The Minnesota Daily

A Minneapolis ordinance that punishes property owners for crimes their tenants commit may get stricter if the City Council acts on a recommendation from city staff.

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A Minneapolis ordinance that punishes property owners for crimes their tenants commit may get stricter if the City Council acts on a recommendation from city staff.

Proposed changes could increase action taken against landlords and require them to participate in workshops after their tenants are arrested or cited for certain crimes. The proposal follows a trend of increased scrutiny on landlords from the city.

The city’s Conduct on Premises ordinance was created in 1991 to curb crime. It kicks in when tenants of a property or their guests break certain laws related to noise, prostitution, gambling, alcohol, drugs or weapons.

Minneapolis police crime prevention analyst Luther Krueger said most of the notices under the ordinance come from narcotics, prostitution and weapons cases.

“These [crimes] can be very disruptive to communities,” said Kellie Jones, manager for the city’s Problem Properties Unit.

After police cite or arrest the offenders,
property owners must currently submit a management plan to the city within 10 days of the first or second incident, depending on the severity of the crime.

These plans lay out for the city why the incident occurred and how the owner plans to keep it from happening again.

“We just need to see a written management plan to see if you’re on top of things,” Krueger said.

Owners are “a little low” in their compliance with the requirement, Jones said, which is one reason why she wants to tighten the ordinance. The plans benefit the city and property owners, she said, because they’re “all working off the same information.”

Minneapolis Ward 2 City Councilmember Cam Gordon said he’s seen neighborhoods and city government push for more regulation of rental properties in an attempt to make them more livable.

“I think a lot of that is great, but I don’t want us to tip too far in one direction,” he said. “That might have some unintended consequences that we regret later.”

Currently, police may recommend the City Council revoke owners’ rental licenses if they don’t comply with regulations. In the past five years, the city has revoked 16 licenses under the COP ordinance.

One proposed change would allow for a $500 fine instead — a more reasonable “stepping stone,” Jones said, before immediate revocation of an expensive rental license.

Local property owners said they don’t run into the ordinance often — but do fine their residents for crime.

Greg Jansma, building manager for Northstar at Siebert Field apartments, said he fines residents $300 for citations to discourage criminal behavior but has to do so less than once per year.

Instead, Jansma said, he spends more time “on the front end,” letting his tenants know they need to respect city ordinances and neighborhood expectations.

“You want to stay in the good graces of everybody in the neighborhood,” he said.

© 2013 The Minnesota Daily

Dwight Hobbes Sounding Off On Sound

Gordon Lightfoot's voice is not in the greatest of shapes anymore. The rich depth for he's well known over the past five decades is gone. And he can't quite hit all the high notes. April 29th at the State Theater, nobody really gave a damn. It was less just another concert than it was an invaluable visit from the lifelong icon whose personal warmth and engaging gift of song made the 2,100-seat auditorium feel intimate as, say, a great big living room you just happened to be sharing with your date and a whole lot of strangers.  

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Gordon Lightfoot's voice is not in the greatest of shapes anymore. The rich depth for he's well known over the past five decades is gone. And he can't quite hit all the high notes. April 29th at the State Theater, nobody really gave a damn. It was less just another concert than it was an invaluable visit from the lifelong icon whose personal warmth and engaging gift of song made the 2,100-seat auditorium feel intimate as, say, a great big living room you just happened to be sharing with your date and a whole lot of strangers.  

In great voice or no, Lightfoot can still handle a melody with the best of them.  He has an understated way of getting to the truth of a song, subtly sustaining that most important part of a performance, feeling. That being a very good thing, since his songs all have a special feel to them.  

