City briefs - Mar 2025

The Metropolitan Council has approved its ‘Imagine 2050’ plan which sets the long-range policy foundation for housing, land use, regional parks, transportation, and water for the seven-county region. The plan includes the council's local forecasts for population, households and employment and predicts that the area will add 650,000 people by 2050, with Minneapolis reaching 500,000 total residents for the first time since the 1950s. In accordance with state law, this plan serves as a development guide for local governments to create consistent, compatible, and coordinated local comprehensive plans within the regional policy framework.

 

Mayor Jacob Frey has vetoed the city council’s 9-4 vote to delay a final decision about the street layout at George Floyd Square to further evaluate the pedestrian mall concept adjacent to 3744 Chicago Ave (aka The People’s Way). This is consistent with a previous resolution the city council passed in December that would allow for vehicular access to local residents and businesses. The veto can be overridden with nine votes. 

 

Josh Bassais has announced his candidacy for Ward 8 City Council member. The seat is currently held by Andrea Jenkins, who has yet to announce a reelection campaign. Soren Stevenson has also formally announced his candidacy for the position.

 

The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board is designing and engineering the new golf course and park they are calling Hiawatha Links to help implement the long-term plan for Hiawatha Golf Course that was completed in 2022.  They held an open house on Jan.16 and completed a survey process in February. Detailed designs are expected to be shared this fall.

 

Junauda Petrus has been named this year’s Minneapolis Poet Laureate. Among her extensive work in the city, she was lead artist with the Heart of the Beast Theatre’s May Day Parade from 2015-2017, and City Page’s Artist of the Year in 2016. Her 2019 novel, “The Stars and the Blackness Between Them,” is about two teenaged girls in living Minneapolis. Petrus also wrote a piece entitled "Sweetness for George" following the police killing of George Floyd ,and is a co-founder of the Minneapolis-based Free Black Dirt, a collective of writers and creators who seek to "spark and engage in critical conversations."

 

Effective Law Enforcement for All (ELEFA), the evaluator hired to track the city’s compliance with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights settlement agreement, issued their first semi-annual report. The report covers work done from March 18 to Sept. 30, 2024, and identifies some changes in policy, training, and the handling of misconduct complaints, as well as plans for equipment, technology, facilities, and data systems. The report is on ELEFA’s website. The next review period will cover work completed between Oct. 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025.

 

The mayor and city council are moving forward with plans to use the city-owned building at 3000 Minnehaha Ave. for its voter and elections staff, storage and services, as well as a ground-floor space set aside for community use. The city is seeking proposals that are due March 14 for a tenant who will manage and program the community space. They intend to include the selected tenant in the planning, design and build-out of the community space.

 

 

The city council has appointed the following new southwest Special Service District (SSD) advisory board members for two-year terms.  Any property owner, or their representative, who pays the district’s service charges, is eligible to serve on the district’s board. Boards advise the city council and staff on desired services, an annual budgets, district activities and concerns. 

• Bloomington Lake - Julie Ingebretsen and Julian Ocampo 

• 48th & Chicago  - Harvey McLain and Joyce Tesarek 

 

The city council is considering amending its boulevard ordinance to allow raised beds, shrubs and more to be planted on city boulevards. The ordinance passed the City Council's Climate & Infrastructure Committee on Thursday, Feb. 20 but has been delayed in order to consider if and from who permits should be required.