The Washburn A Mill

Between 1880-1930, Minneapolis was deemed the "flour milling capitol of the world" and led the United States in flour production. In 1916, flour production averaged 49,000 barrels per day across the city.

But by 1965, General Mills (the company that owned the Washburn A Mill) decided to focus more on prepared foods as flour milling ceased to be as profitable, and the company deemed the mill obsolete. Flour milling as a whole had been moving out of MInneapolis since 1920 because of changes in transportation and tariff rates, and energy technology. The riverfront milling district soon became an industrial neighborhood, but one without workers or industry.

Deciding how to repurpose the building

Perhaps there are older buildings in your own community that aren’t used for their original purpose anymore. How might they be repurposed to meet a new community need? Or should the building be taken down if it can’t be repurposed? And who gets to decide what the community needs?

One vision for the riverfront was to create a community of affordable housing. Left largely empty in the 1970s-1980s, the Washburn A Mill and other riverfront buildings became a haven for people experiencing homelessness. In May 1990, the mill was one of several sites occupied during a protest in support of affordable housing. Activists, including members of Up and Out of Poverty Now, occupied vacant buildings. They called for a greater commitment from the city government to provide housing by converting vacant buildings, like the Mill, into residential space or replacing them with housing. Eventually, the government offered a three-year plan to add 800 units of affordable housing to the city, which activists believed did not go far enough. After the February 1991 fire the MInnesota Historical Society began developing plans to created a museum in the mill which opened in 2003.

For residents of Minneapolis today, access to affordable housing is still a challenge. Along the riverfront, most housing can be expensive. Since 2000, the city’s population has grown without equal amounts of housing being built, putting affordable housing out of reach for a significant portion of residents. The recently adopted Minneapolis 2040 plan is meant to address this issue in coming decades.

Diaz, Kevin. "City-county panel backs $6.5 million housing plan." Star Tribune (Minneapolis) September 26th 1990. .3B.

Diaz, Kevin. "Homeless people, advocates seize vacant government owned buildings." Star Tribune (Minneapolis) May 2nd 1990. .1B.

Millett, Larry. AIA Guide to the Twin Cities. St. Paul, MN. Minnesota Historical Society Press, 2007.

"Squatters in Nicollet Hotel plan to continue their protest until May 1." Star Tribune (Minneapolis) April 17th 1990. .3B.