Market update
L • SEPTEMBER 2017
SOUTHWEST JOURNA
← Look inside!
+ Black stainless steel appliances + Budget kitchen remodel revisited + Fall lawn and garden tips
At the
architect’s table
PAGE B5
Explore downtown Minneapolis PAGE B1
+ Behind the BLEND Awards + Keeping neighbors in the loop + Expert advice on pest control
Airbnb your home PAGE B10
Home-swap getaways PAGE B11
Local architect Bryan Anderson adds a dining area to his bungalow — without building an addition PAGE 13
ces PAGE 8
+ Black stainless steel applian
l revisited PAGE 10
+ Budget kitchen remode tips PAGE 16 + Fall lawn and garden
+ Behind the BLEND Awards
PAGE 20
the loop PAGE 24
+ Keeping neighbors in control PAGE 27 + Expert advice on pest
September 21–October 4, 2017 Vol. 28, No. 19 southwestjournal.com
9/12/17 10:38 AM
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DACA debate hits home
Immigration attorneys say uncertainty creates fear and anxiety
By Michelle Bruch / mbruch@southwestjournal.com
When the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program started accepting applications, Mariana’s mother took a day off work to collect a single document from Minneapolis Public Schools. They waited six months after sending in the paperwork, worrying it may have been a mistake to share Mariana’s undocu-
mented status with the federal government. Then the DACA card arrived. “I felt powerful, to be honest,” said Mariana, a South Minneapolis college student who crossed the Rio Grande with her mother at age 7. “Now I’m able to do so much more than just hide in the shadows.”
She became motivated to learn how to drive and pursue a career in teaching. She was devastated to recently learn that DACA could be rescinded. “Once I was over crying I thought, this is not over,” said Mariana, who asked not to have her
Running for sixth term, Goodman says ‘experience matters’
SEE DACA / PAGE A14
Pablo Tapia of Asamblea de Derechos Civiles (center) and others participated in a day of action Sept. 18. The group visited congressional offices and City Hall to “demand civil rights for Dreamers and all undocumented immigrants,” ending the day with a sit-in at the Hennepin County Jail. Photo by Michelle Bruch
A NEW KIND OF BIKE SHARE Nice Ride proposes station-less system run by private vendor
The Ward 7 incumbent faces three challengers in November By Nate Gotlieb / ngotlieb@southwestjournal.com By Dylan Thomas / dthomas@southwestjournal.com
Lisa Goodman is tied for longest tenure on the City Council, and while her three opponents say it’s time for change, the incumbent is leaning on her longevity as she asks voters to return her for a sixth term in office. “One of the reasons that I believe that I’m the best person to represent the 7th Ward on the City Council is experience matters,” Goodman said during a mid-September interview. Goodman prides herself on constituent service, and it has paid off at the ballot box. She took 68 percent of the vote in 2009 and more than 80 percent in two previous elections. She ran unopposed in 2013.
This year, she’s facing three challengers and maybe her steepest re-election climb yet. They include Republican Joe Kovacs, a downtown resident who works as a training specialist for a software company, and DFLer Teqen Zéa-Aida, co-founder of a local modeling agency and a gallerist who lives in Loring Park. Janne Flisrand, a consultant and Lowry Hill property owner, vied with Goodman for the DFL endorsement this spring, before Zéa-Aida entered the race. No endorsement was awarded because delegates split between Flisrand and Goodman. SEE GOODMAN / PAGE A10
Bike sharing in the Twin Cities is going dockless, and it’s leading to new conversations about use of the public right of way. The Twin Cities’ bike-share operator, Nice Ride, is looking for a vendor to furnish and operate bikes that wouldn’t need to be picked up or dropped off at a docking station. These “dockless” systems are cheaper to operate and more convenient for customers, Nice Ride leaders say, and could get help more people on bikes. The aim is to get dockless bikes on city streets by next spring. “Consumers really love it,” Nice Ride Executive Director Bill Dossett said at
a Sept. 7 forum. “Consumers can take a bike wherever they see one and return it wherever they want to.” It’s a model Nice Ride leaders present as the future of bike sharing, because of the convenience and lower cost. They question whether the federal funding will be available in future years for their current model, given that private investors have funded dockless systems in other cities. “The public isn’t going to do something that the private sector is willing to come in and do for free and do on a larger scale,” Dossett said. SEE BIKE SHARING / PAGE A11
A2 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
Height a concern in 44th & France plans Developer Ted Carlson is proposing a five-story, 64-unit residential building By Brian Lambert
If not the full-scale, transformative and very expensive makeover consultants have envisioned for the 44th & France business district, the likelihood and size of one particular development at the intersection may well be decided in the next month. For the moment, developer Ted Carlson, who has purchase agreements for the Edina Cleaners and two adjacent residential properties to the west on Sunnyside Road is sticking with his pitch for a five-story, 64-unit complex. It’s a plan Carlson is sweetening with promises to bury overhead power lines and improve the pedestrian experience on his dime. He also says he’s ready to break ground, promising a 10-month construction schedule. Carlson’s immediate problem, though, is that a significant cadre of the neighborhood’s residents — an unusual number of whom seem to have experience in litigation and journalism — continue to be resistant, perhaps highly resistant, to that five-story height proposition. It’s a face-off familiar to Linden Hills and 50th & France residents, who have recently gone through with developments in their areas. The city of Edina hosted a public meeting in mid-August at Edina Morningside Community Church featuring hired consultants from Bob Close Design walking 80–100 residents through ideas for the full makeover. Those ideas include converting Sunnyside Avenue into a pedestrian (mainly) promenade, or
the status quo if the SAP dilutes the enthusiasm of developers to commit to the area, meaning possibly years before plans such as those offered up by the city’s consultants: widened sidewalks, landscaping, woonerfs and — at long, long last — a more efficient, attractive and multi-purpose use of the parking lot behind The Convention Grill? • Is this an area that requires, or at least would benefit significantly, from 24/7 coordination with Linden Hills’ SAP?
The 44th & France intersection on the border of Edina. Photo by Brian Lambert
“woonerf,” from roughly a block west of France Avenue to the Sunnyside Nursery on the Minneapolis side of France. A second public meeting is currently planned for Oct. 16 at the same location. Among several basic questions are these: • If the small area plan (SAP) now being drafted for 44th & France limits development to a maximum of three or two stories, does that make development of the dry cleaners site financially impractical for Carlson? • Are neighborhood residents content with
Carlson, who attended the August meeting and is being given generally good reviews for his interaction with residents, argues that “height doesn’t mean more density,” directing attention to density-driven traffic issues in the immediate area. The recently approved fivestory Edina Collaborative project for 50th & France includes 110 units. The 64 units Carlson proposes for his project on the Edina Cleaners site would be somewhat larger individually. But from a petition still circulating through the neighborhood (and signed by 217 residents as this goes to press), as well as an unscientific survey of residents at the August meeting, height, not density is the overriding issue. Residents like Mark Schmidt, an attorney who grew up in the neighborhood and recently moved back after a decade in Chicago, seem adamant in their opposition to the “reinvention” of the intersection a five-story building would bring.
Schmidt authored a widely circulated email detailing points of critical concern. “This isn’t 50th & France,” Schmidt said. “That’s downtown Edina. This is a neighborhood business node. Five stories completely changes the character of the area. “We’re not opposed to change. All we’re (asking) is that the change reflect the values and character of what is here now, and based on what I’m hearing that means two stories, no more than three. “This is a talkative neighborhood. People are out in the streets, walking dogs or whatever, and talking about this. The concern is this ‘mothership effect’: something so big it throws everything else out of whack.” Schmidt and others regularly point to the existing SAP for Edina’s Valley View & Wooddale intersection, which restricts businesses to 36 feet in height. Mark Nolan, transportation planner for Edina, is overseeing the SAP. Nolan emphasized that, unlike 50th & France where the city solicited developers to reimagine city-owned properties (two parking ramps), the city, in the case of 44th & France, has no dog in the hunt, other than updating its comprehensive plan. “I don’t think anyone wants to see another 50th & France at 44th,” Nolan said. “They are two entirely different districts. “The city’s role at this stage of the process SEE 44TH & FRANCE / PAGE A10
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A3
By Michelle Bruch / mbruch@southwestjournal.com
25TH & NICOLLET
Greenway Yoga Phong Cao wants to make yoga available at the lowest price possible. His studio, Greenway Yoga, tucked off a Whittier neighborhood alley, offers some of its classes for free in exchange for donations that go to local charities. “The goal is to make yoga classes accessible to all while giving back to the community and the environment,” he said. Cao said he ran the business for a few months last summer as part of a post-graduate sustain-
Phong Cao owns Greenway Yoga, a studio that offers low-cost and charity-driven classes. Photo by Michelle Bruch
ability project. He works as a Vietnamese translator and yoga instructor at other Twin Cities studios, and decided to re-launch the project as a permanent studio. “When I was in school, it was difficult to come to yoga classes because the price was so high,” he said. Cao teaches candlelit vinyasa flow classes that incorporate influences from traditional Ashtanga yoga. Single drop-in classes are $8, which he said is the lowest possible price he could hit. One Thursday class is free, with donations going to local charities. In the past, Cao has raised money for low-income housing and a 19-year-old cancer patient overwhelmed with medical bills. The studio is located in the former Hudson Map Company storefront, a century-old business that closed its retail store in 2011 and continues to operate online. The newly remodeled studio holds sustainable hardwood flooring, a shower and changing rooms. Classes start Sept. 24. The studio is accessible through a back door fronting the alley at 2510 Nicollet Ave. For more information, visit greenwayyoga.com.
59TH & NICOLLET
Lift Garage Lift Garage, a non-profit auto repair shop, keeps a stock of bulbs on hand. Auto mechanics change the bulbs free of charge for their low-income customer base. “It feels like one small thing we can do to help keep drivers safe and prevent potential future problems for folks,” said Cathy Heying, executive and operations director. Heying started the free service last summer after Philando Castile was fatally shot during a routine traffic stop in Falcon Heights. She said she hopes the gesture can help drivers avoid tickets and complications that result from being pulled over. “It’s one small thing we have the capacity to do,” she said. “Our whole mission is affordable, accessible car repair.”
Demand is high for the affordable auto care, and wait times for an appointment are typically 10 weeks. But staff can quickly handle bulb changes in the parking lot, provided there is no major electrical problem. Lift Garage continues to fundraise through its website to meet high demand. The nonprofit recently celebrated its fourth anniversary, growing from a single bay operating one day per week to four bays operating five days per week. The nonprofit provides classes in car care, pre-purchase inspections and a mobile van that offers diagnostic service. The Lift Garage is located at 5925 Nicollet Ave. behind Dan’s Nicollet Car Wash.
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Baby Block Party The mother of a busy baby is inviting young children into her home for music and movement classes. Rebecca Hancock said she decided to start Baby Block Party after discovering the cost and long-term commitment involved in other classes. Given changing nap times and schedules, Hancock wanted a more flexible drop-in option for babies like her daughter Claire, nearly 1 year old. “She’s at the point where she’s moving all the time and is very social,” she said. “This is something I could offer at a high quality and more affordable price.” Hancock is a licensed teacher with a master’s degree in early childhood education and nine years of early childhood teaching experience. Classes cost $10. Hancock dedicated a playroom in her Armatage neighborhood house to the class. Classes are tailored for children aged 8–18 months, with singing, story time, reading,
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A4 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
Tai Chi and QiGong instructor Lee Dunn (l) and Sattva co-owner Dan Gorbunow at Sattva Natural Health and Recovery. Photo by Michelle Bruch
32ND & BRYANT
Sattva Natural Health and Recovery A grid of crystals is inlaid in the bones of a wellness center dedicated to “soul therapy” at 3200 Bryant Ave. S., where Sattva Natural Health and Recovery opened early this year. The crystals sweep throughout the structure to form an infinity symbol, a heart shape and angel wings hidden in the ceiling and under the floors. Owners Cindy and Dan Gorbunow aimed to install beauty around every corner of the building formerly home to the Bryant Avenue Market. Mandalas hang on the ceiling of therapy rooms and wall-sized photos provide the bathroom backdrops. Six therapists on site can opt to cut the hum of electricity during treatments and work by candlelight. “We work with the body to move energy,” Cindy said. “It’s about calming and centering the soul.” The owners said Sattva has emerged as a hub for bodyworkers and healers. The studio is available for rent and hosts a wide range of events, such as nonviolent self-defense classes, Moon Temple classes for women and hip hop yoga.
Dan said one class with a growing following is the Tuesday evening “Iron John” healing circle for men. “Sometimes they walk by and see it and dare themselves to check it out,” said Dan, who described the class as an opportunity for in-depth conversations, meditation and movement. “It’s not your grandpa’s men’s support group — if he had one.” The Oct. 28 wellness gathering “Healing the Masculine Spirit” is open to all genders. Massage memberships for two hours of monthly service have also proven popular, the owners said, and members can try any studio service as part of the package. A retail area offers Nature’s Wisdom supplements by Jean O’Hern (previously located at 2516 Lyndale Ave. S.), as well as jewelry by Marla Gamble and handmade greeting cards and art by Colee Bee Art, among other local artists. The owners are planning a community mural project to replace the mural lost during building reconstruction.
Red Cow Uptown features a 32-seat bar and 1,000-squarefoot patio. Photo by Michelle Bruch
HENNEPIN AVENUE
Red Cow Sale ends this Saturday, September 30, 2017
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Red Cow is open at 2626 Hennepin Ave. S., serving as the new hub to grind burgers for all four Red Cow locations. Burgers ground in-house include the Double Barrel, which combines brisket, ribeye, short rib and chuck meat in two patties with four slices of white American cheese and horseradish cream sauce. New wine keeper systems are rolled out at all Red Cow locations, so instead of a tap system, stopper caps reseal each bottle. That means
more bubbles are available by the glass among 35 wine selections. Michael Giacomini, director of finance, said in late August that he appreciates the Uptown location’s heavy foot traffic, 52 parking stalls and population density. “For the first week, we’re happy,” Giacomini said. The daily happy hour is 3 p.m.–6 p.m. and 10 p.m. until close.
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A5
BREAKFAST DAILY
43RD & UPTON
Mint Orthodontics The chairs at Mint Orthodontics come with a view of the street life in Linden Hills. Dr. Geoff Sudit and his wife Liz are raising their children a few blocks away from the office, and said they designed the sunny space to contrast with the typical enclosed feel of dental offices. “We wanted it to be a more light and bright experience,” Liz said. Their mantra is “customer service to the extreme” for Invisalign, braces, appliances and surgical orthodontic services. They’re stocking the lobby with snacks and coffee and a magnetic dart board for kids. They digitally scan teeth to demonstrate before-and-after views of adjustments. And they offer payment plans that allow customers to select a down payment ranging from $200 to the entire cost of service. Geoff previously worked with Randy Kunik in Austin, Texas, one of the first adopters of Invisalign, and his background includes another entrepreneurial venture. Pursuing an interest that began with high school DJ gigs and bar mitzvahs, Geoff operated a DJ and entertainment business throughout his dental schooling and residency. (He and a friend have since sold A-list Entertainment.) “I know how to talk to 13 year olds, for sure,” he said.
Liz and Dr. Geoff Sudit at Mint Orthodontics, now open on the ground floor of the Linden43 apartments. Photo by Michelle Bruch
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Mint Orthodontics is sponsoring the Dragon Dash at Lake Harriet Community School. The company will also give customers the chance to donate any amount for free orthodontic services that benefit kids in need. “As much money as I raise, that’s how many I’ll treat,” Geoff said.
44TH & FRANCE
On the move
Edina Cleaners
A lifelong Edina couple has taken over ownership of Edina Cleaners. Husband and wife Jim Fingerman and Elizabeth Williams took over the business from their friend Lee Stotts on Sept. 1. They’ll be leading it as it moves from 4500 France Ave. S. several hundred feet south to 4530 France Ave. S. A developer plans to build a luxury apartment building at the 4500 France Ave. S. site. “We want things to be as seamless a transition as possible,” Fingerman said. “We want to do right by all of the neighbors and customers and be a good part of the community.” Fingerman and Williams are lifelong Edina residents. They’ll be integrating new technology into their new building, Fingerman said, including a two-story-tall conveyor system that will allow them to serve customers
faster and more efficiently. “It’s pretty unusual in our business to have stuff like that,” Fingerman said. The goal is for a Nov. 1 grand opening, but the business will stay open at the current location until the new location is ready. The business currently operates out of the old Westgate Theater building in Edina’s Morningside neighborhood. Fingerman said they want to try and use some of the furnishings from the site in their new building. Stotts’ grandfather started Edina Cleaners in 1952, and the business has been at the France Avenue site since 1962. It offers various dry cleaning and specialty cleaning services as well as a VIP service program and home delivery.
URGENT CARE
— Nate Gotlieb
43RD & UPTON
Linden43 The luxury apartment project Linden43 opened Aug. 1, and the developer reports the building is about half leased. The project’s “condo-like” finishes include quartz countertops, hardwood floors, ninefoot ceilings, walk-in closets, powder rooms in some units and balconies with gas grill hookups. Unit layouts aim to provide large living spaces and large balconies that can accommodate tables and chairs. Developer Jake Schaffer said some unit sizes were modified in order to lease at a
NOTED: Simply Jane Studio — now called Simply ArtAble — is celebrating a 10-year anniversary Sept. 30 with food by Chowgirls Killer Catering and music by songwriter and mental health advocate Adam Levy.
lower $1,500 price point. Two-bedroom units start at $3,500 per month, he said. Along with Mint Orthodontics, groundfloor commercial space will go to Bremer Bank, slated to open at the end of October, and Copilot Dog Outfitters, a grooming and outdoor gear store expected to open in November. Green panels on the building exterior will provide the canvas for muralists Kelly and Shane Anderson with Anderson Illustrations, who will start work on the pieces this fall.
The nonprofit, founded by muralist Jane Elias, offers arts programming, birthday parties and drop-in paint sessions for all ages and abilities at 5411 Nicollet Ave. The celebration and fundraiser is Sept. 30.
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A6 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
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Mayor Betsy Hodges on Sept. 12 outlined a 2018 city budget that aims to take action on climate change, increase access to affordable housing, improve police-community relations and counteract the Trump administration. The roughly $1.4-billion budget comes with a proposed 5.5-percent increase in the city’s property tax levy. The levy increased 5.5 percent in 2017, too, and Hodges said the hikes were in line with the city’s commitment to an $800-million deal struck in 2015 with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board to fund street repairs and park improvements over the next 20 years. Describing climate change as the “single greatest threat to our city and our planet,” Hodges proposed $6 million for clean energy and efficiency programs, which she said was a 60-percent increase over her 2014 budget. On the recommendation of the city’s Clean Energy Partnership with Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy, the budget also includes a half-percent increase in the franchise fees paid by those utilities to fund ongoing renewable energy and sustainability programs. In her budget address, Hodges described the “twofold” challenge the city is facing on the housing front as “finding ways to retain our current supply of affordable places to live and finding ways to add to that supply without pricing longtime residents out of the neighborhoods they’ve invested in for years and sometimes generations.” Hodges said the city’s rising rents and near 2-percent vacancy rate were clear signs that demand exceeded supply. But she also acknowledged that new developments can displace longtime residents, a noted that her budget includes $24 million for housing programs, including the creation of a new, full-time housing stability specialist position at City Hall to focus on the city’s complex housing challenges.
Describing a “persistent disparity” in homeownership rates — currently standing at a 35-point gap in homeownership between the city’s white families and families of color — Hodges said her budget included $500,000 to expand a program that helps families buy homes. “We’ve seen other cities fail to act or act too late to address these problems,” she said. “Minneapolis can’t afford to make the same mistake.” When Hodges released a bare outline of her budget in August, she said she was delaying the release of more details in part to give new Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo input on his department’s budget. During her address, Hodges reiterated that she didn’t want Arradondo to “have to wait 12 months of a 17-month term to have an impact.” Her 2018 budget includes $4 million for police and public safety programs, including $300,000 to begin a three-year expansion of the Minneapolis police bodycam program so that all officers will eventually wear them, not just those responding to 911 calls. The budget also adds eight civilian community liaison positions to the police department, which she said was another of Arradondo’s top priorities and part of a strategy to improve the department’s relationship with the community. The budget also includes funding for an additional civilian investigator to respond to claims of police misconduct. Hodges ended her address by speaking forcefully and at length about the administration of President Donald Trump, which she described as “a disaster for our country.” Among other things, her budget includes investments in programs meant to counteract the administration’s targeting of immigrants and the transgender community, as well as $1.2 million to “protect and support” voting rights.
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The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office began its review of the shooting death of Justine Damond after announcing Sept. 12 that the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension had submitted its findings in the case. Damond was shot July 15 by Officer Mohamed Noor of the Minneapolis Police Department, who responded to a 911 call placed by the Fulton neighborhood resident. Damond was reporting a possible assault. Not long after pulling into the alley behind her 51st & Washburn home, Noor shot Damond through the driver’s side window of his squad car. There was no video of the shooting, even though Noor and his partner were both wearing body cameras. Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said his office would review the case and make a decision on whether or not to file charges against Noor. While in the past an officer-
involved shooting case would be turned over to a grand jury, Freeman halted that practice following the November 2015 death of 24-yearold Jamar Clark, who was shot in the head and killed during a struggle with two Minneapolis police officers. Freeman decided not to charge the officers in that case, Mark Ringgenberg and Dustin Schwarze, citing officer statements and DNA evidence that Freeman said indicated Clark tried to grab Ringgenberg’s gun during the attempted arrest. Freeman has said he expects to make a decision on charges for Noor before the end of the year. Tuesday’s announcement noted that Freeman could request additional investigation by the BCA during its review, and stated that the office had no other public statements to make on the case at this time.
