Riverside Plaza and Cedar-Riverside Towers at Dusk

Riverside Plaza, a defining feature of the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood in Minneapolis, reflects the city’s 1970s experiment with large-scale urban housing. Designed by architect Ralph Rapson and completed in 1973, the complex was built as part of the federal urban renewal program and stands out for its Brutalist concrete design and colorful panels. Often referred to locally as “Little Mogadishu” due to its large Somali community, the towers remain a prominent symbol of both the city’s architectural ambition and its layered immigrant history.

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