Minneapolis to remove barriers, fencing around MPD's Third Precinct
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minneapolis City Council says big changes are coming soon to the city's Third Precinct which burned during the civil unrest in 2020 and has been vacant ever since.
The announcement comes just days after Republican Vice Presidential Nominee JD Vance spoke in front of the former police station.
"The age of barbed wire, jersey barriers, fencing and blight must come to an end," Council Member Aurin Chowdhury said. "We cannot allow for this corner to be a background for those who wish to manipulate our city's trauma for political gain."
The barbed wire could come down in the next few weeks, councilors say.
The city said it is "pleased to be moving forward with removing the temporary fencing and razor wire safely and as quickly as possible."
Plans are also moving forward to build a democracy center at the site. The plan would allow the building to be renovated, moving elections services from a building the city leases in northeast Minneapolis to that site and also creating 8,000 square feet of community space.
"It's time for our city to move forward. It's time for a vision at the old Third Precinct building to take shape," Mayor Jacob Frey said in a news conference on Tuesday, the day after Vance's visit.
City Operations Officer Margaret Kelliher says the goal would be for the project to be complete by 2029. Work is already underway fixing the inside of the building, replacing windows and elevator shafts.
The project is now heading into the design phase, according to Kelliher.