Images of kids playing, trees and a neighborhood skyline were painted into a new brightly-colored mural overlooking the space that has been transformed into the new Edna’s Park in Cedar-Riverside.

The West Bank Business Association (WBBA) organized the mural’s painting, which took place during the association’s three-week fall activities fair beginning on Sept. 29, featuring activities such as art workshops, live music and free food for the neighborhood.

The mural was designed by 11 local artists from City Mischief Murals, an artist collective focused on creating a safe space for Black artists, Indigenous artists and artists of color. Event organizers passed out snacks and art supplies to children while they watched the artists paint the wall.

Joan Vanderbruggen has worked as a public art consultant in Minneapolis for roughly 15 years. Vanderbruggen recruited artists with the WBBA for the project and said the space gives the community “a place to belong.”

“It’s been so nice to see so many young people come through and get really excited about taking art supplies,” Vanderbruggen said. “That really means a lot to me because I think sometimes, those are just items that aren’t always accessible to everybody.”

The mural, which artists completed on Oct. 5, comes as the culmination of a larger, year-long clean up effort to revitalize an area of Cedar-Riverside that has suffered from neglect in recent years, according to WBBA director KJ Starr.

Edna’s Park links Riverside Plaza with Cedar Avenue, acting as a popular walking path for many residents and a connection between apartment buildings and the neighborhood businesses, Starr said. The space, which used to be occupied by a restaurant that burned down several years ago, became vacant and overgrown with weeds as time passed.

“When I think about the needs of the neighborhood, it’s to show people that this is a cared for and loved place,” Starr said in an April interview. “I think that makes a big difference in how our neighborhood is perceived and how we perceive ourselves.”

Starr has owned The Wienery next to the park for more than 20 years and said prior to the clean up effort, the area was filled with garbage and drug paraphernalia.

“This is a space where people who live here walk through it every day,” Starr said. “The amount of feeling of neglect … it’s not a great feeling. It doesn’t speak to business vibrancy and doesn’t speak to this being a neighborhood everyone wants to be in.”

After being neglected for many years, the park is receiving care and upkeep. Volunteers replaced weeds with plants and trash with wood chips, along with a colorful mural covering an entire wall. The park now has tables with parcheesi boards and a portrait of a local business owner whom the park is named after.

WBBA received an initial $5,000 grant for the project from the City of Minneapolis as part of its green zone initiative in November 2021, according to Starr. The city’s initiative, which includes Cedar-Riverside, aims to promote community health and environmental well-being for diverse communities. The WBBA later received additional funding for the mural through several sources including the Cedar-Riverside Community Council and out-of-pocket donations.

Laura Phelps works with Streetworks, a local organization focused on providing outreach to youth experiencing homelessness. Phelps, who was handing out free snacks on behalf of Streetworks, said Edna’s Park provided an opportunity for Cedar-Riverside communities to come together.

“It’s nice when we can bring lights and joy to people’s lives,” Phelps said. “This is a great little park. This could be a great community space for people.”

The mural’s artists periodically stopped to talk with people about the artwork. Groups of people stood near the entrance of the park on Cedar Avenue talking and drinking hot chocolate, while residents gathered around a microphone in the center of the park to listen to performances from local artists.

One of the local artists was Hassan Shahid, who performs under the name “Shahidi.” After his hour-long set where he sang and played guitar, Shahid said he hopes the mural helps inspire others to use art as a “healthy outlet.”

“Art is a second language, it’s a language of the world,” Shahid said. “Art is an extension of the community and a stitching of the emotions that are felt.”

For many artists working on the project, including lead artist Thomasina Topbear, the mural’s connection to Cedar-Riverside makes the art more personal.

“I have a very special connection with the West Bank,” Topbear said. “As a teenager, growing up as a homeless youth, I lived in so many different neighborhoods, and the West Bank was really like a safe haven for me. It was someplace I could come and just be a kid.”

Topbear said she and other artists interviewed people within the neighborhood and took surveys to see what the community wanted from the mural. Feedback from the surveys influenced the final design of the mural.

People have their own interpretations of what the mural means and have been excited to see different parts of the community recognized on the artwork, Topbear said. One child had been watching the mural’s creation from his apartment in Riverside Plaza and was thrilled to see his home painted on the wall.

“So far, the feedback we’ve received has been really beautiful and really touching and amazing to hear,” Topbear said.