Keith asks, "On the other side of town, Jim Graham says PPL is less then sweetness and > light in dealing with his impacted neighborhood of Ventura Village. This same > PPL, at the front end of potentially large Near-NorthSide relationship, seems to > be offering us all but flowers and chocolates. I hereby ask Mr. Graham to tell > us what we may expect as NearNorth gets involved with PPL-style housing > redevelopments."
OK folks, blame Keith for this cause he asked for it and I love Broadway to much to not answer. Even though I would get down on my knees and kiss the ground if PPL decided to unfasten its fangs from the throat of my community, to feast on another, I cannot in good conscience fail to give warning In My opinion: You can expect to be treated with respect as long as you agree to approve and support whatever PPL wishes. You can expect PPL to deal in good faith as long as the deal is the one they want and the deal is in their interest. You can expect PPL to smile in your face as they tell you they are only interested in helping poor people and only there in your neighborhood to help your community. You can expect the PPL' ers to have five foot long arms the better to pat themselves on the back in their self righteousness and also the better to lift the public purses of the neighborhood. You can expect them to have considerable political power and to exercise that power to uncaringly pursue their goals no matter how much damage they do your community. But remember that the heart of the drug trade in the "troubled Phillips Neighborhood" was always PPL's strip Mall on the corner of Franklin and Chicago. PPL cannot plead ignorance; their office windows overlook that scene of drug dealing, prostitution and other criminal activity. Remember that they have used their considerable political power and heavy gold purse to force a supposed housing project for recovering addicts onto that same corner where people going into their houses must run the gauntlet of drug dealers and temptation on the way to their doors. PPL will paint you some pretty pictures, but be careful. The pretty serpent in your garden may bite your children in its eagerness to get to the fruit. If PPL is coming, look for a rich crop of gold to be harvested from the poverty and crime there. You can expect PPL to fertilize and help grow an even richer crop of that poverty in your community. You can expect that they will gather it together and concentrate that poverty there in your community. Because it is a community of color they think it will bear a fruitful crop without interference from politicians. Hopefully they are wrong. If you allow PPL into your neighborhood at all, for any reason, make sure you have a strong worded memorandum of understanding that PPL signs in the form of a guarantee that they will build no project without the support of the legitimate Citizen Participation Organization and that they (or their friends) will in no way undermine the neighborhood, and that they must divest themselves of all property (in fee to them) within 180 days of notice of failure to comply with these conditions at the sole discretion of the legitimate neighborhood organization. If PPL will not sign such an agreement to deal with your community as an honest organization then drive them from your neighborhood as you would a serpent from the bed of your children. Do not do business with any organization that will not sign such a promise to treat your community with honesty. Remember without such a SIGNED promise PPL is not there to help, but to suck the lifeblood from your community. At a Ventura Village meeting an elderly Somali man stood and pleaded with the neighborhood to approve no project for PPL until PPL began to act as a better neighbor and stop discriminating against people. That motion received an overwhelming vote of support. If PPL has acted in such a manner and is thought of in such terms by the residents of the community that was the mother from which it was born then what do you think it will do in and to your community? In our eagerness to improve a commercial corridor and an "Impacted Neighborhood" we went to PPL with our plans for the richest plum, Chicago and Franklin. We were dealt with smiles at first and arrogance and distain later and instead of economic development we got the CVI project and two years of fighting off Basim Sabri and voter fraud attempting to take over our neighborhood. This may have colored my previous writing, so perhaps you and your neighbors should come and investigate for yourself. I cannot believe that Neighborhood supporting Don Samuels and Natalie, but especially Barb Johnson would not have seen what has happened in Ventura Village and shied away from allowing PPL into your neighborhood with all the promise Broadway has. These are the most active Neighborhood supporting Council Members in the City. Broadway does not have to settle for something like PPL. Broadway indeed needs a comprehensive master plan and some promotion, but it has the most potential of any commercial corridor in the City. It should be the golden phoenix rising from the ashes. Broadway could easily become the "Grand Avenue" of Minneapolis. Do not settle for something that will undermine and kill that wonderful potential. Broadway deserves better! Jim Graham, Ventura Village >"Every great mistake has a halfway moment, a split second when it may be recalled and perhaps remedied." >"He who asks a question is a fool for five minutes; he who does not ask a question remains a fool forever." - Chinese Proverb 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
