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MINNEAPOLIMEDIA NEWS | Open Streets Independent Revival Draws Thousands to Lyndale Avenue
MINNEAPOLIS, MN (June 8, 2026) Open Streets Minneapolis returned to its original Lyndale Avenue corridor on Sunday, June 7, drawing thousands of pedestrians and cyclists to a 20-block vehicle-free zone in South Minneapolis.
The six-hour festival transformed the heavily trafficked commercial thoroughfare into a public space from 11:00 AM until 5:00 PM, closing all motorized traffic on Lyndale Avenue South between West 22nd Street and West 42nd Street. The gathering allowed residents to utilize nearly two miles of urban infrastructure for recreation, community programming, and local commerce.
Shift to Private Funding and Organization
The event marked a significant organizational departure from previous years, operating through an independent, privately funded framework.
Our Streets, the non-profit advocacy organization that founded Open Streets Minneapolis in 2011, managed the entire citywide series through 2023. The City of Minneapolis subsequently transitioned to a decentralized municipal model, awarding individual public grants of $40,000 to $50,000 directly to localized neighborhood and business coalitions to manage specific routes.
Because Lyndale Avenue was excluded from the city's official taxpayer-funded lineup, Our Streets secured independent corporate sponsorships, private donations, and neighborhood partnerships to finance and execute the revival of the historic route.
Corridors of Commerce and Activism
The temporary pedestrian plaza hosted hundreds of local brick-and-mortar businesses, artisan merchants, food vendors, and regional advocacy groups.
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Sector / Feature |
Operational Activity |
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Commercial Patios |
Area bars, cafes, and restaurants extended physical seating footprints past the sidewalks directly into the vehicle travel lanes. |
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Small-Business Market |
Dozens of independent food trucks and craft artisans established pop-up retail stalls along the center lines of the roadway. |
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Civic and Public Policy |
Regional non-profits, transit advocacy groups, and environmental organizations staffed information hubs focusing on bicycle safety and municipal urban planning. |
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Public Arts |
Multi-disciplinary visual artists utilized the bare pavement for temporary street installations, accompanied by musicians performing at major intersections. |
Movement History
The Lyndale Avenue route holds historical significance as the birthplace of the Open Streets movement in Minnesota. Inspired by global "ciclovía" initiatives that temporarily close municipal corridors to motorized vehicles, the inaugural 2011 Lyndale event drew an estimated 5,000 participants. Over the past 15 years, the expanded neighborhood festival model has attracted more than one million attendees across various Minneapolis sectors.
Public works crews removed the street barricades and restored standard vehicular traffic flow and traffic signal sequences at approximately 5:00 PM Sunday evening.
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