Summary of D1 9/22 meeting - Youth and Justice

The District 1 Community Council Board met on Monday, September 22 to talk about how our youth are treated by the criminal justice system here in Saint Paul. In attendance were Kathy Lantry (City Council President and our councilmember) and Joann Ellis (aide to County Commissioner Jim McDonough).  Residents of the area talked about their personal experiences from this summer with police interaction with youth. These experiences included harassment and intimidation that seemed particularly directed at youth of color. There is concern that the police are targeting youth of color and this seems to be borne out by the disproportionate number of youth of color, particularly African American youth, in the criminal justice system.

Our city officials think that the police are unaware that the community feels there is a potential problem, and that this summer’s efforts in community outreach by the police were not well-received. Council member Lantry suggested that community members, and the District 1 Council make a concerted effort to reach out to the police to make concerns known. But she cautioned that the community needs to have in mind what those interactions SHOULD look like.

District Council board members held up police efforts with the Somali/East African community in the Lower Afton area or in South Minneapolis as examples of on-going, personalized interactions between police and youth that seem to be more positive. The general consensus was that one-shot picnics or pick up ball games were not effective in building good relations between police and the community.

There was also discussion of the process that the County is undertaking in coming to a decision about what to do with Boys Totem Town. The community wants to know what remains to be decided, who makes the decisions, and how the community can provide input. The potential choices for Totem Town (rebuild as single entity in current location, co-locate with Hennepin County at current location, co-locate with Hennepin County at Hennepin County location, or co-location with Hennepin County at a new location) have a greater impact on this community other than the land use implications. Those land use implications are enormous and should be prepared for, but there is also the question of how the decision impacts the racial inequities in the criminal justice system that affect every part of the Saint Paul community.

The community is reminded that the latter questions about Boys Totem Town can be asked at the upcoming meeting with County Commissioner Jim McDonough and Juvenile Corrections staff on Tuesday, September 30 at 6:30p at Battle Creek Rec (75 S. Winthrop St.). This meeting is open to the entire Ramsey County community and interested parties.

Time to Rethink SunRay Shopping Center??

In 1967, Sun Ray Shopping Center looked like this.... Doesn't look much different than it does now, right? Is it time to rethink? Have things changed at all since 1967? With Gateway Corridor transit line proposed here, can we take this opportunity to redesign for the 21st century??

from the Minnesota Historical Society - Sun Ray Shopping Center looking east.

Meet the D1 Board

At our Monday, September 22, Board/Community meeting, we thought we would take a picture to show the world the fantastic neighborhood folks who are working for you at the district council. In this picture, starting at the back row left is Tom Mohr (Vice President), Phil Fuehrer (District 1 News editor), Gordon Westerberg (Treasurer), Paul Sawyer (President), Ebony Young (D1 Youth Organizer), and Matthew Barrett (Director). Front row starting at the left is Garneth Peterson (Land Use Chair), Pauline Nixon (Director), Christopher Melendez (Director), and Daniel Yang (Director).

Missing from the picture are Rose McDonough and Jay Xiong (both of whom had to recently step down for personal reasons), JoAnn Clark, Frances McAfee, Timothy Turner, and Liz DeLaTorre, all of whom had work or other community commitments that evening. We will try later to get a picture of all of us together.

As Executive Director, I am so grateful to be working with such a fabulous group of people!!

Governor seeks input on Rail Safety...

Governor Mark Dayton today reached out to 300 communities located along railway routes in Minnesota, asking how increased rail traffic and the volatility of oil shipments are impacting local budgets and the quality of life enjoyed by area residents.

After hosting a series of railway safety meetings across the state this summer, Governor Dayton is digging deeper with a community-by-community analysis of the local costs and impacts of increased railway traffic. The Governor will use this input to inform the state’s ongoing response to the issue, and to develop recommendations to the Legislature for how the state can help local governments address the additional costs, safety concerns, and infrastructure needs caused by a steady increase in railway traffic.

