The following report was aired today, May 4, 2016, on MPR.
Matt Sepic | MPR News 2015
The playground in Longfellow Park in Minneapolis, seen here on Jan. 17, 2015, is one example of equipment seen by some as overdue for replacement. Matt Sepic | MPR News 2015
The following press release has been issued by the MPRB on April 29, 2016.
The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) today praised Minneapolis Council Members and Mayor Hodges for their work on and approval of an Ordinance and 20 year financial plan to provide funding for neighborhood parks. The MPRB also recognized the ongoing efforts by others and announced its next steps to bring forward a concurrent park funding Ordinance in May, followed by an Ordinance in June to ensure equitable investing in neighborhood parks.
“We are deeply grateful for everyone’s work on this, Council Members, Mayor Hodges, the Save Our Minneapolis Parks group led by Mark Andrew and Carol Becker, Park Board commissioners and staff, and especially the city residents who have been voicing their support for increased neighborhood park funding,” said Liz Wielinski, MPRB Board President. “This is a historic time. I am excited to cast my vote for our Board’s approval of a concurrent ordinance in May.”
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The following article by Eric Roper was published in the April 30, 2016 issue of the Star Tribune.
Above: A signing ceremony featuring Mayor Hodges and members of the City Council followed the vote.
A momentous $800 million deal to breath new life into Minneapolis’ crumbling roads and parks received enthusiastic and unanimous approval Friday by the City Council.
The plan would pump about $22 million a year into new street repairs, and $11 million into park renovations and maintenance — adjusted annually for inflation. It will be paid for largely through issuing debt and raising property taxes (see here for more details).
“The commitment we are making today for our streets and for our parks will allow us to meet our duty to the generation before us, who built the Minneapolis we inherited,” said Mayor Betsy Hodges. “And our duty to the generations that will follow, to ensure they inherit a city that works for through 21st Century.”
To continue reading, click on the link to the Star Tribune
http://m.startribune.com/mpls-approves-20-year-800-million-park-and-road-deal/377598941/
The deal is done. The Southwest Journal’s Eric Best and Sarah McKenzie report: “The City Council voted unanimously Friday to approve a new $800 million long-term funding plan for the city’s neighborhood parks and streets — heralding it as a historic agreement among city and park leaders to address significant infrastructure needs. … The plan dedicates $22 million in new money for street projects annually along with $11 million for neighborhood parks — a compromise proposal crafted by Mayor Betsy Hodges, City Council and Park Board leaders. Park leaders had previously been considering moving ahead with a referendum for voters this fall.”
https://www.minnpost.com/glean/2016/04/minneapolis-approves-landmark-park-and-road-funding-deal
The City Council voted unanimously Friday to approve a new $800 million long-term funding plan for the city’s neighborhood parks and streets — heralded as a historic agreement among city and park leaders addressing significant infrastructure needs in Minneapolis.
The plan dedicates $22 million in new money for street projects annually along with $11 million for neighborhood parks — a compromise proposal crafted by Mayor Betsy Hodges, City Council and Park Board officials. Park leaders had previously been considering moving ahead with a referendum for voters this fall.
City and park leaders embraced after the vote and City Council chambers erupted in applause.
“This is a generational moment for the City of Minneapolis,” Hodges said. “This agreement addresses the critical infrastructure and operating gaps for both our streets and our neighborhood park system, and it invests in infrastructure equitably. It provides clear, transparent sources of funding and acknowledges that we’re making real, tough choices.”
The plan addresses a projected $15 million annual funding gap for capital needs in neighborhood parks and an estimated $30 million annual funding gap for street repairs and reconstruction projects.
To continue reading, click on the link to the Southwest Journal
The Southwest Journal’s Eric Best and Sarah McKenzie report:
The following article by Eric Roper was published in the April 26, 2016 issue of the Star Tribune.
Cars driving on E. Minnehaha Parkway along Lake Nokomis tried to dodge potholes in the roadway in Minneapolis in 2013.
After weeks of trading proposals, Minneapolis leaders on Monday reached an $800 million agreement, unprecedented in recent history, to breathe new life into the city’s crumbling roads and neighborhood parks over the next 20 years.
The deal, which appears to have enough support to pass, relies heavily on property tax hikes — though not as much as an earlier proposal by Mayor Betsy Hodges. It would set what one council member described as a “new level of service” for maintaining the city’s streets, in addition to overhauling myriad deteriorating park facilities scattered across the city.
The compromise proposal was unveiled at the City Council’s financial committee meeting, with the expectation the full council would vote on it later this week. It mixes components of a parks financing plan authored by two council members, Barb Johnson and Lisa Goodman, with another by Hodges addressing both roads and parks. Hodges, who vetoed a version of the parks-only plan, worked on the compromise.
To continue reading, click on the link to the Star Tribune
The 20-year plan would dedicate $33 million in new funding each year for both needs, which would be paid for through a mix of revenue sources — including increases in the property tax levy, issuing debt and cash sources, according to a presentation by the city’s Chief Financial Officer Mark Ruff on Monday to the Council’s Ways & Means Committee.
The Council’s Committee of the Whole will have another public hearing on the plan Wednesday and is expected to vote on the proposal Friday.
To continue reading, click on the link to the Southwest Journal http://www.southwestjournal.com/news/city-hall/2016/04/compromise-funding-plan-outlined-for-parks-streets/
The following article by Peter Callaghan was posted on MinnPost on April 26, 2016.
The Minneapolis City Council and the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board appear to have a deal that will provide city money for a 20-year program to rehabilitate neighborhood parks, heading off a proposed parks levy referendum vote this November.
To continue reading, click on the link to MinnPost
The following commentary item by Mark Andrew and Carol Becker was published in the April 23, 2016 edition of the Star Tribune.
Our city’s parks are the most important asset of Minneapolis. They bring our city high-quality neighborhoods, robust property values, healthful recreation, stable businesses and civic pride. Parks and lakes are our city’s national brand.
In the 1960s, under the leadership of Superintendent Robert Ruhe, Minneapolis neighborhood parks burst into full blossom with new swimming pools, tot lots, ball fields, tennis courts and recreation centers in the 160 park properties that had largely laid dormant. The truth, though, is that those investments — made half a century ago — have exceeded their useful life.
Our city’s policymakers all agree that neighborhood parks are in a funding crisis. They face a backlog of deferred maintenance that already exceeds $110 million. Our recreation center roofs leak; our playgrounds are rusting. In virtually every neighborhood park the need for repairs is evident.
To continue reading, click on the link to the Star Tribune
http://www.startribune.com/minneapolis-park-funding-take-the-20-year-city-hall-plan/376798801/
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