The 2024 Transportation Summit, “Exploring How Businesses Can Survive and Thrive Through Construction,” took place on Wednesday, November 20th 2024 in Downtown Minneapolis. Community members, business owners, transportation professionals, advocates, and others gathered to spend a morning discussing the challenges and opportunities around transportation construction projects that affect customers’ access to local businesses.
Business Owner Panel
The morning began with a panel of three Minneapolis small business owners:
KB Brown, co-owner of Wolfpack Promotionals and Executive Director of Project Refocus in North Minneapolis; Suzie Marty, owner and curator at Everett & Charlie Gallery in Linden Hills; Seth Stattmiller, co-owner of Recovery Bike Shop in Northeast Minneapolis.
KB will be affected by the Blue Line Extension project, Suzie is affected by construction related to the Metro Transit E Line as well as sanitary sewer improvements, and Seth is affected by the Lowry Avenue reconstruction project.
This panel focused on challenges around projects for business owners. Some are obvious, such as customers not being able to access businesses, sometimes regardless of whether they are walking, biking, taking transit, or driving. Lack of access, whether real or perceived, can cause a loss of customers. Some challenges, however, were less obvious: audience members shared surprise that businesses receive tax assessments the same year as construction, a “one-two punch” to business finances.
KB, Suzie, and Seth also shared some ideas around what could help business owners in the wake of street construction projects. These ideas included:
- Increased marketing support such as advertisements on the sides of buses that travel through the affected corridors
- Automatic tax holidays for businesses during the years of construction
- Project staff connecting listening to action – “It’s not enough to listen. If listening doesn’t have action attached to it, it means nothing.”
- Engage early & often with project staff & contractors to relay needs and concerns
- Independent project point person or team that acts as a liaison between the community/business owners and project managers/contractors
Solutions and Support Panel
A second panel consisted of individuals working towards solutions and support of small businesses from multiple angles: Sam O’Connell, Director of Community Relations at the Metropolitan Council; Katie Cashman, Ward 7 City Council Member, and Matt Kazinka, Senior Strategic Initiatives Manager with the Lake Street Council.
This panel discussed their work around businesses, transportation, and construction, including: information sharing, marketing support, programs administered by Public Works and the City of Minneapolis, grant funding, engaging with business owners on how to meet their needs and communicating around the project timeline. This panel also explored gaps in current programming, such as: multi-lingual outreach throughout projects, departments working together, investment in neighborhoods, more focused city funds for better impact, right timing for relocation assistance.
The panelists discussed some effective methods for engaging and supporting the business community:
- Reminding business owners that they do have some agency
- Managing the needs of the future versus the present
- Traffic calming on detour streets
- Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program at Met Council
Sharing Ideas
The final segment of the Summit included facilitated engagement amongst audience members to share what they had learned, what ideas need further investigation, and resources that weren’t mentioned during the panels. Notes were shared following the discussions, which showed interest in:
- Automatic tax holidays
- Increased marketing support with bus ads, creative signage
- Sensitive and direct communication between business owners, contractors, and project staff
- Getting people to think outside the car to access businesses
- Engaging with youth for their ideas – future business owners!
- Factoring multimodal transportation into business’ futures
Next Steps
A follow up survey was sent to all Summit attendees, asking for additional insights into programs or resources to support local businesses through transportation construction projects. One response noted: “The Lowry Hill East Neighborhood Association does monthly meetups at different restaurants/bars on Hennepin that have been impacted by construction. It’s a cool model that other neighborhood associations could try!”
Do you have ideas on how to support local businesses? Resources or programs to share? Send us your thoughts at [email protected] or tag us on social media with your ideas. Sign up for our monthly newsletter to stay in the loop on further events or programs around this topic. The conversation isn’t over!
Thank you to the 2024 Transportation Summit sponsors! Transit Sponsor Metro Transit, Presenting Sponsor Huntington, Premier Sponsors Target and Xcel Energy, Event Sponsors Takeda and HNTB
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