For over a decade, the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District (MCWD) has worked with public and private partners to build the Minnehaha Creek Greenway, a series of interconnected projects in Hopkins and St. Louis Park that create a linear park along what was the most degraded stretch of Minnehaha Creek.
Through catalytic partnerships and high-impact projects, the Greenway has become the largest urban stream restoration in the Twin Cities Metro Area, improving regional water quality, increasing natural flood storage, and expanding greenspace along the Creek. Through collaboration with local businesses, nonprofits, and public agencies, the Greenway has supported job creation, fostered affordable housing, and created trails connecting people to parkland, transportation, and the restored Creek corridor.
Construction Continues on the West Entrance
Expanding on over a decade of restoration work in the Greenway corridor, in June 2026, MCWD began construction on the Gateway to the Greenway — the western entrance to the nearly 2.5-mile linear park.
The Gateway will welcome visitors to the Greenway through a new public plaza that will add greenspace, a pergola, and Creekside seating at the intersection of Lake Street and Blake Road, complementing the transformation of Cottageville Park that MCWD and the City of Hopkins completed in 2015. New rain gardens with pollinator plantings will also improve the site’s stormwater management, vegetation, and habitat.
Since June, the construction crew has made significant progress on the public plaza’s foundation, trails, benches, and plantings. Over the next few weeks, the crew will winterize the site, and construction will resume in the Spring with installation of the pergola structure and vegetation establishment. Construction is anticipated to be completed by Summer 2027. During active construction, residents can expect temporary impacts like increased noise, traffic, sidewalk detours, and disturbed soil. Cottageville Park will remain open.
also in this update
- Greenway to Cedar Trail Connection Construction Begins
- Winter Maintenance at the Minnehaha Creek Preserve Boardwalk