CW Lofts Sustainable Site Plan Implementation

CW Lofts, a residential development in Minneapolis’ Mid-City Industrial neighborhood, partnered with MWMO to install a rain garden and convert turf grass areas to pollinator-friendly habitat. This 4.5-acre site represents rare green space in an area characterized by warehouses, office complexes, and factories. Its sustainable landscape models responsible water management and healthy habitat diversity in an urban environment.

CW Lofts received a Community Grant from MWMO in 2018 to create a Master Sustainability Plan. That plan identified several strategies to reduce erosion, manage stormwater runoff, and protect water quality, while also beautifying the landscape.

MWMO’s 2023 Action Grant allowed CW Lofts to put the plan into action in three areas of their campus. Pollinator-friendly native plants like aster, blazing star, and rattlesnake master now fill the areas. Another large turf area on the south side of the building has become a garden area filled with more native plantings.

CW Lofts’ campus already has zero water runoff due to previous mitigation efforts, but these new installations will improve water infiltration on the site. The highly visible site also promotes sustainability education as passersby on the adjacent Diagonal Trail and the employees of surrounding businesses are invited to enjoy the walking path, shade trees, and benches of this green urban oasis.