The Hiawatha Campus Expansion will:
- Allow the City to move and combine the Public Works Water Distribution Maintenance and Meter Shop operation from three sites to one centrally located facility.
- Replace the existing Water Distribution facility, which is more than 100 years old.
- Create staff work spaces that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
See a map of the expansion site
Review the history of this project
Reason for expansion
A core goal of the City is to provide safe drinking water and fire suppression to all residents of Minneapolis. To meet this goal, the Hiawatha Campus Expansion project will relocate water distribution operations and employees to one central site.
Issues with the current Minneapolis water distribution facility (also called the Wateryard):
- It is more than 100 years old.
- It is too small for the current demands on the system and does not meet City workplace minimum standards or accessibility standards.
- The current water distribution facility site is too small to build a new facility on and would also not benefit from the efficiency of being on the same site as the existing Hiawatha staff and buildings.
Other Public Works staff and functions important to storm water management and protecting our creeks, lakes and the Mississippi River will be relocated from other City facilities.
Expansion benefits
The new campus location will:
- Include several features that protect the environment
- Provide space for hundreds of green jobs that emphasize safe drinking water and environmental quality
- Include a new job training facility with more opportunities for Minneapolis residents to get living wage jobs with high-quality benefits
- Improve the City’s responsiveness and delivery of daily essential services and lower operating costs
- Include green site development and construction practices and serve as a catalyst for Green Zone development, including:
- Solar energy
- Storm water retention
- Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) development
- Replace an outdated facility with a new green buffer between operations and the neighborhood, with input from the neighborhood
- Mitigate the effects of site development in a responsible manner
Environmental assessment worksheet
The Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) for the proposed Hiawatha Maintenance Facility in south Minneapolis is available for review. Copies of the EAW will be available for review at the downtown Minneapolis Central Library.
The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has decided that the City does not need an air quality permit for the Hiawatha Campus Expansion.
Learn more about the EAW process
Progress and updates