Without doubt there were audience favorites that had to be left off the set list (including, ironically, "Carefree Highway"—the road trip is billed as the "50 Years on the Carefree Highway Tour"), otherwise he'd be on-stage until the wee hours. Lightfoot made it clear from the outset that his priority was not making this a night of his greatest hits. He started with a good handful of songs most folk wouldn't know, though they clearly had the feel of traditional folk music. Hardly surprising. Long before the guy hit it big, he built a following in troubador mode. After all, this is the fella who penned the original roustabout, travelin' man anthem, "That's What You Get For Lovin' Me." Lightfoot did get around to that which put the most butter on his bread over a long, long career. There was, for instance, "Rainy Day People," "Early Morning Rain," "Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald," "Beautiful" and "If You Could Read My Mind," accompanied by an efficient little four-piece backup band.  

Lightfoot isn't known for a whole lot of jawing between songs. When he does have something to say, it's not a wizened quip or fascinating anecdote. He says what comes to mind, might get a chuckle here and there, might not. Then gets back to doing what he came there to do.  Make wonderful music. That he did, from the moment he walked on-stage all the way up until he leisurely strolled off. When he did, after the obligatory encore, wave to everybody and take his leave, the standing ovation was far from the Twin Cities standard, perfunctory send-off. Nearly in unison, the whole house sprang to their feet in a cataract of heartfelt applause. Tribute indeed well deserved. 

Sooner or later, Gordon Lightfoot is going to have to throw in the towel, go sit somewhere and rest on his considerable laurels. At which point an evening like this, faded voice and all, is going to well be a treasured memory for all who were on hand.

Coverage of issues and events that affect Central Corridor neighborhoods and communities is funded in part by a grant from Central Corridor Funders Collaborative.

©2013 Dwight Hobbes

Jim Brunzell III The Optimistic Pessimist

Opening this Friday, June 21 at the Edina Cinema (and currently available via video-on-demand) is director Richard Rowley’s captivating documentary Dirty Wars, one of the most talked-about documentary films at the halfway point of 2013. Investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill, who also serves as producer, co-writer, and the subject of Dirty Wars, is a National Security Correspondent for The Nation magazine and is the author of two books, Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army in 2007 and more recently, Dirty Wars, which was released in April, 2013.

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Opening this Friday, June 21 at the Edina Cinema (and currently available via video-on-demand) is director Richard Rowley’s captivating documentary Dirty Wars, one of the most talked-about documentary films at the halfway point of 2013. Investigative journalist Jeremy Scahill, who also serves as producer, co-writer, and the subject of Dirty Wars, is a National Security Correspondent for The Nation magazine and is the author of two books, Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army in 2007 and more recently, Dirty Wars, which was released in April, 2013.

In Dirty Wars, Scahill follows the beginnings of American night raids and drone attacks that were happening in Afghanistan, which then led him to the discovery of the Joint Special Operations Command or “JSOC,” our country's most secret fighting force, comprising men who are virtually unknown in the government and will never appear before Congress. In the production notes, Scahill says, “When we started working on this film, almost no one had heard of JSOC or the now-famous SEAL Team 6. After the bin Laden raid, their names were everywhere,” said Scahill. “Looking back at everything Rick and I witnessed over the years of filming this movie, it is amazing how much of the actual story of JSOC—and the covert wars they fight, in secret, across the globe—remains totally hidden from the public.”

Dirty Wars premiered at the 2013 Sundance film festival in January, winning an award for best cinematography, before opening two weeks ago in New York and Washington D.C. to sell-out crowds. Various television outlets have been discussing the documentary over the past few weeks, and asking numerous questions about our current situation in these “war zones”, but the quote that really stood out to me was one that came over a month ago on CNN when Scahill said, “President Obama declared the world a battlefield.”

The Milwaukee native is especially proud to be from the Midwest. In a brief phone interview last week with the 38 year-old award winning journalist, we discussed how we got involved in journalism, the biggest differences between his book and the film, and what it is like to be deep in a war zone covering a story.

Talk a little about how you got involved in journalism and what got you interested in focusing on issues in different war zones.

