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Minneapolis Skyline
By now, many of us have read stories of correlations between density and COVID-19. A logical response would be a depopulation of urban centers. However, the pandemic’s lasting effect will more likely swing the pendulum the other way. Even now, cities like Minneapolis continue to grow. And pandemic or no, many of our new residents need affordable housing and the safety and services that come with density.
John Dwyer Portrait
John Dwyer is an architect, an associate professor, and a founder of the bachelor of architecture program at Dunwoody College of Technology in Minneapolis.
As an architect, associate professor, and a founder of the bachelor of architecture program at Dunwoody College of Technology, I’ve witnessed the next generation of architects devise solutions for cities around the world. Minneapolis is quickly becoming an increasingly vibrant, global city. So our work in pursuing social equity and cultural diversity has taken on particular importance here at home.
Minneapolis decreased in population throughout the 1950s and ’60s, where it remained flat until 2010. Since then it has been growing at a rate close to 10 percent per decade, with some communities more than doubling in that time frame. At the same time, despite housing initiatives and a spike in construction, vacancy rates continue to decline and rents continue to rise beyond the rate of inflation.
Much like the pandemic itself, the growing need for housing within our urban center is not affecting all races equally. Nonwhite populations make up five times more growth than white within our state.
In the weeks following George Floyd’s murder, we experienced the need for density as several communities lost the services that density provides. Public transportation was stopped while community grocers and retailers closed along with the many restaurants and shops already shut down by the pandemic. Proximity to services has always been key to survival. And now, more than ever, it must become a priority.
A key solution is an old new urbanist ideal called the “missing middle,” which encompasses housing development outside of single family and large scale. These include anything from a duplex to an eightplex, from cohousing to courtyard or live/work models. This is one of the ideals of the Minneapolis 2040 plan. Many of our students studied cities affected by spikes of growth throughout history, from Philadelphia to Barcelona. What students quickly discovered is that diversity rules. Homogenous solutions, such as large-scale towers or tract housing, created civil unrest. But in cities where growth was woven into the existing urban fabric through more diverse, smaller-scale, and scattered developments, greater levels of social equity, inclusivity, and civility persisted. The students generated a set of case studies within Minneapolis, along with a current status of their pervasiveness. This now can serve as a benchmark for how effective the 2040 plan will be at accommodating equitable growth.
Of course, the plan requires an entire urban population to shift its cultural paradigms away from the concepts of “good” and “bad” neighborhoods and the fears around growth and change. Historically, I would be less optimistic that our society would have the capacity for such radical change. However, given all we have endured in recent months, my hope for humanity’s capacity to stretch has grown. I hope for a new tolerance and understanding of all the ways people live in our city, a heightened awareness of the global context we are in, and a better understanding of the challenges facing the homeless.
When we think of home, it’s easy to get caught up in HGTV shows and Instagram feeds that influence our paradigms. But celebrating diverse ways of living in all our neighborhoods holds the potential for a powerful shift toward social justice. This is how I believe the pandemic can change us for the better.
