tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-54769699278698818972024-03-12T20:48:56.383-05:00The Wedge Times-PicayuneUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger208125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-56536236905202814072018-10-13T08:45:00.000-05:002018-10-13T03:45:35.225-05:00Wedge LIVE Has Moved!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hcYxzUYfRDk/W8GZlzC9L4I/AAAAAAABgQE/2O1Vy3T2RBAmoSa3WK66hKIQzNbr4lmYgCLcBGAs/s1600/new%2Blocation.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="870" height="124" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hcYxzUYfRDk/W8GZlzC9L4I/AAAAAAABgQE/2O1Vy3T2RBAmoSa3WK66hKIQzNbr4lmYgCLcBGAs/s400/new%2Blocation.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Exciting news! The Wedge Times-Picayune has moved from Blogger to WordPress. Same address, new platform: head to <a href="http://wedgelive.com/">wedgelive.com</a> for continuing coverage. If you had previously subscribed to receive new posts via email, you will need to re-subscribe (subscription form is located on the right-hand sidebar).Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-27162349567918779972018-10-06T07:43:00.000-05:002018-10-06T14:29:33.966-05:00Group Plans "Legal Action" Against Mpls 2040Every great battle to keep more people out of a neighborhood ends in a frivolous lawsuit. The heated debate over the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan is no exception. The city's long-range plan is intended to help Minneapolis equitably accommodate the next 20 years of population growth by legalizing more homes across all parts of the city.<br />
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As things stand, it's currently illegal to build anything that's not a single-family home in most parts of Minneapolis. The 2040 plan was initially lauded by supporters for proposing to make it legal to build "fourplexes everywhere," but the city has since scaled back on that first draft. Despite the changes, a group called Minneapolis for Everyone remains staunchly opposed to the plan, equating it to a <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/09/overprocessed-minneapolis-2040-begins.html">secretive scheme to "BULLDOZE" entire neighborhoods.</a><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-btQy1CoQlds/W7iPfp-FUwI/AAAAAAABf74/iSb8IDMlRWwdA16K1iaeXg4GlJbj92eRACLcBGAs/s1600/yard%2Bsign.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1006" data-original-width="1600" height="251" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-btQy1CoQlds/W7iPfp-FUwI/AAAAAAABf74/iSb8IDMlRWwdA16K1iaeXg4GlJbj92eRACLcBGAs/s400/yard%2Bsign.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/diversey/30194087018">Credit: Tony Webster</a></td></tr>
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On October 3, Minneapolis for Everyone sent an email announcing that "our friends at Smart Growth Minneapolis" were ready to initiate a "legal action." The group is demanding the City Council stop moving forward on the comprehensive plan, "until environmental impacts have been properly reviewed and the comprehensive plan is properly adjusted and planned for." In urban planning circles, "environmental impacts" is a technical term used by angry neighbors when they really just want to say, "Minneapolis has too many people already."<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FmGZy2t4-mM/W7iNv4kIoWI/AAAAAAABf7s/-dmH19-DZB0M1a7As3r4PN0V3ngmv2UuACLcBGAs/s1600/legal%2Baction.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="162" data-original-width="374" height="172" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-FmGZy2t4-mM/W7iNv4kIoWI/AAAAAAABf7s/-dmH19-DZB0M1a7As3r4PN0V3ngmv2UuACLcBGAs/s400/legal%2Baction.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Somewhat hilariously, this "Don't Bulldoze Our Neighborhoods" legal action is being <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1048426476062699521">run from a southwest Minneapolis address that was bulldozed by its current owner.</a> The website soliciting donations related to a potential lawsuit against the city asks supporters to send contributions to the address of a $1.4 million, 4500 square foot, single-family home, constructed in 2007 following the bulldozing of an existing single-family home. Property records show the homeowner is John Goetz of the personal injury law firm Schwebel, Goetz and Sieben. (Did he request a shoreland overlay variance? <a href="https://twitter.com/MoreNeighbors/status/1048429552224145408">Yes he did.</a>)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-US0JQjBpeD8/W7iaqgEmKNI/AAAAAAABf8E/V9L4I5bZejg3E9zcVK0svFTtQyshtE_tACLcBGAs/s1600/goetz1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="489" data-original-width="826" height="236" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-US0JQjBpeD8/W7iaqgEmKNI/AAAAAAABf8E/V9L4I5bZejg3E9zcVK0svFTtQyshtE_tACLcBGAs/s400/goetz1.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/www/groups/public/@cped/documents/webcontent/convert_285510.pdf">Planning report describing the Goetz teardown.</a></td></tr>
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This news comes two weeks after an embarrassing press conference where a spokesperson for Minneapolis for Everyone -- a millionaire former city council member named Lisa McDonald -- compared herself and her friends to a "marginalized group." Campaign finance records show that in <a href="http://www16.co.hennepin.mn.us/cfrs/getReport.pdf?seq=4&ids=511">2018</a> and <a href="http://www16.co.hennepin.mn.us/cfrs/getReport.pdf?seq=8&ids=511">2014</a>, McDonald donated to the campaign of Rich Stanek. Stanek is the Trump-backing Hennepin County Sheriff who cooperates with ICE in targeting undocumented immigrants (Stanek is what's known as an actual threat to marginalized groups). McDonald has also hosted at least one Stanek fundraiser in the backyard of her $1.6 million home on Lake Harriet. (This has led some to <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1047682070699339776?s=19">speculate that the fundraising for a lawsuit against the city will divert countless donations</a> that would otherwise have gone to support Sheriff Stanek.)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lisa McDonald hosting Stanek fundraiser in her backyard.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aU3guMelKpM/W6iYtyxy_-I/AAAAAAABfWg/-e5krl5pwksSCISn3-lKyJfXG_utgcxagCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Screenshot_20180924-024051.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1409" data-original-width="1080" height="400" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-aU3guMelKpM/W6iYtyxy_-I/AAAAAAABfWg/-e5krl5pwksSCISn3-lKyJfXG_utgcxagCPcBGAYYCw/s400/Screenshot_20180924-024051.png" width="306" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rich Stanek thanking Lisa McDonald for funding his campaign.</td></tr>
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Then there's the other spokesperson for Minneapolis for Everyone: an elected official named Carol Becker who tried to unlawfully trademark "Wedge Live" in <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/my-statement-on-legal-process-to-defend.html">a bizarre attempt to steal the name of the website you're reading right now.</a> (No matter how many times I write that sentence, it stays weird.)<br />
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Another prominent member of Minneapolis for Everyone is eminent domain attorney Tim Keane. His website advertises that he helped use the awesome power of the government to take private property away from its owner, all <a href="http://www.citypages.com/news/the-new-twins-park-a-big-roadblock-at-home-plate-6688907">for the benefit of a sports billionaire</a> (<a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1047691702197051392">"Eminent domain and real estate counsel to lead agency to assemble land for Target Field Ball Park project"</a>). This is notable because Keane's group has <a href="https://streets.mn/2018/09/25/minneapolis-2040-opposition-a-look-at-the-signs/">plastered front yards in swanky southwest Minneapolis with apocalyptic red signs</a> that have stoked baseless fears of eminent domain. The most persistent and outlandish rumor that planners and elected officials have had to debunk over the last several months involves the question of eminent domain.<br />
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In conclusion and in summary, nobody could blame you for thinking there isn't one member of the Red Sign Brigade who isn't entirely full of shit.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-57875515352956636442018-10-05T06:11:00.000-05:002018-10-05T07:23:33.652-05:00Inclusionary Zoning Debate Kicks off at City Hall<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cbo9HtcecMY/W7dLmfdnY1I/AAAAAAABf4E/gZd3lEbow3QwaGEpfMZZyHG3zfQwtp1GgCLcBGAs/s1600/inclusionary%2Bcover.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="472" data-original-width="812" height="232" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-cbo9HtcecMY/W7dLmfdnY1I/AAAAAAABf4E/gZd3lEbow3QwaGEpfMZZyHG3zfQwtp1GgCLcBGAs/s400/inclusionary%2Bcover.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/www/groups/public/@cped/documents/webcontent/wcmsp-214382.pdf">Read the report.</a></td></tr>
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The Minneapolis City Planning Commission held a preliminary discussion about inclusionary zoning on Thursday night. Inclusionary zoning is a requirement that new apartment construction include a certain percentage of affordable units.<br />
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Until a permanent policy can be adopted, City Council President Lisa Bender wants to implement an interim policy alongside the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan. As outlined in a <a href="http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/www/groups/public/@cped/documents/webcontent/wcmsp-214382.pdf">staff report</a>, "The interim inclusionary housing ordinance would apply only to projects that propose a substantial increase in the allowable residential development capacity."<br />
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<a name='more'></a>City staff said the interim policy would be triggered at a 60 percent increase in development capacity, related to "rezoning, variance, density bonus, or other application or combination of applications." The policy would likely exempt small-scale rezoning that allows for things like triplexes and fourplexes.<br />
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Because downtown Minneapolis has few limitations on development capacity right now -- meaning it would be hard to propose a "substantial increase" -- Commissioner Rockwell suggested there needed to be a downtown trigger in the interim policy.<br />
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When asked about setting a threshold on the number of units that would trigger the policy, staff said that wouldn't be necessary because most projects requesting a 60 percent density increase are already quite large.<br />
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The city's "inclusionary housing" consultant, Grounded Solutions Network, is <a href="http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/www/groups/public/@cped/documents/webcontent/wcmsp-214382.pdf">recommending a policy that gives developers two options</a> to comply with an affordability mandate:<br />
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<li>Unsubsidized, with 10 percent of units affordable to 60 percent area median income.</li>
<li>Subsidized, with 20 percent of units affordable to 50 percent area median income.</li>
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A Commissioner Nick Magrino worried (sassily) that mandates for rents at 60 percent of area median income would just be helping the "artists loft" crowd who are "still on their parents cell phone plans." He expressed concern that the policy wouldn't end up helping people with the greatest need for affordable housing.<br />
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The mechanism for the subsidized option would be what's called <a href="https://www.house.leg.state.mn.us/hrd/issinfo/tif/mech.aspx">tax increment financing.</a> TIF diverts the additional tax revenue resulting from new development to offset development costs. The advantage to using the subsidy is that it allows the city to require the building to remain affordable for 30 years. State law prevents an affordability term longer than 20 years unless a subsidy is provided.<br />
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Commissioner Ryan Kronzer noted that the process of securing a TIF subsidy is long and uncertain: "If you start today, you'll be building your project in 2020." City planning staff say they are "exploring the TIF option" to streamline the process and give developers the assurance that the subsidy will actually come through.<br />
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Magrino said if there's a construction slowdown, "It's gonna be hard to tell if [the policy] is working for a while." He's observed that the housing market may already be softening; a few projects have been cancelled and rental incentives for tenants are getting more generous.<br />
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In the last few weeks, I've talked to experts who worry nobody is checking the math on the consultant's report. They point out the feasibility study only included buildings of 100 units or more. They also raised questions about whether land costs factored into the study are accurate.<br />
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One developer told me that in the uncertainty leading up to the passage of an interim policy, developers have stopped buying sites. They predict a "mad rush" to get projects approved by the end of the year, and that development focus would then shift to the suburbs and St. Paul.<br />
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Supporters of the policy, including the city's consultant, <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/the-shape-of-minneapolis-inclusionary.html">admit there may be a period of a few years where inclusionary zoning discourages new construction.</a> They insist that to the degree the policy makes development more expensive, those costs will eventually be factored into the price of land.<br />
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At Thursday's meeting, Commissioner Magrino predicted a very long final meeting of the year for the Planning Commission. Planning staff expects the interim policy would go into effect on January 1st. It's possible that a permanent inclusionary zoning policy would be adopted later in 2019.<br />
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<b><a href="https://www.patreon.com/wedgelive">SUPPORT WEDGE LIVE!</a> </b><b>Your reporter sat through a four hour meeting to produce this content. </b>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-38881718332013041892018-10-03T06:22:00.000-05:002018-10-03T15:34:29.456-05:00Rebecca Gagnon: Wrong for Minneapolis School Board<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fC86PwOXfXQ/W7SmRvw8atI/AAAAAAABfw4/PMYyzRsnqbM4BKogEkXWh5LvmFFZVBq4gCLcBGAs/s1600/wedge%2Bfor%2Bkids.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fC86PwOXfXQ/W7SmRvw8atI/AAAAAAABfw4/PMYyzRsnqbM4BKogEkXWh5LvmFFZVBq4gCLcBGAs/s400/wedge%2Bfor%2Bkids.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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It has nothing to do with schools, but here's an under the radar story from last year that explains what's wrong with Rebecca Gagnon, who is running for re-election to the Minneapolis school board. It's a story about billboard regulations. How does a school board member get mixed up with billboard regulations? Up until this year, Gagnon had been the school board's representative on the City Planning Commission.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>In the midst of the 2017 municipal election and preparations for the 2018 Minneapolis Super Bowl, there was a mysteriously persistent push to loosen downtown billboard regulations. It was pretty unpopular. The planning commission rejected it a few times. One commissioner called it "the rash that wouldn't go away." Council Member Abdi Warsame was the ordinance's author. Former Council President Barb Johnson made statements in support. The billboard company CEO touted that it had the support of the "council member in the area" which was Jacob Frey, who is now the Mayor. But it never advanced to a vote in front of the full council.<br />
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Gagnon, who had always been a quiet presence on the Planning Commission, was unusually adamant about moving the ordinance forward to the City Council. Why the urgency? It appeared the election might lead to a shift in the Council's balance of power. Delaying it to the next term could kill the proposal, or at least make it impossible for billboard companies to capitalize during the Super Bowl. (As it turned out, the city council added five new members, and the billboard proposal was never heard from again.)<br />
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During this time, the billboard company pushing the ordinance hired lobbyists; the company's CEO donated generously to a handful of City Council re-election campaigns. One of the lobbyists working for the billboard company was Samantha Gagnon, who is Rebecca Gagnon's daughter. <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2017/12/city-council-faction-pushes-billboard.html">You can read the full story here.</a><br />
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In her role as an elected official, Gagnon argued strenuously to advance an ordinance that was intended to benefit a company her daughter worked for as a lobbyist. When I published a post revealing the fact that Gagnon's daughter was a lobbyist for the billboard company, Gagnon tweeted <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2017/12/my-response-to-rebecca-gagnons-campaign.html">an embarrassing statement explaining why she believed there was no need for her to have disclosed it.</a><br />
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Here's another Gagnon story, related to her work on the school board. At a June 12 school board meeting, Gagnon suggested letting schools like Kenwood, in a wealthy part of town, get a "one time pass" to use PTA fundraising to pay for staff positions. If you care about equity, you can probably guess why the school board has a rule against this sort of thing. The fundraising capacity of parents at wealthy, white schools far exceeds that of schools in lower income neighborhoods serving students of color.<br />