“In my meetings with local leaders across the state this summer, it became clear that increased traffic on our railways is having real and costly impacts on Minnesota communities,” said Governor Dayton. “This survey will help identify those challenges, and provide a roadmap for the state to address these problems in the 2015 Legislative Session.”

During railway safety meetings this summer, the Governor met with local leaders and emergency managers to review the state’s new railway safety laws and to discuss other ways the state can partner with communities to enhance the safety of Minnesotans. Building on those conversations, the Governor’s railway safety survey asks communities how increased freight traffic is impacting them, including:

·         What are your biggest challenges related to rail traffic?

·         What costs have your community incurred to address the increased rail traffic?

·         What additional costs does your community foresee to address the increased rail traffic? 

For a full copy of the letter sent to local governments today, click here. Citizens who have input or concerns about the impacts of increased railway traffic are encouraged to contact the Governor Dayton’s Office through this contact form on the Governor’s website.

Governor Urges Adoption of Stronger Federal Railway Safety Standards

In a separate letter to the federal Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration today, Governor Dayton urged the federal government to adopt stronger railway safety standards nationwide. The Governor’s letter, and comments submitted on behalf of the State of Minnesota, detail the increasing volume of oil shipments through the state and the dangers those shipments pose to Minnesota residents.

“Minnesota will continue to be the epicenter of Bakken oil movement for the foreseeable future as the amount of oil coming out of the Bakken region increases on a nearly daily basis,” wrote Governor Dayton. “These train movements have a significant impact on almost 3.5 million of the state’s 5 million citizens who reside in communities on Bakken oil and ethanol ‘high-hazard flammable train’ routes.”

A full copy of the Governor’s letter and comments is available here.

Come Discuss Juvenile Corrections and Boys Totem Town 9/30

Please join the District 1 community as we meet with Juvenile Corrections staff and County Commissioner Jim McDonough on Tuesday, September 30, 6:30p at Battle Creek Rec (75 S. Winthrop).

This meeting will be an update on work the county has been doing to decide the fate of the Boys Totem Town (BTT) facility and to improve how we deal with young people who get into the criminal justice system. Under discussion now is whether Ramsey County residential facility (BTT) should merge with the Hennepin County residential facility. Both have inadequate current buildings and similar approaches to juvenile corrections. But IF such a merger were to happen, where would the merged facility be located? And what implications are there in the merger for our youth, their families and their communities? What implications are there in a specific location for a merged facility for our youth, their families, and their communities? How does the decision help to address the fact that a disproportionate number of youth of color are in the juvenile justice system? How is the county reaching out to communities of color as they make these important decisions?

The community needs to know what the process is for making a decision and how they can provide input. This is a decision that affects ALL of Ramsey County, not just the immediate neighborhood of BTT.

So please come hear what the County officials have to say, and come prepared with your questions for them.

Bridge Lane Closure on Kellogg/3rd Street 9/29

Mayor Chris Coleman and Council President Kathy Lantry today announced that they will request state and federal money to immediately pursue rebuilding the Kellogg Avenue-Third Street Bridge in downtown Saint Paul and that traffic on the bridge will be indefinitely restricted to the center lanes beginning Monday, September 29. The decision comes after city engineers informed the Mayor and Council President that a recent inspection and structural analysis by an independent consultant, in coordination with MnDOT engineers, determined the bridge’s outer lanes are not adequately designed to support current traffic.

“We are acting swiftly in the interest of public safety,” said Mayor Coleman. “Obviously, the news that the bridge’s outer lanes are structurally deficient is not something we can overlook, despite the fact that the bridge has functioned for more than 30 years and the obvious challenges this will pose to movement within the city. I have directed city engineers to work immediately with county, state and federal partners on short-term traffic flow alternatives until a new bridge can be built.”

The Kellogg Avenue-Third Street Bridge was designed and built by MnDOT in the early 1980s and was turned over to the city in December 1983. It spans nearly one-half mile and is comprised of a concrete deck and beams supported on cantilevered piers. Since acquisition of the bridge, the city has performed structural inspections that comply with state and federal standards. In recent years, the city has supplemented regular inspections with increased monitoring, specialized inspection and load capacity analysis after signs of stress on the piers were found during routine inspections.