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A7
City Council Member Kevin Reich, who chairs the Transportation and Public Works Committee, at a press event announcing plans to adopt a Vision Zero policy for eliminating fatalities and serious injuries resulting from crashes. Photo by Dylan Thomas
A plan for safer streets is in the works Minneapolis officials on Sept. 11 sketched out their vision for eliminating all traffic deaths and serious injuries on city streets in 10 years. Mayor Betsy Hodges, who delivered her 2018 budget address the following day, included $400,000 in her proposed budget to begin work on what has been dubbed the Vision Zero policy. That policy would set out specific steps to bring the number of fatalities and serious injuries resulting from traffic crashes to zero by 2027. A Vision Zero Network of U.S. cities already taking the steps Minneapolis will soon consider includes Chicago; Austin, Texas; Portland, Oregon; Boston and New York City, among others. Those cities are pursuing strategies that include lowering speed limits, redesigning streets, implementing campaigns that aim to change the behavior of road users and using data to drive traffic enforcement strategies. Hodges announced the plan in a press event held near the intersection of 18th & Johnson in Northeast Minneapolis, where she was joined by City Council Member Kevin Reich, chair of the Transportation and Public Works Committee. That committee on Sept. 12 approved a resolution in support of Vision Zero. According to the language of the resolution, next steps would include assembling a Vision Zero Task Force made up of city department heads, developing an action plan to carry out the policy, tracking the results of the plan and reporting annually on those results.
Hodges said Minneapolis “is a good place to live for pedestrians” and noted Minnesota overall ranks fourth in the nation among states with the lowest pedestrian fatality rates. The city also has invested in a significant expansion of on- and off-street facilities for bicyclists — including protected bicycle lanes — and is in the process of painting more-visible markings at 3,000 crosswalks. But Hodges noted challenges for maintaining safety on Minneapolis streets, including distracted driving and the city’s population growth, which is adding more road users to the grid. There were 106 fatalities on Minneapolis streets from 2006 to 2015, a total that includes 35 people walking or using wheelchairs, 14 people riding a bicycle and 57 people either driving or riding in a motor vehicle, according to city data. A man walking in downtown Minneapolis was struck and killed by a driver on Hennepin Avenue Sept. 7. In another recent incident, a woman riding a bicycle was struck and killed Aug. 17 by a person driving a car at the intersection of 2nd & Lowry in North Minneapolis. Public Works Director Robin Hutcheson said city data analysis already has hinted at where safety improvements might be targeted. Seventy percent of crashes occur at just 13 percent of all city intersections and 80 percent occur on just 10 percent of Minneapolis roadway miles, Hutcheson said.
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Council committee approves Harteau settlement A settlement with former Minneapolis Police Chief Janeé Harteau was approved Sept. 13 by the Executive Committee of the City Council. The agreement, which includes a $182,876 payment and 12 months of health benefits, was set to go before the full Council on Sept. 20, just as this edition was going to press. The agreement did not include a non-disparagement clause written into an early draft of the settlement. Harteau resigned July 21, less than a week
after a Fulton-neighborhood woman was shot by a Minneapolis police officer responding to a 911 call. The Hennepin County Attorney’s Office is currently weighing charges against the officer, Mohamed Noor. At the time of her resignation, Harteau had nearly 18 months left in her term, which ran through Jan. 7, 2019. Her former assistant chief, Medaria Arradondo, was officially sworn in as the city’s new police chief Aug. 22. All Energy Solar SWJ 040617 6.indd 1
3/31/17 12:02 PM
A8 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
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By Jim Walsh
View from the cheap seats
I
had the “worst” seats in the house with the “worst” sound potential at U.S. Bank Stadium for U2’s concert and I couldn’t have loved it more than if I’d been in the front row mopping Bono’s sweat off his brow Shroud Of Turin-style. Still, the bad reviews keep coming: The sound was horrible, I’m never going back, what a waste of time, etc. I was surprised at the uproar, which got a lot of post-concert play from Twin Cities media that otherwise never pays attention to live music. Then again, I didn’t go to the show to gripe. I spent my time listening as carefully as I could, stayed off my phone and was more into taking in the whole soul spectacle than tweeting my pithy two cents’ worth about the jerk next to me or the price of beer or whatever else might have taken away from total sensory immersion in an explicitly of-these-times live concert by one of rock’s greatest bands. For my money, the show was great. The sound was fine, and I could hear fine, even though I am partially deaf from going to a couple hundred shows a year and playing in rock bands. But the consensus reaction by my fellow concert attendees left a bad taste in my mouth, and now I’m left to wonder about how the collective soul is faring these days, because it says here that if you came away from that experience complaining about the sound, you should see doctor, get your pulse checked, live a little. Then again, life is what you make it, you get out of it what you put in (yay and ouch) and if you read this space two weeks ago, you know that my scorched black soul was ready to be saved. That it was. I was all in. The show started with the quiet hum of 50,000 people anticipating what Bono promised would be “an epic night of rock and roll,” as poems by the likes of Langston Hughes, Jamila Woods/Chance the Rapper, Sherman Alexie, Carl Sandburg, Namoi Shahib Nye, Rita Dove, Margaret Avison and Lucille Clifton, unfurled across the big screen for all who had the inclination to bask in some of the greatest verse ever written. One poem, by Lawrence Ferlinghetti, enthused that “The World is a Beautiful Place,” but according to lots of purportedly ripped-off ticket holders, not at U.S. Bank Stadium on the night of Sept. 8. No, I couldn’t make out what Bono said between songs every time, but it didn’t ruin my night, and the visual and sonic calls for equity, equality and human rights were unprecedented and seriously uplifting. The sour taste in my mouth came later, with the mass preoccupation with I Didn’t Get What I Wanted. Apparently entitlement disappointment is a symptom of the times, and the U2 USBS “debacle” (one Strib commenter’s assessment) is a good example of the fact that we live in a troll culture where we’re now hardwired to complain, comment and kvetch just to prove we were there and have a contrary opinion, all of which gets in the way of real human emotion and experience. Merriam-Webster online dictionary recently added “troll” to its definitions, leading Claire Fallon in the Huffington Post to sum up, in a piece that came with the subhead “the language of 2017 is
Best seat in the house for U2 at U.S. Bank Stadium may have been up, up and far away from the haters and trolls. Photo by Jim Walsh
a depressing reminder of how bad things are,” the current human condition: “‘Troll’ had a life before 4chan and Reddit: It used to be a whimsical term for a folkloric monster, or even a verb for searching or fishing. Now, the first action it suggests, at least to Internet users, is, as Merriam-Webster puts it, ‘to antagonize (others) online by deliberately posting inflammatory, irrelevant, or offensive comments or other disruptive content,’ or ‘to harass, criticize, or antagonize (someone) especially by provocatively disparaging or mocking public statements, postings, or acts.’ Trolling has become such a pervasive issue online that it’s inarguably spilled into the real world — take the racist Pepe the Frog memes and other far-right online trolling, which helped spread white supremacist sentiments that ultimately bolstered Donald Trump’s presidential campaign.” Look. I’m all for critical thought, cranky rock critics and all sorts of debate, but the backlash against the U2 show is toxic and worrisome because so many people were unable to shrug off a small negative to focus on the big positive, and I’m afraid that if so many people have such a bad experience at something they purportedly were looking forward to, our expectations for life itself are probably out of whack. Me, I was flat-out grateful. After the poetry scrolled, the Waterboys’ “Whole Of The Moon” filled the NASA-feel hangar, the lights went down and the camera phone glow sticks came out, and all I know is that of late I’ve been hit hard with death and loss and life changes and I’m crash-coursing in newfound wisdoms and truths, and for two hours U2 lifted me yet again, saved me the way live music and rock ‘n’ roll always has and provided another memorable signpost shared between band and fan. Thanks, lads. Seriously. Everything isn’t an epiphany, of course, so nowadays I look for “worth the price of admission alone” moments, which means if it’s a free gig, the rest is solely up to me. I paid $100 for a nosebleed seat
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Jim Walsh lives and grew up in South Minneapolis. He can be reached at jimwalsh086@gmail.com
CORRECTION A story on page A1 of the Sept. 7–20 edition incorrectly reported the date on which the City Council voted to increase its participation in Xcel Energy’s Renewable Connect program. The date was Aug. 31.
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ticket to U2’s “Joshua Tree” tour stop in Minneapolis, and the math doesn’t add up because I’ve got several goose-bump memories I’ll cherish forever. Namely, I’m pretty sure I was the only one that night who was astonished to see one of my favorite pieces of Zen writing, Walt Whitman’s “Leaves Of Grass,” taking over the big screen, cutting through to me, speaking to me, guiding me and overcoming bad sound and all: “This is what you shall do; Love the earth and sun and the animals, despise riches, give alms to every one that asks, stand up for the stupid and crazy, devote your income and labor to others, hate tyrants, argue not concerning God, have patience and indulgence toward the people, take off your hat to nothing known or unknown or to any man or number of men, go freely with powerful uneducated persons and with the young and with the mothers of families, read these leaves in the open air every season of every year of your life, re-examine all you have been told at school or church or in any book, dismiss what insults your soul, and your very flesh shall be a great poem and have the richest fluency not only in its words but in the silent lines of its lips and face and between the lashes of your eyes and in every motion and joint of your body.”
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southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A9
Moments in Minneapolis
By Cedar Imboden Phillips
A window display for wartime
D
uring World War II, many businesses did their part to support war efforts. Here in Southwest Minneapolis, the Professional Pharmacy at Lake & Irving in Uptown used its store window to promote the purchase of war bonds. War bonds were a loan to the government, and they provided a way to financially support the war efforts while also reducing the threat of inflation. Elaborate advertising efforts encouraged Americans across the country to do their part by purchasing these bonds. Independent business promotions like this one by the Professional Pharmacy were part of these broader efforts. Cedar Imboden Phillips serves as the executive director for the Hennepin History Museum. Learn more about the museum and its offerings at hennepinhistory.org or 870-1329.
Photograph from the collection of the Hennepin History Museum
A10 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com FROM GOODMAN / PAGE A1
When discussing access affordable housing, one of the hottest issues of the election cycle, Goodman turns to her long legislative record. She founded the city’s Affordable Housing Trust Fund, co-authored the city’s Section 8 anti-discrimination ordinance and has proposed another ordinance that would require apartment owners to give the city advance notice of a potential sale, opening an opportunity for the city to step in and preserve affordable units. Goodman said property tax hikes driving up rents was “one of the bigger issues” in the affordable housing shortage. She said she had asked city staff to study one potential solution to that issue. Affordable housing projects built with government subsidies through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) program are also taxed at a lower rate. Goodman proposed extending that property tax break to the owners of so-called naturally occurring affordable housing — buildings where rents have fallen below market rate over time — who, in return, would agree to charge the same below market rate rents as LIHTC projects. “This is a real, tangible, potential solution
FROM 44TH & FRANCE / PAGE A2
is purely as liaison, facilitating the discussion between interested parties. I think [Carlson] has heard the neighborhood’s concerns.” That said, the visions produced by the city’s consultants imagined the area significantly transformed, with wider sidewalks and pedestrian-appealing rear alley walkways (a la 50th & France). Then there were those Old Pasadena-style woonerfs and, the (really) bigticket item, a covered parking structure, perhaps with a public plaza atop it to replace the splat of crumbling asphalt that has filled the space
to the naturally occurring affordable housing issue without having to get involved with buying up every building, which we don’t have the resources to buy, but making it easier for those owners to keep their rents low and rewarding them by lowering their … tax rate,” Goodman said. Flisrand, who has extensive contacts with housing programs through her consultancy and was program manager for Minnesota Green Communities, an energy-efficiency
initiative targeted to affordable housing, said the city needs to dedicate more resources to “aggressively” preserving naturally occurring affordable housing. She would explore inclusionary zoning policies that require affordable units in new developments, and has also proposed zoning code changes to open more areas of the city to duplexes, triplexes and other small multi-family developments, which she and other advocates refer to as the “missing middle.” Goodman views such changes warily. “When you buy a house, which is your single biggest investment, one of the things that you take into consideration is the location and what the neighborhood looks and feels like surrounding you,” she said. “To upend that and make a dramatic change without the neighborhood and neighbors agreeing to it is, I think, unconscionable.” In a recent candidate forum, Flisrand, a co-founder of the Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition, now Our Streets MPLS, was critical of Goodman’s 2016 vote on the redesign of Third Avenue in downtown that added protected bike lanes. City staff initially proposed a “road diet” that would have reduced motor vehicle lanes to one in each direction from two. Citing business community concerns,
Goodman sided with a majority on the Council who voted for a two-lane plan, disappointing cycling advocates who said it fell short of stated city goals to use street design to improve bicyclist and pedestrian safety. “In the end, we need to put bike facilities where there is a good amount of support for it,” Goodman said. “We can not use bike facilities as an attempt to punish people for driving and think that we’ll change their behavior.” Kovacs, the conservative in the race, said he stands apart because he would have fought against the recently approved paid sick time and minimum wage ordinances, which he said put an undue burden on business. While she voted in favor of both, Goodman said the minimum wage debate “could have used a lot more compromise and nuance.” “We’ll see if the minimum wage ordinance has a negative effect on business, and if it does we’ll have to adjust,” she said. One of two council members representing downtown, Goodman said the city’s economic engine requires “a safe environment where people feel comfortable working.” That’s why she supported additional funding for beat cops and Downtown Improvement District ambassadors in the 2017 city budget, “and that’s made a pretty big difference,” she said.
behind The Convention Grill, Hello Pizza and the France Avenue businesses for decades. “This is all very preliminary,” Nolan said. “There hasn’t been any discussion, much less any super-detailed study, of how to pay for something like that. “If it ever happens I suppose there could be some TIF (Tax Increment Financing), which the city uses here and there. And yes, it would be expensive, no question about that.” The takeaway from the conversations with both Nolan and Brian Schaffer, project coordinator for Minneapolis with responsibility for the Linden Hills SAP, is that there is no significant,
regular coordination of planning for the two sides of France at 44th — or really anywhere along the border. What common standards exist are essentially a reflection of residents’ tastes, which may be as it is supposed to be. Still, for a community business hub like 44th & France, an argument could be made that a fully coordinated plan might better manage architectural aesthetics, parking and traffic flow. Carlson’s five-story proposition may be a poker player’s opening move in a bargaining process. He may find (or know of) a way to make a smaller project financially viable. But the possibility exists that if the Small Area
Plan being drafted is too constrictive, a larger scale renovation of the district, with amenities appealing to most, may stall for quite some time to come. Carlson’s project and an upgrading of 44th & France may not be umbilically linked. But an infusion of cash has to come from somewhere. Is the neighborhood OK if, in the near-tointermediate term, little or nothing changes or improves at 44th & France? Schmidt gave it a moment’s thought and said, “If Carlson doesn’t build, someone else will. A five-story building isn’t the only thing that can be viable there. The neighborhood will be fine.”
Goodman. Submitted photo
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A11 FROM BIKE SHARING / PAGE A1
Dockless bike sharing started in China a few years ago and has more recently come to Seattle. The two primary dockless ventures in China have each received more than $1 billion in funding, Dossett said, with money coming from internet-related companies Alibaba and Tencent. “Their interest is in the mobile-payment system that they think everyone is going to use to access lots of things we don’t own,” he said. “… They think the bike is the leading indicator of that economy.” The new systems haven’t been without challenges, however. There’s been little thought about right-of-way management in China, Dossett said, leading to problems with bikes clogging sidewalks. There also have been concerns about the quality of the bikes and questions about how much companies are investing in bike maintenance. Still, Nice Ride leaders appear set on the idea. Melissa Summers, associate director of Nice Ride, said the availability of bikes would be a big upside of the dockless system, especially in low-density areas of the Twin Cities. “Every little business node can have bikes,” she said. The challenge, she said, will be figuring out what a dockless system looks like when it’s in balance.
St. Paul, the University of Minnesota and the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. The aim is to have the new contractor hire Nice Ride’s 35 employees.
New bikes in 2018
Irv Briscoe checks out a Nice Ride bike from a docking station at 100 Main St. SE. Nice Ride is looking for a vendor to operate a fleet of dockless bikes in Minneapolis. Photos by Nate Gotlieb
Matthew Dyrdahl, Minneapolis’ bicycle and pedestrian coordinator, said he’s focused on ensuring the rollout of a new system goes well. The new system could help the city reach its Climate Action Plan-designated goal of raising the bicyclecommute mode share to 15 percent by 2025, Dyrdahl added. Dossett said the dockless system represents a chance to have a broader conversation about the public right of way, given the potential for other transit-sharing services.
Unlocked with smartphone
Nice Ride operates 201 docking stations in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
Dockless bike-share systems utilize regular bicycles that have ring locks to immobilize the rear wheel. Smartphones are used to unlock the bikes, a technology often as simple as providing the user with an access code. The bikes cost $50–$200 per unit in China,
Dossett said, compared to the $5,000–$6,000 Nice Ride pays per bike, a cost that includes docking stations. It costs 15 cents per ride in China and $1 a ride in Seattle, he said. Nice Ride costs $3 per half-hour from the time the bike leaves the station. Users can also purchase 24-hour passes for $6 (plus an additional $3 per half-hour for rides over 30 minutes) and yearly passes for $75. Dossett said the new system would be priced competitively, although he wasn’t sure it’d be $1 per trip. Nice Ride would like the new vendor to continue to operate and maintain its existing bike-share system of 201 stations and 1,850 bikes for its useful life. The plan is to fully operate the existing system in 2018, Summers said, and phase it out through 2020. The organization plans on restructuring its board of directors to include public rightof-way owners, including Minneapolis and
Forum attendees on Sept. 7 appeared intrigued about the new proposal. One person asked about how the new system would serve St. Paul, and Summers said the new system would be good for serving lowdensity and farther-flung areas in St. Paul. One woman said the current Nice Ride bikes don’t work well for people under five feet tall. Dossett said the new system would better allow for adaptive bikes. Others asked how consumers would benefit from having just one vendor, noting Seattle, for example, has three. Dossett said he couldn’t say whether Seattle’s approach would be better than Nice Ride’s. He said a reason for a single vendor involves the fact that Nice Ride made commitments to the federal government when it bought its existing equipment, noting that the cities are the fiscal agents for that. He also referenced the taxi industry preUber and Lyft, saying there was a “race to the bottom” so companies could maximize their revenue. Dyrdahl said he’s not convinced one model is better than another. He added that the city is looking forward to seeing how Nice Ride’s proposed model works. He noted that more vendors would require consumers to download more apps, which could be confusing. Bike parking is the premier question in a dockless model, Dyrdahl said, noting that the most important thing is to keep sidewalks open. Suggestions to keep order include geofencing to create a virtual boundary for the bikes and using a ratings system to encourage positive behavior. Nice Ride was asking for vendors to return proposals by Sept. 22.
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A12 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
Minimum wage, housing barbs highlight mayoral forum By Nate Gotlieb / ngotlieb@southwestjournal.com
Tom Hoch took exception to a criticism from Mayor Betsy Hodges on affordable housing. Hodges and Jacob Frey traded barbs on the minimum wage. Nekima Levy-Pounds told of a downtown restaurant owner hiring a young man who was causing trouble outside his restaurant. Those were among the highlights of a Sept. 14 mayoral forum hosted by several Minneapolis business and marketing groups at the Radisson Blu hotel. Reporter Tom Hauser of KSTP-TV moderated the forum. The event featured the six leading candidates for mayor in state Rep. Raymond Dehn, Ward 3 City Council Member Frey, former Hennepin Theater Trust CEO Hoch, incumbent mayor Hodges, attorney and civil rights activist LevyPounds and filmmaker Aswar Rahman. Hoch said he was offended with Hodges’ comment that some of the “men” are running on housing proposals that she’s already working on. He said Hodges should have taken on affordable housing years ago. Hodges criticized Frey for talking to people about a tiered-wage system for tipped workers or promising them one. He later voted for a system with one wage. “Folks feel a little diluted, or, you know, feel like they’ve been lied to,” Hodges said. Frey responded that it was no secret he was open to a tiered-wage system. He criticized Hodges for coming out in favor of the minimum wage hike “on the eve of an election” this past December. “She did some political gymnastics, dropped a
Mayor Betsy Hodges, Nekima Levy-Pounds and Aswar Rahman. Photo by Nate Gotlieb
smoke bomb and then left that conversation for pretty much the rest of the time,” Frey said. Hodges said she was at the table on the minimum-wage question the entire time. Candidates also talked downtown safety, an issue highlighted by an early evening shooting Aug. 23 near 6th & Hennepin. Hodges said plans are already in place to make downtown more inviting during the day, noting investments proposed in her 2018 budget. Frey said he couldn’t comment on those plans, because Hodges had only released her budget two days before. Dehn addressed a previous statement about disarming cops, saying he’s not sure police
should carry guns all the time. He said cops do need to be armed in some situations, however, like when there’s going to be gunfire. Levy-Pounds said Minneapolis needs a solid community policing model and that there aren’t enough resources for people who are homeless. Hoch said he’d like at least 90 percent of residents and workers to say, “I feel this is safe neighborhood.” Each candidate appeared to support the minimum-wage increase, passed by the City Council this summer, except for Rahman, who said it would hurt minorities and immigrants. Hoch said the city would need to make a change if the increase doesn’t work out, while Levy-Pounds said she feels the increase doesn’t go far enough. Levy-Pounds suggested the city use vacant lots to provide people with home ownership opportunities when asked about affordable housing. Dehn suggested a bond offering, while Hoch said he’d start by addressing unmet capital-improvement needs for the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority. Rahman advocated for lowering property taxes. Frey and Hodges touted work that’s happened under their leadership, such as the increase in residential housing stock in Ward 3 and convening leaders from around the metropolitan region to work on housing issues. Asked about working to attract Amazon to Minneapolis, all candidates appeared open to a conversation, but several appeared slightly wary. Dehn said Minneapolis can’t “give away the
bank” while Hoch said any subsidy couldn’t be divorced from larger social issues. Hodges said she had called Minneapolis business leaders “to say, ‘How can we move forward all together?’” Frey said Minneapolis needed to be pitching a big vision. Levy-Pounds said there’s a larger question of why Minneapolis didn’t make a New York Times list of the best places for the new headquarters. Hoch closed by saying he’s focused on future vitality, while Dehn said Minneapolis needed to take “profound action.” Levy-Pounds said the mayor needed to have a solid vision for all residents, while Rahman said he felt the neighborhoods he grew up in are less safe and affordable because of the mayor’s office. Hodges said she’s been doing the work of “transformative change” by focusing on growth and “knowing” that inequities that are hindering that growth. She said she values collaborations with the business community and pointed to programs and initiatives such as the Green Business Cost Sharing program and the infrastructure and park improvements. Frey said people want to live in a dense and vibrant city, adding that he’s been part of a push to make that happen. He pointed to his work in helping to grow the North Loop and East Hennepin, noting affordable housing development and “near record numbers” of small and local businesses opening. “I believe that Minneapolis can and should be a world-class city, and we should not be afraid to take that next, big step,” he said.