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Even though there is video of the meeting, Rebecca Gagnon <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1019584710714900480">denied</a> that she had advocated for such a change.<br />
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We've established that no reasonable person should vote for Rebecca Gagnon, unless that person is a billboard company CEO; or the proud parent of a Katelyn or a Connor at Kenwood; or Abdi Warsame and Jacob Frey, who have both <a href="https://rebeccaformn.com/#supporters">endorsed Gagnon</a>.<br />
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(Full disclosure: Carol Becker, the elected official who <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/my-statement-on-legal-process-to-defend.html">tried to trademark "Wedge Live"</a> in a bizarre attempt to steal the name of the website you're reading right now, <a href="http://www16.co.hennepin.mn.us/cfrs/getReport.pdf?seq=3&ids=687">donated $50 to Gagnon's campaign </a>on June 5, which is hilariously the same day I published <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=gagnon%20from%3Awedgelive%20since%3A2018-06-05%20until%3A2018-06-06&src=typd&lang=en">two tweets</a> making fun of Gagnon. Coincidence?)</div>
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That leaves you with three choices for Minneapolis Board of Education, At-large. Every voter in Minneapolis will have this race on their ballot. There are two seats, which means you're filling in two bubbles on your ballot. In alphabetical order, your choices are:</div>
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<li><a href="http://www.kimberlycaprini.com/">Kimberly Caprini</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.sharon4schools.com/">Sharon El-Amin</a></li>
<li><a href="http://joshpauly.com/">Josh Pauly</a></li>
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In the August 14 primary, Caprini finished first with 30%. The other three candidates were essentially tied: Gagnon (21.8), Pauly (20.7), and El-Amin (20.6).</div>
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Kim Caprini and Josh Pauly are DFL-endorsed, and both have a long list of endorsements from council members, local politicians, unions, and organizations. Gagnon has endorsed Caprini. Caprini has not endorsed Gagnon. Sharon El-Amin's one big endorsement is Nekima Levy Armstrong.</div>
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Here's an article <a href="http://www.startribune.com/four-minneapolis-school-board-candidates-debate-top-issues/494997491/">briefly describing some remarks by the four candidates</a> at a forum yesterday.<br />
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Here's a story about <a href="http://citypages.com/news/minneapolis-school-board-hopeful-answers-for-posts-on-gay-marriage-bathrooms/494151751">homophobic and transphobic comments made by Sharon El-Amin in 2016.</a></div>
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Being on the school board is rough. The pay is low; the meetings are long; the politics are brutal. The people who tend to be willing to do it are either saints or assholes.</div>
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Josh Pauly has been a Minneapolis school teacher for the last three years. He has the most substantive website describing his positions. Kimberly Caprini has an impressively long list of the ways she's been involved as a volunteer with schools over the last 10 or so years. Both Caprini and Pauly have run successful campaigns to win the DFL endorsement. As someone who doesn't follow school board politics, I judge them to be most likely to beat Rebecca Gagnon. And remember: Rebecca Gagnon must be defeated. </div>
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<b>Please vote for Kim Caprini and Josh Pauly for Minneapolis Board of Education, At-large.</b></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-36542424285465134402018-10-02T08:42:00.000-05:002018-10-02T09:42:04.152-05:00Irene Fernando for Hennepin County Board, District 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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It will be no surprise that I am endorsing Irene Fernando over Blong Yang for the open seat on the Hennepin County Board in District 2. There are many reasons you should vote for Irene Fernando, which you can read in the second half of this post. You're fortunate if you have the chance to vote for her. But first, I have unpleasant memories of Blong Yang in his previous job that I must share with you.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><b>Blong Yang</b><br />
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In 2012, Blong Yang ran unsuccessfully for this same seat on the Hennepin County Board. In 2013, he was elected to the Minneapolis City Council in Ward 5. In 2017, Yang was defeated by Jeremiah Ellison.<br />
<br />
If you care about ideology, Blong Yang is not the progressive choice. In 2017, while on the City Council, he was the sole vote against a Minneapolis minimum wage ordinance (even business community stalwarts Lisa Goodman and Barb Johnson voted for it). He voted with former President Barb Johnson <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/842135616217219072">more than anyone but Lisa Goodman.</a> There's a <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/895372106837352449">picture of Yang attending a GOP fundraiser in 2012</a>, smiling with current Republican candidate for Governor Jeff Johnson. I'm not saying Blong Yang is Rich Stanek (seriously I'm not... nobody is Rich Stanek), but they do share <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1033076478215376896">a lot</a> of the <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1041029961136721921">same supporters</a>. And yes, in 2014 <a href="http://web.archive.org/web/20141104134523/http://sheriffstanek.com:80/endorsements">Blong Yang endorsed our Trump-supporting, ICE-cooperating, racist Sheriff Rich Stanek.</a><br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vmc44hYSkVU/W7N0mOVr4SI/AAAAAAABfuI/PBZ7iUF4GgEO5GcYN6gnZ6A0_qpTMvWcwCLcBGAs/s1600/republican%2Byang.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="632" data-original-width="1236" height="202" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-vmc44hYSkVU/W7N0mOVr4SI/AAAAAAABfuI/PBZ7iUF4GgEO5GcYN6gnZ6A0_qpTMvWcwCLcBGAs/s400/republican%2Byang.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jeff Johnson, Blong Yang, and GOP friends.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Here's one episode I find particularly revealing about Blong Yang's leadership. During his time on the City Council, Yang was Chair of the City Council's Public Safety Committee. In 2015, a young black man named Jamar Clark was shot and killed by police. In response, a group of protesters camped outside the Minneapolis Police Department's 4th Precinct for 18 days. A day before the protest was cleared out by police, Yang held a surprise public hearing. The benefit of an unannounced public hearing is you only have to hear from the people you invited. The people who disagree with you have no idea that it's happening. When it's done intentionally -- as in this case -- it's a shitty, gutless thing to do.<br />
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But it gets worse: the person Blong Yang used this special maneuver to elevate is the worst man in Minneapolis politics, Bob Kroll, President of the Police Federation. Blong Yang couldn't stomach the idea of having a real public hearing, advertised to the public, open to people who disagree with him. He created a special platform for the absolute last person who needs one. I wrote at the time:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Kroll has been particularly outspoken, using his platform not just to defend cops, but to go after the protests themselves. Speaking of the 4th Precinct protesters on television, he said that "we need to silence that vocal group of activists." On talk radio he called the 4th Precinct protest a "local version of Benghazi." That Yang's committee would elevate the already well-amplified voice of Lt. Kroll, while going to great length to exclude dissenting voices, is disturbing.</i></blockquote>
Bob Kroll's Minneapolis Police Federation sent Yang a $250 donation the day after the hearing. For a full account of Yang's sham hearing, <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2015/12/blong-yangs-embarrassing-sham-of-public.html">read this post.</a> (If you're keeping score, Yang did all this with help from Ward 13's Linea Palmisano.)<br />
<br />
During his unsuccessful City Council re-election campaign in 2017, Yang skipped at least three candidate forums, including a forum sponsored by the local Chamber of Commerce (I remember this one in particular because I was there, hoping to see all the candidates on the same stage). He also <a href="https://elections-2017.wedgelive.com/candidate/minneapolis/ward/5/blongyang/">failed to respond to a bunch of 2017 candidate questionnaires</a> from various organizations. He really stood out among all serious city council candidates as by far the most non-responsive. And in the midst of writing this paragraph, I found <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/metro/2018/09/at-hennepin-county-candidate-forum-a-lot-of-fire-about-ice/">a MinnPost article that mentions Yang didn't show up to a candidate forum last week</a>; Irene Fernando was there.<br />
<br />
Somewhat surprisingly for a guy who didn't look like he was trying very hard to get re-elected, Yang was immediately bitter about his defeat. He took some <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/928689349562003456">hard swipes at winner Jeremiah Ellison on Facebook.</a><br />
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(I will say one nice thing about Blong Yang: he was a great host for <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EGXWfUke-3I">a long-running series of New Year's Eve countdown videos.</a>)<br />
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If you consider nothing else, you should probably not vote for Blong Yang because he runs from public accountability. He doesn’t show up. On top of that, he goes to great lengths to keep constituents from being able to show up. This is especially important in light of the fact that county commissioners can fly under the radar. The Hennepin County Board, which controls a $2.4 billion budget, consists of seven very powerful people whose names you rarely hear outside election season. If you elect him, Blong Yang will disappear on you.<br />
<br />
<b>Irene Fernando</b><br />
<br />
Irene Fernando started contemplating a run for the Hennepin County Board in February 2017 (that's so long ago!). A few months later she decided she was running. This all happened prior to current Commissioner Linda Higgins announcing her retirement last November. Higgins is one <a href="https://www.voteirene.com/endorsements-1/">among many prominent political people and organizations endorsing Fernando.</a> At the DFL's County Convention earlier this summer, Fernando won the party's endorsement.<br />
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Through the end of July, Fernando had raised over $103,524 -- a lot, especially for a first-time candidate. While examining campaign finance reports I noticed that Fernando has a celebrity donor: Noelle Quinn, a guard for the WNBA's Seattle Storm. Not to be outdone, Blong Yang has also has a celebrity donor: former Minneapolis City Council President Barb Johnson.<br />
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I came into this election knowing a few things about Blong Yang, but I wasn't very familiar with Irene Fernando until last week, when I had the chance to visit her campaign headquarters. What follows is a summary of our conversation.<br />
<br />
Fernando describes herself as "a leader of action," a relative newcomer to the process, and an outsider to the political establishment. She described how she's dug in to the nuts and bolts of how Hennepin County works over the last two years. She's excited to get to work and says, "I'm more interested in this as a job. It just happens to require an election."<br />
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Fernando says the Hennepin County government is disconnected from residents, creating apathy in the voting booth. Among 35,000 District 2 primary voters on August 14, "between six and seven thousand people filled out other things, and just chose to abstain from this race. That's a really significant number."<br />
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She talked about how 2018 is different. Her campaign and others (for <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/09/angela-conley-for-hennepin-county-board.html">District 4</a>, <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/09/mark-haase-for-hennepin-county-attorney.html">County Attorney</a>, <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/09/dave-hutch-for-hennepin-county-sheriff.html">Sheriff</a>) are bringing increased attention to the “county layer” of government. She wants to continue raising that profile once in office: "My hope is to expand who sees themselves in the story of the county.”<br />
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Fernando says measuring outcomes is important. For example, having data that tells us who is being held in jail and for how long; whether it led to an eviction; or if a child was taken into the custody of child protection services. “The taxpayers are responsible for both sides of that. When we’re not capturing that data and seeing a holistic human-centered approach to that, not only are we missing out on the potential of this human, it truly may not be economically beneficial and we might invest those funds differently on behalf of the outcomes we want.”<br />
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She said she is most excited to get to work on two big issues: workforce and housing. Hennepin County employs an 8,000 person workforce. “How are we making sure that we’re training folks, promoting people, in a way that’s really meaningful.” She’s also interested in helping employers recruit and retain professionals of color.<br />
<br />
On housing: “The county is uniquely positioned to provide housing for people who are receiving some other county service. We’re really uniquely positioned to provide this cornerstone resource for those who are in our system more than once.”<br />
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Fernando advocates for decreasing transit fares, not only because it’s a burden on low-income and transit-dependent households, but because increased ridership benefits everyone, and is key to meeting climate change goals. She says “We need to be doing bus rapid transit now.” She notes that “infrastructure is only as useful as people’s willingness, comfort, and desire to use it. I think we can be cultivating behavior with bus rapid transit, making that more accessible and easier.” Speaking of pedestrian and bike safety, she feels a sense of urgency around the fact that the majority of injuries or deaths in Minneapolis involve county roads.<br />
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On criminal justice reform: “sentencing reform is where the commission can put the most pressure and be most powerful” and alleviate the disproportionate harm to low-income and communities of color. She’s hopeful that DFL-endorsed candidates can be elected as Sheriff and County Attorney, in order to achieve a more ambitious set of reforms.<br />
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In a testament to Fernando’s determination, when I asked her to give me a “wild, weird, or hilarious campaign story” she spent a really long time insisting she could think of something. Then I forced her to move on to another topic. She finally came back with a story about an adult tricycle that wasn’t really very funny. She had the self-awareness to realize “none of this sounds funny enough.”<br />
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Why is she running? “I was one of those community leaders that saw politics as a separate thing that was not entwined with what I was doing every day. But the last couple of years have taught me that politics is very interested in my life.”<br />
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She wants to find ways to make people feel “comfort and excitement” with the political process, noting that even at its best, “politics can be very exclusionary and insular, instead of exciting and energizing.”<br />
<br />
I really like Irene Fernando. I appreciate her priorities, her perspective, and how thoughtful she is. She’s characterized this campaign as her own sort of journey of discovery about county government; she’s exactly the person who can deliver on a promise of more accessible and responsive government. She’s put a lot of work and preparation into this process, and inspired a lot of people to put in the work to elect her. According to all the standards by which you measure these things, she’s been enormously successful as a first-time candidate. If elected I know she'll bring that same success to her work as a Hennepin County Commissioner in District 2.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_dRt5PqpvGA/W7NuPgN-aVI/AAAAAAABfts/wyTSFS6t0xAbXMrAgjOlCNtrkeFb9NZlQCKgBGAs/s1600/IMG_20180926_171415696.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_dRt5PqpvGA/W7NuPgN-aVI/AAAAAAABfts/wyTSFS6t0xAbXMrAgjOlCNtrkeFb9NZlQCKgBGAs/s400/IMG_20180926_171415696.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Irene in her basement campaign war room.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-52854352480834486822018-09-29T08:58:00.001-05:002018-09-30T17:19:33.325-05:00Quick Takes on the Revised Minneapolis 2040 Plan<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p_GUPu0kJ54/W6-Exi0DeCI/AAAAAAABfi4/96GqG4WGKgsI9o4cXKHIiGhowupm288UQCLcBGAs/s1600/draft%2Bon%2Ba%2Bfriday.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="550" data-original-width="739" height="238" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-p_GUPu0kJ54/W6-Exi0DeCI/AAAAAAABfi4/96GqG4WGKgsI9o4cXKHIiGhowupm288UQCLcBGAs/s320/draft%2Bon%2Ba%2Bfriday.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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Some news and notes in the wake of the city's revised draft of Minneapolis 2040<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><ul>
<li>The Star Tribune reports that the plan has been pretty <a href="http://www.startribune.com/10-000-comments-later-revised-minneapolis-2040-plan-seeks-balance/494660441/">significantly compromised</a> in the direction of opponents.</li>
