Central Avenue : Featured Stories

Imagine a day in a bike commuter’s boots. How does he or she prepare before walking out the door? How do they stay comfortable behind Arctic fronts and snow curtains — even the dreaded polar vortex. Here's how.

According to a recent panel discussion, we need to own our cold climate and our ingenuity in order to attract new talent, continue fueling the innovation at the heart of our economy, and create a new and authentic national identity. Shall we call ourselves the North?  

The Twin Cities is a leader in bicycle use and a major innovator in bicycle design and technology. The seven inventions profiled here have, or will have, an impact on the local and global cycling industry. And the pace of innovation shows no sign of slowing down.    

We recently sat down with Shawn Combs Walding, MnDOT’s Transit Advantages Coordinator for the Twin Cities Metro District to discuss alternative transportation in the Twin Cities, what local entities can do to promote transit use, and how easy it really is to be car-free. 

During these coveted warm months, wherever the people go, an army of gourmet and artisan food trucks are sure to follow. Here are six new food trucks hitting Twin Cities' streets that you might have missed. Get out and try something delicious.  

Summer in Minneapolis-St. Paul is all about getting out and about. Here are 10 homegrown apps to help you make the most of your summer in the cities.

What turns a pint at the local microbrewery into a feast? Transforms ho-hum lunch hours into culinary adventures? Generates curbside communities? Tests an entrepreneur's appetite for a new business? Twin Cities food trucks!  

Since the passage of the Surly Bill 2012, craft-beer entrepreneurs have rapidly opened breweries with taprooms in neighborhoods throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul. All are doing their part to turn neighborhoods into top-of-mind destinations.

From Seattle to Washington D.C., alleys are being reinvented as people-friendly spaces. Often perceived as dirty and dangerous, alleys are moving beyond garbage and garages to become havens for pedestrians, public art and small business.

Often, says Concordia University economist and biz-school dean Bruce Corrie, our minority and immigrant communities are seen solely through the "problem" lens. Their struggles are real, but their contributions to our prosperity and potential for growth are greater than most majority Minnesotans realize. And Corrie's got the figures to prove it.

The stretch of Minneapolis' Central Avenue Northeast that runs from around 18th Avenue to a little past Lowry is a colorful collage of immigrant businesses: Hispanic, Arab, Afghan, Indian, Southeast Asian. Bill Kelley's images capture a neighborhood that feels both faraway and very close to home.