Gina Palandri is very correct about parking. However, it is not the responsibility of the LRT to fund the "Critical Parking Permits". I should be the responsibility of our own City. The City of Minneapolis has created the parking problem through zoning variances, building permits, and development projects that it supports.
In my opinion the City should rectify any parking problem caused by the City. If a City decision creates the necessity for a critical parking district then each housing unit built previous to that decision should receive two parking permits with either their water bill or their tax bill. People have purchased houses, or built housing and apartments with the belief that there would be adequate parking. In the higher density inner city this included on-street parking. If not Minneapolis then Hennepin County, who also taxes real estate, should be providing those permits. I get very sick of politicians painting pretty colored pictures of projects, and the wonderful things they will produce, and then smacking the same neighborhood residents with a black and white reality without being truthful. At the very least they should pick up the cost. The LRT is a good example. Sure it is a wonderful project to create development in the City of Minneapolis, (a project I fully support), but politicians should have factored in the true cost of its operation, which includes providing critical parking permits to mitigate for existing housing impacted by the LRT construction and operation. Its called "Social Justice". Not that "Social Justice", and Social Impact", though required by federal law, ever had anything to do with the planning or construction of the LRT. Of course to get the political will to build the line politicians promised great amounts of public input into the design and build process. And they held meetings, but I know of NO instance where that input even changed the color of the paint on a bathroom wall. Officials of MnDot and the Metropolitan Council used an over twenty year old EIS to do the project and did not include "Social Justice" or "Social Impact" considerations. In order to appease my neighborhood Met Council officials promised to assemble the property around the Franklin Station for possible development, and as part of "Design & Build" to put in the footings on the northside of Franklin to allow for new development. Even though urged by Linda Berglin, who had been a party to the negotiation, Ted Mondale and the "officials" drug their feet to put this agreement into writing until it was too late, then when they felt they were free from it, they just ignored it altogether. Apparently 'Social Justice' ONLY matters to politicians when it can get in the way of some "Plan". The critical parking issue has had major ramifications for my neighborhood of Ventura Village, the Whittier Neighborhood and Mid-Town Phillips. The Sabris through a questionable relationship with a City Council Member have been allowed to flaunt zoning ordinances generally, and in particular around parking. You can not even drive down streets surrounding Karmel on Friday or Saturday, let alone park in front of a house you may have owned for twenty years before the City decided neighborhood residents did not matter. Try driving down 10th Avenue or Elliot Avenues between 24th Street and 22nd Street some weekend. As well as the damage to residents, the Council has allowed for the exploitation of the Somali business people whose customers, and themselves, cannot find parking near the areas where they lease at exorbitant rates. The Somali business people, as well as the residents, depended on the Council and the Planning Commission to protect them. Unfortunately they were failed. You can hardly drive down the street let alone park next to your house or business. Those parts of Minneapolis had old duplexes that were almost 100 years old and were built with street parking. Before granting any new zoning variance for parking the City should have created "Critical Parking" zones and issued FREE "Critical Parking" permits to all residents of those areas. The same is true for any new development. They either should have a plan to mitigate for the impact on parking or to only have guaranteed low parking businesses on a contractual basis, or they should bear the cost to mitigate the problem. Instead the Minneapolis Council has victimized existing homeowners by allowing pet projects to sometimes have no parking at all. Sometimes for businesses that have up to a hundred employees and several hundred 'customers'. Nor has the Council insisted that the developer pay any mitigation to those community folks who have been seriously impacted. In some cases certain Council Members have even allowed for the attempted takeover of Neighborhood Organizations who resisted such unprincipled developers. Central Neighborhood, Ventura Village, and lately the Whittier Neighborhood are some that come to mind. Access to NRP funds and publicly owned land may not have been the only reasons for such takeover attempts. It is rumored that the Mid-Town Phillips may be the next Neighborhood to have a takeover attempt, so hopefully they take the threat serious. So here is a suggestion for the Council. Mitigate the parking problems you have already created by issuing "Critical Parking Permits" free of charge to residents who are being seriously impacted by recent City Council actions. This should be an action taken care of by the Council and City Planning Department, not the impacted community. The City Planning Department and the Council created the problem, FIX IT! In the future require a plan for any project that impacts on street parking above a certain level. Also, stop allowing developers to be the direct employer of the consultant doing parking impact studies. It is a complete and utter conflict of interest for a company who is the exclusive employee of a developer to be the expert on what level of street parking is necessary, or the impact of such a project on a community. If the City wants to make developers pay for the study great, but have the "Research Company" doing the study be in the employment of the City or the Neighborhood that is impacted. Jim Graham, Ventura Village, Phillips Community Planning District, Sixth Ward, of Minneapolis 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. 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