Monthly Archives: November 2016

Heads-Up for the November 30, 2016 Park Board Meeting

5:00 P.M.  REGULAR BOARD MEETING.  The meeting will be held in the boardroom at Park Board headquarters, 2117 West River Road, just north of Broadway Pizza.  Visitors to Park Board meetings can find at the back of the meeting room the agenda book with all the printed materials for the meeting.  NOTE: The reason for this third November meeting is because the Park Board budget has to be approved by the Park Board commissioners prior to the next City Council meeting where the City approves the Park Board budget

5:30 P.M.  OPEN TIME.  Speakers can call 612-230-6400 before 3:00 p.m. the day of the meeting to sign up or they can sign up at the Board meeting prior to the start of “Open Time”

6:00 P.M.  PUBLIC HEARING — Parkway Paving Assessment 2014 to 2016

Some agenda items of interest are:

Continue reading →

DEVELOPMENT ON LAKE PARKWAYS

The following letter-to-the-editor was published in the November 17, 2016 edition of the Southwest Journal.

DEVELOPMENT ON LAKE PARKWAYS

I am writing in response to the article about CPM’s proposed $14-million project that would replace three homes on East Calhoun Parkway with a 55-foot-tall condominium complex.

As far as I can recall, this is the first time since 1988, when the Shoreland Height Ordinance was passed 13–0 by the Minneapolis City Council, that a developer has attempted to exceed the 35-foot limit on a Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board lake parkway by proposing a condominium complex that would be 55 feet in height. The six-story Edgewater faces Lake Street, a commercial corridor in the Shoreland Overlay District, and is not on East Lake Calhoun Parkway.

The intent of the Shoreland Height Ordinance was to protect the city’s lakes from excessive height. Anything over 35 feet was considered excessive height. Until now, developers have respected the Shoreland Height Ordinance on Minneapolis’ lake parkways.

This proposed condominium project would replace three houses with 14 to 16

$1-million dollar condos fronting on East Lake Calhoun Parkway. It is an example of the kind of project that the Shoreland Height Ordinance was created to prevent.

I am familiar with the height ordinance because I was a board member of one of the two citizens’ groups that was instrumental in getting the ordinance passed. If the developer wants to proceed with a condo complex on East Lake Calhoun Parkway, the project should be no higher than 35 feet.

Arlene Fried

Co-founder of Park Watch

Equity Debate Draws Candidates for Minneapolis Park Board Election

The following article by Steve Brandt was published in the November 15, 2016 edition of the Star Tribune.

Equity Debate Draws Candidates for Minneapolis Park Board Election

 
Citywide and southwest seats are drawing the most competition so far. 
PHOTO: STAR TRIBUNE, ELIZABETH FLORES
itemprop
Carol House pushed her grandson Isaiah Halsall on a swing at the newly remodeled East Phillips Park May 29, 2014

 

A year before next year’s Minneapolis park commissioner elections, the field of citywide candidates is getting crowded.

And that’s before a push to recruit equity-focused candidates hits high gear.

There are already two candidates challenging Commissioner Brad Bourn for his southwest Minneapolis seat. And a half-dozen candidates are possibilities for the three citywide seats on the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, which oversees more than 6,000 acres and a $101.2 million budget. It’s poised to spend a windfall of new money to fix neighborhood parks but bedeviled by charges of racism.

To continue reading click on the link to the Star Tribune This article 

Heads-Up for the November 16, 2016 Park Board Meeting

5:00 P.M.  REGULAR BOARD MEETING.  The meeting will be held in the boardroom at Park Board headquarters, 2117 West River Road, just north of Broadway Pizza.  Visitors to Park Board meetings can find at the back of the meeting room the agenda book with all the printed materials for the meeting

5:00 P.M.  PUBLIC COMMENT.  There will be time for Public Comment on the Superintendent’s Recommended 2017 Budget during the Regular Meeting and before the Commissioners Discussion of the Budget

5:30 P.M.  OPEN TIME.  Speakers can call 612-230-6400 before 3:00 p.m. the day of the meeting to sign up or they can sign up at the Board meeting prior to the start of “Open Time”

5:45 P.M.  PUBLIC HEARING — Tree Assessments on Private Properties During 2015 and 2016

6:00 P.M.  PUBLIC HEARING — Parkway Paving Assessment 2014 to 2016

6:30 P.M.  PUBLIC HEARING — Calhoun Refectory Strategic Direction Public Hearing

Some agenda items of interest are:

Continue reading →

Congressman Ellison’s letter to FERC re Crown Hydro

The following item has been forwarded by Doug Verdier.

