-11 and cite web | title= A History of Minneapolis: Social Services |date=2001| publisher= Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us)| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/rs2.asp| accessdate= 2008-01-11]

The name "Minneapolis" is attributed to the city's first schoolmaster, who combined "mni", the Dakota word for water, and "polis", the Greek word for city. [cite web| title= Dakota Dictionary Online| publisher= University of Minnesota Department of American Indian Studies (fmdb.cla.umn.edu)| url= http://fmdb.cla.umn.edu/dakota/ and cite web | title= A History of Minneapolis: Naming of Minneapolis |date=2001| publisher= Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us)| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/eh4.asp| accessdate= 2007-03-18] Minneapolis is nicknamed the "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City".cite web|title= Minneapolis|publisher=Emporis Buildings (emporis.com)| url= http://www.emporis.com/en/wm/ci/?id=101331| accessdate= 2007-03-18]

History

Dakota Sioux were the region's sole residents until explorers arrived from France in about 1680. Nearby Fort Snelling, built in 1819 by the United States Army, spurred growth in the area. Circumstances pressed the Mdewakanton band of the Dakota to sell their land, allowing people arriving from the east to settle there. The Minnesota Territorial Legislature authorized present day Minneapolis as a town on the Mississippi's west bank in 1856. Minneapolis incorporated as a city in 1867, the year rail service began between Minneapolis and Chicago, and joined with the east bank city of St. Anthony in 1872.cite web | publisher= Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us) | date=2001 | title=A History of Minneapolis: Mdewakanton Band of the Dakota Nation, Parts I and II | url=http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/eh1.asp and cite web | title=A History of Minneapolis: Minneapolis Becomes Part of the United States| url=http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/eh3.asp, and cite web | title=A History of Minneapolis: Governance and Infrastructure | url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/cg1.asp and cite web | title=A History of Minneapolis: Railways | url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/tr2.asp | accessdate=2007-04-30.]

Minneapolis grew up around Saint Anthony Falls, the only waterfall on the Mississippi. Millers have used hydropower since the 1st century B.C., [cite web| publisher= HistoryWorld (historyworld.net) | title= History of Technology| url= http://www.historyworld.net/wrldhis/PlainTextHistories.asp?groupid=1222| date= | accessdate= 2007-04-04] but the results in Minneapolis between 1880 and 1930 were so remarkable the city has been described as "the greatest direct-drive waterpower center the world has ever seen." [cite journal| author= Anfinson, Scott F.| title= Part 2: Archaeological Explorations and Interpretive Potentials: Chapter 4 Interpretive Potentials| url= http://www.fromsitetostory.org/sources/papers/mnarch49/49a-concl.asp| date= 1989| journal= The Minnesota Archaeologist|publisher=The Institute for Minnesota Archaeology | volume=49| accessdate= 2007-04-03] In early years, forests in northern Minnesota were the source of a lumber industry that operated seventeen sawmills on power from the waterfall. By 1871, the west river bank had twenty-three businesses including flour mills, woolen mills, iron works, a railroad machine shop, and mills for cotton, paper, sashes, and planing wood. [cite web| author= Frame, Robert M. III, Jeffrey Hess| title= West Side Milling District, Historic American Engineering Record MN-16| publisher= U.S. National Park Service (via U.S. Library of Congress) | pages= 2| url= http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/ampage?collId=pphhdatapage&fileName=mn/mn0100/mn0100/data/hhdatapage.db&recNum=2&itemLink=r?pp/hh:@FIELD(DOCID+@BAND(@lit(MN0100)))| date= January 1990| accessdate= 2007-04-16] The farmers of the Great Plains grew grain that was shipped by rail to the city's thirty-four flour mills where Pillsbury and General Mills became processors. By 1905, Minneapolis delivered almost 10% of the country's flour and grist. [cite book| last= Salisbury, Rollin D., Harlan Harland Barrows, Walter Sheldon Tower| title= The Elements of Geography| date= 1912| publisher= University of Michigan, reprinted by H. Holt and company| pages= 441| url= http://books.google.com/books?vid=0_4TqunTYNFlQnPEq4&id=tPkBbeU1u-kC
accessdate=2007-06-27
] At peak production, a single mill at Washburn-Crosby made enough flour for twelve million loaves of bread each day. [cite web| title= History| publisher= Mill City Museum| url= http://www.millcitymuseum.org/history.html| date=| accessdate= 2007-04-04]

Minneapolis made dramatic changes to rectify discrimination as early as 1886 when Martha Ripley founded Maternity Hospital for both married and unmarried mothers. [cite book | author= Atwater, Isaac | publisher= Munsell (via Google Books) | title= History of the City of Minneapolis, Minnesota | pages= 257–262 | url= http://books.google.com/books?vid=0LlqBGKsYE_wDk91844nXj&id=CoVGorZ2vWMC&pg=250#PRA2-PA257,M1 | date= 1893 | accessdate= 2007-04-23] When the country's fortunes turned during the Great Depression, the violent Teamsters Strike of 1934 resulted in laws acknowledging workers' rights. [cite web| publisher= Minnesota Historical Society| title= 1934 Truckers' Strike (Minneapolis)| url= http://www.mnhs.org/library/tips/history_topics/81truckersstrike.html| date=| accessdate= 2007-05-05] A lifelong civil rights activist and union supporter, mayor Hubert Humphrey helped the city establish fair employment practices and a human relations council that interceded on behalf of minorities by 1946. [cite journal| author = Reichard, Gary W. | date = Summer 1998 | title = Mayor Hubert H. Humphrey | journal = Minnesota History|publisher=Minnesota Historical Society | volume = 56 | issue = 2 | pages = 50–67 | url = http://www.mnhs.org/market/mhspress/MinnesotaHistory/FeaturedArticles/5602050-67/index | accessdate = 2007-05-06] Minneapolis contended with white supremacy, participated in desegregation and the African-American civil rights movement, and in 1968 was the birthplace of the American Indian Movement. [cite video| publisher= Twin Cities Public Television| people= Harry Davis| title=Almanac | format= RealVideo| date= February 21, 2003| url= http://video1.tpt.org:8080/ramgen/almanac/show/1824.rm?start=30:25 and cite web| publisher= Encyclopaedia Britannica| title= American Indian Movement| date= 2007 | url= http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9006120/American-Indian-Movement| accessdate= 2007-04-26]

During the 1950s and 1960s as part of urban renewal, the city razed about two hundred buildings across twenty-five city blocks—roughly 40% of downtown, destroying the Gateway District and many buildings with notable architecture including the Metropolitan Building. Efforts to save the building failed but are credited with jumpstarting interest in historic preservation in the state. [cite journal | last= Hart | first= Joseph | title= Room at the Bottom | journal= City Pages|publisher=Village Voice Media |volume= 19 | issue= 909 | date= 1998-05-06 | url= http://citypages.com/databank/19/909/article4952.asp| accessdate= 2007-04-01 ]

Geography and climate

The history and economic growth of Minneapolis history are tied to water, the city's defining physical characteristic, which was sent to the region during the last ice age. Fed by receding glaciers and Lake Agassiz ten thousand years ago, torrents of water from a glacial river undercut the Mississippi and Minnehaha riverbeds, creating waterfalls important to modern Minneapolis. [cite web| title= Mississippi: River Facts| publisher= U.S. National Park Service| date= 2006-08-14| url= http://www.nps.gov/miss/forteachers/brjrrivefact.htm and cite web| publisher= City of Minneapolis| title= Police Recruiting: About Minneapolis| date= 2006| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/police/recruiting/aboutmpls.asp| accessdate= 2007-04-29] Lying on an artesian aquifer and otherwise flat terrain, Minneapolis has a total area of convert|58.4|sqmi|km2|1 and of this 6% is water. [cite encyclopedia| title= Minneapolis| encyclopedia= Encarta| url= http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761572218/Minneapolis.html| date= 1993–2007 and cite web| publisher= U.S. Census Bureau| title= Minnesota—Place and County Subdivision| url=http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/GCTTable?-geo_id=04000US27&-mt_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_GCTPH1_ST7&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U| date= 2000| accessdate= 2007-03-24] Water is managed by watershed districts that correspond to the Mississippi and the city's three creeks. [cite web| publisher= Minneapolis Planning Division| title= State of the City: Physical Environment| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/planning/soc03/2003PhyEnv.pdf | format = PDF | date= 2003| accessdate= 2007-04-27] Twelve lakes, three large ponds, and five unnamed wetlands are within Minneapolis. [cite web|title=State of the City|date=2003|url=http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/planning/soc03/2003fullcopy.pdf|format=PDF|publisher=Planning Division of the Minneapolis Department of Community Planning and Economic Development|accessdate=2007-08-07]

The city center is located just south of 45° N latitude. [cite web| publisher= Wurlington Bros. Press| title= The 45th Parallel| date= | url= http://www.wurlington-bros.com/45th/Mpls.html| accessdate= 2007-01-18] The city's lowest elevation of 686 feet (209 m) is near where Minnehaha Creek meets the Mississippi River. The site of the Prospect Park Water Tower is often cited as the city's highest point [cite web| publisher= Minnesota Historical Society| title= Minnesota Preservation Planner IX (2)| date= Spring 1998| url= http://www.mnhs.org/about/publications/planner/Spring1998.pdf| format = PDF | accessdate= 2007-03-21 and cite web| title= email| date= June 10, 2001| author= Bonham, Tim| url= http://mapnp.geeks.org/pipermail/mpls/2001-June/003374.html| accessdate= 2007-01-12 and cite web| publisher= U.S. Department of the Interior — U.S. Geological Survey| title= Elevations and Distances in the United States| url= http://erg.usgs.gov/isb/pubs/booklets/elvadist/elvadist.html| date= April 29, 2005| accessdate= 2007-04-11] and a placard in Deming Heights Park denotes the highest elevation, but a spot at convert|974|ft|2 in or near Waite Park in Northeast Minneapolis is corroborated by Google Earth as the highest ground.

