T H E M I N N E A P O L I S O B S E R V E R
A Weekly Digest of All Things Minneapolitan
Vol. 1, No. 18
December 17, 2001
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THIS WEEK IN THE OBSERVER:
* R.T. and the Airport
* Power Plant Politics
* The Francis Drake Mistake
* The State of the Black World
* Minnesota Dance Alliance Dies
Plus: Answering to the Politburo, trashing the Met, and desperately seeking rationality
(This is a preview edition of The Observer. To subscribe to the full-text edition ($12/48 issues), e-mail your request to [EMAIL PROTECTED])
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AIRPORT NOISE ACTIVISTS EXPECTING ACTION FROM RYBAK
When Mayor-elect R.T. Rybak met late last month with the board of ROAR (Residents Opposed to Airport Racket), he ushered in what he called a "different kind of partnership" with airport noise activists, one that comes with high expectations.
The mayor's office traditionally has been a less-than-willing ally of airport noise activists, generally content to pursue anti-noise approaches in a way that didn't challenge Metropolitan Airports Commission--and Northwest Airlines--priorities. But as Dean Lindberg writes in Southside Pride (www.southsidepride.com), Rybak, one of ROAR's founders, vowed to stay true to his activist roots in his dealings with the MAC. "I see ROAR as my partner on this--helping to lead me to positions I should be advocating, and helping to develop the grassroots networks that will be needed to get us beyond the political structure," he said.
Rybak and ROAR board members met November 28 to discuss potential candidates to fill two MAC seats representing the city that were recently vacated by Roger Hale and Joe Gasper. They also explored the idea of organizing communities around the MAC's "reliever" airports, such as Flying Cloud, and airports in Rochester and St. Cloud not controlled by MAC.
How this all will play down at MAC headquarters is anyone's guess, but if recent events are any indication, the new mayor will have his work cut out for him. Despite Rybak's wish to spare the home noise insulation program from the MAC budget-cutting knife, commissioners earlier this month cut the program by 80 percent.
RIVERSIDE POWER PLANT UNDER SCRUTINY
Opponents of Excel Energy's Riverside power plant voiced their displeasure with what's been called the state's dirtiest power plant at a public hearing last month in northeast Minneapolis. But a loophole in the state's pollution control regulations makes it unlikely they'll be able to force the utility to clean it up.
HOMELESS SHELTER AGREES TO ANTI-DISCRIMINATION PLAN
More than a year after three Somali families lodged complaints about their treatment at the hands of staff at the Francis Drake Hotel, management there has agreed to adopt an anti-discrimination plan.
MINNESOTA DANCE ALLIANCE FOLDS
The Minnesota Dance Alliance, for 22 years an innovative clearinghouse of services for the dance community, suspended operations in November, reports Caroline Palmer in City Pages (www.citypages.com).
NORTHSIDE ACTIVIST EXPLORES 'STATE OF THE BLACK WORLD'
Community activist Spike Moss recently attended the State of the Black World Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, reports Terra Mayfield in Insight.
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RAVES, RANTS, AND OTHER CONSIDERED OPINIONS
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IT'S JUST MY OPINION, BUT . . .
There are times in the life of opinionated people like myself when complete puzzlement overcomes vitriol, and a robust rant becomes less effective than the quietly desperate search for rationality. The past week was one such occasion, I'll admit. Hence, I'll content my dim bulb of a brain with the humble pursuit of perfectly reasonable explanations in the following matters:
* How is it that school district superintendent Carol Johnson can create a $125,000 position for a financial adviser and then apparently fill it without interviewing more than a single candidate?
* Why do we need David Jennings to help the superintendent unravel the district's finances when national education experts, according to the Star Tribune, say our school district is already one of the best-run in the country?
* How is it that Carol Johnson can unilaterally jettison a large chunk of her duties after accepting a large salary increase as a reward for not breaking her contract and moving to Nashville?
* Why is it that people in government keep saying that the schools need to run more like a business when the vast majority of businesses fail?
* How is it that the City Council can appropriate $25 million for a parking garage that will hugely benefit Walker Art Center but needs a citizen referendum in order to spend more than $10 million on a stadium?
* How exactly will a new stadium save the Twins when Major League Baseball's own figures show that the vast majority of teams with new stadiums are losing money?
* How is it that those with the least valuable property are hit with the highest property tax increases?
* Why is it that the City Council sets its budget for 2002 two weeks before the new mayor and council members, who have to abide by its priorities, take office?
* How is it that University of Minnesota President Mark Yudof can lament the financial crisis in men's and women's sports and not publicly wonder why the coach of the Big Ten's worst football program is paid about three times what he's getting?
* What exactly is the point of creating a master development plan for the upper Mississippi River if the City Council can void it when the first housing developer comes along with a competing plan?
As I said, I'm sure there are reasonable explanations for these seemingly irrational acts. And as soon as they make themselves clear to me, I'll let you know.
Don't hold your breath.
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The Minneapolis Observer is published 48 times/year by Independent Media, L.L.C. ©2001 Independent Media, 4152 Snelling Ave., Minneapolis, MN 55406; www.mplsobserver.com. No part of this publication may be reprinted without the permission of Independent Media. Subscriptions: $12/yr. To unsubscribe, send us an e-mail ([EMAIL PROTECTED]) and we'll get you off the list and refund the unused portion of your subscription.
Editor: Craig Cox
Associate Editor: Sharon Parker
Contributing writers: Mark Engebretson, Leo Mezzrow.
Occasional research assistance: Martin and Nora Cox
Thanks to: Sam Bergman and Lisa Randall