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southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A13
Dateline Minneapolis
By Steve Brandt
Tracing the legacy of prejudice
F
or the past month, I’ve spent about an hour most days exploring the seamy past of Minneapolis. The work involves examining deeds that transferred property as the Mill City developed. Starting just over a century ago and continuing until not long before I was born in the early ’50s, many deeds excluded certain types of people from living in certain areas. It’s repetitive work, poring through thousands of digitized deeds flagged by scanning technology for potential racial exclusions. More than 270 volunteers like me, who are cooperating with the Mapping Prejudice Project, give the flagged deeds an eyeball test. Sometimes the term “white” in a deed turns out to merely be the name of a buyer, seller or the name of the subdivision involved in the transaction. More often, it’s an explicit racial bar excluding people from living there. So far, I’ve found 22 variations on these racially exclusive deed covenants. A more experienced researcher told me she’s logged more than 30. The wording can be as direct as this: “The premise shall never be owned or occupied by a colored person.” At other times, it’s more elaborate: “Premises hereby conveyed shall not at any time be conveyed, mortgaged or leased to any person or persons of Chinese, Japanese, Moorish, Turkish, Negro, Mongolian or African blood or descent.” Sometimes there are nuances that convey what a developer considers the proper role for people of color: “No persons other that of the Caucasian race shall use or occupy any building on said lot, except that this provision shall not prevent occupancy by domestic servants of a different race domiciled with owner or tenant.” Some days I race through the deeds, cataloging more than 20 in an hour for the type of exclusion, the location of the lot involved, the date the deed was executed and filed, its document number and the names of the seller and buyer. Other days I take more time. I wonder if Ida C. Nelson, Ulric A. Lefebvre, Louisa K. Vinz or Josephine Opsahl considered at all the exclusionary language in the deed they were receiving or the segregated city they were creating through their acquiescence. Most likely, given racial attitudes of the time, they considered the racial covenant to be just another way of protecting property values. I wonder at the amorality of the developers who subdivided their new blocks of land into lots with these restrictions. Were the people behind Seven Oaks Corporation, at Estates Improvement Corporation or Gerard and Kimball, Inc. true believers in racial segregation, or was racial purity in a subdivision merely a marketing ploy? The context for the racial exclusions suggests that non-whites were consid-
I wonder at the amorality of the developers who subdivided their new blocks of land into lots with these restrictions.
ered a drag on the value of one’s property. Racial exclusions often follow — and are less detailed than — other restrictions in the same deeds. Some restrictions govern the front yard setback. Others specify the minimum value of the house to be built if the property is bare land. Some require that a house be completed in six months or specify the allowable type of exterior materials. Others ban commercial use of the lot. Tarpaper shacks are typically prohibited. But the restriction that spells out perhaps most directly the mindset of the age is this one I found attached to a Golden Valley development: “That said premises shall never be occupied by a colored person or for any immoral purposes.” Although these past misdeeds horrify us in the 21st century, that’s what historians would discount as “presentism” — the judging of past actions by the values of the present. Castigating our forbearers lets us off the hook without forcing us to consider what our own actions might have been in such a benighted time. Would we have had the moral fiber to stand against the prevailing current of thought? Perhaps the better test for such smugness of hindsight is to consider what unpopular stance we know today to be morally right but hesitate to defend for fear of derision or retribution. Which is not to let the developers of an earlier city off the hook. With developers excluding people of color from certain areas of the city and lenders refusing to lend in redlined geographic areas, the possibility of home ownership and the areas where that choice could be exercised were sharply circumscribed. By consigning people of color to certain areas, ones with aging housing more likely to be slum-like, developers limited the available supply of housing for those people and also consigned those buyers to housing less likely to appreciate with the overall market. Given that a house is often a household’s biggest asset, that imposed an intergenerational penalty that’s a major factor in the racial wealth gap of today. If you’d like to join in this people-powered project of cataloging deeds, there’s more information and a tutorial at mappingprejudice.org. The project began as an effort to catalogue solely Minneapolis deeds, but the digitizing of the entire Hennepin County database of deeds for the period of study allows researchers to scrutinize beyond the city limits. The project began under the auspices of the Historyapolis Project at Augsburg College and now is being supported by the University of Minnesota as well. There’s already a dynamic map posted for Minneapolis that portrays visually how the use of racially exclusive deed covenants spread over time. So far they’re more prevalent in south Minneapolis than the rest of the city but more concentrated east of Interstate 35W than in Southwest Minneapolis. But not exclusively so. That’s largely a legacy of when different sections of the city filled in. You can zoom in to your block to see if racially restrictive covenants have been discovered there so far, although the work is far from complete. Or you can volunteer to help complete the work of making Minneapolis and Hennepin County the first jurisdictions to completely map their restrictive deeds.
Tom Hoch for Mayor DTJ 092117 6_#1.indd 1
9/15/17 9:25 AM
A14 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com FROM DACA / PAGE A1 Eduardo Calero sits with his children at City Hall Sept. 18. Activists on a bus tour met with federal and local offices to defend the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program. Photo by Michelle Bruch
last name printed. “We’re going to fight to the end. Something good’s going to happen. That’s what I keep telling myself. … I am trying to stay positive and just try to support other people like me.” Immigration attorneys say life has changed for their clients under the Trump administration. “There is more anxiety,” said Iris Ramos, an attorney with an office in Whittier. “I see a lot of people that are very panicked. They are afraid to leave their house. I see people that are afraid of even traveling domestically. I have people that are afraid to drive, that are afraid to talk to anybody. … Everybody is a target at this point, and that’s why everybody is so panicked.” Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) public affairs officer Shawn Neudauer said arrests have increased from the two years prior. Neudauer said agents are no longer working under Obama-era policies that prioritized deportation of undocumented immigrants with recent border crossings or criminal histories. “We cannot faithfully execute the immigration laws of the United States if we exempt classes or categories of removable aliens from potential enforcement,” states the new Jan. 25 executive order.
ICE and the Hennepin County Jail When asked if they felt uncomfortable calling 911, every hand went up at a recent meeting with Police Chief Medaria Arradondo, according to Pablo Tapia, who helped organize the meeting through Asamblea de Derechos Civiles. He said about 60 people met with the chief at Incarnation Church at 38th & Pleasant. “They were afraid,” Tapia said. “… We wanted to make the point across to him.” Tapia called the conversation a “good start.” He said the group discussed ideas for officer training and enhanced Latino outreach, as well as the potential consequences of entering the Hennepin County Jail for low-level offenses. “Once they take them in, they leave folks with the sheriff, and then the sheriff is talking to ICE, and that’s where the problem lies,” Tapia said. Existing policy prohibits Minneapolis police from asking residents about their immigration status. An officer who suspects an arrested person is undocumented may notify U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, according to the policy. “There is no sanctuary for criminals anywhere in Hennepin County,” Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek said at a March press conference. “The Hennepin County Sheriff’s office fully cooperates with Immigration Customs Enforcement and all of our federal law enforcement partners to the fullest extent of the law.” Neudauer said there are many ways ICE learns about illegal immigrants, including calls from the jail. “We act on actionable intelligence, so if somebody admits that they’re in this country illegally, then we’ll act,” Neudauer said. “If we check the jail’s records, and we know that there are foreignborn nationals, whether self-admitted or otherwise, if we have records on someone who we may have encountered previously, then we’ll run those names and try to identify the individuals
accurately before making any kind of decision about what happens next. We don’t do random, and we don’t profile or discriminate based on the way someone spells their name.” Everyone booked in the jail is asked for their place of birth and citizenship, according to the sheriff ’s office, but county officials do not investigate whether answers are truthful. Whenever inmates say they are not a U.S. citizen or born outside the U.S., the sheriff ’s office said it calls ICE. ICE can also access booking information through federal agencies. If ICE is interested in a particular individual, agents can request to speak to the inmate, and the Sheriff’s Office will notify ICE when the person is due to be released from jail. Inmates are handed off to ICE inside the facility. Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman has said the procedure is legal. Out of about 35,000 inmates booked in 2016, ICE expressed interest in less than 1 percent, according to the sheriff ’s office, and ICE picked up an estimated 50 inmates from the jail in 2016.
‘Doing the business of ICE’ The process has attracted critics that include Hennepin County Commissioner Marion Greene, who toured the jail. Greene said the sheriff’s calls to ICE go above and beyond what’s required by law. “It’s not as if ICE wouldn’t have access to this information. What’s different is that it’s drawing
Attorneys offered legal services at a forum attended by Congressman Keith Ellison and hosted by Navigate MN at Minneapolis Community and Technical College. Photo by Michelle Bruch
attention. Out of these 100 files, I’m going to look at this one, two or three,” Greene said. “… My observation is that Hennepin County tax dollars are being spent doing the business of ICE.” The sheriff’s procedure is not under the jurisdiction of the county board. Instead, Greene said the county is in the process of tweaking language to make it clear that county probation and human services staff are not interested in immigration status. Ramos said she tells clients to remember their constitutional rights. If detained, they have the right to remain silent and the right to contact an attorney, she said. If they are not under arrest, they can always ask if they are free to leave. Agents need a warrant to enter a home and conduct a search, she said. “Now, it’s more crucial than ever for us to be informed, because everything you say can be used against you in proceedings,” she said. ICE has visited community groups in the past year, including the Stevens Square Safety Committee last fall. ICE community relations officer Mary Hogan said she works as a line of communication to investigators and a point of contact for the public. “I’m a human who will pick up the phone,” Hogan said. Agents want all the information they can get about people who might be in violation of immigration law, she said, but agents do not share information about investigations in return.
The community response Minneapolis policy has taken a supportive stance toward immigrants, and the city is contributing to a local immigration legal defense fund. “It’s life-changing if you do not have representation,” said Ward 8 City Council Member Elizabeth Glidden. The City Council was scheduled to take up a resolution reaffirming support for DACA as this edition went to press. The resolution also stated city opposition to a wall between the U.S. and Mexico and a bill that would halve the number of green cards issued. The Minnesota Immigrant Rights Action Committee (MIRAC) held a press conference to urge passage of a “sanctuary platform.” The group called on Minneapolis to join cities like New York to fund attorneys for ICE detainees who don’t have the right to a government-funded attorney in the civil cases. The group also wants the Council to create a municipal ID available to all, press the sheriff to stop cooperating with
ICE, reduce immigrants’ exposure to ICE agents, strengthen tenants’ rights and allow noncitizens the right to vote in city elections. On the other side of the issue, some residents are lobbying against illegal immigration. Linda Huhn of Lowry Hill East is a member of NumbersUSA, a group that lobbies Congress for lower immigration numbers. Huhn said she has many immigrant friends, and she said the issue is not about race. Instead the concern is a larger labor pool that suppresses wage dollars, she said. She pointed to an article by Harvard Kennedy School Professor George J. Borjas that says a 10-percent increase in the number of workers with a particular set of skills likely lowers the wage of that group by at least 3 percent. “It is about respecting the law,” she said in an email. “… DACA is another amnesty and will only incentivize illegal immigration.” Immigrants are finding support from some community groups. Members of First Universalist Church helped raise nearly $2,000 for a family whose father faced deportation last spring, said Heidi Romanish, who works at the Center for Immigrant Justice. At a Lyndale neighborhood meeting last spring, Romanish urged people to patronize local businesses. Shops with an immigrant customer base, including Valerie’s Carniceria and Taqueria, report that business is slow. “People are afraid to go outside,” said co-owner Jaqueline Reyes, who said she’s seen a drop in customers ever since the election. “They’re afraid to come and buy stuff.” In the Lyndale neighborhood, staff noticed they weren’t seeing many immigrant and refugee members at meetings and events. They created a signup for volunteers to give rides. “We feel that there’s a lot of strength in the community being together,” said Erin Cary, education program manager and ESL instructor for the Lyndale Neighborhood Association. The Volunteer Lawyers Network is offering free help for DACA renewals 9 a.m.–1 p.m. Sept. 28 at Park Avenue United Methodist Church, 3400 Park Ave. S. Mariana said her DACA benefits would end in 2019, about the time she graduates from college. Given all the uncertainty, she and her mother have decided to save more money. “I’m not trying to worry too much about what is going to happen in the next six months. What’s my future going to look like? I’m honestly just trying to not think about it, because it is scary,” she said. “… Right now, I am focusing on the fall semester.”
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A15
New director leads environmental nonprofit in rebranding 2010 Southwest High School grad now heads Linden Hills Power & Light By Nate Gotlieb / ngotlieb@southwestjournal.com
There are plenty of hot environmental topics in Minneapolis, from plastic bags to organics recycling to renewable energy. New Linden Hills Power & Light Executive Director Forrest Theisen is helping his organization contribute to many of them — at 25 years old. Theisen, a 2010 Southwest High School graduate, took over as the non-profit community group’s executive director in April, after spending about five months on the group’s board of directors. He recently sat down with the Southwest Journal to talk about how he got involved with the group and what they’re working on.
Southwest Journal: What appealed to you about joining the organization? Theisen: It’s sort of my background and
interest. I guess you could say my interest in environmental consciousness developed when I was in middle school. I did several trips up in the Boundary Waters with YMCA Camp Menogyn, and so that was I think where my environmental focus really started. I’ve always been really interested in environmental activism and studied environmental studies in undergrad. And I think climate change is one of the most important topics that our generation is going to face, and so I really wanted to be involved.
Are you focusing on anything in particular? When I first got involved with the organization, one of the big things we were working on was the preemption bill at the state level. One of the things I did was go to the state legislature and testify against the Consumer Choice Act, as it was called. … We proved slightly unsuccessful, but we were glad they removed language about plastic bag fees. So now the city is trying to move forward with a plastic bag and single-use bag fee. (The City Council last month delayed an ordinance amendment on a 5-cent fee).
Anything else? One of our big programs right now is our Boomerang Bags program. It’s a reusable bag cooperative. We have sewing bees where we bring together volunteers from around the Twin Cities to sew wasted fabrics … into beautiful, reusable bags (on sale at Midtown Global Market, Heartfelt and the Linden Hills Farmers Market). Another thing we’ve been doing is just trying to get involved in what’s going on at the city. … One of those things more recently that’s come up is the Minneapolis parks Ecological System Plan. They’re currently in the outreach phase for that, and we’re hoping to be able to provide some valuable community input.
How does it feel to be an executive director of an organization at 25? You know, I think at first it was a little nerveracking. I was sort of forced to get over it pretty quickly, with having to testify at the state legislature as one of my first things. But everyone on the board has been really supportive, and, you
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Anything you guys in this next year are looking to do more of? I’m not going to give out all the details, but we are under a big rebranding and expansion process right now. Unfortunately, people will often associate (Linden Hills) Power & Light with either a utility or with Interfaith Power & Light, and so we feel that we sort of need to re-identify ourselves so that we can maintain our identity and not be confused with these other groups. And we also sort of want to be a more city-level actor. We love our community of Linden Hills, and we love our people there and how active everyone is, but there are bigger issues going on throughout the city. You know, Minneapolis has the worst racial disparities of any city in the country, and we want to be a part of that broader conversation in the city.
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Anything else you’d want to highlight? This year, we started a Climate Action Hero award (given to a community member and an elected official). The community member was Theresa Harich (a teacher at Lake Harriet Community School). She fights for climate change issues and tries to educate her classrooms on climate change. Our other Climate Action Hero was (state Rep.) Frank Hornstein, who has always been a champion of climate change and environmental issues. One of the other exciting things I will say is that we do have our community solar garden, one of the first community-based, communityled solar gardens in the state, for sure in Minneapolis, (that) is supposed to be coming up and going online this fall. … It’s a 110-kilowatt array, and so we have about 100 community subscribers. … We’re working with some great project partners such as Jamez Staples who has a new company where he is training disadvantaged youth and adults in solar installation.
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A16 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
Public Safety Update By Michelle Bruch / mbruch@southwestjournal.com
Investigators shut down sex trafficking at Nicollet Avenue apartment A 21-year-old man is facing sex trafficking charges following an investigation at the 3600 block of Nicollet Avenue. The charges in Hennepin County District Court allege that Lee Edward Smith Jr., a resident of the Folwell neighborhood, engaged in sex trafficking of three women between May and August. A tip about a Backpage.com ad that appeared to sell sex with a juvenile woman led investigators to a rental building at 3635 Nicollet Ave., according to the criminal complaint. According to the complaint: Police intercepted a man leaving the building Aug. 14, who said he paid $100 for sex at the residence. Police obtained a search warrant, arrested Smith and interviewed three women. One woman said Smith and his girlfriend helped arrange “dates” for her, taking half of her earnings and providing her with crack. Police viewed her phone and found that Smith had made threats of violence against her. The complaint said a second woman who reported up to five “dates” in a day appeared to have “cognitive delays and is likely a vulnerable adult.” The woman told investigators she “kept tel
A 21-yearold man is charged with three counts of sex trafficking at a Nicollet Avenue rental building. Photo by Michelle Bruch
ling him I don’t want to do it,” but said she was afraid of Smith, who threatened that he would come and find her if she left. A third woman who was reluctant to betray Smith said he made her post prostitution ads and perform acts of prostitution. A hearing in the case is Sept. 25. “A lot of us nearby were very angry,” said one Kingfield resident who declined to print her name.
She said some neighbors kept an eye on comings-and-goings in the building, providing photos, videos and license plate numbers to police. “It’s a great neighborhood. Kingfield has phenomenal neighbors. We’re diligent, we’re watching. I think that continued vigilance and people getting involved in the community really makes a difference,” she said. “… I’m glad that police stepped in, and I
wonder what the landlord did in response.” Landlord Aron Khoury said he’s owned rental properties for several years and never dealt with police action at his buildings before. In this case, he said he rented to a tenant (not Smith) with a criminal record last April. “This is the first time I’d relaxed my applicant criteria, and it was shocking to see the result of it,” he said. “… I live in the neighborhood. … That’s not the community that I’m looking to build.” Khoury said he wanted to give the tenant a fair chance at a housing opportunity, and the tenant’s behavior never made him suspect illegal activity. After this experience, he said he would think hard before renting to a felon, and would consider improving surveillance and security. He praised the Minneapolis Police Department for the quick response. “I assure you that I have every intention of finding future tenants that will bring a positive, safe and welcomed presence to the neighborhood,” he wrote in a letter to representatives of the Kingfield Neighborhood Association.
Man faces murder charges in Stevens Avenue shooting A Northeast Minneapolis resident is charged with second-degree murder in a shooting Sept. 9 on the 4500 block of Stevens Avenue South. Charges allege that Ernesto Fabian Anthony Rivera, age 40, spoke with the victim about stolen property on Stevens Avenue and subsequently began shooting
at him. The victim, Michael Edward Rekow, age 46, attempted to drive away but crashed into the Interstate 35W sound wall, according to the criminal complaint. Police reportedly found the suspect with the help of a passenger who was dating the victim, as well as a nearby resident’s video camera that captured the incident. The
video allegedly shows Rivera firing multiple shots into the vehicle, running from the scene carrying a dark satchel, and climbing onto a garage roof. He attempted to jump between garage roofs and fell, according to the complaint, and he left behind a sweatshirt he was wearing that contained a possible blood-like substance.
