Minneapolis To Replace Park Place On New Monopoly Board

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO/AP) - Minneapolis's luxury real estate market is getting a big boost.

The city will replace Park Place on a new U.S. edition of the Monopoly board out this fall.

Nearly 4 million people voted in a contest to choose the 22 American cities, and 22 international cities, that will be featured on two new boards, replacing those of the Atlantic City, New Jersey, sites that appear in the game's original, 1935 version.

Minneapolis received the second-most votes in the U.S. contest.

Pierre, S.D., won more and will replace Boardwalk, just across the Luxury Tax space from Minneapolis, on the new board.

Waconia also won enough votes in the write-in category. It will replace Baltic Avenue, the second cheapest property in the game.

The Monopoly "Here and Now" board is part of Hasbro's celebration of the popular game's 80th anniversary.

The new versions celebrate the 80 years of hoarding fake cash and bankrupting family members during summer vacations. But it's the third consecutive year that Hasbro has turned to social media to decide on tweaks to its popular game. Previously, fans decided to add a cat token and retired the iron, and they were also invited to incorporate their favorite "house" rules into the wider game.

"What's so important these days is to have your fans help tell you where the brand should go," said Jonathan Berkowitz, Hasbro's vice president of marketing.

There will be other changes to the new versions, including a faster style of play in which players collect different properties in their passport to win. The company incorporated suggestions from players who wanted to see a quicker pace, Berkowitz said.

The idea of adorning the world-famous monopoly board with Pierre, an old government town whose Capitol building still has saloon-style doors on the bathroom stalls, captivated local officials, media and residents. The city's part-time mayor took to the local radio stations, teachers developed class activities around the contest and the state tourism department sent out social media blasts encouraging South Dakotans to help land Pierre on the board.

"We got the community engaged, and it became for us, in our smaller community, an exciting thing to be able to promote what we have going on here," said Laurie Gill, who serves as mayor outside of her day job. "And I don't know that it was picked up that way in some larger the communities."