<li>Janne Flisrand, from the pro-side, put it best: "Many of these major changes will result in fewer homes and higher rents, especially near transit corridors. It will continue to funnel most development into the neighborhoods that are home to our city's most vulnerable residents."</li>
<li>Leading Minneapolis 2040 opponent and elected official, (and let's not forget, <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/my-statement-on-legal-process-to-defend.html">person who did this outrageous thing</a>) Carol Becker, says her organization still hates the plan so much that her "phone has been like 'beep, beep, beep.'" <a href="http://www.startribune.com/10-000-comments-later-revised-minneapolis-2040-plan-seeks-balance/494660441/">[real quote]</a></li>
<li>Also from the opposition: Council Member Linea Palmisano, of swanky-single-family Ward 13, says planners need to get it through their thick skulls that "maybe [Minneapolis 2040] just sucks."</li>
</ul>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Maybe this just sucks."</td></tr>
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<ul>
<li>Read the plan, with redlined revisions: <a href="http://minneapolis2040.com/">minneapolis2040.com</a></li>
<li>A Twitter person has <a href="https://twitter.com/saralovesyou/status/1045784884638183424">noted a disparity in revisions to the plan</a> based on where the white people live.</li>
<li>On a positive note, the wealthier/whiter west side of Hennepin was adjusted somewhat in the direction of matching the built-form proposed for the east side.</li>
<li>At a public meeting on September 25:</li>
<ul>
<li>Minneapolis director of long-range planning, <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1044711183624933377">Heather Worthington reported</a> that the city has conducted 200 community meetings regarding the plan.</li>
<li>A leading opponent of Minneapolis 2040 reported that the timing of an October 29 public hearing was problematic because neighborhood organizations wouldn't have enough time to get it in their newsletters. This is funny because this same person is paid money to run a neighborhood organization that <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1044729379002159105">hasn't updated their website in many years.</a></li>
<li>A guy told Heather Worthington his problem with the plan was changes to setbacks and lot coverage requirements. It was explained that zoning would continue to exist and the scale of 1-to-4-unit buildings would remain the same. I'm not sure this changed his mind about the plan.</li>
<li>Opponents remain <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/09/overprocessed-minneapolis-2040-begins.html">focused on process complaints</a> like the date of a public hearing, a PR contract, and pretend outrage over a "secret" plan (a plan so secret they've had many months to respond to it by blanketing Ward 13 with apocalyptic yard signs).</li>
<li>It's weird that Minneapolis 2040 opponents spent a significant chunk of time at this meeting <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2017/03/post-it-note-sparks-collective-outrage.html">being upset about a post-it note from 2017 that they really disagree with and think shouldn't have been included in a summary of public feedback</a>. This seems like a needless distraction from their current outrage resulting from a mistaken belief that, right now in 2018, the city is actively withholding public feedback about Minneapolis 2040.</li>
</ul>
<li>Local hero Ryan Johnson <a href="https://streets.mn/2018/09/25/minneapolis-2040-opposition-a-look-at-the-signs/">has used map technology</a> to identify the geographic base for Minneapolis 2040 opponents: the epicenter is super-swanky-single-family Ward 13.</li>
<li>Did you hear about Lisa McDonald's <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=96ec_KnLf6g">odd press conference</a> where she described an organization made up largely of residents of swanky Ward 13, as "marginalized"?</li>
<li>Dates of important Minneapolis 2040 public hearings:</li>
<ul>
<li>October 29, City Planning Commission</li>
<li>November 12, City Council</li>
<li>You should testify at either of these hearings</li>
<li>You should also send email to your Council Member</li>
</ul>
<li>The day has been scheduled on which Linea Palmisano will send Ward 13 residents to the Wedge to abuse Ward 10's very own Council President Lisa Bender. The meeting will be October 24, 6:30-8:00 PM at the VFW (2916 Lyndale Ave).</li>
<ul>
<li>This joke is premised on the fact that Linea Palmisano routinely promotes the community meetings of other Council Members so that her worst constituents will go hassle her colleagues, making those colleagues more likely to oppose whatever it is Linea Palmisano wants.</li>
<li>Linea Palmisano, much like her mentor Lisa McDonald, is bad at politics.</li>
<li>Here's news of a rare political victory for Linea Palmisano and Lisa McDonald: after they repeatedly and bitterly complained that opponents were being called "racist" by city staff for opposing the plan, the revised plan no longer uses the word "racist" to describe historic housing policies that are actually 100% racist.</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9N9Ow_2J0J0/W6-D78IcXgI/AAAAAAABfis/fVYqnRa8ubQJJUTLhbBT0iQ_a3XLFU_wwCLcBGAs/s1600/racist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1083" data-original-width="1600" height="216" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9N9Ow_2J0J0/W6-D78IcXgI/AAAAAAABfis/fVYqnRa8ubQJJUTLhbBT0iQ_a3XLFU_wwCLcBGAs/s320/racist.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<ul>
<li>I noticed a lot of <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1045810192301129729">revisions to the built-form map in Council Member Lisa Goodman's Ward 7.</a> Goodman is someone you would never expect to vote for this plan.</li>
<ul>
<li>Or maybe she will?</li>
<li>I'm convinced any plan Lisa Goodman votes for is not a good enough plan.</li>
</ul>
<li>Referencing some of the Ward 7 revisions that now allow significantly less density, <a href="https://twitter.com/BeauStead/status/1045783647788433408">a Twitter person asks</a>, "Why are we spending $2B to run light rail through an area where no one is legally allowed to live?"</li>
<li>Via Nextdoor.com, well-heeled Ward 13 goes to war against the <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1045856141316579328">"jobless blogger"</a> community.</li>
<li>Minneapolis 2040 opponents have <a href="https://twitter.com/kyrrarankine/status/1046056867565326336">declared war on pro-2040 yard signs.</a></li>
</ul>
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<ul>
<li>This post is brought to you by the Mpls 2040 APOCALYPTIC! t-shirt, <a href="https://teespring.com/mpls-2040-apocalyptic-t-shirt#pid=369&cid=6565&sid=front">ON SALE NOW!</a></li>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-86794202085088989492018-09-29T06:43:00.000-05:002018-09-29T09:42:50.707-05:00Mark Haase for Hennepin County Attorney<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wedge-brand apparel is available in <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/WedgeLIVE">the Wedge LIVE! store</a>;<br />
criminal justice reform is available on your ballot.</td></tr>
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<br />
Mark Haase is running against longtime incumbent Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman. If you're overlooking an important local race in 2018, it's probably this one. This one has the highest stakes. Elected prosecutors have a lot of power, and a lot of discretion in how they choose to use that power.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a>A few of the most basic examples of things that fall under the awesome power of the prosecutor:<br />
<ul>
<li>how seriously, or whether, to charge someone</li>
<li>whether a person sits in jail for no other reason than they are too poor to pay bail</li>
<li>whether to pursue charges that lead to the deportation of nonviolent undocumented immigrants</li>
<li>whether police are charged in cases of misconduct</li>
</ul>
<br />
Mike Freeman has been elected to five non-consecutive terms as Hennepin County Attorney--20 of the last 28 years (Minnesota's senior US Senator Amy Klobuchar held the office from 1999-2007). Freeman was previously elected to two terms in the Minnesota Senate (1983-1991) and ran two failed campaigns for Governor in the 1990s. He is the son of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orville_Freeman">Orville Freeman</a>, former Minnesota Governor (1955-1961) and Secretary of Agriculture under Presidents John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson.<br />
<br />
Here are two recent examples of how Mike Freeman's leadership is failing Hennepin County.<br />
<br />
In June, Minneapolis police <a href="http://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-cops-halt-marijuana-stings-after-almost-all-arrested-were-black/484876151/">ended the practice of conducting low-level marijuana stings after discovering "nearly every one arrested was black."</a> The county's chief public defender notified Mayor Frey of the problem, who then ordered the police chief to end it. The story became a minor national headline. Much like the public defender who noticed it was a problem that these stings were almost exclusively targeting black people, Mike Freeman's office was in a position to know it was happening. His office was even notified of the problem. But Mike Freeman's office didn't act. Freeman waited until after Minneapolis officials ended the stings, to great fanfare, before acting to dismiss these cases.<br />
<br />
In July, Freeman was asked about a <a href="http://www.startribune.com/when-rape-is-reported-in-minnesota-and-nothing-happens-special-report-part-one/487130861/">Star Tribune investigation</a> that found fewer than 1 in 10 rapes reported in Minnesota result in a conviction. <a href="https://www.mprnews.org/story/2018/07/26/sexual-assault-investigation-prosecution-freeman">His response</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>OMG. Oh my God. I didn't think the numbers were this bad, and I didn't think there were that number of cases that the victim was never talked to, or almost no investigation was done. I really honestly thought more was done.</i></blockquote>
While it is true that in many cases it is the police who simply aren't investigating or forwarding reported rapes, I would prefer that a 20-year elected prosecutor have learned WTF is going on when it comes to how our criminal justice system is absolutely failing victims of sexual violence.<br />
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I would also prefer that a 20-year elected prosecutor not say "OMG" out loud. I assumed it was a mistake in the transcript, but I have obtained the audio, and he really did say "OMG" out loud:<br />
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We should want a prosecutor who is capable of recognizing disparities in the criminal justice system and is motivated to fix it. If Mike Freeman tries to convince you he's a reformer, don't believe him. His track record is three decades long. If he was a reformer, he'd have told you before now. And if you're wondering why Mike Freeman is suddenly selling himself to you as a reformer, it's because Mark Haase is the first candidate to challenge him in 12 years.</div>
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Mark Haase is a US Coast Guard veteran and attorney who has devoted his life to criminal justice reform: founding the <a href="http://www.mnmcca.com/">Second Chance Coalition</a>, working on initiatives like Ban the Box (banning questions about criminal records on employment applications), and reforms to drug sentencing and juvenile records laws. </div>
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If you have never met Mark Haase, I can tell you he is incredibly earnest, and endearingly soft-spoken. It's obvious he's not running for Hennepin County Attorney because of a lifelong ambition to get elected to something. Haase is running because these issues are deeply important to him--and because it's about time Mike Freeman had an actual challenger on the ballot.</div>
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As Hennepin County Attorney, Mark Haase won't be embarrassingly ignorant of all the ways our justice system fails our community. Mark Haase will be a prosecutor who thinks systematically about mass incarceration; a prosecutor who will end cash bail; a prosecutor who will stop pursuing low-level marijuana offenses; a prosecutor who will help people get their warrants cleared and records expunged so they can move on with their lives. Mark Haase will be this kind of prosecutor because he hasn't spent his life thinking like a prosecutor.</div>
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I implore you to vote, support, and volunteer for <a href="https://markhaase.org/volunteer-index-impact" style="font-weight: bold;">Mark Haase for Hennepin County Attorney.</a> Election day is fast approaching, and not enough people realize how much power this office holds over so many lives.</div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-38113033245512977612018-09-23T07:14:00.000-05:002018-09-24T03:25:55.529-05:00Over-Processed Minneapolis 2040 to Begin Next Step In ProcessLisa McDonald, a spokesperson for a group opposing the Minneapolis 2040 comprehensive plan said at a press conference earlier this week, "the City has failed to engage the community in any meaningful way." McDonald, who is also a former Minneapolis City Council Member, claimed Minneapolis officials "wrap their work in secrecy" and that there hasn't been an "honest accounting and summary of what citizens really said in online comments, emails, and meetings."<br />
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At a meeting of the East Harriet Farmstead Neighborhood Association yesterday, <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1043549410796478465">McDonald called City Council President Lisa Bender a "weenie"</a> after Bender answered McDonald's question about an $80,000 PR contract. McDonald wasn't happy with Bender's explanation that city departments have the authority to enter into contracts under $100,000 without council involvement.<br />
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Here's a true thing: <a href="https://minneapolis2040.com/received-public-comments/">the city has published every written comment received about Minneapolis 2040 on their website.</a> Every single comment. It's also true that Minneapolis 2040 has been a <a href="https://minneapolis2040.com/planning-process/">well-publicized and exhaustive multi-year process.</a> My summary:<br />
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<a name='more'></a><ul>
<li>2016-2017: many community meetings and other forms of engagement</li>
<li>March 22, 2018: first draft of the plan is released to <a href="https://www.citylab.com/life/2018/03/yimbyism-explained-by-pro-wrestling/555740/">great fanfare (4plex!)</a> and much journalism</li>
<li>March - July: residents attend countless meetings, submit comments, eat free food, distribute yard signs</li>
<li>July 22, 2018: an often vigorous and combative comment period ends</li>
<li>Today: following two months of work by planners to synthesize community and council member feedback, a second draft of the plan is likely to be published this week</li>
<li>Next: more public feedback; possible revisions by members of the Planning Commission, followed by possible revisions from the City Council.</li>
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The "secrecy" criticism is an attempt to whip up pretend controversy. At this moment, the city's planning department isn't eager to talk publicly about the second draft of an expansive long-range plan that isn't finished. The city is doing a normal and reasonable thing. There was a lengthy comment period on the first draft; that comment period is over. It's reasonable to take two months to assess the public feedback and revise. There will be a process in the next few months for discussion and feedback on a second draft, but that process won't start until a second draft actually exists (likely in a few days).</div>
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Then there's the suggestion from critics that they have been left out of the process. Here's who is leading the Red Sign Brigade in the fight against Minneapolis 2040:<br />
<ul>
<li>Current elected official (<a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/my-statement-on-legal-process-to-defend.html">Carol Becker</a>)</li>
<li>Former City Council Member</li>
<li>Current Member of the Charter Commission </li>
<li>Former member of the City Planning Commission</li>
<li>People who <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/neighbors-sue-to-stop-apartments-at.html#more">sue the city to stop apartments on transit</a></li>
<li>Person who filed for the trademark to "Wedge Live" in bizarre, unlawful attempt to shut down the website you're reading right now (<a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/my-statement-on-legal-process-to-defend.html">Carol Becker again</a>)</li>
</ul>
There's nothing wrong with being any of the things in this list (except Carol Becker). But these people can't claim to be excluded from, or unable to navigate, a public process. They are the masters of public process who are endlessly outraged because suddenly they have to share the process with people who disagree with them.<br />
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Public engagement for Minneapolis 2040 has been impressive in a lot of ways. I don't know how the city could have thrown more resources into it. There have been well over 100 (perhaps I heard 150?) extremely publicized meetings as part of a years-long process. I've eaten free meals in every part of the city. <a href="http://minneapolis2040.com/">Minneapolis2040.com</a>, which presented a massive document pretty nicely, was open for comments for months. Countless articles, editorials and letters to the editor were published over those many months. Many hundreds (thousands?) of yard signs were distributed by both sides. Comments were also accepted by email, by postal mail, by post-it note, or by shouting at your council member in person. I saw multi-lingual bus bench promotions; Instagram ads; posts across all social media channels, including the always objectionable Nextdoor.com.<br />
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Minneapolis 2040 was over-processed. And that's fine. Better too much than too little. But for anyone to say there was insufficient or unfair process, that's really just a matter of not liking the outcome. That's understandable, because the Red Yard Sign Brigade is a collection of people who are used to having process go their way.<br />
