[M&M OW - CITY] - Minneapolis: Home of the Ensign

[The Mariner]

MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA

Home of Ensign Minneapolis

Note on material

The majority of this material is taken from the Wikipedia article on Minneapolis, and key neighborhoods in said city are drawn from the same source for the most part. All fictional material is added in the entry "Minneapolis Office of Superhuman Relations"

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The Basics

Minneapolis, nicknamed "City of Lakes" and the "Mill City," is the county seat of Hennepin County, the largest city in the state of Minnesota, and the 48th largest in the United States. Its name is attributed to the city's first schoolteacher, who combined mni, a Dakota Sioux word for water, and polis, the Greek word for city.

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As of 2012, the estimated population of the city of Minneapolis is 392,880. Minneapolis lies on both banks of the Mississippi River, just north of the river's confluence with the Minnesota River, and adjoins Saint Paul, the state's capital. Known as the Twin Cities, Minneapolis–Saint Paul is the 16th-largest metropolitan area in the U.S., with the area containing approximately 3.4 million residents.

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The city is abundantly rich in water, with twenty lakes and wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls, many connected by parkways in the Chain of Lakes and the Grand Rounds National Scenic Byway. Among cities of similar densities, Minneapolis has the most dedicated parkland. It was once the world's flour milling capital and a hub for timber, and today is the primary business center between Chicago and Seattle, with Minneapolis proper containing America's fifth highest concentration of Fortune 500 companies.

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Minneapolis has cultural organizations that draw creative people and audiences to the city for theater, visual art, writing, and music. The community's diverse population has a long tradition of charitable support through progressive public social programs and VOLAGs (Voluntary Agencies), as well as private and corporate philanthropy.

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Notable Locations

UPTOWN

Uptown is a popular commercial district in southwestern Minneapolis, Minnesota, centered at the Uptown Theater (the former Lagoon) at the intersection of Hennepin Avenue and Lagoon Avenue. It has traditionally spanned the corners of four neighborhoods, Lowry Hill East, ECCO, CARAG and East Isles neighborhoods, within the Calhoun Isles community Historically, the boundaries of Uptown are Lake Calhoun to the west, Dupont Avenue to the east, 31st Street to the south, and 28th Street to the north.

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DOWNTOWN

Downtown West is an official neighborhood in Minneapolis, part of the larger Central community. It is the heart of downtown Minneapolis (and Minneapolis as a whole), containing the bulk of high-rise office buildings in the city, and is what comes to mind when most Minneapolitans think of "downtown". Its boundaries are as follows (going in a clockwise direction): 12th Street to the southwest, 3rd Avenue North, Washington Avenue North, and Hennepin Avenue to the northwest, the Mississippi River to the northeast, and Portland Avenue, 5th Street South, and 5th Avenue South to the southeast. It is bordered by the North Loop, Nicollet Island/East Bank, Downtown East, Elliot Park, and Loring Park neighborhoods. Downtown West is home to most of Minneapolis's most notable buildings like the Foshay Tower.

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Downtown East, Its boundaries are the Mississippi River to the north, Interstate 35W to the east, 5th Street South to the south, and Portland Avenue to the west. It is bounded by the Downtown West, Elliot Park, and Cedar-Riverside neighborhoods. The Marcy-Holmes neighborhood is on the other side of the river, but there is no direct automobile connection between the two neighborhoods. There is a pedestrian and bicycle connection via the Stone Arch Bridge. Downtown East is home to the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, where the Minnesota Twins (MLB baseball), Minnesota Vikings (NFL football), and Minnesota Gophers (NCAA University of Minnesota football) have all played home games. As of 2009, the Minnesota Golden Gophers moved into the new TCF Bank Stadium on the University of Minnesota Campus. Additionally, the Minnesota Twins moved into new Target Field at the start of the 2010 season. In 2016, a new Vikings Stadium will replace the Metrodome.

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Within Downtown East is the Mills District, which contains a number of former industrial properties left over from the days when Minneapolis was the flour milling capital of the world. Many old mills and factories are being converted to housing, bringing a residential population to a neighborhood that beforehand didn't have many residents. The neighborhood is also home to the Mill City Museum, Mill Ruins Park, and the new Guthrie Theater complex, which abandoned its old location near Loring Park during the summer of 2006.

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The neighborhood is served by Downtown East/Metrodome station of the Hiawatha Line.

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City of Minneapolis Office of Superhuman Relations

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The OSR is based at the Buzza Building on the east side of the Uptown district of Minneapolis. A organization formed by Minneapolis in the early 1990's to help visiting superhumans with varying needs make their visits to Minneapolis a memorable one, and is also a key part of Minneapolis' public safety plans.

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The upper levels of the building houses various offices and supply store-rooms for the OSR's relations and security teams, and houses Minneapolis' Advanced Security Rsponse force, that responds to superhuman threats as best they can with whatever resources they can muster. Also equipment is stored for visiting superhumans with special needs or for superhumans assisting in disaster response in the city, as illustrated after the 35W bridge collapse as no fewer than 6 visiting superhumans came to aid Minneapolis' emergency response teams alongside Captain Minnesota and his sidekick The Ensign. It has only been activated in the same way after a small tornado hit the north side in 2011, although the needs were mostly clean-up, assisted by the now Ensign Minneapolis with a prototype of her new suit.

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Ensign Minneapolis herself has set up her base of operations on the basement level of the Buzza Buiding, where freight trucks can bring in supplies to her lab, or house various vehicles that the ASRs of the office use, as well as it has become Ensign's residence itself.