Decades after Rondo’s destruction, group proposes replacing stretch of I-94 in Twin Cities with boulevard

ST. PAUL, Minn. – Big changes could be coming to a major stretch of interstate that divided a piece of St. Paul history. 

The Rondo neighborhood was a thriving African-American neighborhood full of houses and Black-owned businesses.

RELATED: St. Paul’s Rondo Inheritance Fund provides financial incentive for families to return to historically Black neighborhood

More than six decades ago, Interstate 94 split the neighborhood in half, forcing many families out of their homes.  

A group is rethinking that stretch of the interstate. One idea involves replacing a 7.5-mile stretch of the interstate – between Hiawatha Avenue in Minneapolis to Marion Street in St. Paul — with a boulevard in its place

RELATED: How I-35W obliterated the Black cultural corridor of south Minneapolis

There would be two lanes in each direction for drivers with dedicated bus lanes in the center. 

MnDOT says there is still years of planning ahead before any of this becomes a reality.

WCCO Staff

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