While the glow of a well-deserved victory in the old Third Ward is still bright, it is important to look at the new Third Ward with an eye to the shift of neighborhoods and voting populations. The existing redistricting decision takes Jordan from the Third Ward and puts it in with a new Fifth Ward that has lost its downtown precincts along the west bank of the river (the new "gold coast") and on the east bank extending into Marcy Holmes.
The new Third Ward has only McKinley and Hawthorne left on the west bank of the river, loses Columbia, Marshall Terrace and Holland to the new First Ward, and gains the neighborhoods along the east bank including St. Anthony East and Beltrami taken from the old First Ward and Marcy Holmes taken from the old Second Ward. The center of demographic gravity in the new Third Ward is meant to shift to the east and south away from Bottineau and St. Anthony West and the Northside territory where Third Ward Council Member-Elect Don Samuels did so well. Marcy Holmes, the anchoring presence in this intended shift, was very unhappy with having been taken away from the Second Ward, wanting to continue a long-standing relationship with the other neighborhoods immediately surrounding the University of Minnesota campus. Neighborhoods that have been collaborating in plans for the Mississippi riverbanks north of Nicollet Island may also be finding the new ward boundaries indifferent to their interest and will be keenly interested in CM-elect Samuels' energies in this regard. My own personal interest dates back to the plans drawn in the 1970s for the Island and the adjacent East Bank within the St. Anthony Falls Historic District and is piqued by Don's win in St. Anthony West. He and CM Natalie Johnson Lee share an interest in Riverplace and its environs just to the east of the east bank area where Don has made his mark. I hope that the commercial and residential developments in the core of the old City of St. Anthony will find further appropriate expression across the river to the west. Don and Natalie will have a lot to say about hoped-for renewal along Broadway. Back on the east bank, old Second Ward Council Member Paul Zerby and newly elected CM Don Samuels share the product of former CM Steve Minn's efforts in Marcy Holmes where new high-density housing is emerging. Diversity in the population in this part of town is challenged by gentrification and I hope my long-ago interest in heterogeneous cultural and income mix for the Nicollet Island-East Bank urban renewal project area - and the St. Anthony Falls Historic District by extension - will continue to be a goal for all concerned. St. Anthony West made a good start along these lines by voting for Samuels and I wish the new Council Member well in carrying his message from Jordan on the west to Marcy Holmes on the east. Quite a stretch of territory with cultural and income diversity aplenty. As always, the challenge comes with competition for prize locations. I feel strongly that the forces lined up in CM Samuels' column - Greens, Republicans, Independents, and progressive DFLers - are more likely to pursue an egalitarian vision than those who tried unsuccessfully to continue business as usual. Don Samuels' election is a refreshing change just as was the election of Mayor Rybak. I certainly hope that the grassroots folks who carried the day for these worthies keep up the good work! Fred Markus, Horn Terrace, Ward Ten, in the Lyndale Neighborhood --- Outgoing mail is certified Virus Free. Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com). Version: 6.0.449 / Virus Database: 251 - Release Date: 1/27/2003 TEMPORARY REMINDER: 1. Send all posts in plain-text format. 2. Cut as much of the post you're responding to as possible. ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Unsubscribe, Digest, and more: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