Minneapolis has a continental climate typical of the Upper Midwest. Winters can be cold and dry, while summer is comfortably warm although at times it can be hot and humid. On the Köppen climate classification, Minneapolis falls in the warm summer humid continental climate zone ("Dfa"). The city experiences a full range of precipitation and related weather events, including snow, sleet, ice, rain, thunderstorms, tornadoes, and fog. The warmest temperature ever recorded in Minneapolis was 108 °F (42.2 °C) in July 1936, and the coldest temperature ever recorded was −41 °F (−40.6 °C), in January 1888. The snowiest winter of record was 1983–84, when 98.4 inches (2.5 m) of snow fell. [cite web| author= Fisk, Charles| url= http://home.att.net/~minn_climo/| title= Links to Some of the More Interesting Years With Accompanying Notes| date= March 3, 2007| accessdate= 2007-03-25]

Because of its northerly location in the United States and lack of large bodies of water to moderate the air, Minneapolis is sometimes subjected to cold Arctic air masses, especially during late December, January, & February. The average annual temperature of 45.4 °F (7 °C) gives the Minneapolis–St. Paul metropolitan area the coldest annual mean temperature of any major metropolitan area in the continental United States [45.4 °F for 1971 through 2000 per [http://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/tables/07s0378.xls U.S. Census] who cites cite web| publisher= National Climatic Data Center| title= Normals 1971–2000| url= http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/oa/climate/online/ccd/nrmavg.txt| date= | accessdate= 2007-03-25 or convert|44.6|°F|°C|abbr=on per cite web| author= Fisk, Charles| url= http://home.att.net/~minn_climo/| title= Minneapolis-St. Paul Area Daily Climatological History of Temperature, Precipitation, and Snowfall, A Year-by-Year Graphical Portrayal (1820–Present)| date= March 3, 2007| accessdate= 2007-03-25]

Infobox Weather
single_line= Yes
location =Minneapolis, Minnesota
Jan_Hi_°F =22 |Jan_REC_Hi_°F =59
Feb_Hi_°F =29 |Feb_REC_Hi_°F =64
Mar_Hi_°F =41 |Mar_REC_Hi_°F =83
Apr_Hi_°F =57 |Apr_REC_Hi_°F =95
May_Hi_°F =70 |May_REC_Hi_°F =106
Jun_Hi_°F =79 |Jun_REC_Hi_°F =104
Jul_Hi_°F =83 |Jul_REC_Hi_°F =108
Aug_Hi_°F =80 |Aug_REC_Hi_°F =103
Sep_Hi_°F =71 |Sep_REC_Hi_°F =104
Oct_Hi_°F =58 |Oct_REC_Hi_°F = 90
Nov_Hi_°F =40 |Nov_REC_Hi_°F =77
Dec_Hi_°F =26 |Dec_REC_Hi_°F =68
Jan_Lo_°F =4 |Jan_REC_Lo_°F = -41
Feb_Lo_°F =12 |Feb_REC_Lo_°F = -40
Mar_Lo_°F =23 |Mar_REC_Lo_°F = -32
Apr_Lo_°F =36 |Apr_REC_Lo_°F = 2
May_Lo_°F =48 |May_REC_Lo_°F =18
Jun_Lo_°F =58 |Jun_REC_Lo_°F =34
Jul_Lo_°F =63 |Jul_REC_Lo_°F =43
Aug_Lo_°F =61 |Aug_REC_Lo_°F =39
Sep_Lo_°F =51 |Sep_REC_Lo_°F =26
Oct_Lo_°F =39 |Oct_REC_Lo_°F =10
Nov_Lo_°F =25 |Nov_REC_Lo_°F = -25
Dec_Lo_°F =11 |Dec_REC_Lo_°F = -39

Jan_Precip_inch =1.04
Feb_Precip_inch =0.79
Mar_Precip_inch =1.86
Apr_Precip_inch =2.31
May_Precip_inch =3.24
Jun_Precip_inch =4.34
Jul_Precip_inch =4.04
Aug_Precip_inch =4.05
Sep_Precip_inch =2.69
Oct_Precip_inch =2.11
Nov_Precip_inch =1.94
Dec_Precip_inch =1.00
source = cite web
url =http://www.weather.com/weather/wxclimatology/monthly/USMN0503 | title =Monthly Averages for Minneapolis, MN | accessmonthday =Oct 27 | accessyear =2007
publisher =The Weather Channel | language =
]
accessdate = October 2007

Demographics

Dakota tribes, mostly the Mdewakanton, as early as the 16th century were known as permanent settlers near their sacred site of St. Anthony Falls. New settlers arrived during the 1850s and 1860s in Minneapolis from New England, New York, and Canada, and during the mid-1860s, Scandinavians from Sweden, Finland, Norway, and Denmark began to call the city home. Migrant workers from Mexico and Latin America also interspersed.cite web | url=http://articles.citypages.com/2003-10-01/news/living-in-america/ | title=Living in America | author=GR Anderson Jr | publisher=City Pages | date= October 1, 2003 | accessdate=2008-04-29] Later, immigrants came from Germany, Italy, Greece, Poland, and Southern and Eastern Europe. These immigrants tended to settle in the Northeast neighborhood, which still retains an ethnic flavor and is particularly known for its Polish community. Jews from Russia and Eastern Europe settled primarily on the north side of the city before moving in large numbers to the western suburbs in the 1950s and 1960s.cite web| last= Nathanson| first= Iric| title= Jews in Minnesota| publisher= Jewish Community Relations Council| url= http://www.minndakjcrc.org/Docs/Jews%20of%20Minnesota%20by%20Iric%20Nathanson.pdf| format= PDF| accessdate= 2007-04-14] Asians came from China, the Philippines, Japan, and Korea. Two groups came for a short while during U.S. government relocations: Japanese during the 1940s, and Native Americans during the 1950s. From 1970 onward, Asians arrived from Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and Thailand. Beginning in the 1990s, a large Latino population arrived, along with refugees from East Africa, especially Somalia.cite web| title=A History of Minneapolis: Residents of the City| publisher=Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us)| date=2001| url=http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/| accessdate=2007-02-12] Into the 21st century, Minneapolis continues its tradition of welcoming newcomers. The metropolitan area is an immigrant gateway with a 127% increase in foreign-born residents between 1990 and 2000.cite web| publisher= Metropolitan Policy Program, The Brookings Institution| title= Minneapolis/St. Paul in Focus: A Profile from Census 2000| url= http://www.brookings.edu/reports/2003/11_livingcities_minneapolis_stpaul.aspx | date= November 2003| accessdate= 2008-04-29]

MinneapolisEthnicity
U.S. Census Bureau estimates in 2006 show the population of Minneapolis to be 369,051, a 3.5% drop since the 2000 census. The population grew until 1950 when the census peaked at 521,718, and then declined as people moved to the suburbs until about 1990. The number of African Americans, Asians, and Hispanics is growing. Non-whites are now about one third of the city's residents. Compared to the U.S. national average in 2005, the city has fewer white, Hispanic, senior, and unemployed people, while it has more people aged over 18 and more with a college degree.cite web| publisher= U.S. Census Bureau| title= American Fact Finder| date= 2005| url= http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/ACSSAFFFacts?_event=&geo_id=16000US2743000&_geoContext=01000US%7C04000US27%7C16000US2743000&_street=&_county=minneapolis&_cityTown=minneapolis&_state=04000US27&_zip=&_lang=en&_sse=on&ActiveGeoDiv=&_useEV=&pctxt=fph&pgsl=160&_submenuId=factsheet_1&ds_name=null&_ci_nbr=null&qr_name=null&reg=null%3Anull&_keyword=&_industry=| accessdate= 2007-01-08] Minneapolis has the fourth highest percent of people who are gay, lesbian, or bisexual, with 12.5%. [cite web|author=Gates, Gary J.|title=Same-sex Couples and the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual Population: New Estimates from the American Community Survey|url=http://www.law.ucla.edu/williamsinstitute/publications/SameSexCouplesandGLBpopACS.pdf|format=PDF|date=October 2006|publisher=Williams Institute, UCLA School of Law, University of California, Los Angeles|accessdate=2008-02-26]

Compared to a peer group of metropolitan areas in 2000, Minneapolis-Saint Paul is decentralizing, with individuals moving in and out frequently and a large young and white population and low unemployment. Racial and ethnic minorities lag behind white counterparts in education, with 15% of black and 13% of Hispanic people holding bachelor's degrees compared to 42% of the white population. The standard of living is on the rise, with incomes among the highest in the Midwest, but median household income among black people is below that of white by over $17,000. Regionally, home ownership among black and Hispanic residents is half that of white though Asian homeownership doubled. In 2000, the poverty rates included whites at 4.2%, blacks at 26.2%, Asians at 19.1%, American Indians at 23.2%, and Hispanics or Latinos at 18.1%.cite web | url=http://diversitydata.sph.harvard.edu/profiles.jsp?ma=5120 | title=Minneapolis--St. Paul, MN--WI: Summary Profile | publisher=Harvard University | date = 2007 | accessdate=2008-04-29] cite web | url=http://www.metrocouncil.org/census/KeyFacts/TroubleatCoreUpdate.htm | title=Key Facts - Trouble at the Core Update | date =2007-11-07 | publisher=Metropolitan Council| accessdate=2008-04-29]

