Slow-going…But a lot coming?

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So there’s a lot of planning going on in Dayton’s Bluff and the Near-eastside at the moment…

  • The Eastside Co-op working group is setting up their governance structure and raising funds for site exploration.
  • The Dayton’s Bluff Community Council is working with the city and the Dayton’s Bluff Business Association on the “Make it Happen on 7th” initiative to develop our business district.
  • In addition, the DBCC is moving forward with DB-CAN to increase community engagement in the neighborhood, using community listening sessions and asset-based development tools.
  • Gateway 94 has recently received more funds from the Counties Transit Improvement Board to finish their transit study which may bring light-rail or bus rapid-transit to 7th St.
  • The East Side Prosperity Campaign is sponsoring an “Engage East Side” initiative to get community members involved in improving transit on the East Side.
  • Merrick Community Center has a lovely design for a brand-new facility on Railroad Island, with community meeting space and classrooms for healthy-lifestyle programming in the works.
  • MnDOT has received the go-ahead for lane expansion on I-94 near Mounds Boulevard through the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program (STIP), with construction to begin in spring of 2015.
  • The Lower Phalen Creek Project is getting traction with their dream of connecting the Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary to the Mississippi River with a bike/pedestrian bridge.
  • Metro State University is expanding, and they’ve got big plans for a parking garage and student union to take up the entire block bound by 6th, Maria, 7th, and Bates.
  • Youth in Transition, a group for teens leaving the gang-lifestyle, is working on developing a recording studio with an artist-in-residence at Dayton’s Bluff Rec Center.
  • My church, Imago Dei, is developing its mission statement and getting ready to dirty our sandals in the neighborhood as a partner with DB-CAN.
  • First Lutheran is working in concert with their new missional church partner, Shobi’s Table, to develop indigenous leaders from their old “Love Grows Here” Thursday-night ministry.
  • Might there be a move in the works for the DBCC offices, including a welcome center for the neighborhood?
  • I’ve heard rumors of a new restaurant and cafe…

Seems like a lot of planning is going on in our little part of the world. It does make one impatient for action, though. So many of us need to see change in order to believe it. Planning and networking can be exhausting!

What are you involved in? What else is out there? What’s exciting to you right now?

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