Will Minneapolis ever see 500,000 again? (St. Paul: condo, neighborhoods, construction)

[Kid Cann]

Much like many other non-sun belt cities, Minneapolis lost a significant part of it's population due to post WWII suburban developments as well as the Interstate Highway System. At one point in the 1950s, Minneapolis had over 500,000 people. Many neighborhoods in Minneapolis have been torn down to make way for Freeways, but that should be offset by the increase in residential buildings that are high-rises.

Another changing aspect is the baby-boomer generation, (b.1946-1964). Families just aren't as big as they used to be (my dad has 10 siblings, all Baby Boomers), and families are starting later in life (age 24-28) rather than (21-25).

Will Minneapolis ever reach 500,000 residents again? Currently the city sits at about 390,000. Will Minneapolis ever reach 500,000 again? What is it going to take?

Is there a lot of NIMBY's in Minneapolis apposed to high-rise development?
This country still hasn't caught on to the Japanse and Chinese style of 'growth and development' by building UPWARD.

[spectre000]

There can be some NIMBYism towards high rise development in Minneapolis. There was a small but vocal group opposed to the 450+ ft tall Carlyle tower because it was built along the river. There has been opposition to some high rises around Loring Park as well. Council member Goodman has gotten the city into some trouble over that as well. But that's another story.

I could see Minneapolis getting close to 425-450k. But it'd take a lot of high density buildings for that. Even projects like the above mentioned Carlyle only have about 250 or so units in them. It would take projects like Galtier Plaza in St. Paul (~480 total units, albeit in two towers and a third attached condo buildng) to really add another 110,000 people.

[west336]

Actually, many immigrant groups have very large families, like Somali, Hmong and Latino. If housing were more affordable to those groups the population could rise dramatically with or without new high-density construction.

[smokemaster]

I would like to see a few water fountains at the airport.

[Kid Cann]

^Um, ok?

[west336]

"I like turtles"

[City eYes]

I think the city can do it, but it will take some time. The problem with large housing projects are that they can easily become slums if they are not planned or managed right. I like the smaller developments that have been popping up over the years. We also need more jobs here if we are going to see the population increase like that.

[Cruz Azul Guy]

Originally Posted by west336

Actually, many immigrant groups have very large families, like Somali, Hmong and Latino. If housing were more affordable to those groups the population could rise dramatically with or without new high-density construction.

Could you cite that please?

[uptown_urbanist]

Originally Posted by Slig

Could you cite that please?

It's obviously a generalization, but family size of immigrants is also mentioned in this immigration in MN report by the Minneapolis Foundation:
Immigration in MN Overview

[northstar22]

I hope Mpls. never reaches that level of population again. It's fine the way it is, around 380 - 400k. I like the suburbs and the spread out feel of the city. I like the dense downtown and the LACK of high-rises elsewhere in the city. I'd prefer not becoming another Atlanta with multiple skylines. The Japanese/Chinese model of building upward would send me running for the hills - ugh. Guess that makes me a NIMBY - oh well, I don't have a problem with that title.

I'd prefer to see that population increase occur in the suburbs/exurbs.