After three days of concern about the status of the popular annual events known as Open Streets, Minneapolis Public Works Director Margaret Anderson Kelliher made a public commitment Thursday that the city would continue to partner on those events in 2024 and provide the same support services like trash, traffic control, and police. What’s unclear is what the events will look like if Our Streets Minneapolis, the longtime organizer, is not involved. The city plans to put out a request for proposals from potential organizers, which could still include Our Streets.
On Monday, the city put out a statement claiming a “mutual agreement” with Our Streets to not extend the contract for 2024. The response from the organization’s executive director: “1000% not true.” Our Streets says they haven’t had a chance to discuss the 2024 season with the city, though they have made it clear it’s unsustainable to continue to do the event for free. The organization submitted a budget of $851,000 to do five events next year.
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