An interesting neighborhood meeting took place this week in the Ventura Village Neighborhood. The advertised, monthly, neighborhood-wide meeting highlighted the range of neighborhood support for different organizations attempting to do business here.
On the supportive side: 1) Residents gave support for an update by Hope and CCHT on the third phase of the Franklin-Portland Gateway project. This portion of the project, located on the north east corner of Franklin and Portland Avenues, is a multi-level, multi-use building that features a mix of affordable housing, homeownership condo's, underground parking, and even roof top gardens. (Now if we can only get a balcony restaurant surrounded by those gardens-talk about kewl!). Of course, the neighborhood fully supports this portion of the project, since it has had neighborhood input from its inception. Applause followed the vote. 2) American Indian Housing and Habitat for Humanity received community support to move a stucco house from 24th Street to 18th Street for affordable homeownership. The neighborhood had assigned this lot to American Indian Housing for building a homeownership house intended for an Indian family under the "Self-Sufficient Urban Indian Communities Initiative". This national program features Minneapolis and AIHCDC as the lead City and organization to create a national model for affordable homeownership. The house move was a compromise worked out to save a house from destruction and commit a later Habitat House for another Indian Family under the model. American Indian Housing, Habitat for Humanity, and the neighborhood are to be commended for creating the compromise that allowed this "best of all worlds solution" to take place. It demonstrates what can be accomplished in problem solving with proper communication between non-profits and a neighborhood. The neighborhood fully supported the compromise rather than fighting what could have been confrontational otherwise. 3) There was overwhelming support to have Leach Lake use one of the "Self-Sufficient Urban Indian Communities Initiative" lots to create a "Ronald Mc Donald" type of house to house Indian families in the City while a family member is hospitalized. Though the neighborhood has in the past-opposed additional social services agencies (and still does), this worthy project received unanimous support. Applause followed the vote 4) The Indian Center presented plans for changing their parking lot configuration and requested neighborhood support for funding applications to make it possible. The neighborhood overwhelmingly supported the Indian Center Board members in their efforts. 5) The neighborhood overwhelmingly voted (there were two or three dissenting votes) to move NRP funds from areas where they were not being fully utilized to a Housing-Affordable Homeownership guarantee fund. While the matching grants program has in the past given approximately 100 fix up grants for houses in Ventura Village, this new program would be used for seed money to create a mortgage loan guarantee program. The program would make possible homeownership for people who might not otherwise be able to afford it. The program also mirrors the proposal that passed the NRP Policy Board but was later killed by the Mayor and City Council. Hopefully other neighborhoods will dedicate similar funds, and the NRP Policy Board can set aside additional funds for "new" construction of several thousand affordable homeownership houses. Imagine that! Minneapolis could create several thousand additional affordable housing units and at the same time take several thousand poor families and make them middle class in a couple of years. Right here in River City. On the non-supportive side: 1) PPL came to the neighborhood to ask for support for fixing one of their buildings so that it would not continue to damage to a neighboring house. PPL representatives, including the PPL Property Manager, admitted publicly that PPL's building was causing water damage to a neighbor's building and that they were talking to the neighbor about it. During the course of the discussion, it became clear that this was also a request that would be used as an indicator of neighborhood support for PPL in its proposal for the MHFA funding to refinance that same building. Several Ventura Village residents expressed dismay that PPL would request any support from a neighborhood that it was seemingly in conflict with, and against whom it was in the process of fighting in Federal Court. A senior Somali man (who introduced himself as the publisher of a Somali newspaper) stated that there were many complaints about PPL in the Somali Community and stated that he was very much opposed to any support for PPL until PPL answered those complaints. The PPL representative disputed these allegations, whereupon a Somali man identifying himself as Faysal Omar, Executive Director of the Somali organization SAFA supported the elder's argument, stating that his organization (SAFA) had received many complaints against PPL and that PPL was not responsive to these complaints. Mr. Faysal Omar concluded by asking the neighborhood NOT to give support for ANYTHING PPL requested until PPL became a better neighbor and more responsive to problems it causes in the neighborhood. This set off numerous other neighborhood complaints about PPL from residents. One person stated that she had in the past very much supported PPL (when it was under Joe Salvaggio); that PPL has not the same since Salvaggio left; and that PPL had become "to big for its britches" and arrogant in its treatment of people in the neighborhood. A motion was made and passed to send PPL's request back to committee for reconsideration. An additional motion was made that the neighborhood send a letter to both MCDA and MHFA stating that the neighborhood WILL NOT support funding for PPL projects unless each project is approved by Ventura Village and outstanding issues with PPL are resolved. That motion overwhelmingly passed. Applause followed several of the speakers condemning PPL. It is yet to be seen if MCDA and MHFA will begin to act responsibly in their funding decisions. These and other funding organizations need to look at and consider the overwhelming antipathy and opposition that PPL has recently generated in its home community. With what appears to be a series of bad management decisions made since Salvage's departure, PPL seems to have alienated not only the neighborhood but also the Somali community. When the community that gave birth to an organization like PPL so completely opposes that organization, and when the residents of the community label the organization as an enemy of the community, something has gone very wrong with the organization. The PPL Board of Directors needs to immediately begin an investigation into these serious matters. PPL's Board needs to act before irreparable damage is done to what has in the past been a worthy organization in the public mind. Executive Director Jim Schiebel once threatened that "if this neighborhood does not appreciate and support PPL, then PPL will move out of it". Jim has since left, but it may be time for PPL to apply his words to itself: Either act responsibly or move on. It is clear that most residents and community members neither appreciate nor want PPL among them with its present attitude and would find a decision by PPL to get out a welcome improvement. BACK TO POSITIVE: The meeting ended on a very upbeat note with discussion of the coming appointment of a Minneapolis Police Chief. It was suggested that the very best candidate (and the candidate who would do the best job for troubled neighborhoods) is Capt. Sharon Lubinski. A motion was made and unanimously passed to send a letter to Mayor RT Rybak and the Minneapolis City Council supporting Lubinski for the position of Police Chief for the City of Minneapolis. The voting members applauded when the vote was announced ---- Open community meetings are indeed informative, and this one was no exception. There was celebration, applause and support for responsible organizations that are doing good work as a partner with neighborhood residents to improve the community. There was equal condemnation and non-support for an organization that arrogantly demanded support without considering the interests of the community and people who in the past sustained that organization. Jim Graham, Ventura Village >" If you board the wrong train, it is no use running along the corridor in the other direction." >" To stumble twice against the same stone is a proverbial disgrace." TEMPORARY REMINDER: 1. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. 2. If you don't like what's being discussed here, don't complain - change the subject (Mpls-specific, of course.) ________________________________ 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