During the preliminary design phase for a project aimed at repairing the existing piers, deeper analysis found that the outer lanes do not meet what is now required under federal code to support today’s traffic without further damage to the bridge.

“This is not going to be a minor inconvenience for people as we work through the immediate and long-term challenges of redirecting traffic within the city,” said Council President Lantry. “In terms of the financial impact, we are working in collaboration with our county, state and federal partners to identify funding sources to build a new bridge as soon as possible.”

Lane closure details

The city’s Department of Public Works is making preparations to reduce vehicle traffic to three lanes with a narrower path for pedestrians and cyclists to share. The bridge will be temporarily closed beginning Friday, September 26 at 9:00 a.m. to allow for previously planned construction work on Prince Street. Engineers plan to use this opportunity to prepare the bridge with new striping, signage and other traffic devices and will reopen on Monday, September 29 at 6:00 a.m, ahead of the morning commute. Signal timing will be monitored and adjusted as needed to optimize traffic flow.

“It’s important for residents to understand that using the bridge remains safe and that the lane restrictions are the only immediately-required response to the findings,” said City Engineer John Maczko. “That said, the Kellogg-Third Street Bridge is a critically important arterial street and there is not a sufficient long-term alternative route. We need to move quickly.”

State and federal partners

The Mayor and City Council are working with state and federal partners to identify funding options for a new bridge.

Representative Sheldon Johnson said, “With the Lowertown Ballpark set to open early next year, the small and mid-sized businesses booming throughout Lowertown and the East Side, as well as the neighborhoods served by this bridge, I will advocate for state support during the next legislative session.”

For more information, visit www.stpaul.gov/Kellogg-ThirdStreetBridge. 

Interested in Oak Wilt?

Please mark your calendar for the MnSTAC Forum, Membership Meeting, and 40th Anniversary Celebration to be held under the beautiful oaks in Newell Park in Saint Paul.  Details about the Forum are below.

 

September 18, 2014

LOCATION:

Newell Park

North Fairview Avenue and Hewitt Avenue

Saint Paul, MN 55104

 

Forum  10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m.

Bur Oak Problems

Most people seem to underestimate oak wilt as an enemy of bur oak. This misunderstanding, coupled with the presence of bur oak blight and Botryosphaeria dieback in 2014, has complicated field diagnosis of bur oak maladies. Come to this presentation to better understand the slight differences in symptoms caused by these three diseases. 

Speaker: Brian Schwingle, DNR forest health specialist for central and southern Minnesota, has worked for the Minnesota DNR for only three months, but he’s not new to the forest health world. He previously worked for the Wisconsin DNR as that state’s northern forest health specialist for the last seven years.

 

Hope to see you there!

http://www.mnstac.org/forums.html

Library Update

Here are some photos to get a view of the Sun Ray Branch Library as it is being remodeled. These will give you a sense of what we are in for once the library opens again officially in November.

Date of the Grand Re-Opening is not definitely set yet, and we are hoping that there will be a less-official opening prior to this, but it will be in November.

Check out the photos.

Firefighters work on Operation Warm...

Join the Saint Paul Firefighters union for a fundraiser to benefit OPERATION WARM on September 18 at Flat Earth Brewery. On Thursday September 18 from 6-10p the Saint Paul Firefighters are raising money to buy new winter coats for kids in need in the Daytons Bluff area. Your $25 donation in advance ($30 at the door) will go towards buying a brand new coat (American-made) for a child at Daytons Bluff Elementary. Each donation will include a complimentary beverage. The event includes brewery tours, distillery tours at neighboring 11 Wells Distillery, a silent auction, a raffle, access to a local food truck and live acoustic performances by Sam Breckenridge, Brian Cristofono, and TFarrell.

To purchase tickets, visit www.operationwarm.org/flatearth