Introducing Minnesota lake No. 11,843: Lake Chipotle
The Land of 10,000 Lakes has gained another, with a flood-prone Chipotle parking lot in Minneapolis known as "Lake Chipotle" by locals gaining wider notoriety.
The existence of "Lake Chipotle," the large pool that accumulates outside the Chipotle at 2600 Hennepin Avenue South, has been a common source of Twitter discussion thanks to the likes of @WedgeLive for a few years now.
But it's coming into greater prominence on TikTok following a video posted Wednesday by Owen Maupin, which shows Lake Chipotle listed on Google Maps with the caption "preserve our history."
The Google tag appears to have been removed now, but at one point Lake Chipotle was one of the top ranking tourist attractions in the city.
The lake was the subject of a recent Reddit thread called Uptown Chipotle Swimming Pool Appreciation Post, which someone quickly corrected with "*Lake Chipotle," and the "lake" even has its own website, www.lakechipotle.org, which appears to have gone live on April 8.
"LakeChipotle.org content is not subject to copyright and we strongly support community ownership of this bit," a disclaimer at the bottom of the website reads.
The website features "visitor submitted" photos of the flooded parking lot and directs visitors to support Hennepin Avenue redesign plans shared at hennepinforthepeople.org, which calls for greater accommodations be made for transit, bikes, and pedestrians along the busy corridor.
Bring Me The News reached out to the website and received a response from an individual named “Father Hennepin,” who said there are currently no plans to offer guided tours at the destination.
“However, you are free to survey the natural beauty on foot,” the response reads. “Please take caution as this landmark has been increasingly encroached upon by Capitalists and their motorized vehicles.”
Father Hennepin continued to say the same forces are “attacking our landmark status,” with Lake Chipotle being removed from Google Maps for the second time in a few weeks.
“As the Lake may recede during the warmer months, please do not worry as it will return!” the email signs-off.
