Owámniyomni Okhódayapi, nonprofit leading Indigenous reclamation of land near St. Anthony Falls, selects design team led by Dakota Knowledge Keepers
m.startribune.com
As the federal government prepares to transfer 5 acres of prime riverfront property to the city of Minneapolis and eventually the Indigenous-led nonprofit Owámniyomni Okhódayapi, a design team led by GGN, Full Circle Planning and Design and Dakota Knowledge Keepers is working toward completing a site plan by year's end.

A unique development process is underway at St. Anthony Falls in downtown Minneapolis, where the federal government is transferring 5 acres of land to local control.

Owámniyomni Okhódayapi, a nonprofit formerly known as Friends of the Falls, has selected a design team guided by Dakota knowledge keepers to conduct a consensus-based ecological restoration. The land was both the birthplace of Minneapolis and sacred to the Indigenous people who lived there before.

“We’re working towards 100% land restoration, bringing flowing water back, bringing back species of life where they once were,” said Shelley Buck, president of Owámniyomni Okhódayapi and a former Prairie Island tribal leader. “People are really excited about this and willing to change how they do business normally to make sure that this site truly does give back to all of us.”