Minneapolis City Council overrides Jacob Frey veto of its plan for George Floyd Square

The Minneapolis City Council held its coalition together and voted 9-4 Thursday to override Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey’s recent veto of a City Council plan to create a pedestrian mall at the south Minneapolis intersection where George Floyd was killed nearly five years ago.

Council Member Emily Koski changed her vote from December to help override Frey, whom she’s running against for mayor in November. Koski released a statement saying Frey failed to work with the council on a compromise, and she said Floyd’s family called on her to override the veto.

“For nearly five years, his family has come to George Floyd Square to grieve and heal. To them, this is sacred ground, a place of resilience, justice, and humanity,” Koski said. “When decisions are made without centering the needs of those most affected, they disregard the heart of justice.”

Frey had a different take.

“The council’s decision is a betrayal of the community’s wishes and a colossal waste of time and tax dollars,” Frey said in a statement after the override. “Why the council is content to let this site sit idle, without any meaningful development and no legitimate plan, is beyond me. Our city staff have worked tirelessly alongside the community to bring forward a thoughtful, community-centered vision. Yet, this plan is being ignored by a small minority, which is simply not good governance.”

The mayor and council have competing visions for the intersection of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue at George Floyd Square, which is marked by a raised fist sculpture, memorials, artwork, a community garden and a protest space.

In late October, the Frey administration proposed an overhaul of the area that would allow traffic to fully return, with a “flexible street design” that would close streets for public gatherings. But a majority of council members rejected that idea in favor of keeping traffic to a minimum and creating a pedestrian plaza. The council voted to direct the city to evaluate a pedestrian mall layout adjacent to the former Speedway gas station where protesters still meet.

After two years of community workshops and a nine-month engagement process, city officials eschewed the pedestrian mall option in favor of another plan that would restore Metro Transit’s D-Line bus rapid transit service and Route 5 transit service along Chicago Avenue. In December, the council voted to nix that plan and instead chose an option that would only allow emergency vehicles.

City officials said that would delay their plan to begin construction after the five-year anniversary of Floyd’s killing passes in May.

Activists still meet at the former Speedway gas station and still push for 24 “demands for justice,” which include requiring police officers to maintain private liability insurance and firing some leaders of the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension.

On Wednesday morning, George Floyd Square activists held a news conference at their protest headquarters, the People’s Way former gas station at 38th and Chicago, urging the City Council to study reconstructing the street as a pedestrian mall closed to most traffic.

They were joined by Council Members Katie Cashman, Robin Wonsley, Aisha Chughtai and Jason Chavez, as well as local business owners including independent journalist KingDemetrius Pendleton, who held an upside down American flag as a symbol of the “distress” of 38th and Chicago.

In his veto letter, Frey said he doesn’t oppose a pedestrian mall, but a survey shows the community opposes it and that that option would delay development for at least a year. Frey said it may not be feasible due to a state law that requires support from at least half of nearby property owners, and none of the property owners who responded to a recent survey supported the council plan. Out of 20 private property owners surveyed, 15 responded, and all of them opposed a pedestrian mall.

Activist Marcia Howard, who lives near the intersection, criticized Frey’s portrayal of unanimous opposition from adjoining property owners to the pedestrian mall concept. She said it conflated property ownership and public will, saying there is a difference of opinion between landlords who aren’t present in the immediate community, and business owners who work in the intersection on a daily basis.

The Frey administration’s plan would build new streets, bikeways, pedestrian lighting, green spaces, a raised traffic circle in the intersection, wider sidewalks, upgraded pedestrian ramps and expanded community spaces. It would not allow traffic over the spot where Floyd died; leave the raised fist sculpture in place; and redevelop the former Speedway gas station into a community space run by a nonprofit.

Voting in favor of overriding the mayor were Council Members Koski, Cashman, Chavez, Wonsley, Jeremiah Ellison, Jamal Osman and Aurin Chowdhury, as well as Council President Elliott Payne and Vice President Chughtai.

Voting against were Council Members Michael Rainville, LaTrisha Vetaw, Andrea Jenkins and Linea Palmisano.