Officers arrested Rivera at a residence in St. Paul, according to the complaint, and found a dark satchel that belonged to the victim and evidence of cell phone communication between Rivera and the victim prior to the shooting. — Nate Gotlieb contributed to this report
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southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A17
A Green Line light rail train at Target Field Station. File photo
Met Council: Bids for Southwest light rail construction too high Rejecting bids would delay project at least four months, add to cost
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By Dylan Thomas / dthomas@southwestjournal.com
T
he new chair of the Metropolitan Council on Sept. 11 recommended that all four civil construction bids for the Southwest Light Rail Transit project be rejected, likely delaying the project at least four months and pushing the projected opening date into 2022. Four bids for the majority of construction work on the 14.5-mile extension of the Metro Green Line were submitted in August, ranging from $796.5 million to nearly $1.1 billion. All four bids were too high and also had “responsiveness issues,” according to a statement issued by the Met Council. “We don’t make this recommendation lightly,” Chair Alene Tchourumoff said during a Sept. 13 meeting of the Met Council. “I think we would not recommend pursuing this path if we didn’t think it was absolutely necessary.” The Met Council was scheduled to vote on Tchourumoff ’s recommendation at its Sept. 20 meeting, held after this edition went to press. The total project budget is nearly $1.9 billion, but Met Council Chief Finacial Officer Mary Bogie said the amount budgeted for civil construction work is not public data while the procurement process is ongoing. Project components accounted for in the bids included 153,000 feet of track, 29 bridges, two cut-and-cover light rail tunnels, six pedestrian tunnels, eight park-and-ride facilities and 15 light rail stations. The low bid came from a joint venture between Ames Construction of Burnsville and Kraemer North America, based in Plains, Wisconsin. Ron Ames, senior vice president and Midwest regional manager of Ames Construction, testified at the Sept. 13 Met Council meeting that his company “spent many, many hours and millions of dollars” assembling the bid, and asked for the opportunity to meet with the agency’s engineers for more information on where their bid fell short. “I would like to sit down and try to work this out,” Ames said. “It’s a big hardship for both companies and for our construction families that have been counting on this work to start.” Tchourumoff said Met Council engineers would work on “innovative cost-reduction strategies” before reopening the bidding
process in October. Bogie indicated that the updated bid documents would help the contractors zero-in on the agency’s target. “Rebidding will allow us to clarify responsiveness issues, as well as to address potential cost issues,” she said. Tchourumoff also acknowledged the risk in moving on to a second round of bids, saying there was “no certainty” they would come in lower. She said she discussed the plan with officials from the Federal Transit Administration on a recent visit to Washington, D.C. and was assured this “has happened in other regions.” “That was somewhat comforting to know we aren’t alone in dealing with challenges related to rejecting bids based on price and responsiveness,” she said. Under the new timeline, the Met Council expects to award the SWLRT civil construction contract in the first quarter of 2018. Construction would begin later that year and run through 2021, with the first passengers riding light rail trains between Minneapolis and the line’s southwestern terminus in Eden Prairie in 2022. Met Council Member Gail Dorfman asked during the Sept. 13 meeting if it was possible to make up some of the lost time during construction. “Probably” not, responded project manager Mark Fuhrman. The Met Council must still apply to the FTA for a $929-million grant expected to cover half of all project costs. As recently as July, the agency expected to submit its application in September; that date has been pushed back to the second quarter of 2018. Hennepin County is contributing the majority of local funds to the project. Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin predicted Met Council engineers would propose “fairly modest changes” to the scope of the SWLRT project. “We’re still in good shape in terms of the ability to apply” for the FTA grant, McLaughlin said, noting that federal appropriations have been made for several major transit projects about as far along as SWLRT. Met Council insists the project remains “highly competitive” for federal funding. “Nobody was more disappointed in a four-month delay in the state of Minnesota than I was,” McLaughlin said, adding: “That’s just the nature of the beast.”
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A18May A2 September 18–31, 2017 21–October / southwestjournal.com 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
REMODELING SHOWCASE
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DESIGNER ADDS NATURE THEMES TO CONTEMPORARY CONDO OA Design+Build incorporates old with the new
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cott Barsness has designed hundreds of homes, but only once did he visit the owners’ previous house for ideas to incorporate into their new home. That older, single-family house belonged to Phyllis Wiener and Shay Berkowitz, who were moving to a spacious, 1960s-vintage condominium along Lake Calhoun. They wanted a contemporary design for the condo, but they also wanted to incorporate the earth tones and nature motifs they loved about their old home. Barsness, a designer with OA Design-Build in Minneapolis, picked up on the nature theme and incorporated it into the contemporary look he designed for the couple’s new home. The condo had fabulous views of the lake and the trees surrounding it, but inside, it was dated and bland. “There was nothing charming about it,” Wiener said. She and Berkowitz wanted to maximize those lake views and open up the living space for socializing and everyday living. They had OA remove most of a living room wall to access the view from the adjacent bedroom’s window. That bedroom now serves as a combination den and guest room, with barn doors that slide shut for privacy. To add light to a dark corner, the company designed and installed an inverted, L-shaped window in the wall that separates the den from the foyer, lightly frosting the glass for guests’ privacy. OA also employed metal, tile, earth tones and flowing lines to bring the nature theme indoors. Beginning with the fireplace surround and resurfaced walls in bathrooms, small blue ceramic tiles were cut into circles and squares to form river-like patterns that cascade down walls and puddle onto floors. Subtle shades of green and yellow cover the living area walls, with muted orange on the barn doors and primary colors
In another industrial-loft touch, Barsness used the tops of acetylene tanks as shades for the pendant lights that hang above the seating areas at the kitchen counter. Photos courtesy OA Design+Build
popping from the kitchen tile backsplash. The couple also had the contractor remove walls that separated the kitchen, dining and living rooms, creating sight lines to the lake throughout the entire living area. Still, the couple wanted some definition for the dining room. For the entry from the foyer, they had Barsness design a pair of wooden hutches with storage doors below and open shelves above, supported by threaded industrial
rods. In another industrial-loft touch, Barsness used the tops of acetylene tanks as shades for the pendant lights that hang above the seating areas at the kitchen counter. The kitchen has plenty of rollout storage within the custom, rift-cut red oak cabinets, maximizing otherwise dead corner space. Barsness even made use of a shallow section of wall that separates the refrigerator and the hallway, installing four-inch-deep, floor-to-ceiling shelves
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REMODELING SHOWCASE for more pantry supplies and enclosing them with a secret cabinet door. Rather than install a utilitarian vented door from the hallway to the utility room, Barsness designed a door with panels of anodized aluminum, laser-cut into the shapes of trees. To save actual trees, the couple chose reclaimed red and white barn oak for the floors throughout the living area, and lightly planed, reclaimed timber for the fireplace mantle. In the master bath, the couple chose to replace the tub/ shower combination with a walk-in shower. They commissioned custom alder cabinets and selected a black granite trough sink to rest atop the quartz counter. With so much detail designed and built into their new home, one might think they had several months to plan. But Weiner and Berkowitz had little time between selling their house and closing on the condo. “We wanted this to be fun, and it was,” Wiener said. “There was a lot of creativity.” Barsness and fellow designer Kayla Vig laid the colorful tiles custom-made by BonTon Tile of Golden Valley on the floor in different configurations to come up with the kitchen backsplash design. Barsness also suggested dark tones for the existing white window frames. Wiener didn’t
Subtle shades of green and yellow cover the living area walls, with muted orange on the barn doors. The couple chose reclaimed red and white barn oak for the floors throughout the living area.
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think that would matter, but is happy she agreed. The windows now remind her of picture frames surrounding outdoor scenery. “There was a lot of trust,” Wiener said. “This was an amazing project, and Scott and Kayla are amazing designers. They helped us so much with all the concepts.” “Everybody who walks in here loves it,” Weiner continued. “What people say when they come here is, ‘This feels like you.’”
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OA DESIGN+BUILD Address: 3212 Hennepin Avenue South, Minneapolis Phone: 612-789-7070 Website: oadesignbuild.com Years in business: 23
In the bathroom, small blue ceramic tiles were cut into circles and squares to form river-like patterns that cascade down walls and puddle onto floors.
About Remodeling Showcase Remodeling Showcase is a paid series of profiles featuring local contractors in Southwest Minneapolis. The profiles are written by Nancy Crotti, a freelance writer.
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A20 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
By Nate Gotlieb / ngotlieb@southwestjournal.com
Governor to continue water quality series in Minneapolis Gov. Mark Dayton will continue his town hall meeting series on water quality Sept. 27 at the Minneapolis Urban League. Dayton plans on using the meeting to hear the concerns people have about the state’s water quality and ideas they have to improve it, according to a report. It comes as he promotes his initiative to improve water Minnesota’s water quality 25 percent by 2025. More than 40 percent of Minnesota’s lakes
IF YOU GO Water quality town hall When: 6:30 p.m.–8:30 p.m., Sept. 27 Where: Minneapolis Urban League, 2100 Plymouth Ave. N. Registration begins at 5:30 p.m.
and streams don’t meet standards for safe swimming, fishing or drinking, according to a state report. About 5 percent of the state’s lakes are infested with invasive species. About 43 percent of lakes in the sevencounty Twin Cities metro area do not meet aquatic recreation standards for fishing and swimming, according to the report. In addition, Mississippi River water no longer meets river life and recreation standards when it reaches the Twin Cities. “Without an ambitious, achievable goal, the quality of our water will continue to deteriorate,” Dayton said in a statement. “Minnesotans must set this goal now, and then work together to achieve it. I ask all Minnesotans to join me in finding solutions that will ensure our children and grandchildren inherit clean water to drink, swim, and
fish in. This is everyone’s challenge, and everyone’s responsibility.” The state would need to take “aggressive, yet achievable action” to meet the 25-percent goal, according to a news release. Action would help Minnesota meet its commitments to reduce phosphorus 12 percent by 2025 and nitrogen 45 percent by 2040 in the Mississippi River. The state’s water quality is expected to improve only 6 to 8 percent by 2034 without additional action, according to the release. Hundreds of people have attended seven previous town halls in greater Minnesota, according to media reports. Dayton has participated in small-group discussions at the events, which have also included state commissioners. The “25x25” plan would not add new regulations, according to the news release. Instead
it would “drive public engagement and partnership” to address water-quality challenges. Dayton has already proposed several initiatives to improve water quality, including spending $214 million to support local government efforts to reduce nutrient pollution and protect sensitive groundwater and drinking water. In January 2017, he signed an agreement to provide $350 million in federal funding to Minnesota farmers, while working to protect waters across the state. Dayton has also proposed water quality buffer aid payments for farmers, a waterinfrastructure funding program and a pointsource-implementation grant program. Registration for the town hall begins at 5:30 p.m., and the event will start at 6:30 p.m. Visit https://mn.gov/governor/ issues/25by25mn/ for more information.
City releases zero-waste plan draft Minneapolis on Sept. 7 released a draft of its zero-waste plan, a roadmap for the city to achieve its overall sustainability goals. The plan identifies strategies the city can take to collaborate with residents, businesses, nonprofits, commercial haulers and other stakeholders to reduce waste and minimize environmental impacts. It was developed with the idea that reducing waste is most preferable, followed by reusing, recycling, organics recovery, burning waste and then landfill disposal. Mayor Betsy Hodges initiated the development of a zero-waste plan in her 2015 State of the City address. The City Council
established a goal in June 2015 to recycle and compost 50 percent of its citywide waste by 2020 and 80 percent by 2030. The draft plan identifies four highpriority strategies for reducing waste, including conducting regular waste sorts, allocating additional resources for education and outreach, establishing sustainable program funding and promoting source reduction and reuse. Specific strategies include restructuring the current garbage and recycling fee structure, requiring businesses and apartments to develop written waste-reduction and diversion plans and requiring garbage haulers to achieve
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greater levels of waste reduction and diversion. City staff was holding a series of engagement sessions for residents and business sessions in the two weeks after the draft was announced. They stressed that the plan was simply a playbook for action, not a guarantee the city will implement any specific actions. An implementation plan will get drafted next. The hope is to get the plan approved at the City Council’s Nov. 3 meeting, Council Member Cam Gordon said at a Sept. 14 engagement session. Residents can provide feedback on the plan through an online survey, which can be found at minneapolismn.gov/mayor/ZWM/index.htm.
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southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A21
By Eric Best / ebest@southwestjournal.com
Park Board to finish vision for Sheridan Memorial Park A third round of improvements will complete the Northeast Minneapolis park
Park commissioners recently approved a concept plan to complete Sheridan Memorial Park in Northeast Minneapolis. The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board’s Planning Committee voted Sept. 6 to approve the concept plan developed by Damon Farber Associates. The park, located just upriver from Broadway Street Northeast, will get a final round of improvements over the next year that will add amenities like a playground, half basketball court, volleyball court, park shelter and restrooms. The $1 million in improvements will build out a currently vacant west end of the park, which opened in 2014 with the large, spherical Sheridan Veterans Memorial and recently saw an extension of the Park Board’s bicycle and pedestrian trails along the riverfront. Under the concept plan, the site will blend art, children’s areas and nature-based play features. Given its proximity to the Northeast Minneapolis Arts District, there will be a sculpture made from reclaimed railroad lines and a stone, radial sand pit made in the park. For young kids, the playground will have seesaws, swings and a water play system. For older children, the plan features a climbing wall, slides and a tightrope, among other recreational activities. The Park Board will fund the project with
The next wave of improvements at Sheridan Memorial Park features natural play areas for young kids. Image courtesy Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board
a $500,000 grant from the National Park Service’s Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership program, which it is matching with money from the Minnesota Parks and Trails Legacy Funding. District 1 Commissioner Liz Wielinski,
who represents the area, said the park will serve a growing community with children, new immigrants and residents coming for newly built apartments. “The neighborhood is really excited to see this. This will be the completion of the only
park in the Sheridan neighborhood,” she said at the board’s Sept. 6 meeting. The park is just one of several projects the Park Board is working on along the Northeast Minneapolis riverfront. “I think this will be an amenity that will help to highlight the work we’re doing on the river,” said President Anita Tabb (District 4) at the meeting. A few blocks downriver from Sheridan Memorial Park, the board is planning to restore Hall’s Island just offshore from the Scherer site and north of the Plymouth Avenue Bridge. The board is planning to redevelop the mainland site into a destination park and has sought a private partner to develop a portion of the property to support park functions. At the same meeting, commissioners approved a $3.6-million contract with Veit & Company for construction work related to the island restoration. If the contract is approved by the city and other agencies, reconstruction could begin this winter. The first phase is expected to take up to eight months. The Park Board plans to award a construction contract this winter and build the improvements next spring and summer. The park is slated to open around the end of the summer next year.
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A22 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
City audit finds gaps in police body camera use Minneapolis police officers are activating their body cameras significantly less than department policy requires them to, according to the findings of a city audit. Officers activate their cameras for about two-thirds of all dispatches, according to the Sept. 19 report, far below the 100-percent rate required of them. Officers are also supposed to keep the body cameras powered on for their entire shifts and keep them activated until an event concludes — two areas in which officers appear to be falling short. The new data came two months after the fatal shooting of Fulton neighborhood resident Justine Damond by Officer Mohamed Noor. Neither Noor nor his partner, Matthew Harrity, recorded the incident on his body camera, prompting outrage from community members and public officials. Then-interim chief Medaria Arradondo instituted a new body camera policy about two weeks after the shooting that required activation for all dispatches. The new policy allows for deactivation in limited situations, such to protect the identity of an undercover officer, but generally covers every incident. The policy appears to be generating more raw video footage. About 71 percent of dispatches had a corresponding body camera video in the month after the audit, up from 65 percent of dispatches in the month before. Videos for use-of-force events increased from 74 percent in the month before the audit to 91 percent in the month after. On Facebook, Mayor Betsy Hodges wrote that the new policy was “seeing results,” but added that there was still “work to do.” Hodges wrote that she’s proposed funding in her 2018 budget to expand the body camera program to all MPD personnel.
Other public officials didn’t appear to think the outlook was as positive. Ward 13 City Council Member and Audit Committee Chair Linea Palmisano agreed the increase in videos was a move in the right direction, but she questioned the quality of those new videos. Many were categorized as “nonevidence/general recording.” Palmisano also questioned why over half the videos categorized as “training” had been mis-categorized. The police department is required to keep those videos for just 90 days, compared to at least one year and as many as seven years for other categories. Palmisano also stressed a need for greater accountability for officers who don’t follow the policy. The body camera policy says employees who violate it are subject to discipline, up to and including termination, but doesn’t lay out specific levels of discipline for any offenses. The audit did not cover disciplinary actions. “We’re not going to get this program where we need it to be if there’s no consequence for not recording proper footage,” Palmisano said. City Auditor Will Tetsell, who presented the audit to Palmisano’s committee, criticized the mayor and the police department for not ensuring robust enforcement of the policy. Tetsell praised the rollout of the camera program by the department’s Business Technology Unit, but he said no one has followed up to ask if the cameras have been effective. “This is put in place for public officials for votes,” Tetsell said. “The only thing that’s benefitted is MPD and the city for collecting evidence.” MPD supervisors should at a minimum have been reviewing video, Tetsell said, adding that the department is developing a
Park Board requests 4.1-percent levy increase
process for doing so. He said his department will work with the MPD on how they’re going to respond to the audit findings. Dave Bicking, of the group Communities United Against Police Brutality, said accountability was the biggest problem with the body camera program. Bicking said it was discouraging to see 31 percent of use-of-force incidents were mis-categorized after the new policy went into effect, up from 14 percent. He said it was discouraging to see how many videos — about 25 percent — were missing the 30-second portion that cameras are set up to record before the officer activates them. Cameras only capture that 30-second portion if they are turned on before the incident. Videos without that period indicate that the cameras were not turned on before the event, which would be in violation of MPD policy. Cameras are supposed to be powered on for an officer’s entire shift. Bicking said discipline will prove to be the biggest challenge if the city is serious about improving the program’s accountability. He said very few officers have been disciplined for any policy violations over the past five years. He added that officers could have a valid case if they file a grievance for being disciplined, since so few officers have been disciplined for the same offenses. “The only thing they can do is say from here on out it’s a new deal,” Bicking said. “... They have no means of enforcing this (policy) without creating a tremendous change in the culture and the management.” — Nate Gotlieb
The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board is requesting a 4.1-percent property tax levy increase for 2018. Commissioners approved a resolution Sept 6 requesting the Board of Estimate and Taxation set its maximum property tax levy at $62.2 million, up from $59.7 million last year. The request includes a 4.2-percent increase to its park and recreation levy to nearly $60.5 million from $58 million and a 1.2-percent increase to its Tree Preservation and Reforestation Levy, which would see an additional $20,000 under the request. The special levy, which funds the board’s efforts to build out the city’s tree canopy, did not see an increase last year. The request continues a large jump in funding for the city’s park system after the Park Board and City Council passed the 20-Year Neighborhood Park Plan last year. The 20-year initiative directs $11 million annually toward maintaining Minneapolis neighborhood parks. The levy increase accounts for increases in the minimum wage. The City Council’s plan for a $15 minimum wage will begin to phase in next year with a $10 minimum wage for large businesses on Jan. 1 and $11.25 and $10.25 wages for large and small businesses, respectively, on July 1. Minnesota’s minimum wage will also increase next year by 15 cents to keep up with inflation. The Board of Estimate and Taxation is expected to set the maximum property tax levies on Sept. 27. Superintendent Jayne Miller will present her 2018 budget on Oct. 18. Commissioners will vote on the budget in December. — Eric Best
News
By Michelle Bruch / mbruch@southwestjournal.com
Planning Commission approves apartment project at 3100 W. Lake St. The City Planning Commission approved a ninestory design for a 200-unit apartment building at 3100 W. Lake St. The approval follows more than a year of discussion between the developer and neighborhood group to find a compromise design. Several people who spoke at the Planning Commission said they were pleased to see the arrival of higher-quality “Type 1” construction. The project would include 185 enclosed parking spaces. The Cedar-Isles-Dean Neighborhood Association voted “not to oppose” the project, saying that height precedents in the area would be reasonably respected. Traffic and construction issues remain a concern for some neighbors. Bob Corrick, chair of the Cedar-Isles-Dean Land Use Committee, said the neighborhood has seen success in negotiating lower heights, but issues like traffic and construction methods aren’t well resolved. “This is the fifth project in about 12 years. …
This kind of density has an impact on the neighborhood,” Corrick said. “… It seems that the city process and the city ordinance does not give the neighborhoods very much voice on these kinds of issues.” Leo Zabezhinsky, a Loop Calhoun Condominium Association board member, said the Loop’s opposition does not lie with the design, but rather with the potential for more damage to their building. The Loop sustained $1.8 million in damage from construction-related vibrations next door at 3118 W. Lake St., Zabezhinsky said. The Loop asked for a formal commitment to non-vibratory construction methods, monitoring during construction and a plan for how to handle any damages. The developer and homeowners association could not reach an agreement, he said. “We don’t want our building to be damaged. We don’t want to sue them. I don’t think they want to be sued. But as it currently stands, unfortunately we don’t have anything that gives our 122 homeowners the comfort that what
happened with Trammell Crow won’t happen again,” Zabezhinsky said. The developer has met with nearby homeowner associations, and provided a letter of intent to limit impacts to nearby buildings. Commissioners voted to allow a nine-story height inside the Shoreland Overlay District, a district that requires projects to meet certain conditions in order to rise above 35 feet. Planning Commissioner Scott Vreeland said the building fits into the context of the street, but he voted against the project over height concerns. “This is a lot taller than 35 feet,” Vreeland said. “I really want to remind folks that the Shoreland Overlay District is an important piece of our city being as great as it is.” He said the 35-foot height limit aims to mimic tree heights and provide a more natural aesthetic. In response, Commissioner Sam Rockwell compared Lake Calhoun to parts of the Downtown riverfront and Loring Park, which are more urban in nature.
East Harriet Fall Fest and annual meeting is Sept. 23 The East Harriet Farmstead Neighborhood Association is hosting a familyfriendly Fall Fest on Saturday, Sept. 23, featuring food and beer from Harriet’s Inn, live music, face-painting and a bouncy house. Information booths will include the Bakken Museum, voter information, Our Streets MPLS (formerly the Minneapolis Bicycle Coalition) and the Hennepin County Master Gardener program. A $3 charge covers unlimited kids’ activities. The annual meeting runs from 11 a.m.–noon, and the event continues until 4 p.m. on West 41st Street between Lyndale and Aldrich.
