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The Twin Cities
The Twin Cities of Minneapolis and the nearby capital city of St. Paul make up the core of a metropolitan area with more than 3.5 million residents, the 16th largest in the United States. With a highly educated population, a diverse economy, nationally renowned cultural institutions and the beauty of the Land of 10,000 Lakes, the Twin Cities area routinely ranks high on lists of the nation’s most livable communities.
The Twin Cities are home to a vibrant business community that features the Mall of America, the nation’s largest shopping and entertainment complex, as well as 12 of Fortune 500’s largest corporations, including Target, Best Buy and 3M. With our downtown location, the School of Law is right in the middle of the region’s lively legal community. The Twin Cities’ bench and bar has embraced the School of Law through the Mentor Externship Program, summer employment opportunities and by participating in a variety of conferences and events.
The Twin Cities area rates highly for its wide range of leisure activities, from outstanding theater to a hometown team for every flavor of sports fan. For the more active types, there are nearly limitless recreational opportunities to enjoy. The metropolitan area boasts 949 lakes, 22 lakes within the Minneapolis city limits alone, as well as extensive park systems, miles of bicycle and jogging trails and the beauty of the Mississippi River.
In a uniquely Minnesotan way to deal with winter weather, downtown Minneapolis and the St. Thomas Minneapolis campus are connected via a skyway system that is unmatched by any North American city. The skyway system includes 77 enclosed bridges that connect downtown buildings on the second level. Walking from one end of the skyway to the other, you can cover eight miles and pass hundreds of stores, dozens of restaurants and coffee shops, more than 1,500 apartments and condominiums, and almost 200 million square feet of office space.
Every year the Twin Cities are recognized nationally as great places. Here are just some recent rankings:
- Forbes Magazine ranked Minneapolis the second cleanest city in the world in 2007.
- Kiplinger's Personal Finance magazine named Minneapolis and St. Paul as one of the five best places to be married with kids in 2007.
- Kiplinger’s Personal Finance ranked Minneapolis number 2 in its list of “Smart Places to Live,” based on affordability and livability in 2006.
- Minneapolis was named “Most Athletic City” by Men’s Fitness magazine, 2006
- Men’s Journal magazine named Minneapolis an “adventure city” within their list of the “50 Best Places to Live”
- Minneapolis was named 1 of 5 up-and-coming destinations in 2006 by Travel + Leisure magazine
- Kiplinger’s Personal Finance ranked Minneapolis number 2 in list of “Smart Places to Live,” based on affordability and livability
- Minnesota earned straight A's in vitality in the 2006 Development Report Card for the States, issued by the Corporation for Enterprise Development
- Minneapolis Theatre de la Jeune Lune received a 2005 Regional Theatre Tony Award