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<b>A note on Minneapolis 2040 politics (it's news to me!)</b><br />
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A few weeks ago, Ward 13 Council Member Linea Palmisano claimed to City Pages that <a href="http://www.citypages.com/this-week/dont-fear-the-renter/492453111">city staff has called constituents racists</a> for opposing the plan. Last Tuesday on Nextdoor.com, Palmisano bragged about having helped bring to light the city's $80,000 contract with a PR consultant. Lisa McDonald, the above-mentioned spokesperson for the anti-Minneapolis 2040 organization, used both those talking points at her press conference on Tuesday. This seems to be a thing everyone already knows, but I am now realizing that Lisa McDonald is a close adviser to Linea Palmisano. I had blocked that possibility from mind because I assumed Palmisano was more resourceful than that.<br />
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(Full disclosure: Lisa McDonald said "F you" to me at a neighborhood association meeting yesterday morning. She then called me a "simple little boy." In response to inquiries about my well-being, I'm releasing a statement that says "I remain unharmed.")<br />
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<b>UPDATE 9/24: </b>"Minneapolis for Everyone" spokesperson Lisa McDonald is a longtime supporter of Trump-backing, ICE-cooperating, Republican Sheriff Rich Stanek. McDonald's most recent donation to Stanek's campaign came in February of this year.<br />
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<b><br /></b>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-8681084209847198002018-09-22T15:52:00.000-05:002018-09-29T06:41:48.414-05:00Dave Hutch for Hennepin County Sheriff<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-leRR6vyyxiQ/W6aqtdhSreI/AAAAAAABfR4/K6tS7Y3KpbQTXA7gwcnOUUK7hAalfqs5ACLcBGAs/s1600/hutch.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1109" data-original-width="1600" height="276" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-leRR6vyyxiQ/W6aqtdhSreI/AAAAAAABfR4/K6tS7Y3KpbQTXA7gwcnOUUK7hAalfqs5ACLcBGAs/s400/hutch.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dave Hutch is available on your ballot. "WEDGE" hat is <a href="https://www.etsy.com/shop/WedgeLIVE">available in the Wedge LIVE store.</a></td></tr>
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Hennepin County Sheriff is a non-partisan office. But that only applies to what's printed on the ballot; the candidates really do have political affiliations.<br />
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Rich Stanek is the Trump-supporting, <a href="http://www.citypages.com/news/if-sheriff-insists-on-helping-immigration-councilman-wants-a-new-jail-deal/449650993">ICE-cooperating</a>, Republican incumbent, <a href="http://www.citypages.com/news/the-rehabilitation-of-rich-stanek-6723874">who once admitted to using racial slurs while on the job</a>. The admission about racial slurs came in a deposition when he was sued for police brutality (the case ended in a settlement). In 2006, <a href="https://blogs.mprnews.org/newscut/2007/12/staneks_training_video/">Stanek used $30,000 in sheriff's office training funds to produce a "not-so-thinly-veiled campaign video</a>," depicting events in the aftermath of the I-35 bridge collapse. In 2016, Stanek sent officers to North Dakota to assist in putting down the Dakota Access Pipeline protests.<br />
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Dave Hutch is the DFL-endorsed challenger, a Metro Transit Police sergeant who works on the north side and surrounding suburbs. His official bio includes humanizing details like the fact that he lives in Bloomington with his husband and his dog. Left out of Dave Hutch's bio is the fact that he is not Rich Stanek, who, I should reiterate, is a pretty bad guy who supports Trump and a bunch of other hateful policies.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I don't think Hennepin County wants to vote for a Trumper sheriff in 2018. The problem: how many voters realize that's what Stanek is? This problem has been made worse by the fact that in recent years Minneapolis DFLers have buddied up to Stanek and endorsed his campaign for Sheriff. In 2014, Stanek was <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20141104134523/http://sheriffstanek.com:80/endorsements">endorsed by Minneapolis City Council Members Lisa Goodman, Abdi Warsame, Barb Johnson, and Blong Yang</a> (never forget).<br />
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It's going to take some work making sure voters know who Rich Stanek is and why he's not right for Hennepin County. You should vote for Dave Hutch for Sheriff. More importantly, you should <a href="https://www.davehutchforsheriff.com/volunteer/"><b>volunteer for Dave Hutch.</b></a> Spend some time in the suburbs enlightening your fellow Democrats so they know how stark this choice is.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-17082622086343991902018-09-20T21:21:00.000-05:002018-09-20T21:29:38.304-05:00Angela Conley for Hennepin County Board, District 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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There's a lot of talk this year about Hennepin County <a href="http://m.startribune.com/hennepin-county-commissioner-candidates-look-to-diversify-all-white-board/482867541/">never having had a person of color serve on the board.</a> It's a big deal, if not surprising. It needs to change. But if you haven't entirely tuned into the campaign in District 4, you might have the false impression that the arguments here are entirely about identity. They're not.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Conley is experienced, having worked in state and local government for the past 20 years. As a current employee of Hennepin County, she knows what it's like to provide essential human services to the public. She's credentialed, with a Masters in Public Administration. She's connected to the experience of the people in the district: there was a time when she was a transit-dependent mom on public assistance. She's focused on issues, down to the smallest details (when I ran into Conley at a recent public meeting, I noticed she had filled an entire page with notes about a controversial bus stop). She's a community leader and president of her neighborhood organization.<br />
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Go find yourself in conversation with Angela Conley and she will win you over. I trust her to set priorities for Hennepin County's projected $2.4 billion budget, on issues ranging from transportation, housing, human services, racial equity and criminal justice reform.<br />
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It takes some real audacity to spend a year of your life challenging a powerful longtime incumbent like Peter McLaughlin (<a href="https://twitter.com/bzosiad/status/1042561373807497218">take a look at this list of DFL power brokers</a> who were broking their power on his behalf at a fundraiser a few days ago). It takes real talent to have organized a campaign to win the most delegates at the DFL convention (denying McLaughlin the party nomination for the first time) and competed to a stalemate in the recent primary. It takes a special leader to have inspired so many volunteers to achieve so much over the last year.<br />
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This is a difficult thing Conley has attempted, and she has run her campaign very well. It's the kind of thing people start out advising can't be done. Right now, <a href="https://elections.wedgelive.com/district/hennepin/commission/4/">despite being massively outspent</a>, it looks like she can.<br />
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There are good reasons to replace Peter McLaughlin. I recently put on my reporter pants and talked to some white guys. Surely they could offer me the real story on Peter McLaughlin. I asked a trusted local source for his thoughts and he said this:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>He wields immense power with regards to transit in this region and seriously neglects funding incredibly cheap and incredibly impactful projects like [bus rapid transit], instead focusing all his energy and tons of money into light rail.</i></blockquote>
Another told me: "McLaughlin personally is putting all his political might behind light rail" but doesn't show the same commitment to investing in bus infrastructure.<br />
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I found a third white guy, <a href="https://twitter.com/nickmagrino/status/958783939094687744">willing to use his own name</a>, criticizing McLaughlin for "neglecting the part of the transit system that provides the vast majority of rides so [McLaughlin] can go to a ribbon cutting once a decade." Of course, you could put a positive spin on this argument and simply say that McLaughlin has been a dogged champion of light rail.<br />
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Local treasure Naomi Kritzer doesn't like how <a href="https://naomikritzer.com/2018/07/31/election-2018-hennepin-county-commissioner-district-4/">McLaughlin has been an occasional advocate for stadium subsidies</a>: "He helped pass a county-wide tax to build the Twins ballpark, and to circumvent the law saying they were supposed to hold a referendum on it." Kritzer endorsed Conley.<br />
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I am similarly uncomfortable with Peter McLaughlin's leadership. During a candidate forum in April <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/990696600707182593">he made the case for his re-election</a>: "If you elect me you're electing the network I've developed over 30 years of service." It occurred to me that I'm not entirely comfortable with empowering that network.<br />
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(Full disclosure: earlier this year I saw Peter McLaughlin engaged in deep, extended consultation with Carol Becker at a DFL convention. <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/my-statement-on-legal-process-to-defend.html">Carol Becker is the very strange elected official who filed trademark paperwork for "Wedge Live" in order to steal the name of, and possibly shut down, the website you're reading right now.</a> I can't guarantee that this hasn't tainted my perception of Peter McLaughlin.)<br />
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McLaughlin was Conley's age when he was elected to the Hennepin County Board almost three decades ago. This year Conley disregarded the advice of those who told her to wait to run until McLaughlin retired. She shouldn't have to. She's ready right now. This isn't Angela Conley's chance to replace a longtime incumbent; this is our chance to have an amazing leader -- someone who reflects the values and experiences of the people in her district -- serve on the Hennepin County Board.<br />
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<a href="https://www.voteconley.com/"><span style="color: red;"><b>Go to Angela Conley's website and volunteer/donate to her campaign!</b></span></a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-72127285627474186542018-09-20T06:29:00.001-05:002018-09-20T09:53:03.930-05:00Where is everyone going to live?The forces of the housing status quo are sharpening their knives in advance of the release of <a href="https://www.minnpost.com/metro/2018/09/triplexes-max-heights-and-parking-what-to-expect-from-a-revised-minneapolis-2040-plan/">Minneapolis 2040 Draft 2</a> ("<a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/09/minneapolis-2040-is-back.html">Ban Cars Boogaloo</a>," as Lisa McDonald might call it). As we begin a new chapter in this never-ending conversation, let's go back to the beginning.<br />
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First, you should know that the current zoning code in Minneapolis basically allows one of two things:<br />
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<ol>
<li>Big buildings and big developers</li>
<li>Tearing down a single-family home to build a single-family mansion</li>
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We're missing all those homes in the middle ("the Missing Middle"). That's why the battle over fourplexes is relevant. Fourplexes are the homes we used to build, but don't anymore because we made it illegal nearly everywhere. People still live in them. (Some say it's an alternative lifestyle, as <a href="http://www.startribune.com/many-minneapolis-residents-spoke-out-against-fourplexes-but-people-who-live-in-them-really-like-them/493327141/">documented by the Star Tribune.</a>)<br />
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<a name='more'></a>The small apartment building is the least expensive home that human-kind knows how to build, but we've banned them in the vast majority of neighborhoods in Minneapolis. The same bans apply across the region. Why have we banned these homes? <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kd1gX9z5hio">Here's a special episode showing how Richfield homeowners talk about apartments and renters.</a> These sentiments are not unique to Richfield.</div>
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<a href="https://metrocouncil.org/Council-Meetings/Committees/Community-Development-Committee/2018/June-4,-2018/info-item-ppt.aspx">Statistics from the Metropolitan Council</a> show that the region has lost a net total of 1,314 duplex/triplex/fourplex units over the last 11 years. Since 1990, Minneapolis has lost just over 6,000 units in that category. At a time when we should be adding lots of new places for people to live, it's the only major category of home -- the most affordable category! -- that's getting smaller over time.<br />
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We have a responsibility to attack our housing problems from all directions. We can make more housing legal. We can bring down the cost of new housing to serve more people at more income levels. We can increase funding for deeply affordable housing for people who need it the most. We can offer more renter protections and support from the city, in order to further tilt the balance of power from landlords to renters. We can choose to do all these things.</div>
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Minneapolis and the region have added more people than homes over the last decade. This shortage matters for everyone who's affected by the cost of housing. If we don't address this massive shortage, we will forever be <a href="https://www.sightline.org/2017/10/31/video-cruel-musical-chairs-why-is-rent-so-high/">playing a game of musical chairs where certain people are destined to lose.</a> Here's a chart demonstrating how far we're falling behind regionally:</div>
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Now here's two people on Nextdoor.com in Edina complaining about apartments:</div>
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I don't point out these comments because they're remarkable, but because they're everywhere. And the question we need to ask these people is: where is everyone going to live? If the answer is not near you, then near who? </div>
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These concerns are not special. There are factions of people in every neighborhood, in every online forum, in every planning meeting, in every part of the region -- and all across the country -- who say and believe all the same things about preserving nebulous ideas of neighborhood character. But something has to give. We keep making the choice to prioritize the comfort of the already comfortable.<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><span style="color: red;">WATCH: Comfortable person poses as "marginalized" person.</span></b></div>
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This is the lens through which we should view the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan. People aren't being left behind because we added too many homes, but because we added too few. Landlords don't do luxury renovations on older apartments to serve an upscale clientele because we built too many new apartments, but because we built too few. If we want more homes in more neighborhoods for more people, it's time we legalized housing.</div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-54544744617241348662018-09-12T07:00:00.000-05:002018-09-12T10:36:20.829-05:00Local Elections are Happening in 2018We're less than two months from election day on November 6. As you're likely aware, this is a pretty important national election. A great way to get involved during this critical time is with a local campaign. Turning out voters for local DFL candidates (as the Democratic Party is known in Minnesota) means you've likely turned out votes for Democratic candidates all the way up the ballot: for governor, the state legislature, and US House and Senate races.<br />
<br />
If you live in Minneapolis, the most consequential 2018 races are for offices in Hennepin County. If you care about policing, there's the sheriff's race. If you care about criminal justice issues, there's the county attorney. If you care about housing, transit, health care, and human services, there are two competitive races for the Hennepin County Board, which controls a massive budget of $2.4 billion (for context, Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey recently proposed a 2019 budget of $1.6 billion). You should find a reason to feel strongly about one or more of the candidates below. They need your help over the next two months.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Please note: this list is for informational purposes only. These are not endorsements. Some of the candidates listed below are terrible. Wedge LIVE endorsements will be announced at a later time. For more information about these candidates, and those in next door Ramsey County, consult <a href="https://elections.wedgelive.com/">MSP Votes.</a><br />
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<h3>
Hennepin County Board District 2</h3>
<a href="https://www.voteirene.com/"><b>Irene Fernando</b></a> (DFL endorsed) - <a href="https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfKXjL5sexWCfdE9dazHTt2s0oWzrJFE2-x-4wx8AGwC7iw1A/viewform">Volunteer</a> - <a href="https://secure.ngpvan.com/hkM4R4-DSk270L7g3IT6KQ2">Donate</a><br />
<b><a href="http://blongyang.org/">Blong Yang</a> - </b><a href="http://blongyang.org/contact.html">Volunteer</a> - <a href="http://blongyang.org/donate.html">Donate</a><br />
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<h3>
Hennepin County Board District 4</h3>
<b><a href="https://www.voteconley.com/">Angela Conley</a> - </b><a href="https://www.voteconley.com/get-involved/">Volunteer</a> - <a href="https://secure.actblue.com/donate/angelaconley">Donate</a><br />
