Uptown Minneapolis

About a mile south of Downtown Minneapolis, Uptown Minneapolis is where fashionable Minneapolis residents live, work and play. There is a high concentration of stylish homes, stores, bars and restaurants in Uptown Minneapolis. The neighborhood borders beautiful Lake Calhoun, used by runners, cyclists, and fit, beautiful people in general.

Uptown isn’t an official neighborhood of Minneapolis, rather it’s the name used for the fashionable part of town centered around the intersection of Hennepin Avenue and Lake Street. The borders of Uptown are not defined, but are usually agreed on to be Lake Calhoun to the west, and Dupont Avenue in the east. The north and south borders are more debatable, but Uptown proper is usually between 31st Avenue to the south, and somewhere around 26th Street to the north.

"Uptown" can also refer to a much larger area – many people would refer to another several blocks to the south, east and north, as Uptown as well.

The lakes of Uptown Minneapolis have been popular for recreation since the 1880s. Uptown as a residential area was originally developed in the early 20th century. Large lakefront houses and apartments were built for commuters using the new streetcar system.

In 1928, the Lagoon Theater, now the Uptown Theater, opened on the corner of Hennepin Avenue and Lagoon Avenue. The area soon became a busy commercial district, and has survived a 1938 fire that destroyed the original Lagoon Theater, economic downturns, crime and neighborhood decay to become once again, one of Minneapolis’ most fashionable areas.

Apartments are plentiful in Uptown Minneapolis, with many stylish mid-sized 1920s buildings, and many stylish modern buildings, and many cheaper, less stylish mid-century and 1970s buildings. Single family homes, usually larger homes, were built in the early and mid twentieth century.

Apartment rents are reasonable because of the large supply, but buying a house in Uptown is more expensive that the average home price in the city of Minneapolis.

Uptown Minneapolis is viewed as home to just young professionals and college students, drawn to the nightlife and fashionable shops. There’s certainly plenty of hipsters in Uptown Minneapolis, but couples and older professional people like Uptown too, for the proximity to the lakes, the walkability of the neighborhood, and attractive housing.

Families live here too, for amenities like the Uptown library, local schools, and the lakes and parkland.

Uptown Minneapolis’ nightlife is centered on the intersection of Hennepin Avenue and Lake Street. Bars like Chino Latino and the Uptown Bar attract all the beautiful people, and restaurants like Barbette, Chiang Mai Thai, Figlio’s, and Namaste Cafe offer food from America, and around the world.

Hipsters who shop at chain stores will find two staples in Uptown: American Apparel and Urban Outfitters both have a store in Uptown. The Hennepin-Lake intersection also has stylish homeware stores, more fashion and beauty shops and spas.

On Lake Street, upmarket food retailer Lund’s has a supermarket.

Minneapolis’ lakes have been used for recreation for over a century. Uptown’s lake, Lake Calhoun, is where Uptown visitors go for a stroll after dinner, and where Uptown residents go for their daily 6 a.m. jog. Lake Calhoun also has two beaches, and the parkland around the lake is popular for sunbathing. In the summer, Lake Calhoun is popular for windsurfing and kayaking, and in the winter snowkiters use parachutes to snowboard across the lake.

Many families live in Uptown Minneapolis. Just a few streets away from the commercial district, the streets get much quieter and many professional families live in the larger homes in the neighborhood.

As well as playing at the beach and by the lake, the family-friendly Uptown Library, with the giant silver letters outside, is very popular with local kids.

There is no school in the Uptown neighborhood, but Jefferson, Whitter and Lyndale school are very close by.

The popularity of Uptown Minneapolis, the commercial district, the high population density and the traffic bottleneck caused by the lakes means that traffic in the area can be very bad. Parking can be a headache for non-residents because many streets are reserved for Uptown residents’ cars, and much of the rest of the streets are meter parking. Once you get out of Uptown, the Twin Cities’ major freeways, I-35W and I-94, are very close.

Bike is the preferred mode of transport for many of Uptown’s residents in the summer. The Midtown Greenway runs from Seward, through Midtown to Uptown and connects with several other bike paths and bike trails.