The architect who designed Southdale Center, Victor Gruen, was a champion of putting pedestrians first. Yet over the decades following the mall's opening, the surrounding corridor on France Avenue South became a vehicle-focused environment where walking proved difficult — a contradiction of Gruen's founding vision.
In 2015, Edina addressed that contradiction. As new residential developments emerged around Southdale, the city invested $4 million to improve France Avenue S. for pedestrians and cyclists. The completed project remade several key intersections and filled long-standing gaps in the pedestrian network.
What Was Built
- Wider, more visible crosswalks at key intersections
- Filled gaps in sidewalk coverage along France Avenue S.
- Upgraded pedestrian crossing controls and signals
- New protective medians serving as safety refuges between traffic lanes
Rather than building a single pedestrian bridge — a more expensive and less flexible solution — planners reconfigured intersections at W. 66th, W. 70th, and W. 76th streets. The approach delivered broader impact across the corridor.
The Results
Transportation planner Mark Nolan captured the response from the community: "We're hearing from residents that they're able to walk to Southdale for the first time." The Kinderberry Child Development Center near W. 70th and France reported safer conditions for children's walks to the area.
One Southdale Place, a 232-unit luxury rental development nearby, began marketing its "pedestrian-friendly" location to prospective residents — a signal that walkability had become a genuine selling point in a corridor previously defined by its car-centric design.
Funding and Community Buy-In
The city received more than $1 million in federal highway funding to help cover costs. Property owners along the corridor donated easements, reflecting broad recognition that the improvements would benefit the community as a whole.
