I am about to leave on a quick trip so I will try to be brief. . . There is a portion of the budget that is related to capitol projects. Many of these projects are funded through grants that the Park Board applied for and received from a variety of sources.
Public input is part of the process for many of these! The Lake of the Isles project to name one. As many of you are aware of, there were many meetings related to this project as well as other major projects. Another grant-based project would be the new signage through the Grand Rounds system that was funded primarily through federal dollars. Mike is right when he talks about a pervasive problem that after any capital project is complete, the maintenance must come out of standard tax supported operating dollars. This is getting more and more challenging! This is getting even more difficult in some parks as the state cut O & M (Operations and Management) funding for regional parks - lakes area for instance - by nearly half and almost eliminated that funding altogether. This is an increasing problem not only at the Park Board, but also with almost any public organization, city, university, federal government etc. Funding a capital project is 'sexy' - funding operations is not! Bottom line is that the Park Board does a good job of bringing additional grant dollars into the system from outside sources. Our system receives funding from the Federal government, state government, private corporations, lottery dollars, DNR, Watershed districts and many other sources in the form of primarily grants. The entire city has benefited from much of this through increased quality of life, increased property values, and more recreational dollars etc. Having said all of this, I still have the criticism of the Park Board, myself, in that I believe there is far too little public involvement in planning, budgeting, and visioning. I believe my votes in the past bare that out. Change in this area is greatly needed. Sincerely, John Erwin At-Large Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board Commissioner Mike Hohmann writes: "These 'non tax-supported' operating funds (about $20 million at the time) were off limits for public discussion in the overall 'public' budget-planning process, and probably still are off-limits for public discussion purposes." So let's get this straight. The publicly funded "enterprises" generate a $20 million profit, but that money can't be used for the benefit of the public. Man oh man, what a mess. It's time to clean house....throw ALL of the scoundrels out. The Park Board and City Hall. It's time for Minneapolis to "straighten up and fly right." <smile> As Henry David Thoreau said, "Any fool can make a rule, and any fool will mind it." Vicky Heller North Oaks and Cedar-Riverside 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