Congressman Ellison’s letter to FERC re Crown Hydro

Attached is the letter–dated November 7, 2016–from Congressman Ellison to the Chairman of Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that should add weight to the recent multitude of letters from various local organizations and individuals who wrote to FERC opposing the amendment to Crown Hydro’s license.

LETTER REGARDING THE MET COUNCIL AND SWLRT

LETTER REGARDING THE MET COUNCIL AND SWLRT

The following letter by Stuart A. Chazin has been sent to the U.S. Department of Transportation regarding the Met Council and SWLRT.

VIA FACSIMILE: [email protected] [email protected]

November 6th, 2016

I am writing to offer my experience and overview of the Metropolitan Council in relation to the proposed SWLRT. The irony for many of us is that the Met Council is an un-elected body whom answer only the governor. Consequently, his agenda and theirs, seems to come at the cost to the citizens of this state.

They have proven with this transit project an absolute breach of power, ignoring the DEIS, SDEIS and FEIS, for the greater goal of getting this line built in spite of the environmental damages it will cause.

There has been an overall lack of transparency with this project. The Met Council has consistently ignored public input, choosing a corridor where expensive and damaging tunnels are necessary, only to push through their agenda of getting this train no matter the cost.

Continue reading →

Crown Hydro Project — Multiple Comments Sent to FERC

Reminder: Calhoun-Harriet Trail Improvements Open House scheduled Nov. 9

  The following item has been issued by the MPRB.

Reminder: Calhoun-Harriet Trail Improvements Open House scheduled Nov. 9

Lake Calhoun Trails_August

Public meeting Nov. 9, 6-8 pm at Lyndale Farmstead Park to review preferred concept

The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board is hosting a second public meeting for planned trail and access improvements around Lake Harriet and Lake Calhoun. The meeting is scheduled Nov. 9, 6-8 pm at Lyndale Farmstead Recreation Center, 3900 Bryant Ave. S.

Improvements will focus primarily on pedestrian and bicycle circulation at Northeast Calhoun and Southeast Harriet as well as general trail and access upgrades around both lakes. Interested park users are encouraged to attend to review and discuss the preferred concept, ask questions and share ideas.

The first open house for this project was held on Oct. 4. Materials from that meeting are available on the Calhoun-Harriet Trail and Access Improvements project page and linked below.

Open House #1 Graphics

Individual Comment to FERC re Crown Hydro

The following item has been forwarded by Doug Verdier.

Individual Comment to FERC re Crown Hydro

On 11/1/2016, the following Filing was submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Washington D.C.:


Filer:         Individual No Affiliation
            Individual No Affiliation (as Agent)

Docket(s):         P-11175-025
Lead Applicant: CROWN HYDRO CORPORATION                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 
Filing Type:     Comment on Filing
Description:     Comment of Tom Dimond in Docket(s)/Project(s) P-11175-025
Submission Date: 10/31/2016


To view the document for this Filing, click here
http://elibrary.FERC.gov/idmws/file_list.asp?accession_num=20161101-5003

Minneapolis Leased Housing Associates (A-Mill) Comments to FERC re Crown Hydro

The following item was forwarded by Doug Verdier.

Minneapolis Leased Housing Associates (A-Mill) Comments to FERC re Crown Hydro

On 10/31/2016, the following Filing was submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), Washington D.C.:


Filer:         Minneapolis Leased Housing Associates IV Limited Partnership (AKA A-Mill)
            Nixon Peabody LLP (as Agent)

Docket(s):         P-11175-025
Lead Applicant: CROWN HYDRO CORPORATION                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 
Filing Type:     Comment on Filing
Description:     Supplemental Information / Request Comments of Minneapolis Leased Housing Associates IV Limited Partnership to Draft Environmental Assessment under P-11175-025.

To view the document for this Filing, click here
http://elibrary.FERC.gov/idmws/file_list.asp?accession_num=20161031-5066