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 A23
News
By Nate Gotlieb / ngotlieb@southwestjournal.com
Building improvements continue at Washburn Minneapolis Public Schools has wrapped up most of its construction at Washburn High School, though one final project is slightly behind schedule. The district was originally aiming to finish the final project, which will include five new science classrooms and six single-gender bathrooms, by August 2018. However, it has encountered a delay with the city’s zoningreview process that will affect the construction schedule, according to Planning and Design Manager Laurie McGinley. McGinley stressed that the district is committed to moving forward with the additions. It won’t be able to get the general contractor on board as early as expected, however, which could delay the project-
completion date. The project will be the last of several in the past few years at Washburn, which has seen a surge in enrollment over the past seven years. The district added six classrooms at Washburn in summer 2015 and created three more in summer 2016. It also converted six special education classrooms into general education classrooms this past summer, as the school’s developmental and cognitive disabilities program moved to Southwest High School. Other building improvements this past summer included renovations of the locker rooms and weight room and the creation of a new attendance office near the front entrance. The district also replaced of every
MPS hosting welcome back powwow Sept. 29 Minneapolis Public Schools will host a welcome-back powwow Sept. 29 at the North High School football field (1801 Fremont Ave. N.). The event will feature several grand entries, intertribal dances and a meal. It is free and open to the public. Powwows are social gatherings that originate with certain societal dances, according to Miskwa-Mukwa Desjarlait, who works in the district’s Department of Indian Education. He said a parent committee had the idea of hosting the powwow this fall in place of a welcome-back gathering. Native Americans suffer from historical trauma that’s created mistrust between Native communities and public schools, Desjarlait said. He said the district’s sponsoring of the powwow was a step in the right direction in creating a better perception. “There’s headway being made (but) still a lot of work to be done,” he said. The powwow will feature grand entries at 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. and a meal served at 5 p.m. Contact MPS Indian Education at indianed@mpls.k12.mn.us or 668-0610 for more information. Visit lakeharriet.mpls.k12.mn.us/uploads/ powwow.pdf to see an event flyer.
single light bulb at the school. The five new science classrooms will go over the school’s band and choir wing. Already, the summer’s improvements appear to be having positive effects. No longer are certain music classes holding sessions in the hallways. And all science rooms have running water, something several of which were previously without. The district budgeted about $10.5 million for the final project at Washburn and about $5.7 million for the work completed the past two summers. It received $150,000 from a Hennepin County youth sports grant program to remodel the fitness center and install new equipment.
MPS proposes 7-percent levy increase Minneapolis Public Schools is proposing to increase its levy by 7 percent for the 2018– 2019 fiscal year, the maximum allowed by the state. The levy would increase about $13.5 million to about $204.5 million under the
district’s proposal, which won’t become finalized until December. A levy pre-certification vote was scheduled for the School Board’s Sept. 19 meeting. The levy would generate approximately 24 percent of the district’s total funding for
2018–2019. The levy provides funding to pay for existing annual debt service and allows for funding to pay legacy costs such as the Minneapolis Employees Retirement Fund. Most of the increase, about $11.5 million, would go toward the district’s debt service.
Two dozen named National Merit semifinalists Two dozen high school students in Minneapolis were named National Merit semifinalists last week, including 12 who attend public schools in Minneapolis. The list included six students from Southwest High School, four from Washburn High School and one apiece from Roosevelt and South high schools. One student from DeLaSalle earned the honor, as did two from Minnehaha Academy and nine from Blake. The students were among the approximately 16,000 recognized as semifinalists. They have an opportunity to compete for about 7,500 National Merit Scholarships
worth more than $32 million that will be offered next spring. About 90 percent of semifinalists are expected to attain finalist standing, and about half of the finalists will win a National Merit Scholarship. About 1.6 million 11th-graders in more than 22,000 high schools entered the 2018 National Merit Scholarship program by taking the PSAT. The semifinalists represent the highest-scoring students in each state, approximately one percent of students.
LIST OF RECOGNIZED STUDENTS FROM MINNEAPOLIS SCHOOLS Blake School Yasmina Abukhadra, Jack Barker, Nicolas Barra, Ravi Chepuri, Joel Jude, Janet Kang, Sean Leblanc, William Pannell, Sneha Sinha DeLaSalle Daryl Yap Minnehaha Academy Alexander Cheng, Daniel Stein
South Anna Mulhern Southwest Campbell Goff, Isabella Gold, Nicolas Graber-Mitchell, Andrea Kloehn, Peter Kronebusch, Keegan Robinson Washburn Lily Endo, Julia Morse, Luke Peichel, Patricia Thorson
Roosevelt Elizabeth Neuhauser
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Southwest Journal September 21–October 4, 2017
East Town is one of five areas highlighted in the Explore Downtown Living tour. Photo by Dusty Hoskovec Photography via Minneapolis Downtown Council
DIVING INTO THE
DOWNTOWN HOUSING MARKET Would-be downtowners can find a new home through Explore Downtown Living
By Eric Best / ebest@southwestjournal.com
Explore Downtown Living draws suburban residents — and even downtowners — into exploring new residential properties. Photo by Irv Briscoe/VON91 via Minneapolis Downtown Council
Jessica Milkes is on the front lines of a growing downtown housing market. Milkes, a leasing manager at 222 Hennepin, the building that includes the downtown Whole Foods, is the co-chair of a taskforce that organizes Explore Downtown Living, an initiative from the Minneapolis Downtown Council to get people into residential units downtown and, ultimately, grow the city’s urban population. Over the past two-and-a-half years, Milkes said the program has grown exponentially, with roughly 4,000 people — many of them from nearby suburbs — walking through participating properties about 16,000 times. SEE EXPLORE DOWNTOWN / PAGE B6
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 B3
g n i n i g a m I d n a l s I t i r i p S Andrea Carlson’s new project meditates on a lost Mississippi River landmark By Dylan Thomas dthomas@ southwestjournal.com
A
ndrea Carlson’s latest public art project picks up on themes in a previous work you may have seen as it shuttled between Minneapolis and St. Paul earlier this year. Carlson had been impressing Twin Cities gallery-goers with her spectacularly detailed, panoramic drawings for years before this spring, when she was commissioned by Northern Lights. mn to create a full-color wrap for a light-rail vehicle. The piece, which included native imagery and phrases celebrating the importance of water in both Dakota and Ojibwe, traveled up and down the METRO Green Line to mark Northern Spark, Northern Lights.mn’s annual all-night arts event. Carlson, who is Anishinaabe, debuts another major public art project in late September at the Upper St. Anthony Falls Lock and Dam. Along with Aaron Dysart, she was one of two artists chosen work with the recently decommissioned lock. The lock closed to navigation in 2015 as part of a plan to block invasive carp from traveling further up the Mississippi River. The closure ended 52 years of service for the lock, which opened Sept. 21, 1963. For a few hours after sunset on Sept. 29 and 30, the lock’s nearly 50-foot-tall walls will serve as a massive movie screen for “The Uncompromising Hand,” Carlson’s animated meditation on the history of Spirit Island, which was quarried and dismantled over seven decades, in part to widen the river channel for barge traffic. Carlson spoke with the Southwest Journal about the project two weeks before it went on view. The interview has been edited and condensed.
Southwest Journal: How did you first learn about Spirit Island? Carlson: I went to undergrad at the University of
Minnesota in art and American Indian studies, and someone had mentioned to me that there was an island that used to exist right off of the Stone Arch Bridge on the Mississippi River. So, I looked it up and found a few pictures of it,
and ever since then — that was probably in 2000 — every time I go across Stone Arch Bridge I look for it. I don’t know if that makes any sense, but I look in the water and I try to imagine it in the water. My initial proposal for the project was to project onto the water where it used to be, its footprint, or to make something where we could all visualize my fantasy, my 17-year fantasy, now. They wanted to use the lock and dam, though. It’s part of that decommissioning of the lock and dam, is to utilize the space publicly — pretty much making the lock a gallery. So, I changed the proposal to projecting maps and Ojibwe, Dakota and English texts scrolling across the wall, and then images of Spirit Island and all of its different forms, because it changed over the years.
What did you learn about its significance to native communities that lived in the area? Well, we’re on Dakota land. Minneapolis and St. Paul is Dakota. The Ojibwe arrived later through our Great Migration, but it was ahead of white settlers. When white settlers moved in — westward expansion — it put pressure on a lot of tribes to push their territories westward, so the Ojibwe pushed into the Dakota land. That’s why there are reservations in Minnesota, and that’s why we have so many Anishinaabe people in Minneapolis. Like my train wrap project that I also did with Northernlights.mn and Northern Spark, (this is about) bringing two sides together, the Dakota and Ojibwe, in our solidarity. I’m not necessarily trying to tell the story of Spirit Island but just bring up and acknowledge that it exists, and we have this shared history of losing sacred spaces due to the hand of industrialization, due to just trying to wrangle nature — as westward expansion did to everybody, to ourselves and the natural spaces. The island was finally slowly quarried and dredged because the boats needed a straight shot to the lock and dam, and the island was in the way. When the
island was cleared out, it made for a deeper trough in the river for the boats to get through.
In your project proposal, you cited a Jan. 7, 1900 Minneapolis Tribune article about the island disappearing by the “uncompromising hand of man, to make room for the (paddle) wheels of progress.” What did you learn about how early Minneapolitans viewed Spirit Island, or did they even think of it much at all? There are stories about eagles that nested in the trees on it and stories of people who would canoe out to its sandy beaches. People would canoe out to the sandy beach and have a picnic lunch on Spirit Island. You think about that, how people have memories of this place that is no longer there, and it’s not just native people. It’s people from Minneapolis at that time. Now, I’ve never seen the island. I think it was fully taken out by the mid-’60s. That’s pretty late in the game. They started taking pieces of it in the 1880s or 1870s. They started destroying it then, but it took decades for them to fully commit to destroying the island.
You also wrote in your proposal, “It is important that this film not be understood as lamenting the past.” What did you mean by that? This might just be a nuance of my politics, but oftentimes whenever you bring up people of color or natives, especially natives, we’re supposed to be in the past. We’re supposed to be at the end of the trail, on a horse, riding off into the sunset, like that (James Earle) Fraser sculpture (“End of the Trail”). We were supposed to have accepted our demise and gone away, but we survived. And so, a lot of people, they don’t know what to do with that. Our lives past survival just become tragic. It’s just kind of a lamenting. It’s always that we’re at the receiving end of the abuse of the settlers. I see that we have these things, we have these examples of (screw) ups of the past where we totally do something wrong. We can use that, and we can charge it to our future. We did these things, and they weren’t terribly good, but we don’t necessarily have to push that into our future.
‘THE UNCOMPROMISING HAND’ Where: Upper Saint Anthony Falls Lock and Dam, 1 Portland Ave. S. When: Sept. 29–30, 8 p.m.–10:30 p.m. Info: parkconnection.org/events
B4 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
Creative Class
y t i v i t C r ea : e t a n r a c in
By Susan Schaefer
THE ECONOMIC IMPACT OF THE CREATIVE ARTS IN MINNEAPOLIS ASTONISHES. Estimated at over $4.5 billion in sales, or eight times that of Minneapolis’ sports sector according to the 2015 Creative Vitality Index (CVI), an economic measure used by the city, it has earned our region a lofty place as a national creative mecca. Behind such stunning statistics toil humans whose creativity and innovation fuel this so-called creative class, dubbed by author Richard Florida. Frequently laboring for the sheer love of their craft, many visual and performing artists, directors, inventors and innovators produce from an inner creative core more likely fueled by passion than personal gain. These makers are marked by an almost holy drive to create – and when their artistry and intent collide, it often yields something extraordinary in its wake.
Photo by Susan Schaefer
MEDITATION ON MELISANDE CHARLES, 1931–2017
I
only met Melisande Charles four years ago, but with Melisande Charles it is not the years of life shared but the life packed in those years that forged a relationship. It will be impossible not to speak of the incomparable, undaunted, irrepressible embodiment of “heART to the bone,” Melisande Charles, in the present tense. This tsunami of creative talent and sheer ZEST for the POWER of ART to CHANGE the WORLD, literally kick-started Minneapolis as a hub of creativity, an art vortex from which our infamous creative index spawned. Yet, as her daughters playfully posted on 9/1/17 in a Facebook that has been ablaze with testimonials for this one-of-akind woman, “Melvis has left the building.” Melisande B. Charles, aka Melvis, Melisan, Mey, Millie, shed her earthly robes at the beginning of September, leaving the metro area arts community in profound grief mingled with a requisite celebration of a life that was the incarnation of a maker marked by a holy drive to create, whose inner core, as I speculate in the recurring preface to this column, was fueled by passion rather than personal gain. Far from it, in fact, she was an indefatigable mentor to many. The indelible mark that Charles leaves on our creative community cuts a wide, broad and deep swath across disciplines and media. She, herself, was an arts executive, muralist, clothing designer and self-professed trauma survivor. Most would say thriver, not survivor. A transplant, Charles explains in an online 2015 oral history that she “arrived on Earth June 28, 1931.” Her father came from Holland when he was twenty and met her mother in Los Angeles. They married at the start of the Depression. Her father, then a composer at a movie studio, lost his job and sent Charles and her three sisters to live on a five-acre ranch with an aunt so her parents could find work in New York City. The children lived on the ranch for a while, eventually joining their parents in New York City. Atypical for the times, her parents encouraged her artistic flare, and after training at the Brooklyn City Art School as a teenager, Charles joined the Brooklyn Art League and by age 19 was already at the Brooklyn Museum. She spent her subsequent formative years studying mural painting in
Mexico, where she married and had three daughters, Rachel, Alexandria and Justine, who lives in Minneapolis and also works in the arts. Charles’ return to the United States was marked by tenure as the executive director for a New York art center where her groundbreaking work with area schools resulted in student gallery shows. Back then, this type of exposure was highly innovative, and with a reputation for creating community art participation, Charles was recruited to become the first executive director of the nascent Minneapolis Arts Commission. The mark she left on individual artists and on the overall tone and tenor of Minnesota’s arts legacy cannot be overstated. The Minneapolis Arts Commission is a seventeen-member city-appointed body that represents the arts community of the city. Charles arrived in 1974 as the commission was being chartered as a formal organization in the Minneapolis Code of Ordinances, with a responsibility “to foster development of the arts; to stimulate participation in and appreciation of the arts by all city residents; to encourage cooperation and coordination between artists and the various arts; to seek financial support for the arts; to act as an advocate for the arts before private and public agencies; to strive for high standards of quality in the arts; and to represent the arts whenever possible.” Its singular mission is to strengthen the arts and enrich cultural life in Minneapolis. A more apt executive than Charles could not have been found to take the reigns of the early commission. Reminiscing about the early days, she wrote, “I came to Minneapolis to be executive for the arts commission for the city. We mounted a laser show on top of the IDS building. The problem was that people came into the city and turned all of the lights on in the building so on the first night we couldn’t see the lasers. The newspapers called me a fraud. The next night, though, was perfect for the laser show. Creating a web of light was one of the more exciting things I ever did!” Charles’ tribe of fiercely loyal aficionados could easily contest this last comment. One of her greatest enthusiasts is himself a renowned art impresario in the Twin Cities, Jack Becker,
co-founder of Forecast Public Art. In a heartfelt testimonial written shortly after Charles’ passing, Becker describes the impact Charles had on his career, his life. “When I graduated as a sculptor from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design (MCAD) in 1976 my goal — like most art school grads — was to get a gallery, score a museum show, land a commission, and maybe move to New York because that’s where serious artists go to get established,” he wrote. While none of these things happened right away, Becker chose to stay “in the arts mecca of the Twin Cities, hang around MCAD, and continue networking with former classmates, who “evolved into a club that met weekly in hopes of doing some kind of exhibit project” on their own. “At one of our planning sessions we realized we all had some level of interest in postcards; collecting cards, making customized ‘art cards,’ etc., so we decided to organize a postcard exhibit,” he continues. The group posted flyers around the school and invited others to join in the project. Then, at one of their meetings, “a woman none of us knew came into the room, sat in the back, and observed our excited discussion. After an hour or so she raised her hand, and I called on her. In a soft, lilting voice, clearly not from Minnesota, she said, ‘Hello, my name is Melisande Charles, and I have 6,000 postcards.’ Of course we were elated, and the show went forward with renewed energy.” At the time Charles was the director of Minneapolis Arts Commission and in the process of securing federal funds to launch a CETA program that would hire 60 artists in the region. CETA, the Comprehensive Employment and Training Act, was a decentralized federal jobs program administered from 1974 to 1981 by local city and county agencies all over the country that, like the Works Progress Administration before it, funneled many hundreds of millions of dollars to visual and performing artists. “She encouraged me to apply for a job in the program. Soon after, like some kind of Horatio Alger fable — thanks to my modest role in organizing a fun little postcard show in the college cafeteria,” Becker became Gallery Director for
City Art Productions, “with a desk and phone at City Hall. The only catch, was that there was no gallery. The city, Melisande explained, is my gallery, and I was charged with organizing exhibitions of CETA artists at places like the library, the government center, parks, plazas and other public venues.” For a “27-year-old art pup,” Becker states this was a very empowering experience. “With Melisande as my mentor, I learned how to work the telephone and get things done, make connections and open doors that I never imagined I could open.” She was “an outspoken, pioneering artist and entrepreneur with New York City hutzpah,” who saw in the young man an ability he had not yet spotted. Becker’s experience as a protégé is but one of countless accolades being widely circulated after Charles’ death. Her legacy as a creative connector is legend and became the core of Becker’s artistic practice. “City Art Productions was my graduate school,” he explains, “and led to the formation, less than a year later, of Forecast Public Art. About 35 years later, Melisande competed against dozens of talented Minnesota artists and won a $50,000 grant from Forecast for her ambitious, multi-year project: Post Offices: An Endangered Species. (https://vimeo.com/149049600) It was a fullcircle moment, one that filled my heart with joy,” he concludes. It was during this brilliant Post Offices project that I met and was captivated by Charles via yet another of her adherents, local multi-media artist, Candy Kuehn. Most of my interactions with Charles have been of the personal rather than the professional kind. Outings to the State Fair, art exhibitions and long, leisurely dinners and outdoor barbeques at the home of Kuehn and her husband, Craig Harris, also a multi-media performing artist, gave me deep and private insights into the dynamic and fearless inner world of this true arts pioneer and elder stateswoman. Saddened that I never knew Charles during her vibrant leadership years, I nevertheless was privileged to bask in her kinetic illumination that had never dimmed in spite of many hardships. Minnesota’s creative scene will briefly dim in reverence, then shine brighter to honor her legacy.
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 B5
FEELING THE SQUEEZE Years of tight supply in the housing market may be taking its toll
By Dylan Thomas / dthomas@southwestjournal.com
The storyline on the Minneapolis housing market has been locked in place for years, now: strong sales, short supply, rising prices. “I feel like a broken record,” said Cotty Lowry, president of the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors, or MAAR. “It’s always the same story: Nothing to sell and multiple offers.” While there are no strong signals that shoppers are ready to give up, there are some indications the intense competition spurred by this tight housing market — particularly for first-time homebuyers — is starting to wear. “There’s no question about that,” Cotty said. “It’s psychologically exhausting to keep trying.” As of August, the median sales price in Minneapolis was up 12.1 percent from a year earlier, to $250,000, the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors reported. Minneapolis homes spent just 40 days on the market on average, an 11.1 percent decline from August 2016, and the market had just 1.9 months of supply, down 13.6 percent from a year earlier. The greater Twin Cities market registered an all-time record earlier this year when the metro area’s median home sale price hit $257,000 in June. Home prices in the 13-county metropolitan area have risen for 66 straight months, or five-and-a-half years, according to MAAR. “Inventory is still tight, sales still strong, which of course means rising prices,” said
David Arbit, MAAR’s director of research, economics and policy.
Decline in sales Recent declines in home sales indicate the tight supply may be discouraging some potential homebuyers. Metro area closings are up for the year, but the market posted declines of 1.2 percent in July and 1.4 percent in August. That’s not enough data to declare a pattern, Arbit said, but several more months could signify a shift in the housing market. Interest rates on the average 30-year fixed mortgage are still under 4 percent, the economy remains strong and rents aren’t dropping, so the decline in closings could point to another factor. Shoppers just aren’t finding what they want. “It seems to be we’re just not able to find what we’re looking for in this really tight environment,” Arbit said. That leaves first-time homebuyers stuck between a rock and a hard place — a tight housing market and climbing rents. A report from the University of St. Thomas Shenehon Real Estate Center indicated metro-area home prices are rising faster than income growth, a trend that, if it continues, could push homeownership out of reach for some potential buyers. But rents are rising, too — at a rate of 4.8 percent in 2016 — squeezing that same group of potential buyers even more tightly.
Pace picks up Realtor Michael Hartung of Exit Realty Metro said competition for homes is particularly strong in Southwest and Northeast, two coveted Minneapolis markets. “Most listings are getting multiple offers on them,” Hartung said, adding that “sellers definitely like having this advantage.” In August, sellers on average got more than asking price in six of the 11 Minneapolis regions tracked by MAAR: Camden, Longfellow, Nokomis, Northeast, Phillips and Powderhorn. Homes in Southwest went for 98.1 percent of listing price, and homes in the Calhoun-Isles area went for 95.8 percent of listing price. First-time homebuyers are typically shopping in the most competitive sections of the market, which means they have to be prepared to act quickly. “Our strategy is to go in with our highest and best offer with our first offer, not to negotiate for a better price up front,” Hartung said. Across the metro, homes priced between $190,001 and $250,000 are moving the fastest, spending an average 44 days on the market as of August, according to MAAR. By comparison, homes priced $350,001– $500,000 are on the market an average of 76 days, and homes over $1 million spend an average of 195 days on the market. Inventory was dropping across the board, MAAR reported in September. There were fewer than two months of supply for
homes priced at $250,000 or less. Experts consider a market to be balanced when there is around six months of supply, and as of August that balanced market only existed for homes selling in the range of $500,001–$1 million. Lowry said he held two open houses in August, one for a $1.1-million home on Lake of the Isles and another for a $649,000 home near Minnehaha Creek. Both attracted dozens of visitors, but no buyers. Outside of the first-time homebuyer market, the key to a quick sale is accurate pricing, Lowry said. While MAAR reports a year’s supply at the $1 million and up level, Lowry said he sold one such home in just 10 days this year because the price was right.
