News

Road Closure at 43rd and Upton This Spring

Beginning Monday, April 15, the intersection at 43rd and Upton will be closed to car traffic, and pedestrian walkways will remain open. 

During that time: 

  • Minneapolis Public Works will replace 200 feet of clay pipe from 1919 at the intersection.
  • Metro Transit will use this time to begin construction on METRO E Line stations at the Northeast and Northwest corners of the intersection, and to add pedestrian improvements at all four corners of the intersection.

Construction work hours will be from 7am-6pm, Monday through Friday. 

Project Timeline

  • Public Works has quoted a shutdown time of 70 days (10 weeks), provided they don’t uncover anything unexpected once they begin digging. They will need the intersection shut down for their entire construction period. 
  • Metro Transit will take advantage of the intersection closure to complete as much work as possible for the METRO E Line. 
  • When Public Works has completed their project, Metro Transit will continue their construction until the METRO E Line stations and pedestrian improvements are completed. At that time, North/South traffic through the intersection could reopen while East/West traffic will be detoured.

Parking and Congestion Issues

We all know that this area has a lot of traffic and parking issues on a typical day, so you should expect it to take longer to drive into this business district, and for parking to be more challenging. If you live on the side streets near 43rd and Upton, you should expect more cars to be parked on your block for the next few months. 

We are working to create a parking map, but for now keep in mind:

  • Parking on 43rd St. and Upton Ave. will remain available up to the road closure area. 
  • Other street parking off the main node will remain open.
  • The city has requested that construction crews carpool or do their best to minimize work vehicles taking up parking spaces near the village. 

Supporting Local Businesses

Together, the Linden Hills Neighborhood Council, the Southwest Business Association and representatives from Mint Orthodontics and New Gild Jewelers have been working on a campaign we are calling “Walk, Bike, Roll to Linden Hills,” which is designed to incentivize non-car activity in the primary business district. 

The goal of Walk, Bike, Roll to Linden Hills will be two-fold:

  1. To strongly support our local businesses – which are the lifeblood of Linden Hills – during this challenging time.
  2. To minimize traffic issues and ensure that the limited remaining parking spaces can be used by those who need them the most.

City Contacts for this project

The Linden Hills Neighborhood Council is working to coordinate communications between all parties on this project. You are welcome to email info@lindenhills.org with questions. 

If you’d prefer to email the folks working on the project at the city, here is their contact info: