Cottage Living in Bryn Mawr, Minneapolis

Bryn Mawr, Minneapolis, Minnesota
A historic wildflower garden thrives within this park-rich, urban setting.

Bryn Mawr has a lot going for it, but it's perhaps best known for its parks. Though only minutes from high-rise Minneapolis, the neighborhood boasts many places to step off the concrete: Bryn Mawr Meadows; Cedar Lake Park, a large parcel of land saved by citizens from development; a nature preserve along Bassett Creek; and the sprawling Theodore Wirth Park, laden with wooded hills and trails for biking, hiking, and cross-country skiing.
Combine that outdoor access with street after street of adorable homes and an active neighborhood association bent on maintaining Bryn Mawr's high quality of life and you've got a first-rate community. Because of its relatively large size—roughly 1,250 homes—Bryn Mawr "has the feel of a small town," says longtime resident Vida Ditter who works for the neighborhood association. The association delivers its monthly newsletter door to door, "and we’re small enough that you get to know folks."

Number of homes: 1,253
What $300,000 will buy you: a three-bedroom, two-bath home in good shape. It's not uncommon for the larger, updated homes to sell for $500,000.
Closest latte: Cuppa Java, on Penn Avenue

Homes:
The annual Doorways to Bryn Mawr calendar gives a glimpse of the community’s exciting architectural diversity: closeups of arched Hansel-and-Gretel entryways; classically inspired columned porticos; red doors, blue doors, and sparkling doors of leaded panes. Most homes were built on a scale intimate enough to be deemed cottage—1,500 to 1,800 square feet—but some are 2,500 square feet and larger.

People:
Though the population of Bryn Mawr is nearly 2,700, the feeling is as neighborly as areas much smaller. The local garden club hosts a tour every summer and the annual garage sale is one of the city’s biggest.

Shops and Hangouts:
There’s a thriving commercial district (adding to the small-town feel), where locals shop for everything from garden ornaments at Bloomsbury Market to wiper blades and walleye bait at Bryn Mawr Tire & Auto. A recent city project ripped up the sidewalk in the retail district and replaced it with concrete stamped to look like brick. Every winter, downtown businesses organize a winter festival called Saturnalia.

Greenspace:
In addition to the parks mentioned, there are at least four playgrounds for children, including one on Cedar Lake recently renovated by residents. Inside a few of the smaller pocket parks are arched copper signs that read “Welcome to Bryn Mawr.”

Cottage Twist:
Theodore Wirth Park is home to the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden and Bird Sanctuary, the oldest public wildflower garden in the nation. Many Bryn Mawr residents volunteer here. Woodland, swamp, and prairie areas treat visitors to native wildflowers, including bloodroot, wild ginger, and marsh marigolds in spring; lady slipper, asters, and blazing stars in summer; and big bluestem and other prairie grasses in fall. [where: 55405]