I was at school at the University of Wisconsin at Madison, and I decided I was going to take some time off after three years and move to Washington D.C. My plan was to go back to school, but when I moved to D.C., I started volunteering at a homeless shelter and I spent a lot of time listening to talk radio. I heard Amy Goodman on the air, and I wrote her a letter asking her if I could work with her though I had no journalistic experience whatsoever. I think I think I started stalking her—not in a creepy way, but I said I would walk her dog or feed her cat, and eventually, I think she had to decide to either get a restraining order against me or let me start volunteering for her. So she ended up letting me be a coffee runner on her show and I started to learn journalism under her, almost like an apprentice, and I got really good at the technical side of radio, like editing reel-to-reel tapes and started working with real reporters. I really wanted to start covering international news, which I thought was fascinating, and I had the opportunity in 1998 to go to Iraq with a humanitarian delegation. I did a series of reports from Iraq and I never turned back; I have been working on international reporting ever since. So I really learned journalism as a trade and not as an academic study. I got into it by accident, just from listening to that radio program.

The book came out this past April; why did you decide to make Dirty Wars into a documentary?

The director, Richard, and I had been working together on and off for around a decade and we discussed doing a major project together. Rick had been spending a lot of time in Afghanistan and I started to look into the role of special operations forces within the bigger U.S. military in the context of this new American president, Obama, escalating the war in Afghanistan. So originally, the film was going to be about Obama’s war in Afghanistan and the role of “night raids": these special outside raids that are shielded or hidden by the bigger conventional war. So we took our initial trip to Afghanistan and once we realized that the force that doing these raids was this elite covert unit that reports directly to the White House, then the journey took us to Yemen, Somalia, and elsewhere—but we didn’t know that was going to happen once we started the project.

Watching the documentary, there are some moments where I was scared for you and where your team was going or getting yourself into. How do you go about getting clearance or finding the right contacts to be featured in the doc?

There is a lot of logistics preparation that needs to be done before you make these trips. For instance, going into Somalia, you don’t just fly into Somalia and ask around the airport how you get to a certain street. We spent three to four months preparing to into Somalia and in fact, we couldn’t get an American insurance company that would insure our trip. We had to figure out how to get in safely—and more importantly, how to get out. What kind of security do you need? Who are the translators and are they trustworthy? In each place it's different. When we went to Afghanistan we didn’t use our own security, we rolled with a very small crew—me, Rick, a translator, and a driver—after years of doing this stuff, vetting people to make sure you can trust the people you work with. Our credit roll in our film is very long because so many people in these all countries took real risks to make this film. No journalist from the United States goes in a country by themselves and emerges with a story. All of us depend on our local colleagues to work with us and to help us make it in and out. The biggest thing is you want to work with people who respect other people. So when you go into a village and someone’s entire family has been wiped out, you don’t just walk into their front gates and their door and stick a camera in their face. You’ve got to meet with them, tell them your intentions, and you have to be respectful.

Dirty Wars is a film you have been working on for a few years now and it has played a few festivals before opening in New York and Washington D.C. the first weekend of June. How has initial response toward the film been?

It has been overwhelming. The theaters were packed with people and many of these people follow this issue and would come to see this film no matter what. What I have been blown away by is how many people outside of this circle of people that follow this have been showing up. For example, I was in Washington D.C. attending a few of the screenings and doing Q&A’s; there were people from Capitol Hill, the C.I.A., the U.S. military, and other Intelligence agencies that came up to me after the screenings and they wanted to talk to me about it. That has been really fascinating. But I think part of it, too, is look what’s happened in the past month. President Obama gave this major address, the most significant speech of his career on counterterrorism issues. The NSA whistleblower story has broken wide out into the open. You have John Brennan being confirmed as the CIA director and people are finally talking about this issue. What we have noticed at the screenings is that discussions break out in the lobby afterwards—even quite a few arguments—and people are hungry to have this discussion right now in this country. We’ve been in the state of perpetual war for 12 years now and I think collectively as a country, I think we’re all sick of it and we’re trying to make sense of what we’ve been through and where we’re going to go from here. And if the film contributes to that kind of discussion or debate, then it will have been a success. But purely on a consult level, I wasn’t sure how many people were going to come to the screenings at all. I was writing e-mails to every person I knew to get them to come and then we walk up opening night in the theater in New York and there is a line around the block in the pouring rain and I was like, “Holy shit, people are actually choosing to come see the movie.” I thought it would just be my mom and a few of her friends that were going to see it.

