+ Sports ...............................................................37. + Family fun . ..... information packet, visit www.minneapolis.org. Check out the new Visitor Information Center ...
Media Kittable of contents
Welcome to Minneapolis
THE BASICS
+ Fast facts .......................................................... 5
+ Minneapolis icons ............................................ 6
+ Seasons ............................................................ 8
+ Neighborhoods ................................................ 9
+ Community background, business .................. 10
+ History and heritage ......................................... 14
+ Famous Minnesotans ...................................... 15
+ Visitor resources ............................................... 17
+ Going green ...................................................... 18
THINGS TO DO
+ Top things to see/do ........................................ 19
+ Annual events ................................................... 20
+ Theater ............................................................. 22
+ Museums .......................................................... 24
+ Arts Explosion .................................................. 26
+ Shopping 28
+ Culinary ............................................................ 30
+ Music and nightlife ........................................... 33
+ Outdoor recreation 34
+ Sports ............................................................... 37
+ Family fun ......................................................... 38
+ Historical attractions ........................................ 40
+ Tours, excursions, day trips .............................. 41
PLANNING A TRIP
+ Hotels 43
+ Transportation .................................................. 45
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table of contents Meet MInneapolIs
There’s no place quite like Minneapolis.
HaVe YOU HeaRd?It’s a city of amazing contrasts and combinations. Where
down-home people meet uptown style. Where below-zero
temperature meets above-average intelligence. Where
modern glass architecture meets outdoor green adventure.
Where every season, every art and every type meet in every
possible way.
Minneapolis is a
With beautiful surroundings and plenty to do, Minneapolis “Most Delicious City” nominee
is “an exhilarating place to spend a few days,” according to
– Food Networkthe Kansas City Star. The one-of-a-kind theater scene sells
more theater tickets per capita than any U.S. city, while the “
city’s 22 lakes provide an abundance of year-round activities.
Minneapolis is #4 on Cooking Light’s
A lush green environment combined with contemporary
2007 list of top 20 American architecture makes the city a unique combination of natural
beauty and sophistication. Upscale shopping and sidewalk cities that fit the magazine’s “eat dining paired with cultural and family activities make the
City of Lakes a wonderful place to visit or live. smart, be fit and live well” .
philosophy.
- Sept 2007
Minneapolis Saint Paul is the 8th
healthiest city in the nation. 1
- AARP, August 2008
USA Today says in Minneapolis,
“edgy art, architecture and
Frommer’s Travel Guidebooks named Minneapolis
one of its top 12 international travel spots for 2007. theater thrive.”
- Nov 2006
2 3”
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MINNEAPOLIS
Population (2006 U.S. Census estimate)
Minneapolis: 369,051
Hennepin County: 1,122,093
Downtown: 33,000
16th largest metro area
Nicknames: City of Lakes, Mill City Fast Facts
Geography MINNESOTA
Latitude: 44° 58’ 39’’ North Settled: 1858
Longitude: 93° 15’ 56’’ West Capitol: Saint Paul
Area: 59 square miles or 37,516 acres State Bird: Common Loon
Land: 35,244 acres State Fish: Walleye Pike
Water: 2,324 acres State Flower: Pink and White Lady’s Slipper
Lakes: 22
Elevation: 824 feet above sea level Population
5,197,621 (2007 U.S. Census estimate)
Tallest Building
IDS Center: 57 stories, 775 feet Geography
Area: 86,943 square miles
Colleges and Universities: Water: 7,326 square miles of Minnesota are covered
Four Public by water
Eight Private
Lakes
Weather 11,842 (22 within Minneapolis city limits)
Average high temperature in January: 22° F
Ave in July: 83° F Annual visitor statistics (metro area)
Overall: 45° F 2006: 18.3 million
Annual precipitation: 27.3 inches 2001: 10.3 million
Annual snowfall: 49.5 inches 2000: 11.1 million
1990: 4.5 million
Sales Tax
7.15% (downtown Minneapolis) Minneapolis Historic Nicknames
6.5% (elsewhere-statewide) Mill City
*There is no sales tax on apparel in Minnesota City of Lakes
Lodging Tax
13%
did YOU KnOw ?
With more than 90,000 miles of it, Minnesota has more
shoreline than Hawaii, California and Florida combined!?
