Press Conference Addressing Screenshotghazi

See the City Pages coverage of last weekend's controversy.

Getting Out of Hand

It's usually not reasonable to expect celebrities to be responsible for the actions of their fans, or for anyone to be held responsible for a few crazies in their comment section. But I think the demonization of Lisa Bender is getting out of hand. Seriously.

UPDATE: Comments taken from these posts (from Feb 25, 26): 1, 2, 3.

#Girard

Nearly 16 days after dropping hints about "disturbing emails" allegedly written by Minneapolis Council Member Andrew Johnson (an unlikely suspect when you consider he is the Council's foremost advocate for open data, and therefore likeliest to be aware of the public nature of his email correspondence), Nicole Curtis is promoting her new, very mysterious scandal-hashtag #Girard. Details won't be forthcoming.

Where Are the "Disturbing" Emails?

Days Since Nicole Curtis Promised to Release the "Disturbing" Emails Countup

Just read a disturbing chain of emails from @lisabendermpls @AndrewForMpls to constituents -wow. @CityMinneapolis better wake up
— Nicole Curtis (@nicolecurtis) February 10, 2015

@AndrewForMpls @lisabendermpls gladly let's not forget ALL your emails are public information when you are repping as a CM. As well as hers
— Nicole Curtis (@nicolecurtis) February 10, 2015

Nicole Curtis Shit-Storm Roundup

This weekend, HGTV personality Nicole Curtis renewed her efforts to save 2320 Colfax by encouraging her nationwide fan-base to email the entire Minneapolis City Council. Unfortunately, her far-flung fans have been misinformed by months of error-riddled Facebook rants (seemingly banged out on her iPhone with a hammer). It's only a slight exaggeration to say most of them believe 2320 Colfax was stolen from Nicole after she inherited it from her great-grandfather T.P. Curtis. 

Here's a sampling of the kinds of things the City Council will find in their inboxes Monday morning, courtesy of Rehab Nation.

Unpermitted Rehab

EDIT #2: To delve further into the drama of 2320 Colfax, see our timeline.

EDIT: Some background for those who aren't closely following Wedge neighborhood drama. Last week, Nicole Curtis had a Facebook freakout, distributed to her 500,000 fans, over the removal of siding on a house located at 2316 Colfax (in preparation for demolition). Nicole is an HGTV personality who remodels homes all over Minneapolis. She's also the celebrity friend of the Wedge's collection of anti-density activists (MRRDC, Healy Project, Team Tuthill, etc). She's been especially critical of a plan to demolish the houses at 2316 and 2320 Colfax to make way for an apartment building. If you have a house vigil, she'll bring a camera crew. She says things like, "Uptown needs another apartment building like a hole in the head." 

Everyone and their mother was having Fred Sanford-style heart attacks last week over the Wedge's most notorious homeowner, Mike Crow, doing work (let's call it "de-hab") on 2316 Colfax without a weekend permit. It got me thinking that I could make a name for myself, and graduate from fake journalist to nosy neighbor, by taking down a permit scofflaw.