Economy

The economy of Minneapolis today is based in commerce, finance, rail and trucking services, health care, and industry. Smaller components are in publishing, milling, food processing, graphic arts, insurance, and high technology. Industry produces metal and automotive products, chemical and agricultural products, electronics, computers, precision medical instruments and devices, plastics, and machinery. [cite encyclopedia| encyclopedia= Encyclopaedia Britannica| title= Minneapolis: The contemporary city| date= 2007| url= http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-242049/Minneapolis| accessdate= 2007-03-24]

Five Fortune 500 headquarters are in Minneapolis proper: Target Corporation, U.S. Bancorp, Xcel Energy, Ameriprise Financial, and Thrivent Financial for Lutherans. Fortune 1000 companies in Minneapolis include PepsiAmericas, Valspar Corporation, and Donaldson Company. [cite web|title=Fortune 500: Minnesota|url=http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune500/2008/states/MN.html|publisher=Cable News Network, Time Warner|date=2008|accessdate=2008-06-28] Apart from government, the city's largest employers are Target, Wells Fargo, Ameriprise, Star Tribune, U.S. Bancorp, Xcel Energy, IBM, Piper Jaffray, RBC Dain Rauscher, ING Group, and Qwest. [cite news|author=Black, Sam|title=Top employer in downtown Minneapolis: Target|url=http://twincities.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2006/01/23/daily56.html|work=Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal|publisher=American City Business Journals, Inc|date=2006-01-26|accessdate=2007-09-19]

Availability of Wi-Fi, transportation solutions, medical trials, university research and development expenditures, advanced degrees held by the work force, and energy conservation are so far above the national average that in 2005, Popular Science named Minneapolis the "Top Tech City" in the U.S. [cite news| author= Pacella, Rena Marie| publisher= Popular Science| title= Top Tech City: Minneapolis, MN| date= 2005| url= http://www.popsci.com/popsci/technology/generaltechnology/fb679aa138b84010vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html| accessdate= 2007-01-18] The Twin Cities ranked the country's second best city in a 2006 Kiplinger's poll of "Smart Places to Live" and Minneapolis was one of the "Seven Cool Cities" for young professionals. [cite news| author= Jane Bennett Clark| title= Seven Cool Cities| work= Kiplinger's Personal Finance | publisher=The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc |date=October 2005| url= http://www.kiplinger.com/magazine/archives/2005/10/cities.html| accessdate= 2007-02-11 and cite web| publisher= The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc. (Kiplinger.com) | title= 50 Smart Places to Live: #2 Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minn.| date= June 1, 2006| url= http://www.kiplinger.com/features/archives/2006/05/minneapolis.html| accessdate= 2007-02-11]

The Twin Cities contribute 63.8% of the gross state product of Minnesota. The area's $145.8 billion gross metropolitan product and its per capita personal income rank fourteenth in the U.S. Recovering from the nation's recession in 2000, personal income grew 3.8% in 2005, though it was behind the national average of 5%. The city returned to peak employment during the fourth quarter of that year. [cite web| publisher= Global Insight| title= The Role of Metro Areas in the U.S. Economy| date= 2006| url= http://www.usmayors.org/74thWinterMeeting/metroeconreport_January2006.pdf| format = PDF | accessdate= 2007-02-12 and cite web| publisher= Bureau of Economic Analysis| title= Personal Income and Per Capita Personal Income by Metropolitan Area, 2003–2005| date= September 6, 2006| url= http://www.bea.gov/newsreleases/regional/lapi/mpi_newsrelease.htm| accessdate= 2007-02-12]

The Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, with one branch in Helena, Montana, serves Minnesota, Montana, North and South Dakota, and parts of Wisconsin and Michigan. The smallest of the twelve regional banks in the Federal Reserve System, it operates a nationwide payments system, oversees member banks and bank holding companies, and serves as a banker for the U.S. Treasury. [cite web| author= Levy, David| publisher= "The Region"| title= Interview with Paul Volcker| url= http://www.minneapolisfed.org/pubs/region/92-12/int9212.cfm| date= December 1992 and cite web| title= Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis| url= http://www.minneapolisfed.org/info/mpls/| accessdate= 2007-04-30] The Minneapolis Grain Exchange founded in 1881 is still located near the riverfront and is the only exchange for hard red spring wheat futures and options. [cite web| title= Buyers & Processors| publisher= North Dakota Wheat Commission| date= | url= http://www.ndwheat.com/buyers/default.asp?ID=294| accessdate= 2007-04-02]

Arts

The region is second only to New York City in live theater per capita and is the third-largest theater market in the U.S., supporting the Theatre de la Jeune Lune (which recently closed), Illusion, Jungle, Mixed Blood, Penumbra, the Brave New Workshop, the Minnesota Dance Theatre, Skewed Visions, Theater Latté Da, In the Heart of the Beast Puppet and Mask Theatre, and the Children's Theatre Company. [cite news| publisher= Minnesota Public Radio | author= Horwich, Jeff| title= Council moves closer to theater deal, but concerns remain| date= April 6, 2005| url= http://news.minnesota.publicradio.org/features/2005/04/06_horwichj_vote/| accessdate= 2007-03-21 and cite web| publisher=City of Minneapolis| title= Music & Theater| date=| url=http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/residents/musictheater.asp| accessdate=2007-02-12] The city is home to Minnesota Fringe Festival, the United States' largest nonjuried performing arts festival. [cite web|title=Minnesota Fringe Festivl|url=http://www.fringefestival.org/pdf/press/2008_presskit.pdf|format=PDF|publisher=Minnesota Fringe Festival|accessdate=2008-07-20] French architect Jean Nouvel designed a new three stage complex for the Guthrie Theater, the prototype alternative to Broadway founded in Minneapolis in 1965. [cite web| publisher= Minnesota Historical Society| title= Guthrie Theater| date=| url= http://www.mnhs.org/library/tips/history_topics/04guthrie.html and cite web| publisher= Guthrie Theater| title= Theater History| url= http://www.guthrietheater.org/about_the_guthrie/theater_history| date=| accessdate=2007-04-23] Minneapolis purchased and renovated the Orpheum, State, and Pantages Theatre vaudeville and film houses on Hennepin Avenue now used for concerts and plays. [cite web| publisher= Hennepin Theatre Trust| title= Theatre History| date= | url= http://www.hennepintheatredistrict.org/history/| accessdate= 2007-03-17] Eventually, a fourth renovated theater will join the Hennepin Center for the Arts to become the Minnesota Shubert Performing Arts and Education Center, a home to twenty performing arts groups and a provider of Web-based art education. [cite web|title=Minnesota Shubert Performing Arts and Education Center|url=http://www.artspaceusa.org/my_files/properties/shubert/shubert_property.pdf|format=PDF|publisher=Artspace Projects, Inc| accessdate=2007-07-29] Dead link|date=September 2008

The Minneapolis Institute of Arts, built in 1915 in south central Minneapolis is the largest art museum in the city with 100,000 pieces in its permanent collection. A new wing designed by Michael Graves was completed in 2006 for contemporary and modern works and more gallery space.cite web| author= Joubert, Claire| title= Boom Town| publisher= Mpls.St.Paul (via Meet Minneapolis)| date= May 2006| url= http://minneapolis.org/mediaroom/assets/mplsnews/sa1E74.pdf| format = PDF | accessdate= 2007-03-21] The Walker Art Center sits atop Lowry Hill, near downtown, and doubled its size with an addition in 2005 by Herzog & de Meuron and is continuing its expansion to convert|15|acre|lk=on with a park designed by Michel Desvigne across the street from the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden. [cite web| title= Minneapolis Sculpture Garden| date= | url= http://garden.walkerart.org/index.wac| accessdate= 2007-03-18] The Weisman Art Museum, designed by Frank Gehry for the University of Minnesota, opened in 1993. An addition, also designed by Gehry, is expected to open in 2009. [cite news| author= Abbe, Mary| title= A twist in the tinfoil—Gehry doing Weisman addition| work= Star Tribune | publisher=Avista Capital Partners| date= March 8, 2007| url= http://www.startribune.com/1375/story/1041820.html| accessdate= 2007-03-18]

The son of a jazz musician and a singer, Prince is Minneapolis' most famous musical progeny. [cite book| author= Matos, Michaelangelo in Brackett, Nathan | title= The New Rolling Stone Album Guide| date= 2004-11-02| edition= 4| url= http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/prince/biography| publisher= Fireside| page= 64| id= ISBN 0-74320-169-8| accessdate= 2007-04-30] With fellow local musicians, many of whom recorded at Twin/Tone Records, [cite web| publisher= Twin/Tone Records| title= The Twin/Tone catalog| date= 1978–1998| url= http://www.twintone.com/ttcat.html| accessdate= 2007-01-15] he helped make First Avenue and the 7th Street Entry venues of choice for both artists and audiences. [cite web| publisher= Minnesota Historical Society | title= First Avenue & 7th Street Entry Band Files| date= 1999–2004| url= http://www.mnhs.org/library/findaids/00233.html| accessdate=2007-02-12] The Minnesota Orchestra plays classical and popular music at Orchestra Hall under music director Osmo Vänskä who has set about making it the best in the country. [cite news| author= Oestreich, James R.| work= The New York Times| publisher= The New York Times Company| title= MUSIC; A Most Audacious Dare Reverberates| date= December 17, 2006| url= http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/17/arts/music/17oest.html| accessdate= 2008-04-06] The Minnesota Opera produces both classic and new operas. [cite web| publisher= Minnesota Opera| title= History| date=| url= http://www.mnopera.org/| accessdate= 2007-03-18] In 2008, the century-old MacPhail Center for Music opened a new facility designed by James Dayton. [cite news|author=Mack, Linda|title=MacPhail: a new note for the Minneapolis riverfront|url=http://www.minnpost.com/stories/2008/01/10/526/macphail_a_new_note_for_the_minneapolis_riverfront|work=MinnPost|date=January 10, 2008|accessdate=2008-01-10]

