Finding a Green Way to Govern

Our city has lost a great man: Prospect Park resident and world-famous architect Ralph Rapson has died. Ralph designed the original Guthrie theater, as well as the iconic Riverside Plaza buildings in Cedar Riverside. He is a legend in Minnneapolis and, judging from the fantastic sons of his, Rip and Toby, I have gotten to know over the years, he must have been an amazing Dad. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.

This Saturday, the City will be participating in Earth Hour , an international gesture to encourage businesses, communities and individuals to take the simple steps needed to cut our carbon emissions on an ongoing basis. Thanks to a resolution I cosponsored with CM Benson that passed unanimously last Friday, the City will be turning off all non-essential lights from 8-9pm, including the lights illuminating the underside of the Stone Arch Bridge. (See here for the Star Tribune story.) We will be joined by a number of large buildings in downtown: Wells Fargo Center, IDS Center, Thrivent Financial, U.S. Bancorp and the State, Orpheum and Pantages theaters. (Many of these buildings are also participating in the Department of Natural Resources/Audubon Society Project Bird Safe by turning off their external lights after dark during peak bird migration periods, so they deserve even more positive attention than they're receiving.) Interestingly, it was difficult for us to figure out how...

At a meeting last week of the Free Speech work group set up to protect free speech and normal life for residents during the Republican National Convention (RNC) we reviewed three possible City policies. Unfortunately still on the table: the concept of a "protest permit." I continue to strongly oppose this idea (for a past explication of my position on this issue, see here ), and to push for a purely voluntary registration process, by which protest groups who want services from the City can let the City know when, where, and how many people will be gathering. The Mayor supports this sort of process, as does Council Member Remington. At the committee, with the help of others on the work group, I was able to pass a motion that we would focus on “voluntary registration,” but Council Member Ostrow was clear that he is still interested in moving forward with a possible mandatory component based on what he has termed the "D.C. Model." There is no doubt in my mind that a...

Of the 50 largest cities in the US, Minneapolis has been ranked the eleventh greenest by Popular Science magazine. The City's Climate Change Grants, which I helped create last year, drew special notice. This is welcome recognition of our sustainability efforts, but also clearly points out the areas in which we've got room for improvement.

You can make your city and your yard a greener place this year by ordering, planting and caring for a tree this spring at a very affordable rate. The City is making 1,000 trees available to residents for planting this spring, for only $25 apiece. We fund the City Trees program, which is in its third year, to provide a low-cost way for folks to help build the city's urban tree forest. Research has proven that trees are a valuable investment and improve urban quality of life. Healthy trees increase property values, help improve air quality, reduce greenhouse gases by absorbing carbon dioxide, save energy, keep the city cooler, provide homes for wildlife and help manage storm water. They can also decrease residents' energy bills in the summer by shading our homes. But be sure to plant your tree a little south of east or west, not directly south, because a tree directly to the south can reduce sunlight in the winter, when it can help reduce heating costs. We partner with Tree Trust...

Last Friday, the Council took an important step towards IRV/STV implementation in 2009 by directing staff to prepare a Request for Proposals (RFP) for voting equipment capable of running our Single Transferable Vote/Ranked Choice election. As both a City Council Member and as a proponent of better voting methods, including the Single Transferable Vote method the voters of Minneapolis approved in 2006, I was disappointed that Saturday's Star Tribune article didn't focus on this concrete step, but instead focused on comments from the Minneapolis Director of Elections that she doesnt believe the City will be ready with ranked-choice voting election equipment for 2009. While I admit we are behind schedule and that it may have been a mistake to rely so heavily on State or County assistance for our implementation, I am convinced that it is still quite possible to hold a Ranked ChoiceIRV/STV election 2009. This month we are taking two important steps that move us closer to making 20...

The City is hosting an open house to gather public input on the Pedestrian Master Plan and discuss some of the major challenges the city faces in meeting pedestrian needs. Mark up maps, record your observations and opinions, and discuss key issues with City staff, the consultant team, and other members of the public. Where: Minneapolis Central Library 300 Nicollet Mall Minneapolis, MN 55401 When: Wednesday, March 26, 2008 5:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. 6:00 p.m. Opening Presentation Arrive at any time and stay as long as you like. For Further Details: Please visit http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/pedestrian/pedestrian-masterplan.asp .

This year’s Bike/Walk to Work Day will take place on Wednesday, May 14th. The event will be larger than last year, with more participation activities available. 2008 will include an expansion of Bike/Walk to Work Day into a week-long celebration, known as Bike/Walk Week. We are hoping to have many community-led events that week, May 12th to 18th. At this point, we are seeking volunteers who can help with tasks including sponsorship seeking, website development, media outreach, and workplace-team-competition organizing. Anyone who would like to volunteer can contact Minneapolis Non-Motorized Transportation staff Shaun Murphy 612-673-2335 or shaun.murphy@ci.minneapolis.mn.us . For those who are interested in helping out further down the road to serve as a leader for a Workplace Team or Commuter Convoy, please contact Shaun. We're looking forward to a great event this year and hope to see you there!

Yet another accomplishment from last Friday's Council meeting: Minneapolis grocery stores now have to carry at least five varieties of fresh produce, as well as other fresh foods (bread or cereal, meat or vegetable protein, and dairy or vegetarian substitute). I've been fighting for this for months, along with advocates from the City's Public Health Department and the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy. It's a pretty small thing - one would expect that grocery stores should have food - but it will help us increase access to healthy, nutritious foods in currently underserved parts of the city, and get a better handle on problem businesses that call themselves grocery stores but mostly sell candy, chips, pop, cigarettes and drug paraphernelia. It's one of many small changes (along with last year's Local Produce Market action) that I hope, in time, will help ensure that everyone, in all parts of Minneapolis, will have easy and comfortable access to good, ...