The V3 name is as versatile as the V3 Center promises to be. V3 stands for Victory in Three and can be broken down the following ways:
- Swim, Bike & Run (Triathlon)
- Character, Community & Commitment
- Learning, Leadership & Life
North Minneapolis (population 110,000) is becoming increasingly diverse. In 2019, 54% of the population was Non-White and 25% of the population is under the age of 18. In the immediate area of the V3 Center, children under 18 make up 34% of the population, and the Non-White population also significantly increases. While there are countless non-profit organizations (like V3) working to create economic stability, job opportunities, educational equality and neighborhood revitalization, the unemployment rate in North Minneapolis is twice the rate of the rest of the City, and even worse for African-American men. While the poverty rate is 15.1% for Whites in North Minneapolis, it is 42% for the African American community.
The V3 Center site, on the corner of Plymouth and Lyndale, is highly visible from Interstate 94 and Downtown Minneapolis and is already home to a bus stop serviced by several popular Metro Transit bus lines. It is also .5 miles away from the Mississippi River, one mile from Theodore Wirth Park and just 25 minutes from Minneapolis/St. Paul International Airport.
In addition to partnering with various user groups and program partners that support youth sports and health-based initiatives, the V3 Center will offer membership and open recreation opportunities. Furthermore, North Minneapolis residents will receive discounted rates. The Center will also host several large swim meets and athletic events, bringing in visitors and enormous economic benefit to the area.
The V3 Center will not only provide the community with invaluable gathering spaces and a world-class pool for swimming lessons and competition, it’ll bring jobs to the community. V3 will focus on hiring directly from the talented pool of workers in North Minneapolis. Also, the competitive events are expected to draw participants from the Twin Cities metro area and beyond (including national meets). The V3 Center will not only showcase North, but is also expected to bring in an estimated 45,000 attendees and $3.3 million in direct spending while providing a $5.3 million overall economic impact annually.
V3 is exploring, and working to secure, project funding from a variety of sources including, but not exclusive to a seed development loan, grant funding, fundraising, capital fundraising and donor campaign, state bond funding and a capital project building loan.
V3 has been working behind the scenes for several years to bring this dream and vision to fruition. At this point, we hope to start construction in 2020 and open our 25-yard, 5 lane teaching pool in 2021. We will continue to raise and secure funding for construction costs for the rest of the Center in the coming years, with a goal of beginning Phase Two of construction in 2024 and opening the full Center sometime in 2025.
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