History
Since 1979, Target’s been part of the Lake Street community of Minneapolis, Minnesota. When the store was damaged in the wake of the murder of George Floyd, we committed to rebuilding and reopening in partnership with the community, creating a store that would better serve its needs into the future.
Reopened in the fall of 2020, the store now serves new and long-standing guests with our expanded assortment, redesigned store layout and additional entry next to the light rail, giving the neighborhood increased access to the groceries and other essentials they need. Take a peek inside the reopening:
We’ve also developed deeper relationships with our Lake Street-area partners and continued our volunteer efforts, with a specific focus on meeting the needs of local guests. Today, more than half of the Lake Street store team lives in the surrounding neighborhood. Our team remains committed to listening and learning so we’re not only a place to shop, but also a partner in serving the community.
Local artist murals
As part of our plan to reopen the store, we committed to co-creating permanent murals on the store’s exterior that reflect the Lake Street community. As we rebuilt, we asked local guests what they would want the art on the store to represent. They desired art that honors the cultural richness of the Lake Street community and conveys a sense of unity and positive change for the future.
These insights inspired one of our team members to write a poem that serves as a theme for the murals, and we’ve commissioned seven local, diverse artists with ties to the Lake Street community to share their artistic interpretations of key words in the poem: rooted, change, resilience, healing, growth, renewal and together.
Poem
We will root our stories deeply.
As seeds of courage and change.
We will keep each other grounded.
With hope, resilience and strength.
There is healing here to grow from.
Our renewal to stand as one.
Community means everything.
Together is where we belong.
Work on the murals began in May 2022 and were completed in June 2022.
Racial equity and social justice efforts
At the same time as our Lake Street store’s rebuilding efforts, Target created the Racial Equity Action and Change (REACH) committee to accelerate our path forward, supporting racial equity and social justice across the country. Since then, we’ve committed $10 million and ongoing resources to advance social justice and community recovery nationwide, and pledged $100 million to support greater access to resources for Black communities. Target team members have provided more than 22,000 hours of pro-bono consulting services for Black-owned and people-of-color-owned small businesses, including 8,000 hours in the Twin Cities specifically.
