Scott Anfinson, then the municipal county highway archaeologist for the Minnesota Historical Society, developed a plan to assess archaeological sites along the riverfront.

A number of test excavations along the route revealed a wide variety of sites containing items of interest.

In the Bassett's Creek area, for example, the foundations of two sawmills and the remains of a railroad roundhouse were found, while near Hennepin Avenue, the investigation found the footings of the Great Northern Railway Union Depot and the tower bases of the first and second Hennepin Avenue Bridges.

[1] The first round of archaeological surveys in the 1980s was intended to save the ruins from destruction as a result of road construction projects.

As the ruins were made visible to the public, the goal was to create assets for education, tourism, and commercial development.