Where the Galleria shopping center, Centennial Lakes Plaza and tall office buildings stand today, mountains of dirt and gravel and stacks of cement block once stood along unpaved France Avenue.
Well into the 1970s, sand and gravel businesses filled acres of land on both sides of France south of 70th Street. Young Edina families filled their sandboxes, poured concrete driveways and built patio with supplies from sand and gravel businesses such as Hedberg and Sons, Glacier Sand and Gravel and Oscar Roberts.
Many adults who grew up in Edina during the early suburban boom years fondly recall riding their bikes around the pits and exploring the area—although they were forbidden from doing so. The gravel pits of Edina might have housed just piles of sand and rock, but for the children of the era who biked through, it was a wonderland. With the added adrenaline rush of engaging in a forbidden activity, kids loved playing in the acres of dirt, despite the efforts of law enforcement to keep them out.
Even after Southdale mall opened in 1956 and the surrounding area soon filled with retail and residential development, the sand and gravel industry remained for years. Eventually, the land was redeveloped into a different kind of play land, filled with shops, entertainment venues and parks.
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The gravel pits of Edina are featured in the current “Growing Up in Edina: A Show and Tell Exhibit” on display through Fall 2012 at the Edina History Museum. Info: edinahistoricalsociety.org, edinahistory@yahoo.com, or call 612.928.4577.