<b><a href="https://www.petermclaughlin.org/">Peter McLaughlin</a></b> (incumbent) - <a href="https://www.petermclaughlin.org/donate">Donate</a><br />
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<h3>
<b>Hennepin County Attorney</b></h3>
<a href="https://www.votemikefreeman.com/"><b>Mike Freeman</b></a> (incumbent) - <a href="https://www.paypal.com/donate/?token=6HiqLmQWC3HqeUxB3r1tPCPhFzejklbn-Kpl6U76qSR1toL3NZuGRj2W7J9zKksoTK4bXG&country.x=US&locale.x=US">Donate</a><br />
<b><a href="https://markhaase.org/">Mark Haase</a></b> (DFL endorsed) - <a href="https://markhaase.org/volunteer-index-impact">Volunteer</a> - <a href="https://secure.actblue.com/donate/haaseforhennepin">Donate</a><br />
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<h3>
<b>Hennepin County Sheriff</b></h3>
<a href="https://www.davehutchforsheriff.com/"><b>Dave Hutch</b></a> (DFL endorsed) - <a href="https://www.davehutchforsheriff.com/volunteer/">Volunteer</a> - <a href="https://www.davehutchforsheriff.com/donate/">Donate</a><br />
Rich Stanek (Republican, incumbent)<br />
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<h3>
Minneapolis School Board At-Large</h3>
<div>
(You vote for two candidates)</div>
<a href="http://www.kimberlycaprini.com/"><b>Kimberly Caprini</b></a> (DFL endorsed) - <a href="http://www.kimberlycaprini.com/donate/">Donate</a><br />
<b><a href="https://rebeccaformn.com/">Rebecca Gagnon</a></b> (incumbent) - <a href="https://www.paypal.me/RebeccaforMN">Donate</a><br />
<b><a href="http://joshpauly.com/">Josh Pauly</a></b> (DFL endorsed) - <a href="http://joshpauly.com/volunteer/">Volunteer</a> - <a href="http://joshpauly.com/donate-2/">Donate</a><br />
<b><a href="https://www.sharon4schools.com/">Sharon El-Amin</a> </b>- <a href="https://www.sharon4schools.com/#volunteer-section">Volunteer</a> - <a href="https://www.paypal.me/sharon4schools">Donate</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-85582184328349572992018-09-10T09:02:00.000-05:002018-09-20T06:49:29.908-05:00Minneapolis 2040 is back!Minneapolis 2040 is back! In just a few weeks a second draft of the proposed comprehensive plan will be released by the city. This is <a href="https://minneapolis2040.com/overview/">a big important document</a> guiding future decisions on street design, housing, land use, and job access.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>In an article originally headlined, <a href="http://www.citypages.com/this-week/dont-fear-the-renter/492453111">"Minneapolis 2040 scares the rich. Is that such a bad thing?,"</a> City Pages relays concerns from two Minneapolis City Council Members.<br />
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Lisa Goodman, who represents the ritzy lakes-area neighborhoods of Ward 7, tells a sad story:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>“If somebody lives in a house they bought 30 or 40 years ago for $300,000,” she says, “and it’s now valued at $900,000, and they can no longer afford the property taxes on it, that’s often the cause of people moving.” </i></blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>That’s sad, but tragedy plays out on a sliding scale. Try telling one of Ellison’s [Ward 5] constituents how hard it is to own something worth so much you can’t resist the urge to sell it.</i></blockquote>
Any plan for how we create a city that's affordable to everyone shouldn't be focused on the needs of wealthy people (yes, if you own a $900,000 house free and clear, you are a wealthy person). It should be focused the huge chunk of Minneapolis renters, predominantly people of color, legitimately struggling to afford a home.<br />
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If property taxes in exclusive neighborhoods are high, Goodman created that by advocating for policies that concentrate wealth and shut out new neighbors. Exclusionary zoning drives the shortage which promotes skyrocketing property values and higher taxes in these neighborhoods. This result was achieved on purpose.<br />
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Linea Palmisano, who represents swanky Ward 13, says her constituents have been subjected to unfair criticism, including from city staff. She suggests there have been accusations of racism, and says that's "a great way to end a conversation." Others might suggest many of her constituents would rather not have a conversation about systemic racism and exclusionary zoning.<br />
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Speaking of great ways to end a conversation, Minneapolis for Everyone (the group behind all those <a href="http://www.citypages.com/news/fear-and-loathing-in-south-minneapolis/492588611">red yard signs foretelling the apocalypse</a>) has a reaction to the transportation policies contained in Minneapolis 2040. In the Star Tribune (<a href="http://m.startribune.com/index.php/to-cut-pollution-from-cars-minneapolis-wants-more-neighborhood-destinations/492777981/">"To cut pollution from cars, Minneapolis wants more neighborhood destinations"</a>) Minneapolis for Everyone co-founder Lisa McDonald says of the Minneapolis 2040 draft plan: "It has no room for cars. They don’t mention cars. They want to get rid of cars."<br />
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(Full disclosure: Minneapolis for Everyone is an organization co-founded by Carol Becker, who is the very weird elected official who recently attempted to trademark/steal the name of this website because she doesn't like the content. I am currently <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1037920406559121408">embroiled in legal wrangling.</a>)<br />
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The plan isn't nearly as revolutionary or scary as McDonald makes it sound. A city planner put it in common-sense terms: "Put the stuff closer together so it’s easier to get to the stuff." You're more likely to drive if your destination is further away and harder to get to. In other words, we should make it legal for more people and businesses to exist in more places while expanding options for getting there. Let's make it easier to not drive.<br />
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Minneapolis was built to serve cars. You might say we've spent the last 50-plus years using a blueprint called Minneapolis 1970. It's very easy (and will remain very easy) to drive your car in Minneapolis. You can't always say the same about walking, biking and transit. Plans for the future should be focused on making those alternatives more viable, if we care about having options for sustainable, safe, and affordable transportation.<br />
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Change is hard, especially when you've spent generations doing exactly the wrong thing. The truth is, we will probably end up with a Minneapolis 2040 plan that doesn't go nearly far enough. Transit, bike, and pedestrian advocates will still have to fight too hard for small victories. Driving will remain easy and the vast majority of people will continue to do lots of it. We will continue to take concerns about neighborhood character far too seriously when deciding what kind of person can live in which kinds of homes in which parts of town.<br />
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In comparison to the hole we've dug for ourselves, these are only the smallest of first steps towards making Minneapolis a more affordable, sustainable, and livable city. If we're going to take those steps, <a href="https://medium.com/neighbors-for-more-neighbors/email-signup-a45c49685673">we need more people willing to say yes.</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-21476366609629671612018-08-28T12:44:00.000-05:002018-08-28T13:27:06.578-05:00Neighbors Sue to Stop Apartments at 36th and BryantThe immediate neighbors to a recently approved 41-unit apartment project at 3612/16 Bryant Ave S have notified the City of Minneapolis of their intent to file a lawsuit in order to stop construction. [<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1V3SDZuvvo-jr0n6pg-znU0fy6FJ0C8Sw/view?usp=sharing">Read the complaint.</a>]<br />
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<a href="http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/www/groups/public/@cped/documents/webcontent/wcmsp-210241.pdf">The apartments, located near a transit and commercial corridor at 36th and Bryant</a>, were approved by the City Planning Commission on April 23. Neighbors of the project, led by Steven Verdoorn, appealed that decision to the City Council. That <a href="https://lims.minneapolismn.gov/File/2018-00563">appeal was denied in May.</a> Verdoorn is also one of the plaintiff's behind the lawsuit.<br />
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The complaint alleges that the apartment proposal approved by the city council "represents a substantial change in the character of the neighborhood and is a substantial detriment to neighboring properties." There are three four-story buildings directly across the street from the site. There's a seven-story building a half-block north.<br />
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The complaint also alleges, among other things, that the city "abused its discretion" because "the density approved was more than three times the maximum required by the comprehensive plan."<br />
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<a name='more'></a>The lawsuit can be seen partly as an extension of the ongoing politics around the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan update. The lawyer representing Verdoorn (and "Friends of 36th Street") is <a href="https://mblsportal.sos.state.mn.us/Business/SearchDetails?filingGuid=c92c6d9c-4d60-e811-915e-00155d0deff0">Timothy Keane, who is also the registered agent for a group called Minneapolis for Everyone.</a> This is the organization famous for its red apocalyptic yard signs with messages like "STOP Mpls 2040."<br />
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Minneapolis 2040 is the name for an update to <a href="https://minneapolis2040.com/">the city's plan to accommodate equitable growth in Minneapolis over the next 20 years.</a> Opponents of the plan have concerns about density, traffic, and neighborhood change. Supporters of the plan like that it tries to address the housing shortage caused by ongoing population growth, and fosters neighborhoods that are less car-centric.<br />
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(Full disclosure: one of the leaders of Minneapolis for Everyone is <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/my-statement-on-legal-process-to-defend.html">Carol Becker, who is the elected official and trademark troll who recently tried to steal the name "Wedge Live"</a> which is the name of the website you are reading right now.)<br />
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The 36th and Bryant lawsuit comes on the heels of a Minnesota Supreme Court decision ending <a href="http://www.startribune.com/court-decision-clears-way-for-40-story-minneapolis-condo-tower-project/490403751/">a years-long legal battle over a condo tower on the edge of downtown Minneapolis.</a> A group calling themselves Neighbors for East Bank Livability, many of whom live in towers themselves, were successful in delaying the project for years. Ultimately neighbors lost in court -- in addition to losing the $100,000 bond they were required to post in order to move forward with the lawsuit.<br />
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<i>ANALYSIS: Even if neighbors can't win in court, lengthy delays aren't just costly, but they have the potential to kill projects entirely. The economic situation years from now might not be conducive to constructing an apartment building. Legal challenges and other delay tactics (from people with the means to deploy them) also work in tandem with exclusionary zoning that says whiter, wealthier neighborhoods are off-limits to change.</i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-90585206436911730622018-08-23T15:40:00.000-05:002018-08-23T15:54:34.733-05:00My statement on the legal process to defend Wedge LIVE!<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6vK-xADmWis/W38Yo8N3X2I/AAAAAAABcmw/txSnATptawU84rlbwDoUPyE5kjB5myyzQCLcBGAs/s1600/am%2Bflag.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="499" data-original-width="749" height="266" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-6vK-xADmWis/W38Yo8N3X2I/AAAAAAABcmw/txSnATptawU84rlbwDoUPyE5kjB5myyzQCLcBGAs/s400/am%2Bflag.jpeg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wedge LIVE! anchor and managing editor John Edwards (and his newsbike).</td></tr>
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Hi! I'm John Edwards. For the past four years I have been producer, writer, and all-around content creator for Wedge LIVE, a hyperlocal news source based in the Wedge neighborhood of Minneapolis (<a href="http://twitter.com/wedgelive">Twitter</a> , <a href="http://facebook.com/wedgelive">Facebook</a> , <a href="http://youtube.com/wedgelive">YouTube</a> , <a href="http://wedgelive.com/">wedgelive.com</a>). In addition to general political coverage and analysis focusing on Minneapolis and St. Paul, I report on local housing and zoning issues in detail: attending neighborhood meetings, livetweeting planning meetings, and producing video content that I hope is both entertaining and educational.<br />
<br />
<b>On August 10, a longtime Minneapolis elected official named Carol Becker, who I have at times been critical of, <a href="https://tonywebster.com/2018/08/carol-becker-wedge-live/">filed multiple applications with both the state and federal government in an attempt to secure rights to the name "Wedge Live."</a> I believe this was an effort to shut down my platform and steal the identity by which the community has come to know me. Lacking a clear understanding of trademark law, I was initially afraid I'd had my identity stolen out from under me.</b><br />
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If you're wondering -- just as I initially wondered -- whether any of this is legal, here's what a law professor said about Becker's actions in the Star Tribune: <a href="http://www.startribune.com/wedge-live-blogger-battles-elected-official-over-rights-to-name/490763111/">"That’s not how this works. That’s not how any of this works. You don’t get to steal someone’s brand out from under them by filing an application for registration — especially one that doesn’t have any use for it yet."</a> While she has temporarily withdrawn her applications, Becker has <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/carol-becker-vows-to-come-back-to-take.html">vowed to do this all over again in six months</a> (and has started <a href="http://forums.e-democracy.org/groups/mpls/messages/post/5oSZ2V1SEcM4TjsAdB8e2J">comparing me to Nazis on a local internet forum</a>).<br />
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Becker has put forward competing explanations for why she's doing this, sometimes saying that acquiring the name would be a good business opportunity: <a href="https://www.twincities.com/2018/08/13/minneapolis-official-withdraws-trademark-filing-for-wedgelive-blog-that-had-been-critical-of-her/">“I think they’re worth money and I think I could make some money off of them."</a> At other times she's said she wants to use it as leverage to force me to change how I operate Wedge LIVE!: <a href="https://tonywebster.com/2018/08/carol-becker-wedge-live/">“I don’t know any other way to get through to [Edwards]."</a> Becker has also used language indicating that she is just one person among a larger group seeking to take my name: <a href="https://tonywebster.com/2018/08/carol-becker-wedge-live/">"Becker repeatedly used the word 'we' while describing her efforts to file the business and trademark registrations."</a><br />
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<b>I believe this, or something similar, is likely to happen again. If it's not Carol Becker, it will be someone with similar aims. <a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/4781826-Wedge-LIVE-Carol-Becker-Lawsuit.html">So I have begun a legal process</a>. While I will continue to make jokes about this ridiculous situation, I'm also taking my position very seriously. I will do everything in my power to defend myself. I will not leave myself vulnerable to a person, or group of people, with the money and motivation to engage in an unlawful effort to shut down the platform I've spent more than four years building.</b><br />
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://www.gofundme.com/support-wedge-live"><span style="color: red;">SUPPORT WEDGE LIVE!</span></a></h3>
<a href="https://www.gofundme.com/support-wedge-live">I'm starting this fund</a> because people have asked me for a way to support Wedge LIVE! during this time (aside from a monthly <a href="http://patreon.com/wedgelive">Patreon contribution</a>). I don't entirely know what to expect from the legal process ahead, but I want to be prepared for it. To everyone who has asked how they can help: Thank you.<br />
<br />
<a href="https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/4781826-Wedge-LIVE-Carol-Becker-Lawsuit.html"><b>Read my complaint against Carol Becker.</b></a><br />
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<b>Local news coverage of this situation:</b><br />
<a href="https://tonywebster.com/2018/08/carol-becker-wedge-live/">Tony Webster</a><br />
<a href="http://www.startribune.com/wedge-live-blogger-battles-elected-official-over-rights-to-name/490763111/">Star Tribune</a><br />
<a href="http://www.citypages.com/news/minneapolis-official-cybersquats-on-political-opponents-award-winning-website/490710421">City Pages</a><br />
<a href="https://www.twincities.com/2018/08/13/hamline-professor-files-to-take-name-minneapolis-critics-pro-density-news-blog/">Pioneer Press</a><br />
<a href="https://www.twincities.com/2018/08/13/minneapolis-official-withdraws-trademark-filing-for-wedgelive-blog-that-had-been-critical-of-her/">Pioneer Press</a><br />
<a href="http://www.startribune.com/readers-write-renaissance-festival-minneapolis-2040-plan-carol-becker-peter-strzok-minnesota-twins/490864071/">Star Tribune, Letters to the Editor</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-21118660287232116442018-08-23T06:43:00.000-05:002018-08-24T00:02:01.016-05:00The Shape of the Minneapolis Inclusionary Zoning Debate<div dir="ltr">
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">City Council President Lisa Bender</td></tr>
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Inclusionary zoning is an umbrella term for a wide range of policies designed to encourage or require the inclusion of affordable units in new housing construction. Here are three example scenarios from yesterday's presentation to the Minneapolis City Council's Housing Policy and Development Committee:</div>
