Welcome Center

Lakewood is focused on providing services and programming that invite meaningful end-of-life exploration and support families in making plans to memorialize and remember loved ones. The Welcome Center makes it easier for the public to access Lakewood’s many resources and invites the public to come for a contemplative walk or an inspiring community event. It’s a place that’s intended to spark meaningful conversations about life and death and elevate the importance of “remembrance” for this community in new and creative ways.  

Lakewood is a nonprofit community resource, open to all. Yet many people aren’t sure where to go or what’s available to them when they have questions about death and memorialization. The Welcome Center is the place where anyone who visits can come and be introduced to what’s here. It’s a place to make end-of-life plans and be inspired by the many creative ways people can choose to remember those they’ve lost. In short, everyone is welcome here. You do not have to be affiliated with Lakewood in any way (or have family here) to come explore, learn and engage. 

A majority of Lakewood’s staff work in the Welcome Center. On the main level, our Family Services team of memorialization advisors and service coordinators meets with families. Upstairs are desks and cubicles for our community outreach team, finance/accounting, IT, and HR and the Family Services team. The building, which allows our team to work together in the same space, supports a new level of collaboration and innovation in serving families and our community. 

Our administrative teams work out of this building, but the Welcome Center is so much more – it’s a family and community engagement center, all about supporting memorialization and remembrance. 

Completed in 1929, our existing Administration Building is an historic treasure and beautiful example of neoclassical architecture. This building will be repurposed. We are exploring several options.

No, absolutely not. The space was previously undeveloped.  

Lakewood supports families and individuals as they navigate loss, contemplate their legacy and consider how and where they will be remembered. Our experienced team of advisors can help people explore their options and make informed choices. The Welcome Center offers a modern, comfortable setting and a supportive environment for these significant decisions and conversations. 

We offer event rental space for receptions and memorial services in other buildings at Lakewood, like the Lakewood Memorial Chapel and the Lakewood Garden Mausoleum, but the Welcome Center does not offer event space rental. Instead, its focus is on helping individuals and families make plans and choices and engage in community conversations and programming.  

Visitors who aren’t consulting with our Family Services team can participate in a variety of programming that will be offered in or near the building on a recurring basis, including educational talks, workshops, a book club, meditative yoga and much more. For more information about events and programming, visit Lakewood’s Events Calendar. 

Space for parking can be found along the roads in front of and near the building.  

We are very excited about our new plantings which support pollinators and are intended to use fewer resources, like water, as they mature. 

We are exploring a couple of new spaces near the Welcome Center and/or the front gate area for our tulip display in future years.  

The Welcome Center at Lakewood is one of the first net-zero energy ready buildings in Minneapolis, meaning it was designed to produce as much energy as it uses. (It is net-zero “ready” because it has to pass a year-long test before it’s official.) Net-zero energy can be accomplished through the building’s geothermal mechanical system, high-performance building envelope, and use of renewable energy created by a rooftop solar array. 

In addition to designing a building that generates solar energy and uses fewer resources for heating and cooling, several sustainability practices were employed during the project’s design and construction. These include:  

• using sustainably sourced building materials  
• minimizing and recycling construction waste  
• using native and perennial plants that are pollinator-friendly and require less watering 
• a design that better supports stormwater management 

Lakewood’s 250 acres in southwest Minneapolis are a sanctuary in the heart of urban Minneapolis. To remain good stewards of the resources entrusted to us, Lakewood is taking steps to conserve and protect our natural environment for the benefit of our community. Major sustainability initiatives at Lakewood include our decision to invest in a net-zero energy ready building and achieving our level 2 arboretum designation. We also host educational programming on topics related to nature and the environment to engage conversations within the community.

Lakewood engaged three local architecture firms known for their ability to balance tradition with innovation: Miller Dunwiddie, Snow Kreilich Architects and TEN x TEN Landscape Architecture. JE Dunn served as construction manager and NTH as owner’s representative.  

The Welcome Center and its surrounding gardens are designed to be an open, inviting front door to Lakewood’s beautiful and rich campus. Warm materials and a strong connection between the interior of the building and the surrounding landscape make a welcoming experience for visitors. Careful attention to sustainability ensures stewardship of resources for coming generations. 

The building is conceived of as a pavilion within the greater landscape of Lakewood. A modern colonnade around the building connects interior to exterior and echoes the classical colonnade of the adjacent historical Administration Building. The building is clad in limestone and wood – timeless, warm materials. Interior spaces are carefully designed with views to the surrounding gardens and grounds, bringing the landscape of Lakewood into the building.