Daylighting Shingle Creek Framework Plan

SRF worked with Hennepin County and the City of Brooklyn Center to study the feasibility of daylighting and implementing environmental enhancements for a segment of Shingle Creek within the City of Brooklyn Center, in the vicinity of Brookdale Mall and the Hennepin County Government Center.

The framework plan that resulted envisions a restored creek in Brooklyn Center that will:

• Revitalize the area’s identity
• Create an amenity that builds on recreational and retail assets
• Catalyze economic development
• Restore a healthy habitat for aquatic life

The framework plan breaks the creek into four segments (reaches) based on like characteristics. For each of the reaches, primary challenges were identified. The plan provides a vision for each reach that restores the environmental health of the creek while also providing an open space amenity for new development to orient towards.

The plan emphasizes phasing, funding, and roles for project implementation that would be of immediate benefit to Brooklyn Center, the area’s tax base, and Hennepin County. The framework is visionary but grounded in fiscal and technical reality.