Park Board Meeting

Agenda documents for this meeting are available in Microsoft Word format at this location.

Schedule:

4:30pm Standards & Conduct – complaint against Dziedzic
5:00pm Regular Meeting
5:15pm Other – review legal services, Brian Rice.
5:30pm Operations & Environment
6:15pm Administration & Finance

2 thoughts on “Park Board Meeting”

  1. Chris Post author

    Background information on complaint against Dziedzic

    On Tuesday, August 26, 1975, Jack Mason was physically attacked at a School Board meeting by a school employee. The Interim School Superintendent, Donald D. Bevis, was quoted in the September 3, 1975 Minneapolis Tribune saying, “There was no question that the attack was one sided–there was no attack by Mason.” The official who attacked Jack was suspended without pay for 30 days as a result.
    Jack Mason is the late husband of park commissioner Vivian Mason.
    In 1975, park commissioner Walt Dziedzic was a Minneapolis police officer heavily involved in politics, receiving the patronage of Mayor Al Hofstede after helping him get elected in 1972.
    On August 18, 2004, at the public meeting of the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, Dziedzic made the following statements in response to questions posed in a civil manner by Vivian Mason and Annie Young:

    Commissioner Walt Dziedzic: I have been [an] elected official since 1977, and in all that time, been through a lot of holy hell. I’ve never seen elected officials treat the staff as bad as I saw them being treated this evening. And I think that BS gotta stop! Because from now on, when I see elected officials pick on staff, I’ll tell you what, I’m gonna get loud. [reaches forward and deliberately turns off his microphone] I’ll tell you right now, I’m gonna get real loud! [shouting] Because I remember a fistfight that occurred at a Park Board…at a School Board meeting, and that could happen [bangs fist twice on the table] right here!
    Commissioner Berry Graves: Are you threatening people, Walter?
    Commissioner Dziedzic: [shouting] I’m not threatening anybody!
    Berry Graves: Well then why are you raising …[unintelligible]
    Dziedzic: [shouting] I’m stating a fact! …
    President John Olson: All right, all right…
    Dziedzic: [shouting louder] I’m stating a fact! …
    Olson: That’s enough! …
    Dziedzic: Because I’m sick and tired of being … [unintelligible]

    Definition of a legal Terroristic Threat in Minnesota law, statute 609.713.
    Example of a terroritic threat conviction legal opinion can be read here.

    1. webmaster Post author

      Here’s the video clip of Dziedzic threatening Mason on YouTube, taken from one of two cameras which captured the event.

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