People who travel Minneapolis by bike or foot have a new representative in City Hall.
Matthew Dyrdahl, 33, of Minneapolis, was hired after a 10-month gap in filling the position of bike-pedestrian coordinator.
He has been an active transportation coordinator for the Minnesota Department of Health. He worked there in a unit that encourages Minnesotans to be active, eat better and maintain a healthy weight.
"He has a strong record of helping communities in Minnesota become more bicycle- and pedestrian-friendly," according to a City Hall memo released Tuesday.
Dyrdahl previously was a transportation planner with the Headwaters Regional Development Commission in Bemidji. He helped that community become one of the first non-metro communities in the state to be certified as a bike-friendly community by the League of American Bicyclists. He also trains safe-cyclist instructors, and holds a master's degree in planning.
Dyrdahl is scheduled to start his job on Feb. 23. He'll be part of the new transportation planning division in the city's Department of Public Works.
Director Steve Kotke said that will put the new coordinator in the midst of planning for bike and pedestrian aspects of new road projects. The coordinator supervises a staff of three who work on bike and pedestrian planning and safe routes to schools.
Nick Mason, chairman of the city's Bicycle Advisory Committee, has worked on projects with Dyrdahl. He said the new hire brings the skills of a planner with the practical experiences of working with local officials to create better nonmotorized transportation options in settings not as bike-friendly as Minneapolis.