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<li>Require 15% of a new building's units be affordable to households making 60% area median income.</li>
<li>Require 10% of a new building's units be affordable to households at 60% AMI.</li>
<li>Require 5% of a new building's units be affordable to households at 60% AMI.</li>
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The authors of a city-commissioned study on inclusionary zoning, consultants from a group called Grounded Solutions Network, landed on 10% as the sweet spot. </div>
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You might be wondering, why not require 30% affordable? Why not 100% affordable? Because, in the opinion of the city's outside experts, a 15% mandate is "the very outer limit maximum of what we could possibly consider feasible." Anything higher makes it very difficult for a profit-seeking enterprise to build apartments.</div>
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The experts explained why a mandatory, not voluntary, system was the right path for Minneapolis. Offering developers density bonuses or parking reductions in exchange for affordability doesn't work because the city has already implemented relatively aggressive parking reforms and has virtually no density restrictions downtown (an area that in recent years has added a lot of units -- making it the kind of place where inclusionary zoning could make a big impact).</div>
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An inclusionary zoning ordinance is something that Council President Lisa Bender has said must be passed alongside the package of zoning reforms contained in the Minneapolis 2040 comprehensive plan. I expect she has the votes to back it up.</div>
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If City Council approval of a bold version of Minneapolis 2040 hinges on inclusionary zoning, it's worth thinking about what that debate looks like.</div>
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There are people who will argue for a prohibitively high (25%... 50%... 100%!) inclusionary zoning percentage. These people are:</div>
<ul>
<li>those who think for-profit multifamily housing construction is bad, and that stopping it is good.</li>
<li>those who think building an apartment building is wildly more profitable in percentage terms than it actually is.</li>
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Then there are skeptics who say inclusionary zoning hasn't worked in other cities. They see the construction of thousands of new homes as part of the solution (though not the sole solution) to a massive housing shortage and affordability problem. For them, policies that potentially discourage the creation of more homes are counterproductive</div>
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The argument from skeptics is that affordable housing is everyone's burden to shoulder, not just residents of newly constructed apartments and condos. The skeptics say: tax everyone to pay for affordable housing. The owner of a million dollar home in Ward 13 has as much obligation as the renter living in a $1200 Whittier apartment, or the owner of a $500,000 condo. Someone tweeted at me yesterday that the key to inclusionary zoning's popularity is that it puts the burden on a small and often disliked constituency: residents of apartment buildings that haven't yet been built.</div>
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Inclusionary zoning supporters on the City Council will probably latch on to something resembling the case made by the group of experts the city hired to study the issue. Those experts are recommending an affordability requirement that gives developers a choice: 1) 10% of units affordable at 60% AMI or 2) a subsidy to go to 20% of units affordable at 50% AMI. The city's experts contend that development would remain feasible in most parts of the city under this system.</div>
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The experts also say that while the cost of a new inclusionary zoning regime will initially eat into the profits of individual projects -- making new home construction less likely -- landowners would eventually start to bear those costs: "Over time, developers who all face the same increased cost will all negotiate for a lower land price." This would take years, however.</div>
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A few alternative scenarios specifically <u>not</u> recommended by the experts would involve the "politically fraught" process of drawing lines on a map to designate the parts of town with strong enough housing markets to bear more stringent affordability mandates. You can imagine how this might upset a landowner just barely on the wrong side of one of these lines on a map.</div>
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The city-commissioned report on inclusionary zoning is set to be finished in a few weeks. For more detail on yesterday's presentation to the Housing Policy and Development Committee, <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1032417462548156416?s=19">see my Twitter thread here.</a></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-16472715784526311182018-08-13T14:06:00.002-05:002018-08-13T14:14:08.150-05:00Carol Becker vows to come back to take "Wedge LIVE!" in 6 months<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<a href="http://www.citypages.com/news/minneapolis-official-cybersquats-on-political-opponents-award-winning-website/490710421">Maybe you've heard</a>: a local elected official named Carol Becker is <a href="https://tonywebster.com/2018/08/carol-becker-wedge-live/">"behind an effort to file business and trademark registrations for Wedge LIVE!"</a> (which is me, the guy you're reading right now). Becker currently serves as President of the Minneapolis Board of Estimate and Taxation. This appears to be an unlawful effort to shut down speech she doesn't like.<br />
<br />
After a weekend of backlash, Becker indicated in a forum posting that she will temporarily back off. She said she <a href="http://forums.e-democracy.org/groups/mpls/messages/topic/2xFPLIVezhmExDgBSBu69K/">"will be back in about six months"</a> to try and take possession of the name "Wedge Live."<br />
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It is my intention to take steps in the meantime that would prevent her from doing that. Here's a countdown clock so we can all prepare.<br />
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<a href="https://www.tickcounter.com/countdown/695613/countdown-to-carol" title="Countdown to Carol">Countdown to Carol</a><a href="https://www.tickcounter.com/" title="Countdown">Countdown</a></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-90570075290481829252018-08-07T07:06:00.000-05:002018-08-07T04:09:31.440-05:00MN House 62A Endorsement: Jen Kader<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W_aZUKAilBo/W2VofHJvC8I/AAAAAAABbMI/A5XAh2v-tUENJkkkN9nCoIZutpeukAOvgCLcBGAs/s1600/JEN%2BKADER.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="420" data-original-width="584" height="287" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-W_aZUKAilBo/W2VofHJvC8I/AAAAAAABbMI/A5XAh2v-tUENJkkkN9nCoIZutpeukAOvgCLcBGAs/s400/JEN%2BKADER.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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My <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/958551322831216640">first impression of District 62A candidate Jen Kader</a> has stuck with me since watching her at a candidate forum back in January. Jen is among a handful of first-time candidates competing in 62A, and she stood out as far and away the most prepared person on that stage. It's the mark of someone who has been working on -- and passionate about -- the issues since long before she considered becoming a candidate.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5aByBuxM3Cs/W2VKsODVN6I/AAAAAAABbL8/31ZnB5IilKY4vvlfJ2HKBkCDpsJQ35wAACLcBGAs/s1600/kader.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="257" data-original-width="580" height="176" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-5aByBuxM3Cs/W2VKsODVN6I/AAAAAAABbL8/31ZnB5IilKY4vvlfJ2HKBkCDpsJQ35wAACLcBGAs/s400/kader.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me discovering a great candidate.</td></tr>
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Jen has a decade of community organizing and environmental advocacy experience that includes founding <a href="https://www.mn350.org/">MN350</a>, an organization devoted to fighting climate change. Through her job at the Freshwater Society, she works at the State Capitol finding ways to protect Minnesota's freshwater resources. As a board member of her neighborhood organization, and as a founder of both the Whittier Project and the Give-a-Shit social club, she's volunteered countless hours to breaking down barriers to political participation in Minneapolis. Jen is a frequent transit rider and bike commuter who knows firsthand why it's essential to fund a transportation system -- from sidewalks to buses -- that works for everyone in our city.<br />
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Jen is <a href="https://www.facebook.com/138474600151436/photos/a.145139279484968.1073741830.138474600151436/186431635355732/?type=3">endorsed by outgoing 62A Rep. Karen Clark</a> (a dual-endorsement shared with fellow 62A candidate Margarita Ortega) and <a href="https://www.facebook.com/138474600151436/photos/a.145139279484968.1073741830.138474600151436/203209057011323/?type=3&permPage=1">Minneapolis Park Board President Brad Bourn</a>, among <a href="https://kader4house.org/2018/01/04/endorsements/">others</a>.<br />
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Jen is steady, experienced, and always prepared. Observing her campaign over the last several months, I've found her to be wonderfully kind, earnest and unassuming. I’m proud to endorse Jen Kader; I know she’ll make the residents of District 62A proud if they elect her to the Minnesota House of Representatives.<br />
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<i>Vote in the <u>primary August 14!</u> Visit Jen's website <a href="https://kader4house.org/lets-do-this/volunteer/">to volunteer.</a></i><br />
<br />
<i>MN House District 62A extends roughly from Lyndale Avenue to Hiawatha (west to east), and from I-94 to Lake Street (north to south). </i><i>Use your address to <a href="https://myballotmn.sos.state.mn.us/">see which races and candidates are on your ballot.</a></i><br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">District 62A</td></tr>
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<i><br /></i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-66165406754431800742018-08-06T07:05:00.000-05:002018-08-06T04:08:30.506-05:00St. Paul City Council, Ward 4 Endorsement: Mitra Jalali Nelson<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I got up early last Sunday and traveled from the Wedge to St. Paul's Ward 4 to spend the morning with City Council candidate Mitra Jalali Nelson. The next day I watched her answer questions at a 90-minute forum. I worried this was too much time to spend, and in such a short period, with a stranger I met on the internet who only wears pink pants.<br />
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But I learned a few important things. Mitra is unreservedly pro-city, pro-housing and pro-transit. She's a renter who chose her apartment because she wanted to live on the light rail in a vibrant neighborhood. She wants a city budget that invests in people -- in things like rec centers -- rather than hiring more cops. She's called for funding the remainder of the St. Paul bike plan. She feels a sense of urgency about passing a minimum wage ordinance right away, without exceptions or carve-outs, because "it's time to pour cement under our feet of sinking wages." She's thoughtful, she's compelling, she's experienced. I understand why such a broad and diverse coalition of people have been drawn to help get her elected.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I asked Mitra what she would tell a constituent with concerns about adding more housing to address an ongoing shortage of homes. What would she tell people when they say things like "there's too many people here already"?<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Our city is already growing. We're falling behind. It's hurting everyone that we haven't created more places for people to live. Homeowners feel it because they're pinched by property taxes. Renters feel it because the citywide vacancy rate is two percent. It's creating a suffocating choke-hold on our city, a situation where people feel like they can't stay here. In our ward there are tons of seniors who will be selling their homes and need to find a place to live. If they can't find an apartment to live in nearby, they're going to be pushed out of the community they spent their lives in.</i></blockquote>
At the next evening's candidate forum, the very first question was about "neighborhood character" and "preservation." These are buzzwords used frequently to signal opposition to change. Though some of the audience was less receptive to her position than I was, Mitra delivered the same answer she gave me: neighborhoods aren't "livable" if you can't afford to live there in the first place.<br />
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When I asked about policy ideas she'd like to borrow from other municipalities, Mitra cited the example of St. Louis Park <a href="https://www.stlouispark.org/Home/Components/News/News/260/18">requiring landlords to provide relocation assistance to tenants in cases where buildings are sold</a>. As council member, she is committed to strong anti-displacement measures.<br />
<u><br /></u><a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/meet-wedge-mitra-jalali-nelson.html"><b>[More: Mitra Jalali Nelson talks about exclusionary zoning and police]</b></a><br />
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In a very St. Paul moment during the candidate forum, Mitra gave an unwavering defense of organized trash collection as a basic city service. Compared to some of her other answers, it seemed more common-sense than courageous... until the only other serious candidate equivocated and pandered.<br />
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I spend a lot of time listening to local elected officials talk about housing issues. And even among the best of them, there is usually hesitation and hedging about doing the right thing. Mitra is fearless. She wears her values on her sleeve. She says, "I'm running to be a leader on housing issues for our city." And it's so refreshingly clear that she means it.<br />
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There are a lot of great candidates up and down the ballot in 2018. But lately, when people ask me which candidate I'm most excited about, I say Mitra Jalali Nelson. St. Paul needs a leader like Mitra. At a time when so many of our local problems -- from high rents to low wages to inadequate transportation -- are begging for collective and regional solutions, we all need more leaders like Mitra.<br />
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The election is August 14th! Unlike other races on the ballot that day, this is a special election, which means the winner is the next council member for Ward 4 in St. Paul. Mitra's the sort of candidate worth going all-out to support:<br />
<ul>
<li>If you're lucky enough to be able to, <b><a href="https://myballotmn.sos.state.mn.us/">vote for Mitra</a>.</b></li>
<li>If you can transport yourself to St. Paul, <a href="https://www.mitranelson.com/contact/"><b>volunteer for Mitra.</b></a></li>
<li>If you can spare it, <b><a href="https://www.mitranelson.com/donate-index-impact">donate to Mitra</a>.</b></li>
</ul>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-20866576537856022692018-08-05T07:19:00.000-05:002018-08-06T01:20:56.229-05:00Meet the Wedge: Mitra Jalali Nelson<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Last Sunday, I had the opportunity to speak with Mitra Jalali Nelson, who is running for City Council in St. Paul's Ward 4. I came to St. Paul loaded with the ultimate gotcha question, which turned suddenly into two gotcha questions. By the end of the interview Mitra had got gotten. Below is that portion of our conversation (<a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/08/st-paul-city-council-ward-4-endorsement.html">read my endorsement of Mitra here</a>).<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Mitra Jalali Nelson</td></tr>
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<b>Can we end on a gotcha question?</b><br />
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<i>Mitra: Oh god.</i><br />
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<b>This is a style of question that got a lot of candidates in trouble in Minneapolis last year. Remember the question about a “city without police?” This is a similar style of question, but not on police. Can you envision a city without single-family zoning? What does that look like?</b><br />
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<i>Mitra: Yes. I really see potential for a whole diversity of ways people could live. I’m really interested in housing cooperatives. I’m really interested in more mixed use apartment buildings. I’m interested in multi-family zoning.</i><br />
<i><br /></i><i>Single-family zoning as a traditional way of life is organized around people’s access to wealth and that status has been organized around people’s racial and ethnic background. When you start to unpack that, you understand that it’s a form of organizing our economy that has meant lots of people don’t have access to the same things as others. For some that’s hard to unpack and fathom, but for my family that’s just been a reality that we’ve had to understand about the world -- and for a lot of families.</i><br />
<i><br /></i><i>What’s more important to me is that everyone has a place where they can have a concept of home, whatever that looks like for them. And be able to build off of that. What we’ve done is said the only true concept of home is that type of zoning and that type of living situation. Part of this is just my psyche as someone who is from a really complex family, and has had a really specific life experience navigating the world. </i><br />
<i><br /></i><i>Being racially vague and ambiguous kind of changes your brain chemistry. You’re always thinking what do I have in common with other people? What is home? What does that mean for me? There’s a lot of first-generation immigrant kid issues going on with that too. This concept of home for me has never been just what the traditional American concept has been. There’s just always been more abstract forms of it. </i><br />
