| Named for an early settler, Rondo Avenue was the heart of the largest Black community in St. Paul from the 1930s through the 1950s. The surrounding neighborhood stretched into today’s Summit-University neighborhood and north to University Avenue. There are many stories of generations of Black families that prospered even with the challenges that came from building I-94, Robin explained. But 1,000 or so family homes and businesses were demolished to make room for the highway and the effects linger in lost opportunities to build generational wealth. “Just imagine,” says Rondo resident Robin Hickman-Winfield, “Our homes and businesses again.” More than a half-century after construction of I-94 tore through the predominantly-Black Rondo neighborhood of St. Paul, the aging highway infrastructure is now in need of upgrades and groups and members of the community are pitching redesigns meant to repair harm and make the neighborhood more accessible and inclusive. Read more from our latest in the North Star Journey series.
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