Sam Olbekson News Today

The Minneapolis American Indian Center provides social services to the urban Native community and has served as a central gathering place for nearly 50 years. The redesign reflects a sense of belonging and history and showcases ways the Minneapolis Indigenous community embraces its future.

Constructed of western red cedar, the mural is monumental in size — seventeen feet high and 95 feet wide. The mural was installed on the south face of the Minneapolis American Indian Center almost fifty years ago. The center has been under construction since last winter.

NACC is on the cusp of developing a new structure with a two-story clinic and four stories of residential units stacked on top.

Beyond the Skyline is a podcast about economic development, commercial real estate and construction in Minnesota. Above all, it’s a show about what’s next, creativity and the innovation in technology that are changing how we work and shaping the future of business throughout our state.

AIA Minnesota president Sam Olbekson is also the founder and CEO of Full Circle Indigenous Planning and Design. He says he formed his business as a way to bring a different perspective into the practice of architecture and that he tries to bring his voice on behalf of people whose voices may not be heard.

Sam Olbekson centers his design work around cultural expression and community building.

Two nearby redevelopments valued at $80 million-plus also will advance health, housing, commerce and art along Franklin Avenue corridor.

(NEW YORK) -- Sam Olbekson was first exposed to architecture at age five, when his uncle was a construction worker on a project to build the Minneapolis American Indian Center. Decades later, Olbekson, 51, now runs his own architecture firm, Full Circle Indigenous Planning. He’s also MAIC's board president, designing an addition to the building

Sam Olbekson works with Native clients on projects ranging from schools to clinics, centering Indigenous cultural values and perspectives on sustainability.

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