Sweet Spot

Stepping off the light-rail train at Minneapolis’ Midtown/Lake Street station, you’re surrounded by a menagerie of pastel glass panes, seemingly hovering in midair on the elevated platform. For a tiny second, it feels as though you’re exiting the famed El in Chicago, though this station is newer and tidier than any stop on the Loop—the pavement isn’t yet pocked with black chewing gum. Elevators and concrete stairwells dump riders onto a streetscape that is at first reminiscent of the Jersey turnpike, but varied urban life bustles just a few steps beyond the Hiawatha off-ramps. To the west, there’s the Midtown YWCA and a host of thrift stores, like Savers and the ReUse Center. To the east lies a cluster of ethnic restaurants and big box retailers.

With the train came the expectation of change to this stretch of Lake Street, which has a sprawling, gritty feel. So far there’s not much evidence of upscaling, or even the addition of a newsstand. (Aren’t all train stops supposed to have newsstands?) In 2006, however, the Lake Street Reconstruction Project promises more greenery (already, trees and a grassy walkway have been added to the Hi-Lake shopping center), as well as attractive pedestrian light fixtures, all to improve the intersection’s curb appeal. Nevertheless, it’s hard to imagine this neighborhood becoming posh.

On the contrary, this is a stubbornly practical, economically accessible place. Most of its shopping centers were planted in the 1950s and sixties and, despite various cosmetic improvements, look it. Everywhere, families are out acquiring the necessities of life. From the light rail, as well as the 21A bus line, mothers and children stream toward Target and Rainbow Foods. They cross vast parking lots, and pass Schooner’s Bar, before swooshing through automatic doors.

What’s most unique about Hiawatha and Lake is the way in which its malls interplay with smaller storefronts and restaurants—not to mention the varied ethnic mix of patrons. From the Cub Foods parking lot, just across from the Target parking lot, you can see the rainbow-colored flag soaring above Patrick’s Cabaret, a longtime venue for performance artists of every stripe. Nearby, the East African Gift Shop and Grocery is stocked with injera bread as well as Laffy Taffy. And along 27th Avenue, lined up one after the other, there is La Casa de Samuel Mexican restaurant, Midori’s Floating World Café (a sushi and tea bar), Curves for Women, and Al Qudus Halal Meat and Grocery.

Back at the train station, an African-American woman chases her daughters—both braided and pigtailed, one in her Girl Scout khakis—toward the platform. A teenager lugs his BMX bike up the stairs. An elderly Asian man, his canvas bag bursting with groceries, opts for the elevator. Within two minutes, north- and south-bound trains whisk them all away, depositing a new cast of eclectic Lake Street characters in their place.—Christy DeSmith


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