Minnetonka Neighborhood Identities

Report, presentation, and poster created by students enrolled in PA 8203: Neighborhood Revitalization, taught by Dr. David Hollister and Dr. Lauren Martin in fall 2012.This project was completed as part of the 2012-2013 Resilient Communities Project (rcp.umn.edu) partnership with the City of Minnetonka. Minnetonka has many residential neighborhoods, but neighborhood representation and participation varies widely--from a few formal neighborhood organizations to numerous informal associations and, in many cases, no organizational representation at all. Minnetonka project lead and city planner Jeff Thomson worked with students in PA 8203: Neighborhood Revitalization, to understand how to promote neighborhood organizations and identities based on local and national case studies, and to understand existing neighborhood entities in Minnetonka. The report includes a review of three broad models of structuring local government and neighborhood organization relationships; four case studies of local governments in the United States working with community organizations; in depth descriptions of three existing Minnetonka community organizations; and recommendations for how Minnetonka can use this information. The students' final report, presentation, and poster are available.This project was supported by the Resilient Communities Project (RCP), a program at the University of Minnesota whose mission is to connect communities in Minnesota with U of MN faculty and students to advance local sustainability and resilience through collaborative, course-based projects. RCP is a program of the Center for Urban and Regional Affairs (CURA). More information at http://www.rcp.umn.edu