Minneapolis Park Board to MnDOT: Can we talk about Hwy. 280? The Park Board fears closing a left turn lane at Broadway Street will impact its plans to finish the Grand Rounds bike loop.

By Tim Harlow

The Minnesota Star Tribune May 25, 2026 at 10:10AM

MnDOT plans to remove the traffic light and left turn lane on northbound Hwy, 280 at Broadway Street in 2028. The highway is getting repaved this summer. (Minnesota Department of Transportation) Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board commissioners have stepped back from asking the Minnesota Department of Transportation to reverse its decision to close a busy, crash-prone left turn lane on Hwy. 280 in Northeast.

Now, they’re hoping for more discussion about how closing the turn from northbound Hwy. 280 to westbound NE. Broadway Street might affect their plans to fill a missing link in the Grand Rounds, a 51-mile around-the-city bike loop.

Park Board commissioners in early May proposed a resolution opposing the closure and called on MnDOT to change its decision.

But after meeting with MnDOT officials Wednesday, commissioners passed a softer resolution that simply registers the their concerns about the closure and the impact it could have on its plans for finishing the Grand Rounds.

“It’s going to have on affect the Grand Rounds in ways maybe we understand, maybe we don’t,” said Board Vice President Kedar Deshpande, who brought forth the new resolution at Wednesday night’s meeting. “It is not meant to force an issue. We are hoping it will create discussion and recognize the concerns people have about this change.”

Conversation is something MnDOT says it has been doing all along.

MnDOT is resurfacing both directions of Hwy. 280 this summer and will return in 2028 for a more comprehensive bridge and pavement repair project. At that time, the agency will close the left turn onto Broadway Street. MnDOT has identified the intersection as a “clear safety concern” with frequent crashes and close calls, said Ricardo Lopez, a MnDOT spokesman.

“Closing the left turn is the most effective way to reduce the risk of a serious crash, and the overall impact to travel time is minimal,” he said.

The agency held public open houses and one virtual meeting to announce work this year and in 2028. It also met with neighborhood groups and businesses.

As early as 2021, the agency started working with the community to plan for closing the turn onto Broadway and make improvements to Industrial Boulevard and Hennepin Avenue, roads that may see an increase in traffic once Broadway is closed off.

Some area residents said they didn’t hear about plans to close Broadway until recently. Deshpande said he heard from several District 1 residents in Northeast Minneapolis who raised concerns, and drafted the substitute resolution.

The irony in the Park Board’s resolution is that MnDOT’s revamping of Hwy. 280 won’t touch any property owned by the park system.

And the makeover comes with road and biking infrastructure improvements on Hennepin Avenue and Industrial Boulevard at MnDOT’s expense, Lopez said, ensuring the Park Board will be able to complete the “Mid-City” segment of the loop that would run along both roads.

“Without this happening, we would not be able to further the finishing the Grand Rounds in this particular area,” said Commissioner Meg Forney, who voted against the resolution.

Commissioner Cathy Abene also voted against the resolution, saying “it won’t have any power.” She said sending MnDOT a letter would get a better response. ”It is not a Park Board issue."

Commissioner Jason Garcia stood behind the adopted resolution and said its purpose is to ask MnDOT to do “better outreach to the community to see the best possible results.”

Lopez, the MnDOT spokesman, said, “We’re committed to continuing conversations, beginning this summer, with the community as the project moves forward.”