The Metropolitan Council is the regional planning organization for the seven-county Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area whose statutory responsibilities include the efficient economical development of the region. Aligned with McKnight’s strategies of sustainable regional development, economically vibrant neighborhoods, and creating homes for all, the Met Council has played a critical regional planning and systems operations role for the last 40 years.
With the help of McKnight funding, the Met Council launched Thrive MSP 2040, a long-range planning effort. The plan will provide a regional vision for the 7-county metropolitan area for the next 30 years. The goals of the project are to maximize opportunities for growth and prosperity in the coming decades, to create a regional vision for everyone, and to define and achieve regional goals that may be too big for one community, but possible to accomplish as a region. The Met Council is engaging the public as part of the plan by asking the public to submit answers on their website to the question, “What does the Twin Cities need to thrive?”
The Met Council runs the regional bus and light rail system, oversees new rail transit projects, plans and operates the regional wastewater treatment system, coordinates water resource management, plans regional parks, and administers certain funds that provide housing opportunities for low- and moderate-income families through its Housing and Redevelopment Authority.