<i><br /></i><i>Speaking in real terms about right now, 2018, in our city: what we need is as many ways as possible for people to have a dignified way of life and a way to actually live and save and build -- not just survive, but do well in our city. When we are taking entire sections of our communities and not maximizing them for the benefit of everyone, we’re fundamentally taking away from other people’s ability to do that.</i><br />
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<b>I gotcha.</b><br />
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<i>Mitra: You’re not gonna ask me the police question?</i><br />
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<b>Uhhhhhhhh, ok. You want to answer the police question?</b><br />
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<i>Mitra: Well, I mean, yeah, I can envision a world without police.</i><br />
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<b>Is that going to get you in trouble in St. Paul?</b><br />
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<i>Mitra: I don’t know. I actually don’t know. Because I think we’re in an interesting moment for public safety in our city, in that we are trying to shift the culture and say, public safety starts with investing in people’s lives. Police are the biggest part of the budget. When you take the city budget and break it down and see how much of it is emergency response services, and how much of that is fire vs. police -- I think that it at least warrants a reevaluation.</i><br />
<i><br /></i><i>And there also was a world without police, already. That already existed. Thinking about what modern community safety looks like, now, is the kind of imagination that helps us get to a better community. We’re in a moment as a community, people want to have that conversation. That’s what I’ve learned.</i><br />
<i><br /></i><i>And I’m running in a ward that’s -- my ward is not generally who’s being disproportionately policed by SPPD. It’s not like it’s not happening here and there, but this isn’t the part of the city that experiences as much aggressive, disparate policing. And yet the amount of people who care about it, that I’ve talked to, it’s probably the number three thing that people ask me about [when doorknocking]. There’s just a desire in our city to see real change and feel like it’s actual change and not tweak a thing here, tweak a thing there.</i><br />
<i><br /></i><i>What I’m scared about is -- there’s so much trauma in our community from the death of Philando, and the death of Marcus Golden, and different names in our community -- I’m really exhausted from going through this cycle of tragedy and marches and feeling like nothing is changing. Having people and politicians just wring their hands, saying “it’s just so complicated.”</i><br />
<i><br /></i><i>I feel like we are really racked with a struggle that doesn’t feel like it’s evolving right now unless we’re willing to go further and say maybe we actually just start to reinvest in other things. Maybe we just figure out what aspects modern police offer right now that can only be offered by them vs. something else -- and be willing to think that way. I know it’s complicated and that it’s really sticky for people.</i><br />
<i><br /></i><i>I am different now because in the last two years I’ve supported people whose relatives have been killed by police and watched their lives go on after the activism has stopped and after the public response has stopped. When you actually see someone privately going through it in that way, they don’t just check out and say “ok, I’ll wait until the anniversary of that comes around again to post something about it on Facebook and then it’s out of my mind.” Those people are still living their lives, or trying to, and feeling re-traumatization and psychological impacts. There’s too many public health concerns about it for me to not be willing to imagine it.</i>Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-25271729003886721872018-08-02T07:37:00.000-05:002018-08-02T07:18:49.257-05:00MN Congressional District 5 Endorsement: Ilhan Omar<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Ilhan Omar is a state representative who's amassed a lot of political capital, and a large national following in a relatively short career. She hasn't been shy about using that power to lift up new leaders, as when she took the unusually bold step of endorsing Phillipe Cunningham's successful 2017 campaign against powerful longtime Minneapolis City Council President Barb Johnson.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Former Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives, Margaret Anderson Kelliher, might be Omar's most credible opponent. A lot of people <a href="https://naomikritzer.com/2018/07/16/elections-2018-us-representative-district-5/">recall Kelliher's earlier political career with fondness.</a> She's a competent politician by all accounts. But I'm looking at this race partly with a hyperlocal lens. I go out of my way to avoid further entrenching the Lisa Goodman/Barb Johnson wing of the local DFL. Margaret Anderson Kelliher is the definition of old guard; take a look at <a href="http://margaretforcongress.org/learnmore">her endorsement list</a>, which includes Goodman and Johnson.<br />
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(To illustrate my point: I recall being frustrated by former Senator Al Franken's endorsement of Lisa Goodman for Minneapolis City Council in 2017. Why did our celebrity senator, who I'd never heard say a word about Minneapolis issues, have to put his thumb on the scales to help an already heavily favored, well-funded incumbent on the eve of the caucuses? Of course, I understand it's the most natural thing in the world for entrenched incumbents to endorse their good friends: other longtime incumbents.)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-57b7XnAfCAs/W2Laf_U1FVI/AAAAAAABbBg/NdHmeM0DqeMlOZqIX_Ma4SiZsM-9zoeBQCKgBGAs/s1600/IMG_20180802_051732.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1090" data-original-width="1572" height="276" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-57b7XnAfCAs/W2Laf_U1FVI/AAAAAAABbBg/NdHmeM0DqeMlOZqIX_Ma4SiZsM-9zoeBQCKgBGAs/s400/IMG_20180802_051732.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kelliher campaign mailer</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S9uakahc0n8/W2Lij03kpWI/AAAAAAABbB0/2wUjWlTKAsMlnAU3xFcQZ7TOAF12HEn6QCLcBGAs/s1600/ilhan%2Bcommercial.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="338" data-original-width="600" height="225" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S9uakahc0n8/W2Lij03kpWI/AAAAAAABbB0/2wUjWlTKAsMlnAU3xFcQZ7TOAF12HEn6QCLcBGAs/s400/ilhan%2Bcommercial.gif" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://twitter.com/IlhanMN/status/1024476402761048064">Omar campaign video</a></td></tr>
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There's likely not much practical difference in how Omar or Kelliher would vote as members of Congress. But there is a significant difference in how they're campaigning. I see Kelliher targeting reliable older voters in her advertising. Likewise, Kelliher's social media posts give the impression of a campaign focused (probably smartly) on older suburbanites.<br />
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Omar's constituency includes more young people, people of color, immigrants--the kind of District 5 voters the DFL needs to maximize to win in statewide and presidential elections. And that's not to say there aren't plenty of older white people excited for her campaign. Omar has vowed to pick up Keith Ellison's mantle and become a voter turnout machine. I believe Omar can do this. I'm pretty certain that Kelliher can't.<br />
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So it's a simple choice for me: Ilhan Omar, the leader who won't just win elections for herself, but is willing to put herself out there to win elections for a new generation of leaders.<br />
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<i>Note # 1: Local writer Naomi Kritzer has <a href="https://naomikritzer.com/2018/07/16/elections-2018-us-representative-district-5/">very nice things to say</a> about the other credible candidate in District 5, Patricia Torres Ray (while also arriving at Omar as her top choice). If you can't vote for Omar, I'd suggest Torres Ray.</i><br />
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<i>Note #2: Please enjoy Kelliher's weird commercial featuring a staged protest and candidate acting as the supervisor of a sweatshop (allegedly) that produces American flag quilts.</i><br />
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<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/GCW2qsmYA3A" width="560"></iframe><br />
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<br />Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-73745327524146252382018-07-22T07:33:00.000-05:002018-07-22T10:39:17.241-05:00Minneapolis 2040: The Final Countdown<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q6ekXE7jD2w/W1RxrshcxiI/AAAAAAABY50/TX67WfsM95AlHtHAlnz6nNr-XxFH2Le2QCLcBGAs/s1600/minneapolis%2B2040%2Bcat%2Bgif.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="225" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q6ekXE7jD2w/W1RxrshcxiI/AAAAAAABY50/TX67WfsM95AlHtHAlnz6nNr-XxFH2Le2QCLcBGAs/s400/minneapolis%2B2040%2Bcat%2Bgif.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
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Moments ago I submitted some last-minute, under the wire comments on the Minneapolis 2040 draft comprehensive plan. And I will continue to do so, throughout the day, as the situation merits, right up until the deadline.<br />
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<b>YOU CAN KEEP COMMENTING ALL DAY --TODAY-- SUNDAY, JULY 22!</b></div>
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👉<a href="http://minneapolis2040.com/">minneapolis2040.com</a>👈</div>
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Here's a sample comment you could leave in the <a href="http://minneapolis2040.com/topics/land-use-built-form/">built form section</a>:</div>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Interior 1 doesn't go far enough. Homes already exist in these neighborhoods that exceed what would be allowed under Interior 1. The minimum designation in Minneapolis should be Interior 2.</i> </blockquote>
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Areas that are currently designated Interior 1 should be changed to Interior 2. Areas that are Interior 2 should be changed to Interior 3. Areas that are Interior 3 should have their maximum height raised from three to __ stories.</i></blockquote>
Or you could simply say:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>Exclusionary zoning is dumb and terrible. I can't believe we still do that. Please let people live their lives, even if that means four households occupying a four-unit house instead of just one family.</i></blockquote>
But there are so many more comments for you to send -- and today is your last day to send them!<br />
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Minneapolis is growing. People want to live here. Businesses are hiring workers here. A Minneapolis with many more people needs many more homes -- otherwise a lot of people will be displaced. Those homes shouldn't all be in big expensive single-family homes or big expensive apartment buildings. We need less expensive triplexes and fourplexes, and small apartment buildings too. In order to make that happen we need a zoning code that allows those small-scale homes to happen. We need to legalize housing.<br />
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But that's not all. In a majority renter city, we need <a href="https://medium.com/neighbors-for-more-neighbors/minneapolis-2040-tenant-protections-6206723176ab">policies that support and protect renters</a>, people who are disproportionately low-income, indigenous or people of color. We need a transportation plan that <a href="https://www.ourstreetsmpls.org/our_streets_priorities_for_minneapolis_2040">prioritizes people, not just cars</a>. We need to recognize that single-family zoning isn't just exclusionary, but promotes car-dependence and sprawl that does grave damage to our climate.<br />
<ul>
<li>Don't know what a Comprehensive Plan is? <a href="https://medium.com/neighbors-for-more-neighbors/what-is-the-minneapolis-comprehensive-plan-784efaf9d53a">Read this.</a></li>
<li>Neighbors for More Neighbors has <a href="https://medium.com/neighbors-for-more-neighbors/tagged/minneapolis2040">a series of blog posts covering Minneapolis 2040 policy</a> suggestions in more detail.</li>
<li>Our Streets Minneapolis has thoughts <a href="https://www.ourstreetsmpls.org/our_streets_priorities_for_minneapolis_2040">on the transportation side.</a></li>
</ul>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-52843223452505707292018-07-18T08:10:00.000-05:002018-07-18T18:03:50.248-05:00Minneapolis 2040 Charts and MapsSome charts and maps to consider as we close in on the comment deadline for the draft of the Minneapolis 2040 comprehensive plan. You have until July 22 to comment at <a href="http://minneapolis2040.com/">minneapolis2040.com</a>!<br />
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<b>Minneapolis and its neighbors are adding more people than places for those people to live.</b> <a href="http://www.sightline.org/2017/10/31/video-cruel-musical-chairs-why-is-rent-so-high/">A housing shortage is a game of musical chairs</a> that hurts those with the least money. The next Minneapolis comprehensive plan needs to help us shift that equation in Minneapolis and set an example for neighboring cities.<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kt4kmNKE4OI/W0_HHPCHhZI/AAAAAAABYr0/SJYLfgQViAkEsx0CkKviVd9WwCEd0lzTACLcBGAs/s1600/2010%2B-%2B2017%2BHouseholds%2Badded%2Bvs.%2BHomes%2Badded%2B%25281%2529.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="371" data-original-width="600" height="246" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kt4kmNKE4OI/W0_HHPCHhZI/AAAAAAABYr0/SJYLfgQViAkEsx0CkKviVd9WwCEd0lzTACLcBGAs/s400/2010%2B-%2B2017%2BHouseholds%2Badded%2Bvs.%2BHomes%2Badded%2B%25281%2529.png" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><i style="font-size: medium; text-align: start;">Data: Met Council <a href="https://stats.metc.state.mn.us/profile/">community profiles</a> and <a href="https://metrocouncil.org/Data-and-Maps/Publications-And-Resources/Files-and-reports/2017-Population-Estimates-(Final,-July-2018)-(1).aspx">2017 population/household estimates.</a></i></td></tr>
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<b>These charts show how the Minneapolis and St. Paul are losing the sort of housing that is least expensive: 2, 3, and 4-unit homes.</b> Why? Because zoning codes make them illegal to build on the vast majority of residential land.<br />
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Minneapolis lost over 6,000 duplex/triplex/4plex units since 1990. The city added around 2,500 single-family homes in same period<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jwOGByUnri0/W0_F2H4YXMI/AAAAAAABYrg/KCn0GvFUWzUkdtDC_pRFb6A3PtbitH5SACLcBGAs/s1600/4%2Bplex%2B1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="346" data-original-width="679" height="203" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jwOGByUnri0/W0_F2H4YXMI/AAAAAAABYrg/KCn0GvFUWzUkdtDC_pRFb6A3PtbitH5SACLcBGAs/s400/4%2Bplex%2B1.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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St. Paul lost about 3,300 duplex/triplex/fourplex units since 1990. The city gained around 2,000 single-family homes in same period.<br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LYL98IjtSlk/W0_F316dicI/AAAAAAABYrk/9eY1FGMs5aYeH1f5q5VdLRMNT6MLm3tBQCLcBGAs/s1600/4%2Bplex%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="340" data-original-width="679" height="200" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-LYL98IjtSlk/W0_F316dicI/AAAAAAABYrk/9eY1FGMs5aYeH1f5q5VdLRMNT6MLm3tBQCLcBGAs/s400/4%2Bplex%2B2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>Below is a map of racially restrictive covenants</b>, courtesy of <a href="https://www.mappingprejudice.org/what-are-covenants/index.html">Mapping Prejudice</a>. Areas of South and Southwest Minneapolis dominated by racially restrictive covenants in the first half of the 20th century are <a href="http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/zoningmaps/zoning_maps_index">dominated by single-family zoning today</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zJq-CIfBXCM/W08wduiGLzI/AAAAAAABYqk/AZGAiCGFYRECTcWxkDwS1MCZAJVlS8HBwCLcBGAs/s1600/covenants.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="384" data-original-width="405" height="303" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-zJq-CIfBXCM/W08wduiGLzI/AAAAAAABYqk/AZGAiCGFYRECTcWxkDwS1MCZAJVlS8HBwCLcBGAs/s320/covenants.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://minneapolis2040.com/policies/access-to-housing/">There's a direct line from racially restrictive covenants to redlining to restrictive single-family zoning</a>:<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i>The FHA promoted zoning as an effective tool for assuring a “homogenous and harmonious neighborhood.” In the view of the FHA, however, zoning was not enough to accomplish the segregation of races as a means to protecting property values. The FHA underwriting manual made the case for racially restrictive covenants, using language that described people of color as undesirable neighbors in the same vein as nuisances such as odor and high traffic.</i></blockquote>
