What's Really Happening on West Broadway?

A recent Star Tribune article was quite critical of the lack of progress on West Broadway, and the director of the West Broadway Business Coalition then published a rebuttal detailing the economic development we have seen.  I thought the first shot was perhaps a bit too bleak, while the WBC account painted a picture that was overly rosy.  The truth, as is often the case, lies somewhere in between.

Since the publication of those articles, I've been thinking quite a bit about what we have in the commercial heart of north Minneapolis.  As I walk, bike, and drive along the corridor, I've been looking at West Broadway through two lenses--what would bring people from outside the area to West Broadway, and what draws me personally to spend money on the avenue.

Admittedly this is subjective.  Plenty of places, like nail salons, hair braiding shops, and urban outfitters are not going to draw business from a straight, white male, and I wouldn't expect them to.  But I think there's something to be said about taking a detailed look at West Broadway, starting at...

Calling Out Ron Edwards

Edwards is on the right-hand side.

Post and photo after the jump by the Hawthorne Hawkman. First three images from the Johnny Northside blog. Fourth image from www.minnesotapublicradio.org.

Let's get one thing out of the way first: I generally do not like personal tit-for-tat arguments via blogging. This is why I try to keep my blog focused on issues instead of personalities. But every once in a while, something so boneheaded, so egregious comes along that it just cannot be left uncontested.

That's precisely what happened today, when I picked up the Star Tribune article about the near-riot at the Haywood Eaton vigil. (Links go to JNS, since the Strib links often go dead after a while. The Strib article is reprinted in the comment section there.) In that article, Minneapolis activist Ron Edwards is quoted as saying...