On Saturday, June 11, south Minneapolis celebrated the opening of the Riverlake Greenway–a celebration nearly 15 years in the making.

You see, the Riverlake Greenway has been in the works since 1997. It was an idea proposed by Minneapolis residents who wanted a safer and more efficient way to ride between the Mississippi River and Lake Harriet. On Saturday, that vision became a reality.

The Riverlake Greenway spans five miles and includes a number of unique bicycle infrastructure improvements designed to aid safety and accessability for bicyclists and pedestrians, including the region’s first bicycle boulevard.

There’s so much more about this event I could share with you, but instead of writing more, I thought I’d share the photos we captured that tell the story much better than words. Enjoy.

The Sabathanites Drum Corps kicked off the Riverlake Greenway grand opening event on the Minnehaha Academy south campus.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar was among a number of dignitaries and community leaders who spoke at the grand opening event.

New “Bike Walk Move” t-shirts were prevalent at the grand opening–Bike Walk Move is a campaign supported by Bike Walk Twin Cities (my employer) to increase “mode shift” (getting more people riding bicycles and walking) across the metro area.

Again, community and political leaders joined on Saturday to support the Riverlake Greenway and the residents who will be using it for years to come.

A bicycle parade started at the east end of the Greenway at Minnehaha Academy (South Campus) and ran all the way to Lake Harriet later in the afternoon.

Local media outlet, KARE-11 was on hand to interview residents and supporters about the opening of the Riverlake Greenway. The segment ran later that afternoon.

The Riverlake Greenway is dotted with signage that highlights the route, including “BLVD” chalking you see above showcasing the first “bicycle boulevard” in the region.

This media at the intersection of Cedar and 40th in south Minneapolis prohibits cars from turning west-bound on 40th, making bicycling between Cedar and 35W on 40th much easier for bicyclists.

This “island refuge” on 40th near Chicago Ave. again forces cars to turn and frees up 40th, making it safer for bicyclists to make the journey from the Mississippi to Lake Harriet.

This “Yarn Bridge” over 35W on the Riverlake Greenway was the handiwork of Minneapolis street art duo, HOTTEA.