General Mills Foundation donates $3M for Minneapolis parks
Updated: 5:48 p.m.| Posted: 12:30 p.m.
The General Mills Foundation has donated $3 million to help fund park projects along the Mississippi River waterfront in Minneapolis.
The food company announced the gift Wednesday at an event in the Mill District of downtown Minneapolis, the place where the company was founded 150 years ago.
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"This is our home," General Mills CEO Ken Powell said at a news conference. "So, as we celebrate out 150th birthday, we felt it was fitting to give back to the riverfront."
The money will go to the RiverFirst Campaign, an initiative by the Minneapolis Park Board to transform the city's once-heavily industrial upper Mississippi River waterfront into a cultural and recreational destination.
The grant will fund three projects: a trail link and pier at 26th Avenue North, a riverfront park and beach at Hall's Island, and an expansion of the Mills Ruins Park near downtown through a project called Water Works.
Private and public dollars will fund the park and trail project.
RiverFirst has now raised $9 million toward its $15 million goal.