Five years after George Floyd's murder, temporary barricades still ring the memorial on the pavement where he died — and tension over the intersection's future is rising.

The big picture: Proposals to install new, permanent street infrastructure around the memorial are caught in limbo at Minneapolis City Hall amid a broader debate about who gets to shape the future of George Floyd Square.

• In one camp: business owners, who envision a mecca for local and Black-owned enterprises at 38th & Chicago — but say delays to improvements in the square undermine those plans.
• In another camp: curators of Floyd's memorial, who suspect city officials and developers are trying to profit off of the pilgrimage site.

What they're saying: "They want the Fist without the fuss," memorial caretaker Marcia Howard tells Axios, referencing the square's Black Power sculpture. "They want the protest zone without the protesters."

• She believes business interests are "waiting for economic infusion" that would come if they can sideline their long-running protest.

The other side: 38th & Chicago has been desperate for economic development for years, and street project delays "signal that we're just going to keep going around and around, and nothing will happen," argues P.J. Hill, who bought buildings in George Floyd Square in 2023.

• "Over time, it'll just go back to business as usual," Hill fears.

Catch up quick: Many business owners and Mayor Jacob Frey have backed a proposed "flexible" design.

• It would keep a memorial and lock in the square's current car-friendly layout, but add new retractable arms for occasional street closures.

State of play: A veto-proof majority of the City Council voted in March to stop work on the "flexible" design and study another idea: creating a pedestrian mall on part of Chicago Avenue in front of the memorial.

• Business owners oppose this idea because it would reduce parking and bus access.

Yes, but: The "flexible" design is "not a community-led plan," says Jeanelle Austin, who leads Rise and Remember, the nonprofit that preserves the memorial. "The city is trying to take it back, take it over."

Between the lines: Both sides worry gentrification or displacement could follow.

• Austin fears a wave of development could push up rents and property taxes, driving out current residents.
• If businesses keep struggling, Hill worries outside investors could swoop in to "buy these assets for pennies on a dollar. ... Who's going to buy those assets? Not Black business owners like me."

Planning for the George Floyd Square street rebuild included "the most comprehensive engagement that the city of Minneapolis has done for any project," city project manager Alexander Kado tells Axios.

• The city gathered neighbors' feedback at more than 50 public events.

What they found: "There were some loud voices around closing [the street]," remembers engagement consultant James Trice — and city officials say they, too, were initially intrigued by the idea.

• But over time, a more nuanced picture of residents' priorities emerged. That feedback led them to the "flexible" design.

The intrigue: Many neighbors who oppose the "flexible" design don't necessarily favor the pedestrian mall, Austin says. They want a more comprehensive plan for a neighborhood that's long needed city resources.

• The city paid for "hours and hours of community engagement — and then they ignored us," Austin says.

What's next: City officials will present results of the pedestrian mall study the council ordered in December.

Hill bristles at taking more time to study next steps at 38th & Chicago.

• "We're f---ing meeting-ed out."

What a neighborhood survey found

"It's like, five years of emptiness … It could actually provide a business for somebody to actually support their family."

About half of the 65 properties that Minneapolis and St. Paul listed as destroyed in the violence following Floyd's murder have not been redeveloped.

Go deeper

🏡 Floyd was raised in Houston. His Texas-based family and friends reflected on "the big man who made them laugh" — and efforts to preserve his legacy — to their hometown newspaper. (Houston Chronicle)

📣 Angela Harrelson, Floyd's closest relative in the Twin Cities, recalls being reluctantly thrust into the spotlight after her nephew's death — and finding "the strength to be a voice for him." (Sahan Journal)

📺 A Star Tribune analysis found that, after initially criticizing Derek Chauvin, many conservative news outlets have recast the ex-officer as a victim, and Floyd as a "thug." (Go deeper)

The Minneapolis Police Department endured a historic exodus of officers in the years following Floyd's murder, but city officials say they're seeing signs of recovery.

The big picture: The city's police force has shrunk by more than a third in recent years, from 920 officers in March 2019 to 583 officers this past March, according to police data provided to Axios.

Yes, but: The force increased by 28 from March 2024 to mid-May, to 588 officers, the first year-over-year increase since 2019.

• "We netted positive last year, and we're going to net substantially positive this year," Mayor Jacob Frey told Axios this spring.

A closer look at the trend

🕯️ In George Floyd Square, a packed weekend of street festivals and concerts culminates with a candlelight vigil Sunday at 8pm. Full lineup via Rise & Remember

🎨 At nearby Phelps Field Park, Memorialize the Movement features vendors and live mural paintings and performances. Sunday, 12-8pm.

🚲 Slow Roll plans a bike tour of significant 2020 sites. Sunday, 4pm.

📽️ A short documentary about youth protestors is set to premiere at Justice Page Middle School, with a post-screening Q&A to follow. Tonight, 7pm.

🖼️ Day of Remembrance at Minneapolis Institute of Art promises to explore "the power of art in activism." Tonight, 5-8pm; registration required.