Tom Waits released two songs about the city, "Christmas Card from a Hooker in Minneapolis" ("Blue Valentine" 1978) and "9th & Hennepin" ("Rain Dogs" 1985) and Lucinda Williams recorded "Minneapolis" ("World Without Tears" 2003). Home to the MN Spoken Word Association, the city has garnered notice for rap and hip hop and its spoken word community. [cite web| title= Minnesota Spoken Word Association| date= | url= http://www.mnspokenword.org/| accessdate= 2007-03-18] The underground hip-hop group Atmosphere (natives of Minnesota) frequently comments in song lyrics on the city and Minnesota. [Atmosphere (January 4, 2005). "I Wish Those Cats @ Fobia Would Give Me Some Free Shoes" and "Sep Seven Game Show Them" and "7th St. Entry" on "" remastered. Rhymesayers, ASIN: B0006SSRXS [Explicit lyrics] .]

Minneapolis is ranked America's most literate city and is a center for printing and publishing. It was a natural place for artists to build Open Book, the largest literary and book arts center in the U.S., made up of the Loft Literary Center, the Minnesota Center for Book Arts and Milkweed Editions, sometimes called the country's largest independent nonprofit literary publisher.cite news|author=Chamberlain, Lisa|title=With Books as a Catalyst, Minneapolis Neighborhood Revives|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/30/realestate/commercial/30books.html|date=April 30, 2008|work=The New York Times|publisher=The New York Times Company|accessdate=2008-04-30] The center exhibits and teaches both contemporary art and traditional crafts of writing, papermaking, letterpress printing and bookbinding.

ports

Professional sports are well-established in Minneapolis. First playing in 1884, the Minneapolis Millers baseball team produced the best won-lost record in their league at the time and contributed fifteen players to the Baseball Hall of Fame. During the 1940s and 1950s the Minneapolis Lakers basketball team, the city's first in the major leagues in any sport, won six basketball championships in three leagues before moving to Los Angeles. The American Wrestling Association, formerly the NWA Minneapolis Boxing & Wrestling Club, operated in Minneapolis from 1960 until the 1990s. [cite web| publisher= AWA Wrestling Entertainment| title= About The AWA| date= 2006| url= http://www.awastars.com/about.htm| accessdate= 2007-03-16]

The Minnesota Vikings and the Minnesota Twins arrived in the state in 1961. The Vikings were an NFL expansion team and the Twins were formed when the Washington Senators relocated to Minnesota. Both teams played outdoors in the open air Metropolitan Stadium in the suburb of Bloomington for twenty years before moving to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, where the Twins won the World Series in 1987 and 1991. The Minnesota Timberwolves brought NBA basketball back to Minneapolis in 1989, followed by the Minnesota Lynx WNBA team in 1999. They play in the Target Center. The NHL ice hockey team Minnesota Wild, National Lacrosse League team Minnesota Swarm, and USL-1 soccer team Minnesota Thunder play in St. Paul.

The downtown Metrodome, opened in 1982, is the largest sports stadium in Minnesota. The three major tenants are the Vikings, the Twins, and the university's Golden Gophers football and baseball teams. The Metrodome is the only stadium in the country to have hosted a Major League Baseball All-Star Game, the Super Bowl, the World Series, and NCAA Basketball Men's Final Four. Runners, walkers, inline skaters, coed volleyball teams, and touch football teams all have access to "The Dome". Events from sports to concerts, community activities, religious activities, and trade shows are held more than three hundred days per year, making the facility one of the most versatile stadiums in the world. [cite web| publisher= Metropolitan Sports Facilities Commission| title= History of the Metrodome| date= 2006| url= http://www.msfc.com/history.cfm and cite web| title= Hubert H. Humphrey MetroDome| publisher= Ticket King| url= http://www.ticketkingonline.com/tickets/metrodome-tickets.htm| accessdate= 2007-03-31]

The state of Minnesota authorized replacement of the Metrodome with three separate stadiums that estimates in 2007 totaled at about $1.7 billion. Six spectator sport stadiums will be in a 1.2-mile (2 km) radius centered downtown, counting the existing facilities at Target Center and the university's Williams Arena and Mariucci Arena. The new Target Field is funded by the Twins and 75% by Hennepin County sales tax, about $25 per year by each taxpayer. The Gopher football program's new TCF Bank Stadium is being built by the university and the state's general fund.cite web|author=Schill, Katherine, Cynthia Templin, Doug Berg (fiscal analysts)|title=Sports Stadium Funding: A Summary of Actions by the 2006 Legislature|url=http://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/fiscal/files/06stadium.pdf|format=PDF|publisher=Minnesota House of Representatives|date=July 2006|accessdate=2008-04-27] The Vikings Stadium plan for Blaine, Minnesota changed and as of 2007 was estimated at $954 million [cite news|author=Mador, Jessica|title=With no payment plan in place, Vikings push $954M stadium project|url=http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/04/19/vikingstadium/|date=April 19, 2007|publisher=Minnesota Public Radio|accessdate=2008-04-27] for rebuilding on the Metrodome site. Feasibility studies for Dallas, Texas-based design and local construction (Mortenson Construction of Minneapolis) of a new stadium are expected in early 2009.cite news|author=Vomhof, John|title=Commission picks designers for Metrodome project|url=http://twincities.bizjournals.com/twincities/stories/2008/09/22/daily35.html|date=September 26, 2008|work=Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal|publisher=Advance Publications|accessdate=2008-09-28]

Major sporting events hosted by the city include Super Bowl XXVI, the 1992 NCAA Men's Division I Final Four, and the 1998 World Figure Skating Championships.cite news|title=Minneapolis Gets 1992 Super Bowl|url=http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=950de3dc1730f936a15756c0a96f948260|last=George|first=Thomas|date=1989-05-25|work=The New York Times|accessdate=2008-07-18] cite web|url=http://www.hickoksports.com/history/ncaambask1992.shtml|title=1992 NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Tournament|accessdate=2008-07-18|date=2008-04-17|publisher=HickokSports.com] cite news|url=http://www.canoe.ca/Skating98Worlds/apr6_worlds.html|title=Bourne, Kraatz saved Worlds|last=Brodie|first=Rob|work=Ottawa Sun|date=1998-04-06|accessdate=2008-07-18]

Gifted amateur athletes have played in Minneapolis schools, notably starting in the 1920s and 1930s at Central, De La Salle, and Marshall high schools. Since the 1930s, the Golden Gophers have won national championships in men's baseball, boxing, football, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, indoor and outdoor track, swimming, and wrestling.cite web| title=A History of Minneapolis: Amateur Sports| publisher=Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us)| date=2001| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/sp1.asp and cite web| title=A History of Minneapolis: Professional Sports| publisher=Minneapolis Public Library| date=2001| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/sp2.asp| accessdate=2007-02-12] [cite web|author=|title=Summary: National Collegiate/Division I Men's|url=http://www.ncaa.org/library/records/championship_summaries/mens_champs_records_summaries.pdf|format=PDF|date=through 2005–2006|publisher=National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and cite web|author=|title=Summary: National Collegiate/Division I Women's|url=http://www.ncaa.org/library/records/championship_summaries/womens_champs_records_summaries.pdf|format=PDF|date=through 2005–2006|publisher=NCAA|accessdate=2007-10-04]

Parks and recreation

The Minneapolis park system has been called the best-designed, best-financed, and best-maintained in America.cite book | last= Garvin | first= Alexander | title= The American City : What Works, What Doesn't | edition=2 |date= June 19, 2002 | page= 67 | publisher= McGraw-Hill Professional | id= ISBN 0-07137-367-5] Foresight, donations and effort by community leaders enabled Horace Cleveland to create his finest landscape architecture, preserving geographical landmarks and linking them with boulevards and parkways. [cite book| author= Loring, Charles M.| title= History of the Parks and Public Grounds of Minneapolis| publisher= Minnesota Historical Society, University of Michigan (via Google Books) | date= 1915, read November 11, 1912| pages= 601–602| url= http://books.google.com/books?vid=0DBNDCIwwq1_LSUCWrdOEG2&id=RDMC_Qw899IC&pg=PA599#PPA601,M1| accessdate= 2007-04-11 and cite book| author= Nadenicek, Daniel J. and Neckar, Lance M. in Cleveland, H. W. S.| title= Landscape Architecture, as Applied to the Wants of the West; with an Essay on Forest Planting on the Great Plains| page= xli| date= April 2002| publisher= University of Massachusetts Press, ASLA Centennial Reprint Series| id= ISBN 1-55849-330-1] The city's Chain of Lakes is connected by bike, running, and walking paths and used for swimming, fishing, picnics, boating, and ice skating. A parkway for cars, a bikeway for riders, and a walkway for pedestrians runs parallel along the convert|52|mi|km route of the Grand Rounds Scenic Byway. [cite web| publisher= National Scenic Byways Online (byways.org)| title= Grand Rounds Scenic Byway| url= http://www.byways.org/explore/byways/2243/| date=] Residents brave the cold weather in December to watch the nightly Holidazzle Parade. [cite web| title =Join Us at the Macy's Holidazzle Parade| publisher =Emergency Foodshelf Network| url =http://www.emergencyfoodshelf.org/EventsAndNews/UpcomingEvents/EventsItem.aspx?pkID=237| accessdate = 2007-12-24]

