Agenda approved.
Minutes approved
with a minor correction (made on website).
Ground rules
approved without additions. Our practice as a committee - Discussion suggested
for how we send substitutes if members have an emergency, vacation, etc. To do – revisit question of how to assure
that each steering committee member organization is represented at the
meetings. Detailed minutes will always be available so that absent members can
be kept in the loop of discussions and decisions.
Teamwork Inventory
– To do – Discussion of the results
of this inventory was postponed until the June meeting.
Budget – Revised
budget was distributed, the changes discussed, and approval made. The only
changes were a decrease in the fiscal agency fee, and in mailing and supplies
costs. Committee members were reminded
that they can submit their first half invoices by Tuesday May 12 noon to assure
that they will have payment with the May 15 payroll. Committee members were reminded that the timeline sent by Lor
has the dates for submission of the invoices.
Track 2 (PED)
Discussion – Track 2 of this project will be dialogues between staff of the
Department of Planning and Economic Development and district councils (both
staff and land use committee members) about how we can work together to assure
that the voices of communities of color are heard in land use and zoning
decision processes. This track will have
its own planning group of 5-7 members. Discussion included - What role is the
Ambassador Team playing in recruiting members to the planning team for this track
of the project? There hasn’t been a meeting of the Ambassador Team since our
last meeting, but members have been reaching out to other district councils
including: Hamline Midway Coalition, Mac Groveland, Union Park, District 6
(North End). Who is involved from PED? District
1 will make initial outreach to Jake Reilly and Bill Dermody in PED because
each has expressed and demonstrated interest in this topic. There was a lengthy
discussion of which district councils should be invited to participate in the
planning for this track. The emphasis will be on 1) assuring representation
from across the city, 2) including councils who have not been involved in the
dialogues previously, and 3) assuring that there is at least one member from
the steering committee who sits on this planning group so that solid
communication is assured. Confirmed interest in participating came from
districts 5 and 2. District 3 will look at staffing. One of the 4 previously
contacted organizations will be asked (6, 11, 13 or 14), and at least one other
council from another area of the City will be sought until 1) we have
confirmation of the total number of PED staff who will participate, and 2) a
total of seven members is reached.
Additional discussion focused on how to keep the focus in
the dialogues on equity, the importance of training and having a shared
language around issues of race, the use of solid data in helping to frame any
action steps, looking at the available resources around development issues and
equity (e.g., the tool used by Minneapolis’ Hope Community in dealings with
Parks, the Twin Cities Equitable Development Scorecard, Voices for Racial
Justice’s equity scorecard, etc.), and the relationship between this track and
the other (more community-focused) tracks.
Chia presented a proposal from Voices for Racial Justice to
train the trainers in critically analyzing racial dynamics. They propose a 3
hour training at $125/hour. There was a lengthy discussion of the need for
training and the difficulty of finding additional funding to support this
particular request. Again, members stated the need for a shared language among
participants around issues of race, racism and privilege. We discussed other
resources that are currently available to us at no cost and how we might integrate
this training with the Cross-Cultural Dialogue work that the Saint Paul
Foundation will be funding, including how we can use the quarterly forums that
work will hold. Decision was made that Chia will discuss the budgetary
constraints with Voices for Racial Justice and our need to make use of
currently available resources.
Update on Community
Action Team (CAT) Meeting – There was the third CAT meeting on May 4 at the
East Side Freedom Library. There were 22 people who attended, including 6
police officers, 5 youth, and a very diverse group in terms of culture/race,
age, and gender. The group made the decision that Parks and Recreation would be
the second city department other than the police that will be a part of the
project. We discussed strategy for gaining departmental buy-in.
Concerns – The
issue of a shared language persists. The importance of training that includes a
way to build this shared language and connects the disparate parts of the
project continues to be a focus for us. There was a concern that earlier CAT
meetings may not have been productive because of a persisting resistance of
white participants to acknowledge white privilege and to downplay the
importance of racism in the lives of participants of color. We need to
challenge ourselves to keep the focus on conversations about race. We need to
hold ourselves and each other accountable for this work, which will include the
need to challenge each other and accept those challenges.
We need to do our
lists of major events in our neighborhoods and dates of member absences from
meetings so that we can avoid scheduling conflicts. Send these to Chia.
Each of us needs to
send to Chia the name of individuals we are encouraging to come to the CAT
meetings so she can prepare for, welcome, and incorporate the new people into
the work. District 1 will draft a
description of the CAT members can use to encourage participation (see
below).
NEXT MEETING is
June 15 from 10a to noon at the District 1 office.
CAT Description – The
Community Action Team is a group of Saint Paul community members who meet
monthly to plan the dialogues that will happen this fall between police and
youth, and between community members and the Parks and Recreation Department.
The purpose of these dialogues is to build understanding and positive
interactions among city departments and people of color, and to find common
action we can take to assure that interactions are respectful and inclusive.
The commitment for members of the CAT is about 3-4 hours per month, including
one two-hour meeting per month (the first Monday from 5:30 – 7:30p at the
following locations).
June 1st, 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Western District Office
389 Hamline Ave. N,
Saint Paul, MN 55104
July 6, 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm
Rondo Library, Multipurpose Room
461 N Dale Street
Saint Paul 55103
August 3rd, 5:30 pm - 7:30 pm
El Rio Vista Rec Center/Wellstone
Center (room 107)
179 Robie Street E.
Saint Paul, MN 55107
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