Expanding the search That kind of timeline — or faster — is the norm at the lower end of the market. Tre Adams, a first-year agent in Lowry’s office, said the pressure is encouraging some first-time homebuyers to look outside the hottest neighborhoods and explore North Minneapolis. “Houses are going fast because it’s affordable,” Adams said. Hartung said he’s also talking to more buyers who are interested in North Minneapolis neighborhoods, which are just a fiveto 10-minute drive from downtown and remain relatively affordable. “Really, that’s the next big thing for Minneapolis,” he said.
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“They want to get out of their suburban home and live the downtown lifestyle,” she said. The Parade of Homes-style program, a one-day affair held twice each year, has attracted would-be downtowners while the area faces a tight housing market. The Exploring Downtown Living event on Sept. 23 will feature 23 properties, including three newly opened buildings: Encore in the Mill District, Maverick in the North Loop and 7West in Cedar-Riverside. Most of the housing is new and high-end because that’s where vacancies are. Even with an average downtown rent around $2,000 a month in these properties, she said, vacancy rates are at about 5–6 percent. The Minneapolis and St. Paul rental market is one of the tightest in the country, according to the latest index from the University of St. Thomas’ Shenehon Center for Real Estate. Though these properties are competing for residents, Milkes said Explore Downtown Living is really about selling lifestyles. The program splits the market into five areas — the North Loop, the Central Business District, East Town, Loring Park and Northeast — that all have something unique to offer potential residents, whether that’s “garden-style living” near Loring Park or a “lumbersexual” lifestyle in the North Loop. It’s all about how people feel when they walk in the door, she added. “We really try hard to reiterate that it’s not a competition [and] that we’re all in it together,” Milkes said. “At the end of the day, people are living in the North Loop.” To further welcome would-be residents into downtown, Explore Downtown Living works with local vendors to get them discounts at local restaurants and fitness studios to give them a taste of the lifestyle. “[Explore Downtown Living is] such an easy way to see as many properties and neighborhoods as you’d like, and the partner offers from different businesses make it a fun excur-
Approximately 4,000 people have gone on nearly 16,000 property tours across downtown Minneapolis as part of Explore Downtown Living. Photo by Dusty Hoskovec Photography via Minneapolis Downtown Council
sion through the city,” said Steve Cramer, president and CEO of the Downtown Council, in a statement. The program is part of the council’s effort to double downtown’s residential population by 2025. The work is well underway. Between 2006 and 2016, more than 9,000 people have moved to downtown, a population increase of 28.4 percent. The Downtown Council measures downtown’s current population at nearly 41,000.
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Even if Explore Downtown Living doesn’t win suburbanites over immediately, Milkes said they draw people who are curious about downtown who may now consider it a possibility. “It’s not about the immediate result. It’s about word of mouth,” she said. Next year’s participants will have more to choose from. Milkes said next spring’s Explore Downtown Living event will feature close to 30 properties.
Tight market continues to loom over downtown Following nationwide trends, the downtown real estate is continues to be a seller’s market with homes selling in about two months or less across the city’s central neighborhoods. This year, thanks to nice spring weather, the real estate market came out of the gates earlier than usual, said Joe Grunnet, founder of North Loop-based real estate company Downtown SEE EXPLORE DOWNTOWN / PAGE B7
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Explore Downtown Living organizer Jessica Milkes said they sell lifestyles unique to each downtown neighborhood, from Downtown East to Loring Park. Photo by Kurt Moses Photography via Minneapolis Downtown Council
FROM EXPLORE DOWNTOWN / PAGE B6
Resource Group. By early July, he said the market had slowed. “The spring market was the time this year. We’re coaching our clients to be prepared for the seasonality of it,” he said. Despite a dropping supply over the years, downtown neighborhoods have recently seen greater inventory and new listings, which are up 16.8 percent and 30.7 percent, respectively, compared to last August, according to the most recent update from the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors. This was the most apparent in the quickly growing Downtown East, which saw a 200-percent jump in new listings between this year and last year. An increase of closed sales followed, with 30 percent more year-to-date.
Prices remain strong overall with median sales price up 5.5 percent across the Twin Cities region, with the largest price gain in condos, according to MAAR. The median sales price for homes in Downtown East, Downtown West, Elliot Park, Loring Park, North Loop and Stevens Square-Loring Heights is up more than 9 percent year-to-date. Demand continues for downtown in part because the area is becoming more livable and vibrant, Grunnet said. More restaurants, retailers and healthcare services are coming to corners of downtown. “All those things make the fabric of the neighborhood,” Grunnet said. Despite new inventory, Grunnet said challenges remain for lower-income buyers and renters who can’t find affordable options.
With more restaurants have come more bartenders and managers who don’t make enough to live close to where they work. Grunnet said he’s working with developers to build new product that fills the void in the market. “That’s going to be the future,” he said. “[Affordability] is on the developers’ minds.” Grunnet said he sees challenges for young buyers who are uninformed about the market and what it takes to purchase a home. “Young buyers aren’t taking the time to learn about the buying process,” he said. The first step, he said, is to sit down with a real estate professional. For more market information, MAAR publishes monthly updates at mplsrealtor.com.
Explore Downtown Living participants get discounts at local retailers and restaurants. Photo by Dusty Hoskovec Photography via Minneapolis Downtown Council
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B10 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
CASHING IN ON SUPER BOWL WEEK Vacation rental sites brimming with offers for the big game By Nate Gotlieb / ngotlieb@southwestjournal.com
Midtown Phillips neighborhood residents Jade and James Patrick are hoping to rent out their four-bedroom house for the Super Bowl. Photo by Nate Gotlieb
Jade Patrick and her husband, James, had a pretty simple reason for listing their house on Airbnb for the Super Bowl week. “To make money,” Jade said. “It’s kind of in our nature to hustle, and this is a big opportunity.” Dozens more Minneapolitans appear to share the thought. Patrick’s ad is one of scores on vacation-rental sites advertising about the big game, which is about five months away. Those hosts could help ensure that all out-of-town guests have a place to stay for the Super Bowl on Feb. 4, which is expected to draw more than 125,000 travelers. More could come for the 10 days of events leading up to the game. “It’s exciting,” said Dan McElroy, executive vice president of the Minnesota Lodging Association. “We get to show off that this is a first-class destination.” McElroy said there are about 8,800 hotel rooms in Minneapolis and about 41,600 in the 10-county metro area. Those rooms will get tight for the Super Bowl, he said, adding that he’s worried about some hotels charging higher
rates and expecting longer stays of guests. He said people who need a room would be able to find one, though they may have to look further than Downtown Minneapolis. Still, Minneapolitans appear ready for the opportunity to rent their places. Jade and James Patrick note in their online ad that their three-bedroom house is only 1.5 miles from the stadium. They advertise features such as the “dark bamboo flooring” and “warm expressive paint colors” and amenities like a 54-inch flat-screen TV, wireless internet and washer and dryer. The Patricks had listed their house online once before this year, Jade said, and that was when they were on a five-week trip to Mexico. She said they probably will be sleeping on their couch this time around and sending their kids to a grandparent’s house. The Patricks hadn’t had a booking as of mid-September, but over 500 people had viewed the ad, Jade said. They had it list at $3,600 a night, noting that the house had four beds and could sleep six guests.
It’s a price that had fluctuated. Jade said they had started the house at $600 a night, but friends said that was too low. Then they posted it for $4,500 a night, but that didn’t get any interest, either. Ventura Village resident Maria Albares has her two-bedroom house listed on Airbnb for $3,000 per night. Albares notes in her ad that the house is less than a mile from the stadium and features amenities such as free parking, wireless internet, a small home gym and breakfast. “Since we live so close, we really don’t want to be here” during the Super Bowl, said Albares, who lives with her boyfriend, sister and two cats. She added that they have a couple of improvements they want to make on the house, including installing a gas stove, that they aim to pay for with the Airbnb rental. Albares had never listed her house on Airbnb before this year. She said she thought $3,000 a night was “insane” at first, but that she’s seen people in Minnetonka list
houses for more than that. She plans on lowering the price if there’s no interest and added that she hopes Minneapolis doesn’t implement new laws regulating Airbnb. Minneapolis city staff is working on draft language for a short-term rental ordinance, according to a spokeswoman. They are planning a hearing this fall. St. Paul’s Planning Commission has approved regulations to that city’s shortterm rental market, though their city council has not yet approved the changes. Craig Caffarello, who owns a vacation rental in the Armatage neighborhood, sounded wary about potential new regulations. Caffarello and his wife, Sarah, live in Chicago but are at their Armatage house once a month, he said. They’re looking to get a three- or four-night minimum stay for the Super Bowl. Their general nightly rate is $160, Caffarello said, but he’s expecting to be able to charge more, probably double the normal rate. Airbnb as a company is preparing for the influx of renters for Super Bowl week. The company last February announced an initiative aimed at doubling the size of its host community in Minneapolis to 2,000 from 1,000. It also said it planned on convening Twin Cities hosts to help them share best practices, offer hosts price tutorials and create a Minneapolis guidebook on the top places in Minneapolis. The company noted that the typical listing price in Houston during last year’s Super Bowl was just $150 and that even listings within close proximity to the stadium there were typically just $200. Airbnb reported dramatic increases in the number of people using the site during the Ryder Cup golf tournament last fall in Chaska. That included 2,437 guests housed in Hennepin County during the Ryder Cup week, which was a 144-percent increase over a typical week. Airbnb has a list of safety tips for hosts on its website, which include having insurance, setting guest requirements and completing a house manual. Visit goo.gl/3ExWrN to view the list.
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southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 B11
HOUSE TRADING Home swaps offer immersive vacation experiences By Michelle Bruch / mbruch@southwestjournal.com
Fulton resident Melanie Velasco and her husband are planning a trip to the Sea of Cortez. They’ll stay at a beachside family home “a little off the beaten path” that promises excellent whale watching. Their stay will be free. In exchange, the beachside residents are coming to stay at Velasco’s house in Fulton. The couple advertises their home for an annual fee through a global home exchange service. Velasco said it’s different than VRBO (Vacation Rentals by Owner), where renters don’t have any stake in the game. “There is mutual respect for the property. It’s not like renting. No money changes hands,” she said. “Some people even exchange cars or take care of a pet.” The free lodging allows families to take month-long sabbaticals and immerse themselves in a new culture, she said. Velasco typically seeks destinations where she can use her Spanish language skills, and she hopes to spend time exploring Spain. “It’s a lot of retired people who can get away for longer periods of time,” she said. Simultaneous trips are possible but more difficult to arrange, she said, particularly for Minneapolitans seeking a trip in winter. “You have to have somebody who wants to come to Minnesota,” she said. Sedona, Arizona resident Gary Bohn is one such person seeking a Minneapolis home in late December, in order to visit family over the holidays. In past years Bohn and his wife have stayed at a house near Minnehaha Creek. In exchange, they offer their Sedona four-bedroom home with scenic views, a pool and access to trails. Their first home exchange allowed them to visit the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. They’ve completed about 20 home swaps since then, staying in Costa Rica, the Virgin Islands, Florida, North Carolina, Los Angeles and Hawaii. “It’s a very inexpensive way to travel,” Bohn said. They typically exchange cars at the airport, so travel expenses are primarily limited to the flight. “We love it, it’s literally like picking up a
The owner of this Sedona, Arizona home wants to swap houses with a Minneapolis household over the holidays. Submitted photos
life,” he said. “We usually do car swaps too. To us the location is always more important than a big, beautiful home. We would rather have a modest house in a great location.” He said the increasing popularity of Airbnb has made it easier to swap homes over the years. The company HomeExchange.com said its membership has grown more than tenfold between 2005 and 2016, facilitating 138,000 exchanges in the past year. When Bohn meets friends who are skeptical of the idea, he explains that travelers are “all in.” “They’re in your home, you’re in theirs,” he said. “We’ve never had a problem. Every once in a while a wine glass gets broken.” By offering a home in sunny Sedona, Bohn said they often have their pick of worldwide destinations. But Minneapolis only has about 20 homes available for
+
exchange, he said. Seattle, by comparison, has about 200 available homes. “We could go to Hawaii anytime we want,” he said. “It’s harder to get to Minneapolis at Christmastime.”
Seeking a permanent swap One Excelsior resident is looking for a Minneapolis home to permanently exchange. Janet Malotky recently posted an ad to the Uptown and Lakes Facebook bartering group: “Home swap? $1 … Let’s trade houses!” Malotky explained that her kids are grown and she wants to downsize and move to the city, preferably to an older and interesting home near park space with a cook’s kitchen and enough yard for a small garden. She’s hoping to swap with a city family interested in Minnetonka schools, elbow room and
woods for kids to explore. “We want to move downtown,” she said. “We thought maybe there’s somebody who wants to do the opposite of us.” Malotky said she hasn’t found any responses yet but thought the ad was worth a try. A trade might work for someone who wants to sell a house without the trouble of listing it on the market, she said. Her $559,000 home features a kitchen design inspired by Julia Child’s kitchen in Provence, France, a sky-lit solarium and a hen house in a yard that backs into the Gideon Glen Nature Preserve. The property’s real estate agent, Woody Love, said he hasn’t seen many home swaps, but said the idea could catch on among people moving between phases of their lives. “It’s certainly happened,” Love said. “It’s hard to match people up in that way, but it’s not unheard of.”
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B12 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
Southwest Journal Poetry Project
Fall Poetry WHAT IS THIS?! Hurricanes batter the Southeast from Houston to Key West while fires and smoke engulf the Northwest from Seattle to North Dakota. Did we do something wrong? Fortunately, local poets are still engaging our finest transitional season with wide-ranging insights. This collection includes poems about autumn, can openers, Italy, Michigan, Tarzan and ducks. It also includes poems about poetry and (as always) love. Enjoy! — Doug Wilhide is the poet laureate of Linden Hills and poetry editor of the Southwest Journal
The swivel of soup spoons. The tongue playing across the silk of the upper lip. Feet crossed one over the other in an X of relaxation.
Tarzan In High Heels
Ode to Oxo Peggy Reinhardt
John O’Connor
Tarzan in high heels Appeared to me one morning Without a word of warning, And he had this to say: “Try it and see how it feels. Dude, you are too uptight. You are – dare I say it – too white. Pretend you’re funny – or gay.” Startled and slightly scared, And totally unprepared, I did my best to respond to his crazy views: “Most guys will not go out the door Until they put on something more Than a pair of women’s shoes.”
Oh, to open a jar of pickles! I search for you, handy helper of mine. There you are in a drawer not de-cluttered. You twist and turn and make me feel able: My strength in this everlasting age.
Oh, to blend, stir, and mix a cake batter! You are the bowl that really matters A handle, a lip, and a firm bottom grip. Gentle whisk, spatula and cake tester You hold a special place in my cupboard. Oh, to take a salad for a spin! You sit near my sink awaiting Water to wash spring greens. You’ve released me from that dreaded chore What ever did I do before you came in to my kitchen?
More with Less
Oh, to open a drawer of desire! No longer junk but a collection of tools. My fingers feel faint and caress — Can opener, corkscrew, tongs, and more. You’ve thought of me and what I need Your simple grip really has a hold on me.
Short poems are best requiring more be done with less to avoid, one hopes, an overwritten mess.
I weed between the sugar water and a hummingbird’s fierce desire. A mere breath of feathers, he sweeps in great pendulum arcs,
scarlet throat flashing wicked iridescence. I withdraw, no match for his massive irritation.
Laurie Lykken
Much like packing a small suitcase when we decide to fly someplace cheaply. A case that must fit beneath the seat where once we sought to keep our feet.
Elizabeth Weir
Wings thrumming, he pelts me with curses,
The smooth edge of plates. The circular swirl of washing and drying. Place the glass back in the cupboard.
Oh, to thinly slice a carrot! My fingers fear a slippery knife. Now I hold you, sweet mandolin, Sliding and gliding cukes and zucchinis Each slice a sweet sound of vegetables played.
Autumn Encounter
each time, hovering for a still second, before my face.
Nod of the head into yes, into no. Sway of the neck into way and no way. Cock of the ear listening, not listening. Drum of fingertips, snare of one nail snapped against another.
The Symphony of Ordinary Movement James P. Lenfestey
Reach for a glass in the cupboard. Twist the faucet. Work the knife on the plate against thin-skinned tomatoes.
This case will not hold everything that we think we need to bring requiring that we make do with less… like fewer socks and one less dress.
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 B13
Haiku
Map
Liz Loney
Melissa S. Anderson
Autumn stalks the edge Hovering, watching Home plate...the bat cracks…fly ball!
Standing in line at the hotel registration desk, I watch a man on the muted television over the bar, gesturing at a map.
Michigan Believe Lucille Gudmestad
Pulling dead grass out of my hair Thinking that people always say Keep faith Think big And leave room for miracles. They just might happen.
Miriam Moore-Keish
The one time I went to Michigan, it was Detroit and I could see Canada from my hotel window. I drove along the shore until the road turned and Canada stepped into my rearview mirror, where she and I saw the big-porched houses, saggy and dilapidated and bedraggled and other fourth grade spelling bee words that mean growing closer to gravity, listening to its whispers saying, “down. down. down.” Now when I think of Michigan I think of you and how you left Detroit, crowded so many places in your rearview mirror that Detroit could not fit. I do not think of the gravity Canada and I met when we thought about sitting on big porches like the one where I met you years later.
Butterfly Pieta Cunningham
Butterfly oww butterfly! come pass by my window fly on my finger and give me a kiss
No, I think of the gravity that clawed “down” into your skull until you gravitated toward the south and the mountains and the big porches where I sat on rocking chairs and waited for you to come home.
Morning Swim in Lake Michigan Doug Wilhide
It is a cliche to talk about sunlight on the water as a million diamonds between here and the horizon sparkling, dancing, instantly vanishing. But — now — throw your body into the lake and be fully, instantly, aware of the cold: uncompromising, thin almost as air, an uncaring world that envelops you… and suddenly diamonds on the water look feel taste even sound and smell, absolutely new, absolutely true.
Italy Annette Gagliardi
I wanted to put some earth in my journey — get down to the soil, dig up the loam, and till it some — plow and plant a little in the earth of my life to see what grows — I wanted to sow a new seed in the turf — to see if a better person could walk this earth.
This being North Carolina, he is focused on the mid-Atlantic region. I think he is reassuring us that the states here are stable, still fitting together in their puzzle-pieces way. He’s more concerned, though, about Pennsylvania and New York, which, it seems, might be loose in their sockets and in danger of slipping out of place. Florida and Georgia are apparently also showing signs of drift. I hope that my Minnesota is still securely snuggled up against Wisconsin and the rest. I wouldn’t want the pilot on the flight home to have to figure out where it had popped to. I’m writing about the map, instead of you, because I can’t arrange into words my astonishment that you have stepped into my life. sleep habits of two loring park ducks pam christian at rest beneath a low-limbed tree heads tucked into paunches so tight it looks like two speckled bellies have bills of their own he wears his cap shiny and proud loses no sleep to movement while she dresses down enjoys nonstop repartee in reverie or is she sleep-eating? nabbing unsuspecting winged things as they pass between her hard, flat lips.
Cliches have their place, too familiar to matter, but with their own kind of reality, condensed, like coal under pressure. I can tell you — in that moment — in the big lake — I saw silver, light-flashing diamonds all around me, signaling the sun and staking their claim: no horizon is ever the same.
Writer’s Block John O’Connor
A poet who lived in Pawtucket Was totally tempted to chuck it. “I put in the time, But I can’t find the rhyme. There’s nothing that sounds like Nantucket.”
ILLUSTRATIONS BY
B14 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
By Lisa Clark
Sweet memories at the market
F
SO
LD
or many of us, visiting the weekly farmers market is a connection to our past and the opportunity to relive it in our daily life. We may have fond childhood memories of collecting colorful fruit and vegetables from gardens, orchards or fields. This certainly holds true for me. Growing up in a small town, we had a large garden in our backyard that allowed for spontaneous sampling of carrots and snap peas as well as all the raspberries we could eat. Beyond the garden, there were family connections to fields of sweet corn and tomatoes at the ready for picking in fall. In addition to memories of such colorful produce, my family had the unique experience of having an endless supply of honey. Why? My grandfather was an apiarist. That’s right, he was a beekeeper. Our visits with him at his northwest Wisconsin country home included the rhythm of his beekeeping duties. Dressed in his protective white bee suit, he would make frequent visits to his hives, checking on the bees and tending to their needs. As the seasons turned, he would extract the clear golden honey in large stainless vats in his processing house. During those warm autumn days, all of us grandchildren would reap the benefit of chewing on as much sweet honeycomb as we wanted. Naturally, jars of honey would be gifts for
Kids explore an enclosed beehive from Pollinate Minnesota as part of the market’s educational programming. Submitted photo
our schoolteachers, which may or may not have helped with my grades! While you may not have a family member in the beekeeping business, a local beekeeper is as close as your neighborhood farmers market. Supporting beekeepers
by purchasing local honey direct from the producer helps them cover the costs of beekeeping. And you can enjoy the great flavors of local flora. As we all well know, our bees also play a crucial role pollinating the crops that fill our markets with the produce we eat. Dan Walsh of Walsh Ridge Farm is one such beekeeper who is a regular honey vendor at the Fulton Farmers Market. Along with the maple syrup and heirloom tomatoes he sells at the market, Dan started beekeeping with two hives six years ago, and has expanded to 20 hives on his acreage in nearby Wisconsin. Beekeeping was always a personal interest of Dan’s, and he decided to pursue this entrepreneurial endeavor after first learning as much as he could on his own and participating in University of Minnesota coursework. When asked what impresses him most about bees, Dan says he is simply amazed at “how they know what to do.” He is always fascinated with how effective bees are in communicating with each other and in sharing the division of labor. Just as bees thrive in a colony, Dan enjoys being a part of the community that the market creates for all to enjoy. So, consider picking up some honey at your next market visit. Fall is a terrific time to incorporate honey into your weekly menu. Give this recipe a try!
