Dear Mayor Sayles Belton,
Since you have been unwilling to contact me yourself, I have decided to
respond to your delegates letter online in the Minneapolis Issues Forum.
Accordingly, I have the following responses to your priority bullet points:
<� More affordable housing. I will further my efforts to leverage every
available local dollar, and to bring regional, state and federal support to
address this crisis.>
You've been saying this for two terms and yet we are in a housing crisis in
this city. While you've been spending millions on big wealthy corporate TIF
projects for downtown, we've been suffering as housing prices skyrocket and
availability is scarce. We aren't even close to replacing what was
displaced by the original Convention Center construction. What makes you
think after two terms I am going to believe you this time?
<� More jobs. I will work to provide all citizens with tools, training and
transportation to get and keep living wage jobs.>
I've got news for you. It isn't more jobs that we need. It is better jobs
at higher salaries. Your focus on traditionally low paying tourist and
retail industry jobs does not help us pay for the increased cost of housing
and taxes that you have helped to create. And by the way, the tourist and
retail industry workers could use a boost up in their "living wages."
<� Strong support for families and children. We must make it a shared
priority to ensure that all children are well-clothed, properly housed; and
educated.>
While my family including my young children and my neighbors were threatened
by a man across the street, your administration did nothing. I had to go
online, post about the inadequacies of the City Attorney's department,
cajole the CCP/SAFE system, complain, complain,complain and your people
didn't respond. It took almost a year to get any action out of your
departments and when I did, they didn't even confer with me on the action
they were taking. And there was a huge mishandling of a sexoffender
situation by the police in my neighborhood that put us all at risk. And when
I called about the crack spoon in my alley, nobody even came out. All I hope
is that other families and children in this city were ENSURED better than my
kids.
<� Further reduce crime. We must confront racial profiling head on, and
improve police intervention with people in mental health crisis.>
Thank you for helping to reduce crime in this city. I'd also like to thank
the excellent economy that was generated by the technology industry for the
reduction in crime in this city. It would be nice if you could get ahead of
some of the police problems like racial profiling, attacks on those with
mental health problems, and the outrageous spending and limiting personal
freedom tactics of police actions, instead of wagging the tail on the dog.
<� Continue to protect the environment. I will continue my strong advocacy
for clean air, water and the expansion of the noise insulation program,
reduced nighttime flights, and regional airport strategies.>
Thank you for helping our lakes and streams as much as you did. However, it
would be nice if you would help ban lawn chemicals that cause some of the
biggest problems instead of spending money to constantly clean up or filter
the mess. Sometimes getting to the root of the problem is better than lots
of band aids. And since you brought it up, why should I believe you are
going to do anything more than insulate more homes due to the airport noise
pollution. While under your watch, noise has exponentially increased in my
neighborhood and the "Cedar Avenue Flight Corridor" that you supported has a
huge wide drift pattern that affects everybody in my neighborhood, day and
night. My children wake up at night asking me to turn off the planes. (I
guess you missed ensuring children here too.) And you appointed a Northwest
Airlines Lobbyist to serve on our planning commission, even after I
volunteered to do it myself. The bottom line is that flights both nighttime
and daytime have increased substantially under your administration. I am
convinced you have a pleasant relationship with the dominant airline in our
airport and nothing is going to change. I have to admit, I do not believe
you on this point.
By the way, you missed a few things that were important to me. I want the
revolving door in City Hall to stop and I want the mega wealthfare subsidies
to profitable corporations to stop too. And since my taxes keep going up, I
would appreciate it if you would at least pick up the garbage in our
business areas, get rid of the graffiti as you promised, and fix the
potholes in the street - including the one I feel in last spring and broke
my rib on.
I have supported you for two terms in the past including one grueling long
endorsing night in an auditorium. I honestly believe you are a good
person, but I have come to also believe that you cannot make Minneapolis a
city that is working for everyone and that your actions speak louder than
your words. Therefore, I will not be supporting you for a third term.
Respectfully,
Russell W. Peterson
Ward 9
Standish
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