ISSUE 824 NW

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Minnesota Unbuilts Fruit of the Non-Existing Loop The Minneapolis "North Loop" was a proposed Interstate which would have created a full loop around downtown Minneapolis, connecting to I-94 and a proposed "Northwest Radial" freeway on the west, and I-35W on the east. Planning on the "North Loop" began as early as the 1940s, with a proposed multilane divided expressway but with at-grade intersections. Planning changed in the early 1960s, when the route started being planned as a freeway and was given an Interstate designation of I-335 (think I-35 version for 494 and 694). I-335 did receive some federal money in the 1970 highway bill to purchase right-of-ways and to begin construction. The project got as far as completing about 90% of its ROW acquisition, and even had some grading done for the interchange at I-35W (the reason for the funky north

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bound "Evil Knevil-type" ramp and the southbound lane drop just south of Johnson St). Pressure from public opposition began mounting in the mid '70s, and the route was eventually cancelled in 1978, with the Interstate money being used for other projects in the area, including parts of I-394, the MN 610 bridge, and the Central Ave/Broadway intersection. Some folks have made comments in recent years that maybe perhaps it should have been built after all. The biggest reason behind their argument is that it would have helped reduce the pressure on the I-94 Lowry Hill Tunnel. This has been in dispute, and one of the biggest reasons behind its cancellation was the perceived notion that it would NOT help matters at the Lowry Hill Tunnel because there were no direct connections between WB I-94 and I-335, or vice versa. Adding these connections to the design would have given I-394 to I-35W traffic an alternative to the Tunnel, which would have improved the overall system. I-335, as planned, would have been a 6-lane Interstate-standard freeway with full or partial interchanges at I-94, Washington Ave, Marshall Ave/Main St NE, University Ave/4th St NE, Monroe St NE and I-35W. The highway would have been built to continue west of I-94 and is now known as the never-built "Northwest Radial" freeway. Curiously, there were no connections planned between I-335 and MN 65/Central Ave. Oh well, I’m sure Twin Citians have enjoyed all the remedial road construction, since and continuing on, to do what may have been accomplished back then. Dome it All Anyway… The First Proposed Dome was a futuristic dome city proposed to be built over the swamps of north central Minnesota. It was proposed by Athelstan Spilhaus — a famous inventor, meteorologist and futurist, who ran the Institute of Technology at the University of Minnesota. Spilhaus wanted to build an entire city designed for scientific advancement. It’s 60,000+ acres would house 250,000 people in ever-changing modular buildings. Only 1/6 of it would be paved. It would have been constructed as a public private partnership. In contrast with many of the model cities of the time, the MXC was to be experimental, trying new things rather than proposing to select from the best of the existing practice. The city was supposed to be self-sustaining, so plans involved high-rise parking garages filled with beef cattle, and a power plant. There would be a pedestrian zone, cars were to be parked on the edge with a people-mover connecting them to the center. There would be monorail systems and moving walkways with an automated highway system to connect the town with the outside world. There would be no schools as the city itself would foster lifelong learning, with everyone both a student and teacher and there would also be waterless toilets….???? All of this would be built under a massive geodesic dome, under the influence of Buckminster Fuller (think buckyballs) who sat on the MXC's advisory board, It would contain a branch of the University of Minnesota and 3M Corporation. In fact, Ford, Boeing and Honeywell had all invested, as had the state Legislature. It was expected to cost $4 billion. It sounded like a sure thing and very nearly happened back in the early 1970s; however, it would also be built right on top of Terry Mejdrich's hometown of Swatara, Minn. (Continued page 7)

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