Mayor's Staff Say "Empowered" Neighborhoods Are Nothing But a "Fly On The City Ox"
The friendly mask that the Mayor and his staff have worn during and since the campaign seems to have slipped badly. During the campaign RT Rybak continually promised to support neighborhood based planning and the empowering of neighborhoods. RT promised to include neighborhoods into all planning and housing decisions, and to give them real power. When RT's key appointees did not reflect such a commitment many of us, who had been RT's strongest supporters, had questions. Most of us decided that RT had made such a strong commitment, and so many promises, to the neighborhoods that RT would control this staff. Sadly it appears we were wrong. It has been reported that the Mayor's "Housing guru" Eric Takeshita told attendees of a forum hosted by the Hennepin County Bar Association today that empowering neighborhoods was a two edged sword because those neighborhoods then felt they could stand in the way of downtown interests and plans for forcing non-profit developments into those neighborhoods. Takeshita literally tore off the false mask and showed the true colors of the new Mayor and possibly the City Council. Making light of such "Empowered" neighborhoods, Takeshita said they were nothing more than a "Fly on the OX" of City Government and not be taken seriously. That the "City is planning to vigorously fight" any neighborhood that gets in the way of downtown interests. This answer came when Takeshita was asked about neighborhoods taking legal action when the city violated its own zoning ordinances and the Minneapolis Comprehensive Plan. Apparently Takeshita felt such would be welcome news to a gathering made up in part by Lawyers who represent large powerful Non-Profit Developers. Takeshita also implied that the new amendments to the Minneapolis Plan are meant to shortcut any opposition from neighborhoods, before it could be mounted. The City Council and the Mayor's Office are going to have rough sledding ahead if they believe they will change that Plan without community support and input. Continuing my history of supporting the Mayor, and in the interest of Minneapolis, I make the following suggestion. RT, swat this stupid ox before the hornets that are swarming around his bottom start stinging you. "Empowered Neighborhoods" are not flies to be ignored; they are hornets. Your staff and other "planning advisors" making light of our Neighborhoods do you, and "OUR", City a disservice. Other neighborhood "Hornets" need to also start buzzing, so I invite other neighborhoods to join in this discussion and to make the Mayor aware of your feelings about being just a "Fly on the Ox". Perhaps we need to convene a meeting of the inner-city impacted neighborhoods, and their friends, to talk about where the City seems to have gotten off the track and how to get it back on. RT seems to like such "Neighborhood" forums so he could be the guest speaker. So Phillips, Whittier, Central, and the North Neighborhoods should think about participating, before we are the ones being swatted. Jim Graham, Ventura Village - once a valuable supporter now just a fly on their rump >The rarest of gems, with the greatest clarity, and with the >greatest brilliance is not the diamond. >The rarest of all gems is the truth. >Yet as scarce as truth is, the supply has always far >exceeded any demand for it. In fact it may well be the >lest desirable commodity in the Universe. >Ask any politician. _______________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:mpls@;mnforum.org Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