44MInneapolIs Icons
Visitors will find loads of must-sees in Minneapolis. Here Lake Calhoun
is a quick guide to the top 10 icons that represent the city’s Part of the Chain of Lakes, Lake Calhoun is a popular site
diverse offerings: for windsurfing, swimming, sailing and canoeing. More than
three miles of trails for walking, jogging, biking and in-line
Spoonbridge and Cherry skating encircle the lake with the unique Minneapolis sky-
This has been Minneapolis’ signature sculpture since its line as its urban backdrop. The popular lake is also part of
completion in 1988. The spoon tips the scale at 5,800 the 50-mile Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway.
pounds and the cherry weighs 1,200 pounds! The 11-acre
Minneapolis Sculpture Garden, where the Spoonbridge and Stone Arch Bridge
Cherry reside, is one of the largest of its kind and includes Enjoy the roaring St. Anthony Falls with a stroll across the
more than 40 works of art. It’s also just across the street Stone Arch Bridge – the only one of its kind to span the
from the renowned Walker Art Center. Mississippi River. As part of the St. Anthony Falls Heritage
Trail, this pedestrian crossing is the oldest mainline railroad
First Avenue & 7th Street Entry bridge in the Northwest. Chronicling Minneapolis’ milling
Featured in “Purple Rain,” this Minneapolis classic is still history are the nearby Mill Ruins Park and Mill City
one of the hottest clubs in town. Stop in and rock out to Museum.
musical stylings from major national acts and local
emerging artists. Flagship Target store
This 2-story retail hot spot lies in the heart of downtown
action, just down the street from Target Corporation’s world Frederick R. Weisman Art Museum
headquarters. With a unique escalator for shopping carts, Housed in a striking stainless steel building, the Frank
this flagship retail experience shouldn’t be missed.Gehry-designed Weisman is a unique museum experience.
A teaching museum for the University of Minnesota and
the community, its collection features early 20th-century
American artists such as Georgia O’Keefe, Alfred Maurer
and Marsden Hartley.
HaVe YOU HeaRd ?
“A slew of high-profile architectural projects—from Jean Nouvel’s
stunning Guthrie Theater on the Mississippi to Cesar Pelli’s
luminous Central Library—have people flocking to the Midwest’s “cultural capital”
– Conde Nast Traveler, April 2008
44 5”sKY waY HiGHwaY+
Uptown Theater sign
Just south of downtown, Uptown is the center of Min-
neapolis’ hip energy, and includes off-beat shopping,
late-night dining, vibrant nightlife and up-and-coming
music. Just steps from the Chain of Lakes, Uptown
has everything an urban neighborhood should and
then some. You’ll know you’ve entered Uptown when Glass-enclosed walkways provide comfortable,
you see the iconic Uptown Theatre sign towering over convenient connections between downtown restaurants,
the neighborhood. shops and more.
Guthrie Theater The Minneapolis skyway system links hotels,
The stunning new Jean Nouvel-designed riverfront
restaurants, shopping malls, office buildings,
home for the nationally-renowned theater company
performance venues and attractions via glass-enclosed opened in July 2006 and has already earned numerous
walkways one floor above street level. The first design awards. With three theaters, 11 bars and lobby
skyway opened with fanfare in 1962 and many more space offering breathtaking views of the surrounding
followed. Today, a typical skyway in the city’s retail core area, the bold blue building has laid the groundwork
accommodates thousands of shoppers, sightseers and for continued growth in the Mill District.
office workers every day.
Mary Tyler Moore statue
Just across the street from where the hat-tossing So where is everybody going? Almost anywhere,
scene at the end of the Mary Tyler Moore Show credits considering the skyway system spans 80 blocks
was filmed, catch a glimpse of her bronze statue. and accesses the Minneapolis Convention Center,
Nicollet Mall is a pedestrian-only thoroughfare that’s Orchestra Hall, the State and Orpheum theaters,
home to countless shops, watering holes and side- Target Center, Block E entertainment complex, almost
walk dining spots.
every downtown hotel, and many popular shops and
restaurants. Banks, hair salons, dry cleaners and day
Skyways
spas line the city’s skyway highway too – as if staying
The skyway system is one of our most striking assets.
high and dry in the rain or snow weren’t enough. One floor above ground, this seven-mile system
Directional signs and maps aid navigation in the skyway links shopping, restaurants, entertainment and more
syst