Brooklyn Center Approves Master Plan for Possible New Downtown
Brooklyn Center has a vision to create a new downtown. That vision was put on hold in recent years, but now it’s back on the forefront.
The city’s so-called Opportunity Site, 80 acres of land located north of Highway 100 and east of Shingle Creek Parkway, officials say is ripe for redevelopment.
“It’s turning a lot of that space into economic opportunities, instead of parking lots,” said Ian Alexander, the city’s economic development manager.
The site includes a former Target store that is currently being demolished. The plan, which has been in the works for the better part of a decade, had been delayed the past few years by the COVID-19 pandemic and civil unrest.
The city council approved a master plan for the site at its regular meeting Monday, Oct. 28.
Brooklyn Center Planning Manager Ginny McIntosh says plan approval is an important step to attract developers.
“Whether or not the markets change soon, that’s anyone’s guess at this point. It seems to change on a day-to-day basis. But we’ve been continuing to pursue opportunities to get more grant funding, get more backing, talk to other developers, so that when the market is right, we can move on it, and we’re not back at step one,” said McIntosh at Monday’s meeting.
Solid black line shows Brooklyn Center Opportunity Site/map courtesy Brooklyn Center
The amount of land available for development is comparable in scope to Plymouth’s redevelopment of the former Prudential campus.
City officials say one intriguing possibility for the site — an idea that city officials say they’ve been contacted about — is turning the former Target into a destination soccer facility. A development surrounding a town square community center-type facility was also mentioned Monday.
The city owns a significant portion of the land considered for redevelopment, which officials say could help move the project along. Planning officials have been working with Alatus Development, which they expect to meet with in a few weeks.