Theodore Wirth is credited with the development of the parks system. [cite web| publisher= National Recreation and Park Association| title= Theodore Wirth (1863–1949)| url= http://www.nrpa.org/content/default.aspx?documentId=3778| date=| accessdate= 2007-04-24] Today, 16.6% of the city is parks and there are convert|770|sqft|0 of parkland for each resident, ranked in 2008 as the most parkland per resident within cities of similar population densities. [cite journal| author= Magnusson, Jemilah| title= The Top 10 Green Cities in the U.S| journal= The Green Guide|publisher= National Geographic Society (TheGreenGuide.com) | url= http://www.thegreenguide.com/doc/107/cities| volume=107| date= March/April 2005 and cite web| publisher= Minneapolis Public Works & Engineering| title= Minneapolis Local Surface Water Management Plan| date= undated, refers to 2000 census| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/stormwater/docs/LSWMPSec3-LandWaterResourcesAssessment.pdf| format = PDF | accessdate= 2007-04-09] cite news|title=Minneapolis, St. Paul parks shine in national report|url= http://purl.oclc.org/NET/startribuneparksdensityarticle|date=2008-07-08|accessdate=2008-07-17|last=Walsh|first=Paul|work=Star Tribune]

Parks are interlinked in many places and the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area connects regional parks and visitor centers. The country's oldest public wildflower garden, the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden and Bird Sanctuary located within Theodore Wirth Park which is shared with Golden Valley and is about 60% the size of Central Park in New York City. [cite web| publisher= National Scenic Byways Online (byways.org)| title= Theodore Wirth Park, MN| url= http://www.byways.org/explore/byways/2243/places/12691/| date= and cite web| publisher= Central Park Conservancy (centralparknyc.org)| title= FAQs| url= http://www.centralparknyc.org/centralparkhistory/faqs| date= 2006| accessdate= 2007-03-25] Site of the 53-foot (16 m) Minnehaha Falls, Minnehaha Park is one of the city's oldest and most popular parks, receiving over 500,000 visitors each year.cite web| publisher= Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board| title= Minnehaha Park| url= http://www.minneapolisparks.org/default.asp?PageID=4&parkid=252| date=| accessdate= 2007-03-25] Henry Wadsworth Longfellow named Hiawatha's wife Minnehaha for the Minneapolis waterfall in "The Song of Hiawatha", a bestselling and often-parodied 19th century poem. [cite encyclopedia| title= Henry Wadsworth Longfellow| encyclopedia= Encyclopaedia Britannica| date= 2007| url= http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-4274/Henry-Wadsworth-Longfellow| accessdate= 2007-04-30]

"Runner's World" ranks the Twin Cities as America's sixth best city for runners. [cite web| last= Adams| first= Lori| coauthors= Gorin, Amy; Rennie, Doug; Rushlow, Amy; Sayago, Joanna| title= The 25 Best Running Cities in America| work= Runner's World| publisher= Rodale| url= http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,ssssssssssssssssss6-239-283--8155-4-1X2X3X4X5X6X7-8,00.html| accessdate= 2007-04-14] The Twin Cities Marathon run in Minneapolis and St. Paul every October draws 250,000 spectators. The convert|26.2|mi|km|sing=on race is a Boston and USA Olympic Trials qualifier. The organizers sponsor three more races: a Kids Marathon, a convert|1|mi|km, and a convert|10|mi|km. [cite web| title= Twin Cities Marathon| publisher= Twin Cities Marathon (mtcmarathon.org)| date= | url= http://www.mtcmarathon.org/| accessdate= 2007-03-29] Minneapolis is home to more golfers per capita than any major U.S. city. [cite web| title= What's Happening in the Area| publisher= Mall of America| url= http://www.mallofamerica.com/adults_itinerary_detail_objectname_Whats_happening_area.aspx| accessdate= 2007-03-30 ] Five golf courses are located within the city, with nationally ranked Hazeltine National Golf Club, and Interlachen Country Club in nearby suburbs. [cite web| title= America's 100 Greatest Golf Courses/2007-08| publisher= Golf Digest| date= 2007| url= http://www.golfdigest.com/rankings/courses/greatest/2007/100greatestcourses_gd200705?currentPage=2 ] The state of Minnesota has the nation's highest number of bicyclists, sport fishermen, and snow skiers per capita. Hennepin County has the second-highest number of horses per capita in the U.S.cite web| publisher= The McClatchy Company| title= Newspapers: Star Tribune| date=| url= http://www.mcclatchy.com/146/story/456.html| accessdate= 2007-02-11] While living in Minneapolis, Scott and Brennan Olson founded (and later sold) Rollerblade, the company that popularized the sport of inline skating. [cite web| title= Inventor of the Week Archive: Scott & Brennan Olson (spelling corrected per rowbike.com)| publisher= Lemelson-MIT, MIT School of Engineering |date=August 1997| url= http://web.mit.edu/invent/iow/Inline.html| accessdate= 2007-02-25]

Government

Minneapolis is a stronghold for the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), an affiliate of the Democratic Party. The Minneapolis City Council holds the most power and represents the city's thirteen districts called wards. The council has twelve DFL members and one from the Green Party. R. T. Rybak also of the DFL is the current mayor of Minneapolis. The office of mayor is relatively weak but has some power to appoint individuals such as the chief of police. Parks, taxation, and public housing are semi-independent boards and levy their own taxes and fees subject to Board of Estimate and Taxation limits. [cite web| publisher= City of Minneapolis| title= City Council| date=| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/council/ and cite web| publisher= E-Democracy (e-democracy.org)| title= Minneapolis City Council candidates| url= http://www.e-democracy.org/wiki/Minneapolis_City_Council_candidates| date= October 26, 2005| accessdate= 2007-03-24 and cite journal| author= Anderson, G.R. Jr.| title= The Compulsiveness of the Long-Distance Runner| journal= City Pages|publisher=Village Voice Media |volume=23 | issue=1127| date= 2002-07-10| url= http://citypages.com/databank/23/1127/article10544.asp| accessdate= 2007-03-21 and cite web| publisher= City of Minneapolis| title= Board of Estimate and Taxation| date=| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/boards-and-commissions/estimate-taxation.asp | accessdate= 2007-06-27]

Citizens have a unique and powerful influence in neighborhood government. Neighborhoods coordinate activities under the Neighborhood Revitalization Program (NRP), funded in the 1990s by the city and state who appropriated $400 million for it over twenty years. [cite web| author= Fagotto, Elena, Archon Fung| title= The Minneapolis Neighborhood Revitalization Program: An Experiment in Empowered Participatory Governance| publisher=Institute of Development Studies, LogoLink (ids.ac.uk) | url= http://www.ids.ac.uk/logolink/resources/downloads/Recite_Confpapers/NRPFinal.pdf| format = PDF | date= February 15, 2005| accessdate= 2007-04-05] Minneapolis is divided into communities, each containing neighborhoods. In some cases two or more neighborhoods act together under one organization. Some areas are commonly known by nicknames of business associations. [cite web| publisher= GIS Business Services, City of Minneapolis| title= City of Minneapolis. Neighborhoods & Communities| date= 2004, updated January 2006| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/about/maps/neighborhoods.pdf | format = PDF and cite web| publisher= Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED) Department| title= City of Minneapolis Business Associations| date= November 17, 2005| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/cped/business_association_directory.pdf| format = PDF | accessdate= 2007-02-10]

The organizers of Earth Day scored Minneapolis ninth best overall and second among mid-sized cities in their 2007 "Urban Environment Report", a study based on indicators of environmental health and their effect on people. [cite web| publisher= Earth Day Network| title= Urban Environment Report, City Environment Data: Minneapolis, Minnesota| date= | url= http://www.earthday.org/UER/report/mn_minneapolis_detail.html| accessdate= 2007-02-24]

Early Minneapolis experienced a period of corruption in local government and crime was common until an economic downturn in the mid 1900s. Since 1950 the population decreased and much of downtown was lost to urban renewal and highway construction. The result was a "moribund and peaceful" environment until the 1990s. [cite journal| author= Moskowitz, Dara| title= Minneapolis Confidential| journal= City Pages|publisher=Village Voice Media |volume=16 |issue=775| date= 1995-10-11| url= http://citypages.com/databank/16/775/article2415.asp| accessdate= 2007-03-21] Along with economic recovery the murder rate climbed. The Minneapolis Police Department imported a computer system from New York City that sent officers to high crime areas despite accusations of racial profiling; the result was a drop in major crime. Since 1999 the number of homicides increased during four years, and to its highest in recent history in 2006. [cite web| publisher= Minneapolis Police Department, CODEFOR Unit| title= Uniform Crime Reports| date= | url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/police/crime-statistics/ucr/index.asp| accessdate= 2007-02-10] Politicians debate the causes and solutions, including increasing the number of police officers, providing youths with alternatives to gangs and drugs, and helping families in poverty. For 2007, the city invested in public safety infrastructure, hired over forty new officers, and has a new police chief, Tim Dolan. [cite news| author= Williams, Brandt| publisher= Minnesota Public Radio| title= Homicide problem awaits Minneapolis' new police chief| date= January 9, 2007| url= http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/01/09/dolan/ and cite news| author= Scheck, Tom| publisher= Minnesota Public Radio| title= Sparks fly at Minneapolis mayoral debate| date= August 25, 2005| url= http://news.minnesota.publicradio.org/features/2005/08/25_scheckt_mplsdebate/| accessdate= 2007-03-21]