The documentary is around 90 minutes and the book is around 680 pages. How did you decide what should stay in documentary and what should only be in the book?

I don’t think of myself as a filmmaker, but the editing process for this was painful. I was very happy with our four-hour “rough cut” and we told all these awesome stories, but it's four hours long and nobody will want to watch it.  So cutting it down to 90 minutes was painful. In the original cut, Somalia was 40 minutes long and we told the whole history of Somalia from 1990 to the present, and there were three night raids that we covered in Afghanistan instead of driving down to the one. There was a lot of in-depth biography on Anwar Al Awlaki, this American that was killed in a drone strike in September 2011. I’m a detail-oriented reporter and I like to tell the whole story, making a film like this is frustrating because you have to distill it down to the basics. Having said that, the film has its own existence from the book because it’s a more personal story. The book isn’t written in the first person, and the film is a personal journey. What we wanted to do was to create a narrative structure for the film that would make it accessible to people, even if you don’t pay attention to these issues, and that it would stand on its own as a film. If people are really interested in these subjects, they can read more about it in the book, but we wanted it to exist in its own world. It was really important for me for the film to play in the Midwest. I live in New York right now, but I am a Midwesterner at heart, and when the theaters in the Midwest started picking it up, then I knew we would really have a real discussion in this country, because this isn’t just about New York, D.C., or Los Angeles—what’s more important is that it plays in the Twin Cities, Milwaukee, and Chicago, to be honest with you. If folks in the Midwest start taking it on as an issue and pay attention to and confront some of their elected officials with the facts, then I feel like it can be a success.

Would you ever go through this process again of documenting another issue in the war zones?

I think I’m going to have a hard time staying away from this reporting. It is all I’ve pretty much done my entire adult life and I would have trouble imagining something else for myself. These are the kind of stories I’m dedicated to telling. As much as I think I would want to tell something else, I’m sure I’ll get pulled back into it.

What do you hope audiences take away from the film?

For too many years now, military families are the only people that have to think about these wars on any given day; to me, it’s not right and it’s not fair. So [I hope] people come out of the screening, like they have just been taking on a journey into a part of U.S. policy and areas of the globe they have never been before. On a deeper level, I want people to realize all of these actions are being taken in our name and in our tax dollars and it shouldn’t just be military families that have to think about the implications of our policies because it is going to affect all of us. At the end of the day, I’d like it to be a jumping-off point for people to have a discussion at a bar, over a meal, or at their workplace about the wars being conducted under their names and whether they are making us safer or are degrading our national security. That’s a discussion we should all be having.

©2013 Jim Brunzell III

Jay Gabler Front Row Seat

On June 18, the Minnesota Pro (as opposed to student) chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists held its annual Page One Awards. I was pleased to receive the award for Best Independent News Blog for this very blog, and I thought it would be appropriate to use my first post-ceremony post to recognize some people and organizations that deserve awards for their accomplishments on the new frontier of journalism—arts journalism in particular. They may not all consider themselves journalists, and they may not all consider themselves professionals, but they're all contributing tremendously to keeping people informed and entertained in jobs (typically online) where there aren't Pulitzer, or even Page One, categories...yet.

