City launches second Safe Station

The City of Minneapolis is expanding its Safe Station program, a collaborative and innovative approach to addressing the challenges of substance use disorders (SUD) and opioid use disorders (OUD) in Minneapolis.

Through partnerships between the Minneapolis Fire Department (MFD), other City departments and the Twin Cities Recovery Project (TCRP), MFD Station 7 will house the city's second Safe Station. Station 7 serves the Seward, Cedar-Riverside, and Ventura neighborhoods in South Minneapolis - an area greatly impacted by the opioid epidemic facing our community.

A Safe Station provides:

• Treatment
• Recovery
• Harm reduction

Minneapolis opened its first Safe Station at Fire Station 14 in April 2023. Over the past two years, the program has shown positive results on the City's Northside. Using Station 14 as an accessible, community-based entry point, the program has successfully reduced barriers to treatment and provided culturally informed, evidence-based recovery support.

The program's emphasis on harm reduction, including improving access to NARCAN and other tools, community engagement, and strong local partnerships, has resulted in greater awareness and strengthened trust among residents in the neighborhood. Through the end of September 2025, the Safe Station program has served more than 7,500 individuals. In addition to distributing NARCAN and needle exchange, the 'Boots on the Ground' effort has provided:

• Treatment referrals
• Comprehensive assessments
• Peer support
• Housing referrals

Together, the City and TCRP work to address the physical, emotional and social challenges that can accompany recovery.

Expansion to Station 7

Engine 7 and Ladder 3, based out of Station 7, were two of MFD's busiest units in 2024. These two units were assigned to almost 7,000 incidents, with almost 500 of those calls being responses to overdoses. Not much has changed as they are only slightly below that same pace for this year. That is why a Safe Station expansion to this neighborhood was a priority.

This area has seen extremely high rates of addiction and overdose when comparted to other parts of the City. However, recent data has shown a decline in fatal and non-fatal overdoses both City and state-wide. MFD will build on that momentum to make sure that those declines are seen and continued here.

How it works

Any person can walk up to Fire Stations 7 or 14 and ask for assistance. It is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year. All the services are free. Anyone seeking services will be greeted by a firefighter who will immediately help connect the person to a Peer Recovery Coach from TCRP. If one is not on-site, firefighters will keep everyone comfortable until a coach arrives. Once connected, the Peer Recovery Coach will meet privately with the person to share the resources and support available.

The Safe Station is one tool in the toolbox in the fight against this epidemic of addiction. By partnering with TCRP and other community partners, the Health Department, as well as County and State resources, the City looks to continue seeing a positive impact and ensuring everyone gets the help they need.

Watch the entire news conference held at 2 p.m. on Oct. 30