The Mississippi River has been relatively isolated from downtown Saint Paul since the 19th Century, when its role as an industrial and transportation corridor caused the city to treat the river as a "back door."  The recent retreat of the "industrial glacier" has revealed a vast terrain of opportunity in the river valley.  Like cities throughout North America, this community has begun to recognize the river as a well-spring of community pride, identity and vitality.

As the 20th century draws to a close, the futures of Saint Paul's urban core and adjacent Mississippi River Corridor are inextricably linked.  The stage is set for Saint Paul to redefine its relationship with the river and, in so doing, to redefine itself and its future role in the Twin Citiesmetropolitan region.  The Saint Paul on the Mississippi Development Framework is not just a riverfront plan, nor is it just a downtown plan.  It is about a reconnection of the city and river as a profound and far-reaching as the industrialization of the river in the last century.  In responding to this opportunity, Saint Paul, like numerous other waterfront cities, will renew and rdefine itself for the next century.