Education

Minneapolis Public Schools enroll 36,370 students in public primary and secondary schools. The district administers about one hundred public schools including forty-five elementary schools, seven middle schools, seven high schools, eight special education schools, eight alternative schools, nineteen contract alternative schools, and five charter schools. With authority granted by the state legislature, the school board makes policy, selects the superintendent, and oversees the district's budget, curriculum, personnel, and facilities. Students speak ninety different languages at home and most school communications are printed in English, Hmong, Spanish, and Somali. [cite web| title= MPS Facts 2006–2007| publisher= Minneapolis Public Schools| url= http://www.mpls.k12.mn.us/MPS_Facts2.html| date= and cite web| title= About MPS| url= http://www.mpls.k12.mn.us/about.html| date= and cite web| title= Board of Education| url= http://www.mpls.k12.mn.us/Board_of_Education.html| date= | accessdate= 2007-03-24] About 44% of students in the Minneapolis Public School system graduate, which ranks the city the 6th worst out of the nation's 50 largest cities. [cite news|author=Diaz, Kevin|title=Minneapolis schools get failing grade on dropouts|url=http://www.startribune.com/politics/state/17176006.html|date=March 31, 2008|work=Star Tribune|publisher=Avista Capital Partners|accessdate=2008-04-03] Besides public schools, the city is home to more than twenty private schools and academies and about twenty additional charter schools. [cite web| publisher= Minnesota Department of Education| title= Alphabetical List of Nonpublic Schools| url= http://app.education.state.mn.us/Directories/report_c14.jsp| date= 2005 and cite web| title= Charter Schools| url= http://app.education.state.mn.us/Directories/report_c11.jsp| date=2005| accessdate= 2007-03-24]

Minneapolis' collegiate scene is dominated by the main campus of the University of Minnesota where more than 50,000 undergraduate, graduate, and professional students attend twenty colleges, schools, and institutes. [cite encyclopedia| encyclopedia= Encyclopaedia Britannica| title= Minnesota, University of| date= 2007| url= http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9002014/Minnesota-University-of| accessdate= 2007-03-24] The graduate school programs ranked highest in 2007 were counseling and personnel services, chemical engineering, psychology, macroeconomics, applied mathematics and non-profit management. [cite web|title=University of Minnesota Rankings|url=http://www.grad.umn.edu/prospective_students/rankings/index.html|publisher="U.S. News and World Report" via Regents of the University of Minnesota|accessdate=2008-02-04] A Big Ten school and home of the Golden Gophers, the U of M is the fourth largest campus in the U.S. in terms of enrollment. [cite web| title= NCES Digest of Education Statistics| url= http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d05/tables/dt05_215.asp| date= 2005| accessdate= 2007-03-24]

Minneapolis Community and Technical College, the private Dunwoody College of Technology, Globe University/Minnesota School of Business, and Art Institutes International Minnesota provide career training. Augsburg College, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, and North Central University are private four-year colleges. Capella University, Minnesota School of Professional Psychology, and Walden University are headquartered in Minneapolis and some others including the public four-year Metropolitan State University and the private four-year University of St. Thomas have campuses there. [cite web| publisher= Minnesota Department of Education| title= Post-Secondary Schools| url= http://app.education.state.mn.us/Directories/report_e8.jsp| date= 2005| accessdate= 2007-03-24]

The Minneapolis Public Library system operates the city's public libraries. It faced a severe budget shortfall for 2007, and has been forced to close three of its neighborhood libraries. [cite web| title=Frequently Asked Questions: Library Board Decisions and Libraries Closing| publisher=Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us) |date=2006-10-26| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/mpl-future-faqs.asp| accessdate=2007-02-12] A merger with Hennepin County Library is proposed but not funded. [cite journal| title= Minneapolis, Hennepin Library Merger Hits Another Hump| author= Oder, Norman| url= http://www.libraryjournal.com/article/CA6450121.html | journal= Library Journal|publisher= Reed Business Information, Reed Elsevier| date= 2007-06-07| accessdate= 2007-06-22] The new downtown Central Library designed by César Pelli opened in 2006. [cite web| title= Arts at MPL: Cesar Pelli| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/artsmpl_pelli.asp| date= February 2, 2007| accessdate= 2007-03-24] Ten special collections hold over 25,000 books and resources for researchers, including the Minneapolis Collection and the Minneapolis Photo Collection. [cite web| title=Unique Collections| publisher=Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us)| date= March 15, 2007| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/specialcoll.asp| accessdate=2007-02-12] At recent count 1,696,453 items in the system are used annually and the library answers over 500,000 research and fact-finding questions each year. [cite web| title= MPL Annual Report| date= 2004| url= http://www.mplib.org/2004annualreport.pdf| format = PDF | accessdate= 2007-03-24]

In 2007, Minneapolis was named America's most literate city. The study, conducted by Live Science, surveyed 69 U.S. cities with a population over 250,000. They focused on six key factors: Number of book stores, newspaper circulation, library resources, periodical publishing resources, educational attainment and Internet resources. In second place was Seattle, Washington and third was Minneapolis' neighbor, St. Paul, followed by Denver, Colorado and Washington, D.C. [ [http://www.usatoday.com/news/education/2007-12-26-literate-cities_N.htm] ]

Transportation

Half of Minneapolis-Saint Paul residents work in the city where they live. [cite web| publisher= Brookings Institution, Living Cities Census Series| title= Minneapolis/St. Paul in Focus: A Profile from Census 2000| url= http://www.brookings.edu/es/urban/livingcities/MinneapolisStPaul2.pdf| format = PDF | date= 2003| accessdate= 2007-04-08] Most residents drive cars but 60% of the 160,000 people working downtown commute by means other than a single person per auto. [cite web| author= Cati Vanden Breul| title= Downtown Minneapolis named one of 17 best commuting districts| publisher= The Minnesota Daily| date= September 28, 2005| url= http://www.mndaily.com/articles/2005/09/28/65331| accessdate= 2007-03-16] Alternative transportation is encouraged. The Metropolitan Council's Metro Transit, which operates the light rail system and most of the city's buses, provides free travel vouchers through the "Guaranteed Ride Home" program to allay fears that commuters might otherwise be occasionally stranded if, for example, they work late hours. [cite web| publisher= Metro Transit| title= Guaranteed Ride Home| date= | url= http://www.metrotransit.org/riderprograms/grh.asp |accessdate=2007-06-26] The Hiawatha Line LRT serves 34,000 riders daily and connects the Minneapolis-St. Paul International airport and Mall of America to downtown. Most of the line runs at surface level, although parts of the line run on elevated tracks (including the Franklin Ave. and Lake St./Midtown stations) and approximately convert|2|mi|km of the line runs underground, including the Lindbergh terminal subway station at the airport. [cite web| title= APTA Transit Ridership Report| publisher= American Public Transportation Association| date= Third Quarter, 2006| url= http://www.apta.com/research/stats/ridership/riderep/documents/06q3rep.pdf|format = PDF and cite web| publisher= Metro Transit| title= Hiawatha Line| date=2006| url= http://www.metrotransit.org/improvingTransit/hiawathaLightRail.asp| accessdate= 2007-02-03] The planned Central Corridor LRT will connect downtown with the University of Minnesota and downtown St. Paul via University Avenue. Expected completion is in 2014. [cite web| publisher= Metropolitan Council| title= Central Corridor next steps and timeline| date= April 2, 2007| url= http://www.metrocouncil.org/transportation/ccorridor/centralcorridor.htm| accessdate= 2007-04-11]

Seven miles (11 km) of enclosed pedestrian bridges called skyways, the Minneapolis Skyway System, link eighty city blocks downtown. Second floor restaurants and retailers connected to these passageways are open on weekdays. [cite web| publisher= Meet Minneapolis| title= Skyways| date= | url= http://www.minneapolis.org/travelinfo/skyways.asp| accessdate= 2007-03-21 and cite web| author= Gill, N.S. | publisher=About, Inc., The New York Times Company | work=About.com| title= Skyways: Downtown Minneapolis and St. Paul Skyways| date= | url= http://minneapolis.about.com/cs/shoppingservice/a/skyways.htm| accessdate= 2007-03-15]

The taxicab ordinance requires 10% wheelchair accessibility by 2009 and some use of alternative fuel or fuel efficient vehicles. Starting in 2011 the city's limit of 343 taxis will be lifted. [cite web| publisher= Minneapolis City Council| title= Amending ordinance relating to Taxicabs| publisher= City of Minneapolis| date= 2006| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/council/2006-meetings/20060922/Docs/06a-Taxicab-Amendments.pdf | format = PDF| accessdate= 2007-03-16]

Ten thousand cyclists use the bike lanes in the city each day, and many ride in the winter. The Public Works Department expanded the bicycle trail system from the Grand Rounds to 56 miles (90 km) of off-street commuter trails including the Midtown Greenway, the Light Rail Trail, Kenilworth Trail, Cedar Lake Trail and the West River Parkway Trail along the Mississippi. Minneapolis also has 34 miles (54 km) of dedicated bike lanes on city streets and encourages cycling by equipping transit buses with bike racks and by providing online bicycle maps. [cite web| publisher= City of Minneapolis| title= Where to Ride in Minneapolis| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/bicycles/where-to-ride.asp| date= 1997–2004| accessdate= 2007-04-16] Many of these trails and bridges, such as the Stone Arch Bridge, were former railroad lines that have now been converted for bicycles and pedestrians. [cite web| publisher= Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board| title= Stone Arch Bridge| url= http://minneapolisparks.org/default.asp?PageID=4&parkid=268| date= | accessdate= 2007-03-16] In 2007 citing the city's bicycle lanes, buses and LRT, "Forbes" identified Minneapolis the world's fifth cleanest city. [cite web| author= Malone, Robert| title= Which Are The World's Cleanest Cities?| publisher= Forbes| url= http://www.forbes.com/2007/04/16/worlds-cleanest-cities-biz-logistics-cx_rm_0416cleanest.html| date= 2007-04-16| accessdate= 2007-04-28]

Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport (MSP) sits on convert|3400|acre|ha [cite web | publisher=Metropolitan Airports Commission | title= History and Mission | date= | url= http://www.mspairport.com/mac/organization/History.aspx | accessdate=2007-06-27] southeast of the city between Minnesota State Highway 5, Interstate 494, Minnesota State Highway 77, and Minnesota State Highway 62. The airport serves three international, twelve domestic, seven charter and four regional carriers [cite web| title=A History of Minneapolis: Air Transportation| publisher=Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us)| date=2001| url=http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/tr5.asp| accessdate=2007-02-12] and is a hub and home base for Northwest Airlines, Mesaba Airlines, and Sun Country Airlines. [cite web| publisher= Air Line Pilots Association| title= Pilot Groups| date= | url= http://www.alpa.org/?tabid=183| accessdate= 2007-03-15]

Amtrak's Empire Builder between Chicago and Seattle stops once daily in each direction at nearby Midway Station in St. Paul. [cite web| publisher= Amtrak| title= St. Paul-Minneapolis, MN (MSP)| date= | url= http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Amtrak/am2Station/Station_Page&c=am2Station&cid=1080080551718&ssid=85 | accessdate= 2007-04-26] Expected to open in 2009, a commuter rail line, the Northstar Corridor between downtown and Big Lake, Minnesota has been funded. It will utilize existing railroad tracks and will serve a projected 5,000 daily commuters. [cite web| publisher= Minnesota Department of Transportation and Northstar Corridor Development Authority| title= Facts and Figures| date= | url= http://www.mn-getonboard.org/facts.html| accessdate= 2007-03-16]

Media

Five major newspapers are published in Minneapolis: "Star Tribune", "Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder", "Finance and Commerce", the university's "The Minnesota Daily" and "MinnPost.com". Other publications are the "City Pages" weekly, the "Mpls.St.Paul" and "Minnesota Monthly" monthlies, and "Utne" magazine.cite web| title=A History of Minneapolis: News, Media and Publishing| publisher=Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us)| date=2001| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/index.asp| accessdate=2007-02-12] In 2008 readers of online news also used "Minnesota Independent", "Twin Cities Daily Planet", "Downtown Journal", "Cursor", "MNSpeak" and about fifteen other sites. [cite news|author=Córdova, Cristina|title=All the News That Fits—and Then Some|url=http://www.rakemag.com/reporting/features/all-news-fits-and-then-some|date=February 19, 2008|work=The Rake|publisher=Rake Publishing|accessdate=2008-03-02] "The New York Times" said in 1996, "Now there are T-shirts that read, 'Murderapolis,'" a name for the city that members of the local media have mistakenly attributed to the paper. [cite journal| author= Anderson, G.R. Jr.| title= The Human Shield| journal= City Pages|publisher=Village Voice Media |volume=28 |issue=1372| url= http://www.citypages.com/databank/28/1372/article15246.asp| date= 2007-03-21 and cite news| author= Shortal, Jana| title= Gang violence on the rise? Some veteran officers say Yes.| publisher= KARE-11| url= http://www.kare11.com/news/news_article.aspx?storyid=250393| date= April 6, 2007 and cite news| author= Johnson, Dirk| title= Nice City's Nasty Distinction: Murders Soar in Minneapolis| work= The New York Times| publisher= The New York Times Company| date= June 30, 1996| url= http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A07E7DB1E39F933A05755C0A960958260| accessdate= 2008-04-06]

Minneapolis has a mix of radio stations and healthy listener support for public radio but in the commercial market, a single organization Clear Channel Communications operates seven stations. Listeners support three Minnesota Public Radio non-profit stations, the Minneapolis Public Schools and the University of Minnesota each operate a station, the networks broadcast on affiliate stations, and religious organizations run two stations. [cite web| author= December, John| title= Media - Radio - Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, USA| date= March 1, 2007| url= http://www.december.com/places/msp/radio.html and cite web| publisher= iBiquity Digital Corporation| title= HD Radio: Minneapolis-St. Paul| date= | url= http://www.ibiquity.com/hd_radio/hdradio_find_a_station?state=&theCity=MinneapolisStPaulMN| accessdate= 2007-03-18]

The city's first television was broadcast by the St. Paul station and ABC affiliate KSTP-TV. The first to broadcast in color was WCCO-TV, the CBS affiliate which is located in downtown Minneapolis. The city also receives FOX, NBC, PBS, MyNetworkTV, and The CW through their affiliates and one independent station. [cite web| author= Weeks, John| title= Minneapolis / St. Paul: Minnesota Twin Cities Area: Digital TV & HDTV Cheat Sheet| date= 2003| url= http://www.johnweeks.com/stuff/dtvmsp.html| accessdate= 2007-03-18] Twins Brandon and Brenda Walsh were from Minneapolis on the TV series "Beverly Hills, 90210". [cite web| author= Sparling, David A., Internet Movie Database| title= Plot summary for "Beverly Hills, 90210"| date= | url= http://imdb.com/title/tt0125674/plotsummary| accessdate= 2007-03-14] "American Idol" held auditions for its sixth season in Minneapolis in 2006 [cite news| author= Gary Levin | work= USA Today | publisher= Gannett Company, Inc| title= Idol tryouts begin Aug. 8| date= July 10, 2006| url= http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/news/2006-07-10-idol-auditions_x.htm| accessdate= 2007-03-14] and "Last Comic Standing" held auditions for its fifth season in Minneapolis in 2007. [cite web| title =NBC's "Last Comic Standing" Live Tour| publisher =North Shore Music Theatre| url =http://www.nsmt.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=638&Itemid=1723| accessdate = 2007-05-15]

A statue of Mary Tyler Moore downtown on the Nicollet Mall commemorates the legendary 1970s CBS television situation comedy fictionally based in Minneapolis, "The Mary Tyler Moore Show". It marks the site where part of the series' iconic opening sequence was shot.

The show was awarded three Golden Globes and thirty-one Emmy Awards. [cite web| publisher= Meet Minneapolis| title= Mary Tyler Moore statue| date= | url= http://www.minneapolis.org/thingstodo/mtm_icon.asp| accessdate= 2007-03-21and cite web| publisher= Internet Movie Database| title= Awards for "Mary Tyler Moore" (1970)| date= | url= http://imdb.com/title/tt0065314/awards| accessdate= 2007-03-14]

Religion and charity

The Dakota people, the original inhabitants of the area where Minneapolis now stands, believed in the Great Spirit and were surprised that not all European settlers were religious.cite web | title= A History of Minneapolis: Religion | publisher= Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us) | url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/rs1.asp| accessdate= 2007-04-30] Over fifty denominations and religions and some well known churches have since been established in Minneapolis. Those who arrived from New England were for the most part Christian Protestants, Quakers, and Universalists. The oldest continuously used church in the city, Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in the Nicollet Island/East Bank neighborhood was built in 1856 by Universalists and soon afterward was acquired by a French Catholic congregation. [cite web | date= | title= Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church| publisher= Yahoo! Travel| url= http://travel.yahoo.com/p-travelguide-3502708-our_lady_of_lourdes_catholic_church_minneapolis-i?action=describe| accessdate= 2007-04-30] Formed in 1878 as Shaarai Tov, in 1902 the first Jewish congregation in Minneapolis built the synagogue in East Isles known since 1920 as Temple Israel. St. Mary's Orthodox Cathedral was founded in 1887, opened a missionary school in 1897 and in 1905 created the first Russian Orthodox seminary in the U.S. [cite book| last= FitzGerald| first= Thomas E.| title= The Orthodox Church| publisher= Praeger/Greenwood| url= http://books.google.com/books?id=_F5yntZocGIC| date= 1998| id= ISBN 0-27596-438-8 and cite web| publisher= St. Mary's Orthodox Cathedral| title= About St. Mary's| date= 2006| url= http://www.stmarysoca.org/about.html| accessdate= 2007-03-19] The first basilica in the U.S., the Roman Catholic Basilica of Saint Mary near Loring Park was named by Pope Pius XI.

The Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, "Decision" magazine, and World Wide Pictures film and television distribution were headquartered in Minneapolis for about forty of the years between the late 1940s into the 2000s. [cite web| publisher= Billy Graham Center| title= Billy Graham and the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association - Historical Background| date= November 11, 2004| url= http://www.wheaton.edu/bgc/archives/bio.html| accessdate= 2007-03-19] Jim Bakker and Tammy Faye met while attending the Pentecostal North Central University and began a television ministry that by the 1980s reached 13.5 million households. [cite news| author= Camhi, Leslie| title= FILM; The Fabulousness Of Tammy Faye| work= The New York Times| publisher= The New York Times Company| date= July 23, 2000| url= http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=940DE4D9103BF930A15754C0A9669C8B63| accessdate= 2008-04-06] Today, Mount Olivet Lutheran Church in southwest Minneapolis has 6,000 active members and is the world's largest Lutheran congregation. [cite web| author= Vaughan, John N.| work= Church Report| publisher=Christy Media, LLC| title= Growth Trends| url= http://www.thecronline.com/mag_article.php?mid=518&mname=January| date= January 2005| accessdate= 2007-04-30] Christ Church Lutheran in the Longfellow neighborhood is among the finest work by architect Eliel Saarinen. The congregation later added an education building designed by his son Eero Saarinen. [cite encyclopedia|title=Eliel Saarinen|url=http://www.britannica.com/eb/article-9064591/Eliel-Saarinen|date=|encyclopedia=Encyclopaedia Britannica and cite web|title=Koulun sijainti / School location|publisher=Finnish Language School of Minnesota|url=http://www.minnesotafinnish.org/index.asp?Type=B_BASIC&SEC=%7BB54C9348-CFFF-47DB-9421-2849B0C03231%7D|accessdate=2007-08-07]

Philanthropy and charitable giving are part of the community. [cite web| title=A History of Minneapolis: Social Services| publisher=Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us)| date=2001| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/rs2.asp| accessdate=2007-02-12] More than 40% of adults in Minneapolis-St. Paul give time to volunteer work, the highest percent in the U.S. [cite news| author= Ohlemacher, Stephen| publisher= Detroit Free Press| title= Detroit area has volunteer spirit| date= July 9, 2007| url= http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070709/NEWS06/707090365/1008/NEWS| accessdate= 2007-07-17] Catholic Charities is one of the largest providers of social services locally. [cite web| publisher= Charity Navigator| title= Catholic Charities of St. Paul & Minneapolis| url= http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=3438| date= 2006| accessdate= 2007-04-30] The American Refugee Committee helps one million refugees and displaced persons in ten countries in Africa, the Balkans and Asia each year. [cite web| publisher= Charity Navigator| title= American Refugee Committee International| url= http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=3284| date= 2006| accessdate= 2007-04-30] Although no Minneapolis businesses are top corporate citizens, "Business Ethics" was based in Minneapolis and was the predecessor of "CRO" magazine for corporate responsibility officers. [cite web| publisher= Business Ethics (business-ethics.com)| title= History| date= 2005| url= http://www.business-ethics.com/about_bizeth| accessdate= 2007-03-19 and cite web| publisher= CRO (thecro.com)| title= 100 Best Corporate Citizens Repeat Performers| date= 2006–2007| url= http://www.thecro.com/?q=node/111| accessdate= 2007-03-19] The oldest foundation in Minnesota, the Minneapolis Foundation invests and administers over nine hundred charitable funds and connects donors to nonprofit organizations. [cite web| publisher= Charity Navigator| title= The Minneapolis Foundation| url= http://www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm?bay=search.summary&orgid=4100| date= 2006| accessdate= 2007-04-30] The metropolitan area gives 13% of its total charitable donations to the arts and culture. The majority of the estimated $1 billion recent expansion of arts facilities was contributed privately. [cite web| author= Cohen, Burt| title= The Spirit of Giving| publisher= Mpls.St.Paul (via Meet Minneapolis) | date= May 2006| url= http://minneapolis.org/mediaroom/assets/mplsnews/sa1E74.pdf| format = PDF | accessdate= 2007-03-21]

Health and utilities

Minneapolis has five hospitals, three ranked among America's best by "U.S. News & World Report"—Abbott Northwestern Hospital (part of Allina), Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC) and the University of Minnesota Medical Center. [cite news| work =U.S.News & World Report | publisher= U.S.News & World Report, L.P. | title= Best Hospitals 2006| url= http://www.usnews.com/usnews/health/best-hospitals/tophosp.htm| accessdate= 2007-03-22] All three were founded under other names during the 1800s and early 1900s.cite web| title=A History of Minneapolis: Medicine| publisher=Minneapolis Public Library (mpls.lib.mn.us)| date=2001| url= http://www.mpls.lib.mn.us/history/rs3.asp| accessdate=2007-02-12] The Britton Center for Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation and Children's Hospitals and Clinics also serve the city. The Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota is a 75-minute drive away. [cite web| publisher= Mayo Foundation| title= Rochester, Minnesota Campus| date= | url= http://www.mayo.edu/education/mcr.html| accessdate= 2007-03-15]

Cardiac surgery was developed at the university's Variety Club Hospital, where by 1957, more than two hundred patients had survived open-heart operations, many of them children. Working with surgeon C. Walton Lillehei, Medtronic began to build portable and implantable cardiac pacemakers about this time. [cite book| author= Jeffrey, Kirk| title= Machines in Our Hearts: The Cardiac Pacemaker, the Implantable Defibrillator, and American Health Care| publisher= Johns Hopkins University Press| date= 2001| page= 59–65| id= ISBN 0-80186-579-4]

HCMC opened in 1887 as City Hospital and was also known as General Hospital. A public teaching hospital and Level I trauma center, the HCMC safety net sees 350,000 patient visits and 95,000 emergency room visits each year and in 2006 provided about 18% of the uncompensated care given in Minnesota. [cite web| publisher= American College of Surgeons| title= Verified Trauma Centers| url= http://www.facs.org/trauma/verified.html| date= March 9, 2007| accessdate= 2007-03-29 and cite web| title= About HCMC| url= http://www.hcmc.org/medcenter/about.htm| date= and cite web| publisher=Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC)| title= HCMC Governance| url= http://www.hcmc.org/governance.htm| date=|accessdate=2007-06-26]

Utility providers are regulated monopolies: Xcel Energy supplies electricity, CenterPoint Energy supplies gas, Qwest is the landline telephone provider, and Comcast is the cable service. In 2007 city-wide wireless internet coverage began, provided for 10 years by US Internet of Minnetonka to residents for about $20 per month and to businesses for $30.cite web| publisher=City of Minneapolis| title= Wireless Minneapolis Frequently Asked Questions| date=| url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/wirelessminneapolis/wirelessfaq.asp| accessdate=2007-04-07] Minneapolis is one of the first cities to implement city-wide, public Wi-Fi, and as of July, 2008, much of the city was covered, although spots lacking coveage persisted on the East- and West-Central sections of the city.cite web|url=http://www.usiwireless.com/service/minneapolis/schedule.htm|title=Wireless Minneapolis Coverage Map|accessdate=2008-07-19|date=2008|publisher=USI Wireless] The city treats and distributes water and requires payment of a monthly solid waste fee for trash removal, recycling, and drop off for large items. Residents who recycle receive a credit. Hazardous waste is handled by Hennepin County drop off sites.cite web| publisher=City of Minneapolis| title= Utilities| date=| url=http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/residents/utilities.asp| accessdate=2007-04-07] After each significant snowfall, called a "snow emergency", the Minneapolis Public Works Street Division plows over one thousand miles (1609 km) of streets and four hundred miles (643.7 km) of alleys—counting both sides, the distance between Minneapolis and Seattle and back. Ordinances govern parking on the plowing routes during these emergencies as well as snow shoveling throughout the city. [cite web| publisher= City of Minneapolis| title= Snow and Ice Control| date= | url= http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/snow/snow-removal-basics.asp| accessdate= 2007-05-04]

ister cities

Citizens maintain international connections with eight sister cities: [cite web| publisher=City of Minneapolis| title= International Connections| date=| url=http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/government/international.asp| accessdate=2008-05-21]
*flagicon|Canada Winnipeg (Canada) since 1973
*flagicon|Kenya Eldoret (Kenya) since 2000
*flagicon|China Harbin (P.R. China) since 1992
*flagicon|Japan Ibaraki (Japan) since 1980
*flagicon|Finland Kuopio (Finland) since 1972
*flagicon|Russia Novosibirsk (Russia) since 1988
*flagicon|Chile Santiago (Chile) since 1961
*flagicon|France Tours (France) since 1991
*flagicon|Sweden Uppsala (Sweden) since 2000

And informal connections with:
*flagicon|Japan Hiroshima (Japan)
*flagicon|Uganda Kampala (Uganda)

ee also

*Companies based in Minneapolis-St. Paul
*List of events and attractions in Minneapolis, Minnesota
*List of Minneapolitans
*List of tallest buildings in Minneapolis
*Minneapolis-Saint Paul

References

Further reading

*cite web| author= Lileks, James| title= Minneapolis| url= http://www.lileks.com/mpls/index.html| date= 2003| accessdate= 2007-04-02
*cite book| last= Richards| first= Hanje| title= Minneapolis-St. Paul Then and Now| publisher= Thunder Bay Press| date= May 7, 2002| id= ISBN 1-57145-687-2

External links

* [http://www.minneapolismn.gov/ City of Minneapolis — Official site] Visitors
* [http://www.minneapolis.org/ Official Minneapolis Tourism site — Visitor Information]
* [http://www.minneapolismn.gov/visitors/ City of Minneapolis — Visitors page]
* [http://www.minneapolisconventioncenter.com/ Minneapolis Convention Center]
*wikitravel|Minneapolis
* [http://northminneapolis.wikispaces.com/ North Minneapolis Encyclopedia]


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