Section Of 5th Street Closes As Mpls. Reconfigures Downtown

MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) – Officials in Minneapolis say a section of 5th Street by the new Vikings stadium construction site is slated to close Monday as part of a construction project to reconfigure how people get around downtown.

Drivers will need to follow detours, the city says, as a four-block section of the west-bound one-way will close between Park and 11th avenues.

Crews will remove the roadway, making it part of the stadium construction site. When the stadium is completed, the area that was 5th Street will have off-street bike paths, improved traffic lights, and the barrier currently separating 5th Street and 6th Street will be removed. This will make it easier for walkers to navigate the area, the city says.

The traffic that once was on 5th Street will be diverted to a modified 6th Street. Currently, 6th Street is an eastbound one-way. The city says that over the construction season crews will add a west-bound lane on 6th Street to accommodate the traffic that used to run on 5th Street.

Additionally, the 5th Street ramp that currently takes in traffic from Interstate 94 will be moved to 7th Street. The city says this will help drivers navigate downtown better as 7th Street crosses the entire length of the downtown area.

Construction on these projects is being performed by the city in conjunction with both the Minnesota Sports Facilities Authority and the Department of Transportation.