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<b>In case you missed <a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/07/minneapolis-2040-deadline-roundup.html">this post</a> from a few days ago</b>, here's<b> </b>a chart breaking out Minneapolis residents by renter/owner and income. The low-income, cost-burdened renters are disproportionately people of color; they're also <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5Nf3Zp3BF8">far less likely to receive a housing subsidy</a> than the high-income homeowners.</div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3XAmTm8TTjA/W0sarSVyVMI/AAAAAAABYUo/Q_yliMzFR44Ore6ZDNx7QFPRvpGwcPh5wCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/cost%2Bburden%2Bby%2Bhousehold%2Bincome%2Band%2Btenure.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="806" data-original-width="1370" height="235" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3XAmTm8TTjA/W0sarSVyVMI/AAAAAAABYUo/Q_yliMzFR44Ore6ZDNx7QFPRvpGwcPh5wCPcBGAYYCw/s400/cost%2Bburden%2Bby%2Bhousehold%2Bincome%2Band%2Btenure.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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<b>This map from <a href="https://twitter.com/scttdvd/status/1001167705662283785">Scott Shaffer</a> debunks the notion that low-density zoning keeps the bulldozers away.</b> Right now under existing zoning in Minneapolis, homes are bulldozed and replaced with larger single-family homes -- we make it illegal to build anything else. We could choose to allow homes that are cheaper to build, rent, and own. Instead, we've chosen expensive housing.</div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A0r6LcbeNBA/W08xo1XCXcI/AAAAAAABYqw/ZZXEbSNYm74jxdKHNyjNYEBFj_DWU15aACLcBGAs/s1600/scott%2Bzoning%2Bmap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="927" height="640" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-A0r6LcbeNBA/W08xo1XCXcI/AAAAAAABYqw/ZZXEbSNYm74jxdKHNyjNYEBFj_DWU15aACLcBGAs/s640/scott%2Bzoning%2Bmap.jpg" width="494" /></a></div>
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<b>If you aren't yet fed up with exclusionary zoning</b>, watch my award-eligible documentary film "It's Always Single-Family in the Twin Cities."</div>
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<iframe allow="autoplay; encrypted-media" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/Kd1gX9z5hio" width="560"></iframe></div>
Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-18312645467171245262018-07-15T07:26:00.000-05:002018-07-15T07:30:58.598-05:00Minneapolis 2040 Deadline Roundup<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1U-xmQwiJUw/W0s9fh9FVlI/AAAAAAABYU0/PlEs-lqIEqgnCz_3RJZ-C0BIhFhthIcLQCLcBGAs/s1600/ezgif.com-video-to-gif%2B%25285%2529.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="209" data-original-width="480" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-1U-xmQwiJUw/W0s9fh9FVlI/AAAAAAABYU0/PlEs-lqIEqgnCz_3RJZ-C0BIhFhthIcLQCLcBGAs/s1600/ezgif.com-video-to-gif%2B%25285%2529.gif" /></a></div>
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There's just one week left in the comment period for the draft Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan! Concerned residents assured me it would be shoved down our throats, but I'm not sure my throat could handle a lengthier process.<br />
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Leave your comments at <a href="http://minneapolis2040.com/">minneapolis2040.com</a> until July 22. The city will spend a few months synthesizing that feedback into a new draft to be released in late September.<br />
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Below I have compiled the latest news on the comprehensive plan, including two presentations to City Council committees earlier this week.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><b>Innovative Housing Types.</b> Minneapolis city planner Brian Schaffer (<a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1017395896869220352">RIP</a>) says that "innovative housing types" aren't new. Single room occupancy, accessory dwelling units, co-housing--those are all concepts that are "ages and ages old." What happened? We banned them.<br />
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<b>In a presentation to the Housing Policy and Development Committee</b>, Schaffer showed council members this chart:</div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3XAmTm8TTjA/W0sarSVyVMI/AAAAAAABYUk/b1mRtJAUz8cxH8USwckrYVDX5z-V6olIgCLcBGAs/s1600/cost%2Bburden%2Bby%2Bhousehold%2Bincome%2Band%2Btenure.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="806" data-original-width="1370" height="235" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-3XAmTm8TTjA/W0sarSVyVMI/AAAAAAABYUk/b1mRtJAUz8cxH8USwckrYVDX5z-V6olIgCLcBGAs/s400/cost%2Bburden%2Bby%2Bhousehold%2Bincome%2Band%2Btenure.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Schaffer highlighted these points in his presentation:<br />
<ul>
<li>Largest segment on the chart are the 47,000 homeowner households making greater than 100% area median income ($94,300/yr).</li>
<li>Second biggest: 31,000 renter households making less than 30% AMI ($28,300/yr). </li>
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<li>19,000 of those households are severely cost burdened (spending more than 50% of income on housing)</li>
<li>6,000 are cost burdened (spending more than 30% of income on housing)</li>
<li>People under 30% AMI are majority POC and majority renter - and "disproportionately both."</li>
</ul>
</ul>
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Which of those groups have their housing subsidized? To a much greater degree it's the high-income homeowner households, says the city's housing director, Andrea Brennan.<br />
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<b>In response to what I thought was an illuminating chart</b>, City Council Member Lisa Goodman told Brian Schaffer: "I don't need a planning degree to know that people at 30% or lower of the MMI are cost-burdened." (The acronym for area median income is AMI, and the over-educated Brian Schaffer refused to correct her, even though it was his last week at work and he could have just said "I'm too old for this shit" and given the entire council double-fisted middle fingers.)<br />
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<b>FLASHBACK:</b> Lisa Goodman told an economist the same thing about his economics degree in 2016 when she was agitating against an academic study, commissioned by the city, that showed benefits to raising the minimum wage.</div>
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<b>There's a climate change opportunity </b>in adding more commercial zoning in Minneapolis, says city planner Paul Mogush. Nationally, 45% of trips are for shopping, while 15-20% are trips to work. Mogush says, "Based on some research that we've done, we know that people in Minneapolis are spending a lot of their retail dollars outside city limits, so there's an opportunity to capture more of that inside the city of Minneapolis."</div>
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<b>Council President Lisa Bender asked a question about small storefronts in neighborhood interiors</b> that "have been made illegal over time in the zoning code." Mogush said they're trying to legitimize existing commercial uses, but gave no indication there would be allowances for more. (Idea: you could send feedback to <a href="http://minneapolis2040.com/">minneapolis2040.com</a> to ask for more small storefronts in neighborhood interiors).</div>
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<b>Say goodbye to everyone's favorite <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JV2jAzY89Ik">fit young planner</a>:</b></div>
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Brian Schaffer calls it quits after more than a decade swatting microphones as a Minneapolis city planner. He will be missed. But he'll always be my brother. <a href="https://t.co/WTewlE0toO">pic.twitter.com/WTewlE0toO</a></div>
— Wedge LIVE! (@WedgeLIVE) <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1017395896869220352?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 12, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<b>Looking for a Minneapolis 2040 policy overview? </b>Read this series from <a href="https://medium.com/neighbors-for-more-neighbors/tagged/minneapolis2040">Neighbors for More Neighbors.</a> And some thoughts from <a href="https://www.ourstreetsmpls.org/our_streets_priorities_for_minneapolis_2040?platform=hootsuite">Our Streets Minneapolis.</a><br />
<b><br />I livetweeted Wednesday's Minneapolis 2040 info session.</b> One attendee said the meeting left them feeling "ashamed to be alive." Lisa Bender told the crowd of longtime residents, "You can boo me but I will continue to pause and wait." Heather Worthington, the city's director of Long Range Planning, at one point surrendered the microphone to a resident who continually interrupted her answer. <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1017258880902967298">Read the whole thread here.</a><br />
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This has maybe been asked about doomsday cults before, but what are these people gonna do for fun after this is over and the world doesn't explode?</div>
— Wedge LIVE! (@WedgeLIVE) <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1017217681802526720?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 12, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<b>Council Member Jeremy Schroeder</b>, chair of the Zoning & Planning Committee, <a href="https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/MPLS/bulletins/1fda8f7">released this FAQ</a> to tamp down an explosion of panic and misinformation.</div>
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<b>ICYMI: </b><a href="https://www.wedgelive.com/2018/07/beyond-apocalyptic-yard-signs.html">I published a post</a> in response to an explosion of panic and misinformation--and apocalyptic yard signs.<br />
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<b>Start practicing your impassioned speeches.</b> In a committee hearing earlier this week, Lisa Goodman, who is the council's most vocal critic of the draft, said she was eager for a public hearing in front of the full City Council, instead of just at the City Planning Commission.<br />
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<b>BLOOPERS:</b> If you made it this far, you deserve <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERnVdBvCFCY">a blooper reel</a> from this week's City Council meetings. <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKGy8B5j-xc">Here's a bonus blooper reel.</a><br />
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Other cities can't learn from Minneapolis if we never do the thing that's supposed to teach these cities a lesson. So I think we're pretty much legally bound to go forward with the plan.<a href="https://t.co/Ml7dZYvZsY">https://t.co/Ml7dZYvZsY</a> <a href="https://t.co/o8o73Ulbz7">pic.twitter.com/o8o73Ulbz7</a></div>
— Wedge LIVE! (@WedgeLIVE) <a href="https://twitter.com/WedgeLIVE/status/1017403138582634496?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 12, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<b>Timeline.</b> Here's a rough schedule of the comprehensive plan process going forward:</div>
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<li style="text-align: left;">July 22 - end of comment period (<a href="http://minneapolis2040.com/">there's still time!</a>)</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Late September - new draft released</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">Late October - public hearing at City Planning Commission</li>
<li style="text-align: left;">December - City Council adoption</li>
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<b>This content is made possible by readers like you -- <a href="http://patreon.com/wedgelive">support Wedge LIVE on Patreon!</a></b></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5476969927869881897.post-34496464422956222602018-07-10T07:36:00.000-05:002018-07-11T06:36:40.889-05:00Beyond Apocalyptic Yard Signs<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3V67CRYHP7c/W0SdHMPdzsI/AAAAAAABYG4/cvG2UGgKeSAV8Mm89YeMmHxNyliIVfLUACLcBGAs/s1600/STOP%2BEVERYTHING.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="700" data-original-width="965" height="290" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3V67CRYHP7c/W0SdHMPdzsI/AAAAAAABYG4/cvG2UGgKeSAV8Mm89YeMmHxNyliIVfLUACLcBGAs/s400/STOP%2BEVERYTHING.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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It’s a maddening time lately, with political actors denying obvious truths and using scare tactics to sidestep honest dialogue. In any debate about change, political winds favor the side with the simple message: NO. It's easy to fearmonger, deceive, and put words on lawn signs that conjure impending annihilation.<br />
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I like to think Minneapolis is better than that. In Minneapolis we recognize real problems and act to solve them. We recognize that housing is in short supply and unacceptably expensive for too many of our neighbors. We recognize that climate change is real, and is driven by lifestyles made necessary by our region's sprawling, auto-oriented development patterns. We recognize that nobody should have opportunity limited by the fact they can’t afford to live in the right neighborhood.<br />
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To foster an honest conversation about the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan, let’s focus on this <a href="http://www.southwestjournal.com/news/real-estate/2018/04/affordability-gap-grows/">widely recognized fact</a>: Minneapolis doesn’t have enough homes. <a href="https://www.mprnews.org/story/2018/07/03/starter-homes-twin-cities-metro-prices">MPR reports</a> that the fabled “starter home” is disappearing from the Twin Cities due to a combination of factors: “land, laws, labor, and lumber.” For the sake of conversation, here's a few examples of things affecting the cost housing:<br />
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<li>Energy efficiency standards substantially add to the cost of a new home</li>
<li>Land on which to build new homes is made more expensive because of growth boundaries</li>
<li>Restrictions in zoning codes all across the Twin Cities prevent building “twin homes” (or fourplexes, or apartments, or anything that’s not a single-family home) that share a wall and sell for much less than an equivalent single-family home </li>
<li><a href="https://www.nickmagrino.com/blog/2018/1/30/when-you-dont-have-to-build-so-much-parking">Car parking requirements</a> add to the cost of every unit of housing, especially when it’s a massive parking structure</li>
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If we can agree to the facts (that these things affect the cost of housing), then -- and only then -- we can move to what should come next: <a href="https://streets.mn/2017/04/27/the-progressive-case-for-up-zoning-minneapolis/">an actual conversation about what we value.</a><br />
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<a name='more'></a>No doubt, there are trade-offs: someone who values action to fight climate change will probably support energy efficiency standards and growth boundaries--believing sustainability is worth the added housing cost. Sometimes an action can tick off multiple priorities at once: easing density restrictions and parking requirements will move us away from the expensive, auto-oriented, exclusively single-family neighborhoods that dominate most of the Twin Cities. It's not unheard of -- even for a person with a garage -- to list abundant street parking as their number one value (because we're having an honest conversation, please don't be ashamed to say it out loud).<br />
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What are the values served by saying the most walkable and transit-accessible areas in the state of Minnesota must be dominated by low-density, auto-oriented uses? What are the values served by saying these areas must always and forever be reserved for ever-larger single-family homes?<br />
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We’ve inherited a system, a legacy of redlining, that's left us with increasingly exclusive neighborhoods. It's a system where not being able to afford the neighborhood you want means you can't afford access to a good public school; or to be near grocery stores and other amenities; or to keep yourself and your family safe from dirty air, soil, and water. It'll take a lot more to undo that legacy, but ending exclusionary zoning is a necessary step.<br />
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pVgiuAM-j0M/W0SPB1KmHII/AAAAAAABYGs/BKXV7t4XZ_w_IUCjTbND90k0YLlmTIE9ACLcBGAs/s1600/extinction.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="666" data-original-width="826" height="258" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pVgiuAM-j0M/W0SPB1KmHII/AAAAAAABYGs/BKXV7t4XZ_w_IUCjTbND90k0YLlmTIE9ACLcBGAs/s320/extinction.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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They are using the word "extinction" to defend legal requirements forcing (usually large) single family homes as the only land use in huge swaths of our city, which virtually requires people to drive cars nearly everywhere they go.</div>
— Robin Garwood (@RobinGarwood) <a href="https://twitter.com/RobinGarwood/status/1012480505575542785?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 28, 2018</a></blockquote>
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To put a finer point on it: they're worried about the "extinction" of single family homes, but seemingly not worried at all about the ACTUAL extinction of real, climate-threatened species.<br />
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That's a special sort of cognitive dissonance.</div>
— Robin Garwood (@RobinGarwood) <a href="https://twitter.com/RobinGarwood/status/1012480836623618049?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">June 28, 2018</a></blockquote>
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_c7dvY2ymus/W0Sdr6SKPmI/AAAAAAABYHA/hBms_GnQjnE5-Y5kVFIsoCBAovFbGUDVQCLcBGAs/s1600/YARD%2BSIGNS.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="960" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-_c7dvY2ymus/W0Sdr6SKPmI/AAAAAAABYHA/hBms_GnQjnE5-Y5kVFIsoCBAovFbGUDVQCLcBGAs/s400/YARD%2BSIGNS.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Only one of these is real.</td></tr>
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I've previously written that the Minneapolis 2040 plan is bold. But it’s only bold when judged against the low expectations set by generations of misguided policies. We've been numbed into thinking what we've been doing for decades is our only choice.<br />
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Allowing up to four families to live in a house the size of a large single-family home isn’t bold. It’s not bold to legalize three-story apartment buildings in neighborhoods adjacent to downtown. It’s not bold to allow many more people to live along major transit corridors. These are all modest changes, and the very least we should be doing to give ourselves a fighting chance at a better future.<br />
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Instead of rejecting the idea of change and holding dearly to an unsustainable status quo, I hope you'll seek out facts about the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan. <a href="https://minneapolis2040.com/">Tell the city council what you value.</a>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com