HONEY ROASTED VEGETABLES Adapted from Martha Stewart Ingredients 2 medium sweet potatoes (1 lb. total), peeled, halved and cut into ½ pieces 4 medium carrots, cut into ½ inch pieces 2 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into ½ inch pieces ½ cup walnut halves ¼ cup honey 2 Tbl. extra-virgin olive oil Course salt and ground pepper 3-5 sprigs of thyme
Directions Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Using a 3-quart baking dish, combine sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips, walnuts, honey and oil. Season with salt and pepper. Top vegetables with thyme sprigs and roast them until they are tender and browned at the edges, about one hour.
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southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 B15
Mill City Cooks
Recipes and food news from the Mill City Farmers Market
Cooking with Mediterranean herbs
O
mild flavor, marjoram pairs well with basically everything. My personal favorite is roasting sweet potatoes with rosemary, marjoram and garlic.
ne of the biggest barriers to cooking is the false belief that cooking only counts if you’re making elaborate, gourmet dishes. Some of the best dishes are simple! The best way to create a sense of variety and class, especially on a budget, is to use spices. Most of the Mediterranean herbs and spices blend easily with any sauces, soups and vegetables. You really can’t go wrong!
Sage Sage is one of the less used Mediterranean spices but the one that might spice up your cooking the most. It is very pungent and earthy and pairs well with poultry and cheese. Sage can also be cooked with a variety of vegetables but goes best with sweeter ones, such as beets, carrots or squash.
Oregano When we think of oregano, we picture tomato sauce and pizza. While the peppery and earthy flavor of oregano complements the sweeter taste of the tomatoes, it can also be used in more savory dishes that include fish, beans or stew. Oregano also pairs well with lemon.
Parsley and basil Parsley and basil might be the hardest herbs to separate, at least in my mind. Since they are used in comparable ways, I either avoid these herbs altogether or opt for one or the other at random. Parsley has a fresher taste while basil is flatter but bolder, peppery and slightly sweet. Although parsley works well in heavy foods, such as soups, stews and tomato-based sauces, it can be used to garnish curries, rice and fish. Basil is mainly used as a compliment to vegetables, such as peppers, tomatoes, and potatoes. It stands out as the main ingredient in pesto and works well in pasta, cheese or pork.
While this isn’t a complete list of herbs that are used in Mediterranean cuisine, these herbs will
provide a great base to start cooking using these new flavors, as will the simple recipe below for cauliflower rice tabouli. You can find fresh herbs at the Mill City Farmers Market throughout September and October as local farmers celebrate the fall harvest. Mill City’s Tuesday Night Market continues at The Commons park near U.S. Bank Stadium with a free concert from the Minnesota Orchestra on Sept. 19 and beer and wine for sale from Day Block Brewery on Sept. 26. Find more information about this market and the flagship Saturday market at millcityfarmersmarket.org. — Karlie Weiler
CAULIFLOWER RICE TABOULI Herbs enliven simple dishes. Submitted photo
Thyme, rosemary and marjoram All three of these herbs taste similar and can be used in the same sorts of dishes separately or in conjunction. Of course, there are subtle differences between the three: rosemary has a piney flavor, thyme is a little sweet and spicy and marjoram is sweet and mild. Overall, they all go well with meat and roasted vegetables. Thyme is used mainly for poultry, marinades and stews, while rosemary is best with beef, root vegetables and grilled anything. Because of its
Recipe courtesy of the Mill City Farmers Market Ingredients 1 large head cauliflower, stem and florets roughly chopped 1 bunch parsley, roughly chopped 2 cups diced tomatoes 1 bunch green onions, white and green parts, finely chopped
1 large cucumber, peeled and finely diced ⅓ cup olive oil ⅓ cup lemon juice ½ teaspoon salt black pepper
Method Pulse cauliflower and parsley in a food processor or blender until fine. In a large mixing bowl, combine cauliflower mixture with remaining ingredients. Add more oil, lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste. Place in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Enjoy chilled.
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B16 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
Get Out Guide. By Jahna Peloquin
‘PARALLEL’ For its fall exhibition, Light Grey Art Lab invited artists to visualize the landscapes, cityscapes, atmospheres and ecosystems of another universe for a celebration of story, narrative and world-building. The resulting collection of works, “Parallel,” explores new universes, parallel realities, alternate dimensions and futurist concepts as imagined by more than 60 artists. In tandem, the innovative art space is also showcasing a series of otherworldly works by Matt Rockefeller and Trungles (Trung Nguyen), both talented illustrators and comic artists who are exploring alternate worlds and reoccurring themes through zines and comic panels. This month, the gallery is also hosting the launch of a new book, “Then Now: Childhood Revisited,” in which industry veterans from the film, animation and illustration world were invited to reinterpret the imaginative, often bizarre artwork they made in their childhood.
When: Sept. 22–Oct. 21; opening reception Friday, Sept. 22 from 7 p.m.–10 p.m. Where: Light Grey Art Lab, 118 E. 26th St.
TWIN CITIES ZINE FEST In theory, the advent of the digital age should have killed off zines forever. But rather than dying, zines are as popular as ever — perhaps due to the desire to physically interact with content beyond the screen. A zine is typically a selfpublished work of texts and images not intended to turn a profit, with topics ranging from fan fiction and poetry to politics, intersectionality and social theory. In Minneapolis and St. Paul, the Twin Cities Zine Fest has been celebrating the art form since 2004 with a focus on “amplifying the voices of those who have been historically unheard” — namely minorities, immigrants, women and members of the LGBT+ community. Hosted by Minnesota Center for Books Arts, the 13th-annual edition features more than 90 zine makers exhibiting and selling their publications, plus workshops and educational presentations. The festivities kick off at a party on Friday, Sept. 29 with readings from six zine makers and comic artists (7 p.m.–9 p.m.).
When: Saturday, Sept. 30 from 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Where: Minnesota Center for Book Arts, 1011 Washington Ave. S. #100 Cost: Free Info: tczinefest.org
Cost: Free Info: lightgreyartlab.com
SAVION GLOVER AND ARCUS GILMORE From his beginnings as a tap prodigy under the tutelage of legendary tap dancers Honi Coles and Gregory Hines and his appearance on 1989 documentary “Tap,” to his Tony Award-winning 1996 show, “Bring in ‘Da Noise/Bring in ‘Da Funk,” Savion Glover is one of the few choreographers today who consistently redefine and radically expand their art form. Twin Citians have a rare opportunity to see the artist perform within the intimate setting of the Dakota Jazz Club in collaboration with virtuoso drummer Marcus Gilmore, an heir to jazz royalty as the grandson of iconic drummer Roy Haynes and a dynamic musician in his own right. The chance to witness two masters of rhythm play off one another is guaranteed to be a visual and aural treat.
When: Wednesday, Oct. 4 & Thursday, Oct. 5 at 7 p.m. & 9 p.m. Where: Dakota Jazz Club, 1010 Nicollet Ave. Cost: $35–$75 Info: 332-5299 or dakotacooks.com
FINNFEST This year, Finland celebrates the Finland 100, commemorating 100 years of Finland as a nation state. FinnFest USA, a national organization that celebrates Finland, Finnish Americans and Finnish culture, is bringing the centennial to Minneapolis, partnering with Minnesota Orchestra, the American Swedish Institute, Norway House, Cedar Cultural Center, VocalEssence and the MSP Film Society to host a series of special events. The film lineup includes five narratives and documentaries by acclaimed Finnish filmmakers, including “Eero Saarinen: The Architect Who Saw the Future,” a documentary of the life of iconic Finnish-American modernist architect; “Tale of a Lake,” a cinematic “poem” exploring the myths and legends rooted in Finland’s natural waters; and “Unexpected Journey,” a comedic road movie starring Finnish rap star Noah Kin. Other events include a “tori” (Finnish folk craft fair), panels, presentations, demonstrations and performances.
When: Sept. 21–24 Where: Various locations Cost: Various Info: finnfest.us
THE HAUNTED BASEMENT After a decade of scaring Twin Cities residents, the popular Haunted Basement has moved out of the Soap Factory basement. For its 2017 Halloween season, it will haunt a newly renovated historic warehouse in Northeast Minneapolis with its creepy, artist-created installations and costumed performers. Despite the new space, which is sure to offer new opportunities for frightful scenes, this year’s event promises the same kinds of “interactive experiences with thematic focus on absurdist psychological humor” for which it’s become known. The Haunted Basement’s signature combination of wit, attention to detail and legitimately scary experiences get an added oomph with Blind Invocation, a one-of-a-kind, solo blindfold experience, and a special Friday the 13th edition (Oct. 13). Also returning is the ’Fraidy Cat tour, which offer a lights-on, no-scares opportunity to explore the space.
When: Thursdays–Sundays from Sept. 29–Oct. 29, plus Oct. 18 and Oct. 31 Where: Building 9, 2010 E. Hennepin Ave.
Cost: $15–$40 Info: hauntedbasement.org
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 B17
OKTOBERFEST Break out those Lederhosen — it’s Oktoberfest time. For two weeks every fall, Twin Cities breweries and other venues host local versions of the popular Bavarian folk and beer festival. Red River Kitchen at City House: Enjoy Oktoberfest beers on tap from local breweries, German food and a gorgeous view of the Mississippi River during this celebration.
When: Sept. 23 from 11 a.m.–10 p.m. & Sept. 24 from 11 a.m.–9 p.m. Where: 258 Mill St., St. Paul Cost: Free Info: redriverkitchen.com
Mill City Museum: Take in the tastes, sights, smells and sounds of Germany with activities inside and outside the museum and at the Mill City Farmers Market.
When: Sept. 23 from 8 a.m.–2 p.m. Where: 704 S. 2nd St. Cost: Free Info: millcityfarmersmarket.org
Wicked Wort Brewing Company: The brewery hosts live entertainment from the World’s Most Dangerous Polka Band and others, woodfired pizza, brats and sausages plus Butcher Salt food truck; games including hammerschlagen; and $4 beer specials.
When: Oct. 1 from noon–midnight Where: 4165 W. Broadway Ave., Robbinsdale Cost: Free Info: wickedwortbrewingco.com
Bauhaus Brew Labs: This party features musical entertainment from the Brass Barn Polka Band and Viva Knievel; stein hoister and hammerschlagen; German brats, pretzels and potato pancakes; and a commemorative beer stein with three fills of Bauhaus’s German-style craft beer.
When: Sept. 30 from noon–11 p.m. Where: 1315 Tyler St. NE Cost: $30 general admission, $10 for designated drivers, children free Info: bauhausbrewlabs.com
Minnesota State Fair Progress Center: The Twin Cities Oktoberfest takes over the 120-year-old Progress Center, built in the style of a traditional German beer hall. Enjoy beer, wine, hard cider, German food, traditional German entertainment and games.
When: Oct. 7 from 4 p.m.–11 p.m. & Oct. 8 from noon–11 p.m. Where: 1621 Randall Ave., St. Paul Cost: $25 adults, $5 youth 13–20, kids under 13 free with adult Info: twincitiesoktoberfest.com
CROSSWORD PUZZLE ACROSS 1 Sales pitch 6 Outback birds 10 Sunup 14 Café lure 15 Clickable webpage word 16 Home to billions 17 Grass shortener 18 Apart from that 19 Slightly wet 20 Julie Andrews’ “The Sound of Music” role 23 Risk, e.g. 24 Healthful berry 25 Jimmy Fallon hosts it 31 “Homeland” spy org. 32 Taxi 33 Nebraska city 34 “Apocalypse Now” setting, familiarly 35 Gathering for fans of graphic novels, anime, etc. 38 Delivery vehicle 39 Painting need 41 Microwave 42 Valuable rock 43 Avengers member with a patriotic shield 48 Tolstoy’s Karenina 49 Dutch cheese 50 9/26/1957 Broadway debut featuring the consecutive songs found at the start of 20-Across, the middle of 25-Across and the end of 43-Across
59 Craving
12 Namby-pamby person
40 Secret supplies
60 Accelerates, with “up”
13 Midday snooze
61 Foolish
44 Add to text, as a missing letter
62 Military meal
21 Gas brand that had a torch in its logo
63 Cafeteria carrier
22 Florida’s Boca __
64 V-formation fliers
25 Pageant winner’s crown
DOWN
26 Exaggerate, as a stage role
1 “Casablanca” pianist 2 Formal school dance 3 Corn Belt state 4 Rise into view 5 Cattleman’s rope 6 Late morning hr. 7 Venus de __
27 Spanish island in the Mediterranean
46 Suitable for all ages, filmwise 47 Apple software for creating videos 50 See 55-Across
28 Devastation that’s wreaked
51 Omelet ingredients
29 Scarlett of Tara
53 Ready for picking
30 Decrease in intensity 31 “Closing Bell” channel
55 With 50-Down, tightrope walker’s place
8 Disentangle
35 Repetitive shout at a protest
9 Quick drawing
36 Required little effort
56 Oscar winner Kazan
10 Arp’s art movement
57 Aquafina rival
11 Right away, in a memo
37 Newspaper opinion pieces
Crossword Puzzle SWJ 092117 4.indd 1
45 Carpenter, at times
52 Prima donna 54 Toy dog’s barks 55 Play a kazoo 58 TV’s “Science Guy”
Crossword answers on page B18
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B18 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
Ask Dr. Rachel
By Rachel Allyn
Dating with an age difference W
hat are your viewpoints on younger men seeking to date older women? I’m a 24-year-old black male and I’ve been frustrated these past years with dating girls my age. They either lack maturity or consciousness or are constantly glued to their phones while on a date. I’ve been on multiple dates with mature women 10–20 years older than me, and more often than with younger women, I feel a connection and chemistry. However, many I meet are either married or divorced and looking to just have physical fun. Others take the free meal or drinks and use my age as an excuse to not commit. How can a man who feels intellectually deprived find his queen when he’s only attracted to women much older than himself?
S
ome might call you a “cub” or a “cougar tamer,” with cougar being the name for older women seeking younger men. Slang aside, my opinion is that there is nothing wrong with exploring what interests you. I support anyone choosing to be in less traditional relationships if that’s what appeals to them. It sounds like you want an older woman because you crave your emotional and intellectual equal (and you feel advanced for your age). You want a woman not glued to her phone, who can be present. Perhaps you want a woman who is established professionally, has financial stability and knows herself well. You want a woman like me. But seriously, there’s nothing wrong with desiring a person in a different demographic than your own. The heart wants what the heart wants. The same can be said for attraction, before love even kicks in. These are drives, and they shouldn’t be ignored because they are part of being human. Age is a number, but we’ve turned it into a construct. While there are scientific certainties connected to age — for example, the area of the brain responsible for impulse control, risk management and logical
thinking, among other things, is not fully developed until age 26 — there is wide variance in people’s level of maturity relative to their age. Age is not necessarily a reflection of a person’s intellect or emotional wisdom; there can be older individuals who are foolish just as there can be youngsters who are old souls. Often we date someone our age because of convenience. This is called the proximity effect. It refers to the idea that physical and psychological nearness to others tends to increase interpersonal liking. In other words, it is common for people to connect more with others — as friends or lovers — who are physically near, because it is most accessible. What this all means is you will probably need to go out of your way and work a little harder to find the women you are drawn to because they are less likely to be at
the same events and activities as you. Where are you trying to meet women? Are you looking for sophistication, so it can be mirrored back to you, allowing you to feel more worldly or refined in your life? Are you looking for a maternal figure? Keep in mind that if you want children,
The heart wants what the heart wants. The same can be said for attraction, before love even kicks in. These are drives, and they shouldn’t be ignored because they are part of being human.
those women 15-plus years older may already be past that stage. Are you choosing women who are unavailable because you like the chase? It’s not surprising that older women are cautious about committing to you because of your age, so prepare yourself to be patient as they build trust and see the ways you break the mold. Dating can always be an enterprise. Don’t assume the dating scenarios you’ve bumped up against will continue to happen; most likely you’ll continue to have a wide array of intriguing and random encounters if you continue to put yourself out there! Don’t be in such a hurry to be pinneddown. You’ve got plenty of time to find your queen. Keep riding the wave, stay true to yourself and notice what comes up for you to understand yourself better throughout this process.
1
#
JAMES OUTREACH PROGRAM
Residential & Commercial
Seeking monetary or in kind donations to help kids in need. Also looking for volunteers.
FREE Estimate
y Same Da Service
Contact James: (612) 296-0479 james.martin7266@gmail.com
1750 Lexington Ave (651) 488-3470
SERVICE QUALITY VALUE
s
(1 Mile S of 36 1 Block N of Larpenteur)
ROSEVILLE
CROSSWORD ANSWERS
James Outreach Program 092117 DTJ HBC.indd 1
9/18/17 3:37 PM
Q U A L I T Y
Locally owned and operated
Serving the Mpls and St. Paul Metro • Special Orders Welcome
MUST-HAVE HAVE BOOTS! HERS AND HIS HERITAGE BOOTS HERITAGE BOOTS FOR WOMEN Stop in to browse our selections.
S I N C E 1 9 8 5
675 $ 775 $ 995 $
Non-Insulated Insulated with Vinyl Backer Full 2” Thick, Insulated 2-Sided Steel
Windows & Removal/Recycling Old Door Extra. Special expires 9/29/17.
*
Belt Drive 1/2 HP Opener
Don’t forget to check out our men’s Heritage boots as well. 4
$
309, Includes Free Keypad LIMITED QUANTITIES
Mon-Thur 9:30-8:00 | Fri-Sat 9:30-5:00 | Sun 12:00-4:00
Red Wing Shoes DTJ 092117 9.indd 2
New Steel Double Door
Raised Panel or Carriage Installed
9/7/17 Crossword 8:43 AM Answers SWJ 092117 V12.indd 1
Crossword on page B17
WHY GREAT GARAGE DOOR • A+ Rated by BBB • Super Service Award • Certified by IDA • Since 1985 • 180,000 Happy Clients
Don’t Get Stuck with a $1,200 Service Call!
SAVE ON SERVICE
209 164
2 SPRINGS Replaced
$
2 CABLES Replaced
$
Sears/ Chamberlain Gear
$
S E R V I C E O N A L L B R A N D S
149
Minneapolis (612) 338-1262 • Edina (952) 939-9999 www.GreatGarageDoor.com
9/8/17 11:33 Great AM Garage Door SWJ 090717 9.indd 1
9/1/17 11:01 AM
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 B19
Classifieds LINE CLASSIFIEDS PROFESSIONAL SERVICES
EMPLOYMENT
YARD LADY / GARDENER Clean up, planting, seeding, weeding with care. Barb at 612-819-3934.
SPRING FORWARD HOME ORGANIZING
WANTED – PARTY KITCHEN ASSISTANT
Free consultation; references. 612-377-9467.
Need helper for Halloween party evening, October 14. Wage negotiable. Bev 612-822-6364
CERAMIC TILE AND NATURAL STONE Installation / remodeling / repairs. 35 years experience/references. Steve 612-986-6947.
HOME SERVICES
ANNOUNCEMENTS
SNOW REMOVAL - FREE MONTH
ROOFING
New contract customers only. PREMIER LAWN & SNOW INC. Now signing winter contracts: Get same-day snow removal all winter long! Over 25 years of quality service. 952-545-8055. premierlawnandsnow.com.
All roofing types installed and repaired, also flat roofs and gutters. Brad Hanson Construction Services, LLC. 25 years experience. Fully insured. BC314998. Call Brad 612-978-4499.
MIKE MOHS CONSTRUCTION CO.
EXPERIENCED BRICKLAYER
All types roofing/gutters. Siding, windows/skylights. Honesty and integrity for 50 years! Family owned, operated. Licensed, bonded, insured. #BC005456. Scott, 612-701-2209
Stone and pavers. Residential and commercial. References. 612-309-1054.
JOIN THE BAND! Musicians wanted; all ages/levels welcome. It's YOUR local community band! crosstowncommunityband.org
HELP US BRING JOY TO ISOLATED SENIORS WITH YOUR GIFT!
AFFORDABLE GARDENING Beautiful yard and garden at a more competitive rate. Weeding, trimming, planting, pruning. Minneapolis based. Experienced! 763-232-7745.
PAINTER JIM Small painting jobs wanted. Jim 612-202-5514.
GARDENING
REFINISHING FURNITURE REFINISHING, expert refinishing and repair. 40 years Experience, excellent references. Richard, 952-475-3728.
BEAUTIFUL GARDENS. Would you like to have more beauty in your yard? We will restore or expand your existing gardens. Experienced gardeners. beautifulgardens.biz. Call Linda 612-598-3949.
CONCRETE WORK
CLEANING
Steps, sidewalks, patios, driveways, etc. Licensed, bonded, insured. Call Tom Seemon 612-721-2530.
TLC CLEANING, LLC. Personalized cleaning. Earth- and Life-friendly products. Weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, one time. Reasonable rates, reliable, thorough, trustworthy, careful and detailed work. Pets welcome. 18 years experience. References available. Mary, 612-819-5277.
PLUMBING Athena Care Plumbing #63580PM. Serving Southwest since 1996. Recommended by Settergren’s Ace Hardware. Paul 612-558-2564. athenacare.com.
