The Neighborhood Revitalization Policy Board meets next Monday Monday, November 17 4:30 - 6:30 pm Hennepin County Government Center Conference Room C-2300
These meetings are open to the public. Please feel welcome and encouraged to attend. I am expecting to see three things (among others) on the NRP Policy Board Agenda on Monday that may interest some of you. 1) One thing concerns getting more diversity on the NRP Policy Board. I would appreciate any and all feedback regarding this idea. See details below. 2) The board will likely be setting up a committee to reexamine Phase II in light of funding reductions. We will be looking at adjusting funding allocations for Phase II based on projected reductions. My intention is to work with other Board Members to make sure that Phase II funding allocations are set soon and will be done in a fair and balanced manner. 3) I am also working to get policy Board agendas and meeting summaries distributed in a timely and effective way to all who are interested -- my suggestion I am hoping the board will take up Monday is to use City's current electronic system. Here is (a lot) more information on the diversity issue: As an NRP Policy Board Member / Neighborhood Representative I am trying to get the Board to create a task force in order to develop options about how to seat a person or persons representing "communities of color" and a person or persons representing renters or non-homeowners. The way the Board is structured we have three types of members: 1) elected officials representing various governmental bodies, 2) elected Neighborhood representatives and 3) Community Interest members The community interest members are executive directors or presiding officers from designated groups with a city-wide interest and include business (the Chamber of Commerce,) philanthropic and charitable interests (The Minneapolis Foundation and the United Way,) and labor (Central Labor Office.) The Bylaws also call for someone from a city-wide organization representing communities of color. This seat is now designated for john powell, formerly of the Institute on Race and Poverty, but he has attended no meetings all year and has taken a new job (some months ago) out of the state and the Institute is still looking for his replacement. I am suggesting that the Board should act now to set up a task force to determine how best to replace him with a new member (or more than one) and that we should also add a seat ( or seats) for the director or presiding officer from a city wide organization representing renters. When I first brought this proposal forward, to my surprise, there appeared to be a great deal of resistance. At the September meeting I offered the following resolution to create a task force to recommend options for including more diversity on the Board; specifically for a person or people representing "communities of color" and a person or people representing renters. It was tabled, but will be on our November agenda. ===============Diversity Task Force Proposal=================== Where as: Part of the NRP Policy Board's purpose is to "ensure an open process and promote citizen participation in all aspects of the program." Where as: The Policy Board bylaws call for "community interests" to be represented on the board including someone representing "communities of color." Where as: The Policy Board has had no person present at any Board meetings representing communities of color for at least the past ten months and the designated person no longer lives or works in Minnesota. Where as: Consistent and enduring concerns about NRP and the participation and inclusion of renters and people of color have been raised throughout Phase I of NRP and during discussions of Phase II. Where as: Including the perspectives of a person or persons representing communities of color and residents who do not own homes will likely promote better participation of these groups throughout NRP, will serve as an example to neighborhood groups, and will offer this and future Policy Boards valuable, and currently absent, perspectives on the important issues and decisions that will come in the future. Therefore be it resolved that the NRP Policy Board establish a task force, open to any and all interested Board members and alternates, to bring to the Board at its next meeting recommendations or options of how to include one or more person representing communities of color and one or more person representing renters/non-homeowners on the Policy Board. ====================== Please contact me if you have any questions, interest or concerns about this, or anything relating to the Policy Board and NRP. In peace and cooperation, Cam Gordon NRP Policy Board Revitalization Neighborhood Representative (612) 296-0579, [EMAIL PROTECTED] Cam Gordon Seward Neighborhood, Minneapolis, Ward 2 SD 59 (612) 296-0579, 339-2452 REMINDERS: 1. Think a member has violated the rules? Email the list manager at [EMAIL PROTECTED] before continuing it on the list. 2. Don't feed the troll! Ignore obvious flame-bait. For state and national discussions see: http://e-democracy.org/discuss.html For external forums, see: http://e-democracy.org/mninteract ________________________________ Minneapolis Issues Forum - A City-focused Civic Discussion - Mn E-Democracy Post messages to: mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe, Un-subscribe, etc. at: http://e-democracy.org/mpls
