Statement of

Values

We at the Lake Street Council have been amazed and overwhelmed by the incredible support shown towards Lake Street’s small business community since May 2020.

The events that unfolded after George Floyd’s tragic and unnecessary death at the hands of Minneapolis police have had a deep and lasting impact on Lake Street. It is clear that we are in a very significant moment for civil rights in our city and nation and that Lake Street’s history will forever be entwined with this call for justice. The Lake Street Council believes that Black Lives Matter and is committed to racial equality both as an organization and through our work as a nonprofit economic development organization. 

Many businesses across the Twin Cities were directly impacted by the civil uprising after George’s Floyd’s death. We are still assessing the damages, but it is clear that over 250 Lake Street businesses experienced hundreds of millions of dollars in collective damage. While no property can measure up to the value of human life, the losses experienced by these businesses have had real human impacts.

Many of the impacted businesses are owned by low-income entrepreneurs, by Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) families, by immigrant business owners, and by others who have overcome tremendous difficulties to support their families and communities. The Lake Street Council’s mission to help these business owners and members of our community rebuild and reopen.

Lake Street Council

History

The Lake Street Council was founded in 1967 at a time when suburbanization and white flight resulted in growing numbers of vacant properties and demolitions along the corridor. Policies set by financial institutions and local government led to widespread disinvestment and racial segregation across Lake Street and the Twin Cities. The Lake Street Council fought to support local businesses that continued to invest in the corridor despite these changes.

In 2005, the Lake Street Council became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization with a stronger mission to engage, serve, and advocate for Lake Street’s small businesses. As a nonprofit organization, we approach our work through a lens of equity, community health, and access. Our staff and board believe in this mission and work for the greater goal of improving the economic well being of our community. 

The Lake Street Council’s programs and activities are always adapting to the needs of our community. Some of our recent successes include:

  • Our #MyLakeStreet campaign, which highlighted the importance of immigrant business owners to the story of what Lake Street is today and has always been.

  • Increasing BIPOC representation on the City of Minneapolis boards and commissions. 

  • Advocacy for equitable transportation funding and helping businesses take actions to become more accessible to customers. 

  • Funding creative placekeeping initiatives that support local artists, including helping to fund iconic new mural at Mercado Central.

  • Investing heavily in Lake Street’s Midtown area by providing immigrant-owned and BIPOC-owned businesses with facade improvement grants, energy efficiency support, advocacy, and other in-language assistance.

This work has prepared us for the moment we are in now, where tens of thousands of people have stepped up to help ensure that Lake Street can continue to thrive. We are working diligently to responsibly manage and distribute the funds that have been raised to date through WeLoveLakeStreet.com.

Moving

Forward

Our first step toward helping to rebuild the Lake Street community was to invest $5.5 million in grant funding to small businesses impacted by the recent civil unrest. We are currently working with an independent Oversight Committee to develop a strategic plan for deploying the rest of the funds.

We have heard loud and clear that our community wants to see Lake Street continue to be home to small businesses, particularly the BIPOC and immigrant-owned businesses that define much of the corridor. We share the concern that widespread land purchases by interests from outside our community will have a negative impact on Lake Street. We are bringing in new partners and expertise to help us address concerns and figure out the best tools we can use to maintain diverse, community-based ownership of Lake Street properties.

Soon after our fundraising campaign took off, we realized that our small team of four full-time staff was not going to be able to handle the incredible amount of work that this moment demanded. We have quickly grown our team to meet the needs of our community, a process that doesn’t happen overnight and has left far too many unanswered emails or missed calls. We also recognize that we have work to do to lift up Black leadership within our organization and in our community. As we expand our staff and our board, we are mindful that our team must include, and will benefit from, more Black voices.

As we move forward, transparency about our work and funding is critical and necessary. We encourage you to reach out at any time and let us know your thoughts about the rebuilding of Lake Street.