After months of planning, community meetings and construction, Monday was opening day for a first-of-its-kind safety center in Minneapolis.

The Lake Street Safety Center is located next to the Lake Street/Midtown light rail station at 2228 East Lake Street.

The vision for the center started taking shape back in February after the Minneapolis City Council voted to pull $500,000 from a pot of money initially recommended for police officer recruitment and retention and use it instead to open the safety center.

The space, which is made up of a single winding hallway with rooms full of tables and chairs on either side, was formerly a dentist’s office. Now, it’s a first-of-its-kind pilot project meant to merge policing and community services in one public space for neighbors.

As noted by Mayor Jacob Frey and Community Safety Commissioner Todd Barnette, Amanda Harrington — who works under Barnette in the Minneapolis Office of Community Safety — has been the city’s lead on the project from the start.

“I’d be remiss if I didn’t start out with just saying that director Amanda Harrington has done a great job. She got us here today,” Barnette began, speaking at a press conference with city officials on the center’s inaugural day.

“This is history-making in this moment for Minneapolis residents,” area Council member Jason Chavez said.

The center will be open five days a week with staff from Minneapolis 311 there every day and a rotating schedule for several other groups.

“We’re going to have crime prevention specialists, we’re going to have community groups, opioid prevention services, 311 customer support, and BCR, and our mental health first responders that can all operate, in part and at times, out of this roof,” Mayor Jacob Frey said.

Minneapolis Police will be available as well and it’s a space where they can stop for a meal or restroom break, but officials emphasized it’s not a precinct and anyone should feel safe to walk in.

“We don’t want anybody to feel like they can’t come into, really, any of our city buildings, but in particular, this is a space where everybody should feel welcome,” Harrington said. “Our idea for this center is, really, you could come into this center for any number of non-emergency services, and folks should help connect you to somebody.”

“Today, we can see tangible results of our community safety work. And again, let me be clear, this is just part of that. This hasn’t been the beginning or the end. It’s just another step,” Barnette added.

The Lake Street Safety Center is meant to be temporary until the city can officially open the new 3rd Police Precinct as the South Minneapolis Community Safety Center, likely sometime in 2026.

The city has leased the new space on Lake Street for two years, and Harrington said it will serve as both a smaller-scale blueprint and a trial run for that larger-scale space to come.

Safety Center hours:

• Monday, Wednesday, and Friday: 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
• Tuesday and Thursday: 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.

Safety Center City Services and Rotating Community Organizations:

• 311 Customer Service Representatives
• Crime Prevention Specialists
• Minneapolis Police Department
• Community Navigators
• Lake Street Safety Coordinators
• Lead Minneapolis
• Behavioral Crisis Response supervisors (BCR)
• Greater Minneapolis Council of Churches (GMCC)
• Let Everyone Advance with Dignity (LEAD Minneapolis)

There will also be a satellite office for:

• Behavioral Crisis Response Team (BCR)
• Community City Attorney
• Lake Street Social Workers
• Minneapolis Park Police