Gifts for Seniors provides donated gifts and life-affirming personal contact during the winter holidays and year round to isolated seniors in the Twin Cities metro area with the critical support of volunteers, donors, and community partners – people like you.
HOW TO HELP
PAINTING, LAWN & SNOW
Host a Gift Barrel Organize a Gift Drive Individual Shopping Find us on AmazonSmile
TINY SANDMAN’S Painting, Lawn & Snow Services for reliable and quality work. Interior Finishing. Free estimates. Michael 612-729-2018. tinysandman.com
CHIMNEY, CONCRETE, BRICK & STONE REPAIR No job too small. Call Andrew, 612-363-0115
giftsforseniors.org | 612-379-3205 info@giftsforseniors.org
LINE CLASSIFIEDS FORM | $1.05 PER WORD
Gifts for Seniors SPEC DTJ 2cx4.indd 1
8/21/17 3:03 PM
SUBMIT YOUR AD | email: ads@mnpubs.com | phone: 612-436-5070 | fax: 612.436.4396 | mail: 1115 Hennepin Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55403 HEADER 1
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BODY
Credit Card Number
Exp. Date
Name
Phone Number
POLICIES: — MUST BE PREPAID
— EMAIL IS ONE WORD
— MINIMUM OF 10 WORDS
— PHONE NUMBER IS ONE WORD
Address E-mail
NUMBER OF TIMES AD WILL RUN 4 times (minimum)
7 times
13 times (5% discount)
26 times (10% discount)
CATEGORIES (Check one) Animals Announcements Automotive Sales Business Services Child Care Commercial Real Estate Commercial Rentals Education Elder Care Services Employment Entertainment For Sale Health Home Services Legal Notices Leisure Merchandise Personal Services Real Estate Rentals Tax Services Web Servies Weddings SWJ 092117 Classifieds.indd 1
9/19/17 10:53 AM
B20 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
CONCRETE, ASPHALT
A.PIETIG
• PATIOS • STEPS • DRIVEWAYS
cole@urbanconcreteworks.com
Residential Commercial Industrial
The Original
QUALITY SERVICE Since 1949
CONCRETE & BRICK PAVING INC.
UrbanConcreteWorks.com Cole Montgomery • 612-202-1069
TO PLACE YOUR AD CALL KYLE AT 612.436.5072
Commercial & Residential
Brick Pavers, Masonry, Brick, Stone & Foundations
Garage Block Repair • Foundation Repair • Buckling Walls Sidewalks • Steps • Aprons • Wall Resurfacing • Wet Basement Repair
952.835.0393
Urban Concrete Works SWJ 031215 1cx1.indd 3/10/15 10:04 1 AM
612-824-2769 www.gardnerconcrete.net
apietigconcrete.com
MN# BC215366 • Bonded • Insured • Family Owned & Operated • Free Estimates
A. Pietig Concrete SWJ 071615 1cx1.5.indd 7/10/151 G8:50 Gardner AM Concrete SWJ 040716 2cx1.5.indd 1
4/4/16 11:30 AM
Parking Lots • Driveways Patching & Repairs
612-861-4243
Decorative concrete, steps, driveways, patios, sidewalks & more! 612-419-1056 americanconcretemn.com
612-861-6009
HAGECONCRETE.COM
Hage Concrete SWJ 090816 2cx3.indd 2
EXTERIORS
H & H Blacktop Services SWJ 040113 3/14/13 1cx2.indd 3:51 1 PM Concrete SWJ 040617 1cx1.5.indd American 3/28/17 2Alpine 1:39 PM Asphalt DTJ 052115 2cx1.5.indd 1
YOUR LAST ROOF.
SINCE 1983
quarve.com • (763) 785-1472
Rotten wood?
Get your home ready now for the cold & SAVE!
EVER.
9/6/16 10:41 AM
TO PLACE YOUR AD CALL KYLE AT 612.436.5072
5/8/15 2:10 PM
FREE ESTIMATES • Roofing • Siding • Windows • Gutters • Insulation
Veteran Owned and Operated
612.709.4980
Gary 612-721-3793 651-698-3156
chris@aimhighconstructionmn.com • 612-231-2182
Mn Bc 006016
Quarve Contracting SWJ 020917 1cx2.indd 2/6/172 Smith 2:32 PM Cole SWJ 071416 1cx2.indd 1 7/1/16 12:04 PM Construction SWJ 090616 2cx2.indd 1 Aim High
8/15/16 11:19 AM
LOCAL BUSINESSES
Remodeling & Addition Packages Fences / Decks / Garages
Window sills, casings & trim replaced, storm windows
MN License: CR686524
VETERANS RECEIVE A 10% DISCOUNT
SMITHCOLE.COM
Lumberyard of the Twin Cities
M-F 7:30am–5pm, Sat 8am-Noon 3233 East 40th St., Mpls / 612-729-2358
www.harmsenoberg.comHiawatha Lumber 1cx2.inddAN 1 4/12/17 TO NEW PLACE AD
ADVERTISE WITH US
Foley exteriors
3:28 PM
CALL 612.436.5072
Harmsen & Oberg SWJ 052115 1cx2.5.indd 5/18/15 110:17 AM
STUCCO
Free Estimates • 612-331-6510 • www.FoleyExteriors.com
Mike Mohs Construction
Foley Exteriors SWJ 041513 2cx1.5.indd 2
Honesty & Integrity for Over 50 Years • Since 1963 Call Owner Scott Mohs
MN License BC005456 4/8/13 4:36 PM Local Business 2cx1.5.indd 4
ROOFING – All Types GUTTERS
we’re the replacement window company!
FLAT ROOFING
– Rubber or Tin
WINDOWS & SKYLIGHTS
(952) 746-6661
DECKS & PORCHES
replacementwindowsmpls.com
612-701-2209 • mikemohsconstruction.com Mike Mohs Construction SWJ 050516 2cx2.indd 1
A+ RATING Lic BC441059
612-722-8428 ThompsonExteriors.com
Cedar
4/27/16 Window 3:26 PMOutfitters SWJ 052115 2cx2.indd 1
Thompson 5/18/15 10:03 AM Exteriors SWJ 081017 2cx3.indd 1
Custom Brick & Stone “Repair Masters”
Chimneys • Steps • Walkways Pavers • Fireplaces • Retaining Walls
LIC# BC007039
8/8/17 2:51 PM
Decks / Fences Garden Beds / Pergolas
www.twincitiesmasonry.com Owner Operated • Bonded & Insured
612.702.9210
612-729-2358 • M-F 7:30am–5pm, Sat 8am-Noon • 3233 East 40th St., Mpls
Friendly Professional Service
Hiawatha Lumber NEW 4cx1.5.indd 1
Imagine the Possibilities
Twin Cities Masonry SWJ 040617 2cx1.5.indd 1
Peter Thompson, the owner, will meet you at your home to learn your needs & provide you with solution options for roofing, siding, and windows. He prides himself on personally overseeing the work & will ensure you are satisfied.
9/6/17 1:03 PM
Your Local Contractor For Over 40 Years!
3/27/17 3:08 PM
4/18/17 11:57 AM
*On Settergren’s Referral List*
FOR 37 YEARS
MN # 5276
INSULATE AND SAVE! TM & © 2012 MGM.
e Lifetim ty n a r r Wa
Roofing · Siding · Windows Insulation
CALL US TODAY!
612-343-3301 · www.midwestplus.com Locally Owned • MN LIC# BC010277 • A+ Rating from BBB
Lumberyard of the Twin Cities M–F 7:30am–5pm, Sat 8am–Noon 3233 East 40th St., Mpls • 612-729-2358 SWJ 092117 Classifieds.indd 2 Hiawatha Lumber NEW 2cx3.5.indd 2
Roofing • Siding • Gutters • Insulation Licensed • Bonded • Insured
YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD COMPANY Rob.olson@topsideinc.net Topsideinc.net
Phone: (612) 869-1177
A RATING
Topside 2cx3.indd 1 CALL 612.436.5072 5/18/15 10:05 AMSWJ 032317 TO PLACE AN AD IN THE SOUTHWEST JOURNAL
Midwest Exteriors SWJ 052115 2cx3.indd 1
5/15/17 2:36 PM
Minneapolis, MN
3/3/17 10:26 AM
9/19/17 10:54 AM
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 B21
A Real Lumberyard
THESE PAGES SPONSORED BY
We specialize in personal expert service!
LUMBER & MILLWORK, INC.
2536 Marshall Street NE, Minneapolis | Monday–Friday 8am–6pm, Saturday 8am–4pm | 612-781-3333 350 Valley View Dr, Jordan, Minn. | Monday–Friday 7am–5pm, Saturday 8am–1pm | 952-492-6666 Siwek Lumber SWJ 051817 6cx2.indd 1
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EXTERIORS
TO PLACE YOUR AD CALL KYLE AT 612.436.5072
BASEMENT WINDOW GUY
Serving the community for over 30 years Top quality at competitive prices FREE ESTIMATES Committed to customer service
Glass Block and Replacement Windows
651-690-3956
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PRIME HOME CONSTRUCTION
Licensed Bonded Insured • Lic. RR 155317
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1:11612.436.5072 PMGuy SWJ 2013 1cx1 filler.indd4/9/13 Hammer 1 TO PLACE AN AD IN THE SOUTHWEST JOURNAL CALL7/21/17 KYLE
Roofing SWJ 072717 2cx1.indd 1 Basement Window Guy SWJ 032416 1cx1.indd 3/15/16 Pates 2:45 1 PM
10:09 AM
FLOORING
primehomemn.com
LOCAL BUSINESSES
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| 612-789-0498 |
TO PLACE AD CALL1 Prime Home Construction SWJYOUR 020917 2cx1.5.indd
ADVERTISE WITH US
· ·
ROOFING SIDING WINDOWS GUTTERS PAINT INTERIOR REMODELS
KYLE AT 612.436.5072 2/7/17
4:49 PM
There IS a Difference!
Interior Design Consultants • Stunning Window Treatments Quality Carpet and Flooring
www.earlsfloorsanding.com
Putting “Wow” in homes like yours for over 70 years!
Southwest Resident for Over 40 Years
Local Business 2cx1.indd 5
8/30/17 9:19 AM
• Installation • Restoration • Repairs • Buff & Coat
www.harlanfloors.com • 612-251-4290
LANDSCAPING 1 MONTH
of Snow Removal
SNOW FREE (new contract REMOVAL
customers only)
SAME-DAY SERVICE 952-545-8055
www.premierlawnandsnow.com
Install
Refinishing
Repair
Recoat
Free Estimates
Earls Floor Sanding SWJ 110316 2cx2.indd 1
“Our quality will floor you.”
Harlan Hardwood SWJ NR3 2cx2.indd 1
www.abbottpaint.com
Sanding
Local services.
12/13/16 Abbott 1:30 PM Paint SWJ 040716 2cx2.indd 1
Local references.
3/25/16 9:14 AM
Local expertise.
Tool Icons - Fall SWJ 2013 4cx1 filler.indd 1
3/29/13 9:07 AM
TO PLACE YOUR AD CALL KYLE AT 612.436.5072
4/23/14 2:57 PM
Northeast
studio gro landscape architecture
growing your next big idea
TREE
(612) 789-9255 northeasttree.net
www.studiogro.com 612.642.1382
Northeast Tree DTJ 040716 2cx1.indd 1
Premier Lawn & Snow SWJ 092216 1cx1.indd 9/20/16 10:44 1 AM Studio Gro SWJ 81017 1cx1.indd 1
TO PLACE AN AD IN THE SW JOURNAL CALL 612.436.5072
8/2/17 1:39 PM
Trained & Courteous Staff Expert Rope & Saddle Pruning/Removals Expert High Risk & Crane Removals Pest & Disease Management
Window Shopping made Local
Questions about Emerald Ash Borer? We can help.
George & Lynn Welles
Certified Arborists (#MN-0354 & #MN-4089A)
Custom Artisan
4/4/16 10:03 AM
Hardscapes & Landscapes Design, Install & Maintain:
Imagine the Possibilities
Patios • Driveways • Sidewalks Steps • Plantings • Mulch • Perennial Beds 612-225-8753 | dreamandrealitylandscapemn.com Dream & Reality Landscape SWJ 030917 2cx1.5.indd 1
LOCAL BUSINESSES
3/7/17 1:40 PM
Lumberyard of the Twin Cities M-F 7:30am–5pm, Sat 8am-Noon 3233 East 40th St., Mpls • 612-729-2358
ADVERTISE WITH US
(612) 729-9454 • Commercial & Residential • ISA Certified Arborist
• Owner Operated
Licensed and Insured • Free Estimates / 24 hr emergency service 24 yrs. Fully Insured
Local Business 2cx2.indd 3
Remodeling and Addition Packages
Fences / Decks / Garages
M-F 7:30am–5pm, Sat 8am–Noon 3233 East 40th St., Mpls • 612-729-2358
9/1/17 Trimmer 2:24 PMTrees SWJ 071309 2cx1.5.indd 1
Snow Plowing & Shoveling Cleanup / Dethatching Aeration / Seeding
612-345-9301
Lawn Mowing Fertilizer & Weed Control Gutter Cleaning
peterdoranlawn.com
FREE ESTIMATES FOR: Tree Trimming · Tree Removal Stump Grinding · Storm Damage
612.706.8210 FULLY BONDED & INSURED
SWJ 092117 Classifieds.indd 3 Hiawatha Lumber NEW 2cx5.indd 1
7/2/09 2:58 PM
9/19/17 3:18 PM Doran SWJ 072717 2cx2.indd 1 5/15/17 Peter 2:49 PM
7/25/17 Matt's 3:43 PM Tree Service SWJ 091712 2cx2.indd 1
8/31/12 10:15 AM
B22 September 21–October 4, 2017 / southwestjournal.com
MAINTENANCE Byron Electric
TO PLACE YOUR AD CALL KYLE AT 612.436.5072
Local services. Local references. Local expertise.
Residential & Commercial
Free Estimates
612-750-5724
• Painting • Plaster repair • Ceramic tile • Light remodeling
612 . 267. 3 2 8 5
Byron Electric SWJ 052713 5/20/13 1 1:13 PM From simple &1cx1.indd classic, to
elaborate & unique, our designs are sure to suit your style
Craftsman
10/3/14 Our specialty is your existing home!®
That Handy Guy Greg SWJ 100914 2cx1.5.indd 1
2:02 PM
Houle Insulation Inc.
RADIATOR
COVERS
CALL TODAY FOR A FREE ESTIMATE ON ATTIC INSULATION • BYPASS SEALING SIDEWALL INSULATION
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LOCAL BUSINESSES
www.houleinsulation.com
Tool Icons - Fall SWJ 2013 1cx3 filler.indd 3/29/13 1 8:14 AM
TO SWJ PLACE AN IN THE SW Craftsman Radiator Covers 032317 3/17/17 1cx2.indd 4:16AD PM 1 JOURNAL CALL KYLE 612.436.5072
Specializing in bookcases, kitchens, vanities, radiator covers and other custom wood works
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Serving the Twin Cities since 1977 Houle Insulation SWJ 010107 2cx2.indd 1
MISCELLANEOUS
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5/17/16 Elegance 2:37 PM Custom Cabinetry SWJ 020917 2/7/17 1cx1.5.indd 4:21 PM1 TO PLACE YOUR AD CALL KYLE AT 612.436.5072 Local Business 1cx1.5.indd 7
8/24/17 3:41 PM
We tell our members:
“Before anything else, build their trust.”
GET HELP 612.825.0000 Visit narimn.org or call 612-332-6274 to find a NARI-certified professional for your next remodeling project or to become a NARI member.
GIVE HELP 612.825.3333
TUBMAN.ORG
Tubman helps people of all ages and genders facing relationship violence, sexual exploitation, addiction, mental health challenges, or other forms of trauma.
Tubman Center DTJ filler 2cx4.indd 1
The NARI logo is a registered trademark of the National Association of the Remodeling Industry. ©2008 NARI of Minnesota.
7/24/17 3:08 PM
NARI SWJ 2010 NR1 2cx4.indd 1
12/5/12 5:36 PM
TO PLACE AN AD IN THE SOUTHWEST JOURNAL CALL KYLE 612.436.5072
PAINTING EXTERIOR & INTERIOR PAINTING
TO PLACE YOUR AD CALL KYLE AT 612.436.5072 Local Painters. Green Solutions.
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– Linden Hills
Painting & Wallcovering Co. A SW tradition of excellence since 1970
612.568.1395 PROTECTPAINTERS.com
Place your Ad
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Our Readers areYOUR Clients
grecopainting.com
612-825-9205
612-227-1844
ProTect Painters SWJ 042315 1cx1.5.indd 4/7/15 1 1:39 PM
HERE!
“NO JOB TOO SMALL – OR TOO BIG”
www.IndyPainting.net
612-781-INDY
TigerOx Painting SWJ 070912 2cx1.5.indd 1
PAINT ING Exterior and Interior Painting Wood Finishing Exterior Wood Restoration
Exterior, Interior & Decorative Painting Staining Decks • Wallpaper Stripping & Wallpapering • Wood Stripping, Refinishing & Cabinets • Plaster, Sheetrock, Texture Repair & Skim Coating • Ceiling Texturing & Texture Removal • Wood Floor Sanding & Refinishing •
Greco Painting SWJ 012617 1cx2.indd1/24/17 1 Your 1:14 Ad PMHere SWJ 2016 1cx 2 filler.indd 8/29/16 4 10:53 Indy Painting AM DTJ 032317 1cx2.indd 3/20/17 1 11:58 AM •
612-825-7316 afreshlookinc.com
Carson’s Painting,
A Fresh Look SWJ 061616 1cx1.5.indd 6/9/16 1 1:49 PM
Handyman Services, Snow Removal, & Lawn Care
(612) 390-5911
call today!
ADS 612.436.5072
PAINTING & DECORATING
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(612) 827-6140 or (651) 699-6140 PAINTINGBYJERRYWIND.COM
Painting by Jerry Wind SWJ 123115 2cx1.5.indd 1
612-310-8023 Dave Novak
35+ yrs. experience Lic • Bond • Ins
Sorry we missed you at the SWJ Home Fair! CALL US FOR SPECIAL PRICING greg@chileenpainting.com | chileenpainting.com
612-850-0325
Licensed & Insured
REACH HIGHER PAINTING AND DRYWALL, LLC 3/28/17 2:00 PM
12/30/15 Chileen 9:54 AMPainting SWJ 040617 2cx2.indd 2
DESIGN CONSULTATION · PAINTING · ENAMEL · DRYWALL — Serving the Twin Cities Metro —
LOCAL BUSINESSES ADVERTISE WITH US
Carson's Painting SWJ 060216 1cx1.5.indd 5/23/161 2:14 PM SWJ 092117 Classifieds.indd 4
Experienced craftsmen (no subcontractors) working steady from start to finish. Neat and courteous; references and 2 year warranty. Liability Ins. and Workers Comp. for Your Protection.
7/2/12 10:37 AM
Professional Quality Work
Novak Painting SWJ 032416 1cx3.indd3/15/16 1 4:48 PM
RHP.MN | 612-221-8593 Reachhigherpainting@gmail.com
TO PLACE AN AD CALL 612.436.5072 5/2/16 11:08 AM
Reach Higher Painting DTJ 050516 2cx1.indd 1
9/19/17 3:41 PM
southwestjournal.com / September 21–October 4, 2017 B23
PLUMBING, HVAC PRO MASTER
TO PLACE YOUR AD CALL KYLE AT 612.436.5072
LOCAL BUSINESSES
Plumbing, Inc.
Full-Service Plumber 651-337-1738
Schedule a $99 AC maintenance visit today!
promasterplumbing.com Call Jim!
PRE-WINTER BOILER OR FURNACE TUNE-UP SPECIAL
Pro Master Plumbing SWJ 071615 1cx1.indd 7/2/15 13:20 PM Local Business 1cx1.indd 12
8/24/17 3:13 PM
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ADVERTISE WITH US
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Ensure your air conditioner is in top operating condition by scheduling an air conditioner maintenance visit from Ray N. Welter Heating Company. Having your air conditioner cleaned and checked ensures peak performance and helps identify & correct small problems before they evolve into big troubles.
Install a new kitchen or bathroom faucet
Leaky sinks, faucets, showers, toilets & pipe repair
612-825-6867 • WELTERHEATING.COM
Hot water heaters 6/8/17 10:37 AM Classifieds
Ray N. Welter SWJ 061517 2cx2.indd 1
Parts extra. Offer expires 10/31/17.
413 W 60th St | Minneapolis, MN 55419
Local people. Local references.
612-869-3213 MIDLANDHTG.COM
Same Day Repair Service
9/1/17 contractors 4:27 PM SWJ 2016 2cx1.5 filler.indd 3
Construction
(612) 424-9349 CallUptown.com
basements, kitchens, bathrooms, custom finish cabinetry & more
651-212-3092 licensed • bonded • insured MN Lic. # BC719749
KYLE AT 612.436.50726/14/16
EK Johnson Construction you dream it
we build it
Living and Working in Southwest Minneapolis
Home Restoration Services SWJ 012915 1/14/15 1cx1.5.indd 2:15 PM 1Construction SWJ NR2 1cx1.5.indd Nordahl 4/4/171 3:59 PM 612-669-3486
Specializing in Reproduction Kitchens & Baths
No project is too small for good design
ekjohnsonconstruction.com
EK Johnson Construction SWJ 060216 2cx2.indd 1
12:55 PM
Lic: BC637388
Design/Construction
Call Ethan Johnson, Owner
Renovation, Additions, New Construction
Your Next Plumbing Service
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9/11/17 9:07 AM