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On June 18, the Minnesota Pro (as opposed to student) chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists held its annual Page One Awards. I was pleased to receive the award for Best Independent News Blog for this very blog, and I thought it would be appropriate to use my first post-ceremony post to recognize some people and organizations that deserve awards for their accomplishments on the new frontier of journalism—arts journalism in particular. They may not all consider themselves journalists, and they may not all consider themselves professionals, but they're all contributing tremendously to keeping people informed and entertained in jobs (typically online) where there aren't Pulitzer, or even Page One, categories...yet.

These are entirely subjective "awards," and, yes, many of the recipients are my friends. Call that a conflict of interest if you will, but (a) I'm inventing these awards, so I get to make up the rules, and (b) it's not like those professional journalists who give each other awards aren't all friends too. At some point, everybody knows everybody and that's just the way it is. If you don't know the people and organizations I mention below, I suggest you get to know them. You won't regret it.

Best comprehensive hip-hop coverage: Be Scene Mpls. The Twin Cities are now nationally known for being a hip-hop hotbed, but the local artists who draw lines at SXSW are only the tip of an iceberg that stretches from Northfield to the Northside. The blog Be Scene digs deep to cover the full breadth of the local hip-hop scene.

Best Twitter journalism: Kyle Matteson. When people talk about local music-scene influentials, they're typically thinking about people with jobs at mainstream media outlets—but one of the Twin Cities' most-read music writers is a guy who doesn't even really blog any more. Formerly of the blog More Cowbell, Kyle Matteson is now the man better known as @solace, one of the most informative and timely sources of Twin Cities music news. It's free to follow, and he might even follow you back.

Best support of new arts journalists: Minnesota Opera. Each and every time the Minnesota Opera stages a new production, they hold a blogger preview night where they invite local bloggers—on all subjects—to come socialize at a reception with some of the artists, and then to watch a dress rehearsal of the show. That's the kind of forward-thinking audience development that more local arts organizations would do well to emulate.

Best support of journeyman artists: Dwight Hobbes. Our music columnist can be a divisive writer—case in point, his now-infamous review of Prof's King Gampo—but he's a guy who goes way beyond the buzz to cover artists like the Fleetwood Mac Attack and singer-songwriter Michael Nelson. They're not apt to be Picked to Click, but they're out there gigging and finding their audience, and Dwight is there to cover their underappreciated contributions to our local music scene.

Most consistent brand on Vine: Minneapolites. Journalists are still figuring out how to effectively use Twitter's new microvideo app, but so far these local bloggers are the best at delivering truth in advertising. They're four women who cover the Twin Cities going-out scene, and their Vine stars the four of them—often all four in a single Vine—going out in the Twin Cities.

Hardest workers: Paper Darts. This literary journal, website, and event-presenting entity has become so visible on the local arts scene that observers often assume it's a full-time job, with funding, for its organizers. Not so: it's largely a labor of love, running on a lot of love and a lot of labor. Honorable mention: Colleen Powers and her team at MPLSzine.

Best DJ critic: Harry Colbert Jr. The Insight News A&E writer is the most articulate guy in town when it comes to explaining the nuts and bolts of what makes a DJ set pop, from the craft's old-school origins to the present. He doesn't write about it very often, but find him at a club some night and ask him for his observations and recommendations.

Best writer at a radio station: Andrea Swensson. The former City Pages music editor's move to The Local Current has solidified the MPR station's status as the definitive hub for local music—on the air and online.

Best renaissance: l'etoile magazine. This local project is on the third of what will hopefully be at least nine lives: starting life as a glossy hard-copy fashion mag, it transitioned into a largely online presence that became well-known, under the leadership of Kate Iverson, for its weekly What's What going-out guide. With Iverson now at Permanent Art & Design Group, Jahna Peloquin has assumed editorship of l'etoile and has recruited a big stable of great writers to cover an even wider array of topics related to fashion, food, art, and culture.

Best citizen journalism sponsored by a theater presenter: Minnesota Fringe. Every company wants to get their audience members tweeting, blogging, and commenting, but at the Fringe, audience reviews can make or break a show. Part of that is due to the democratic, hyper-competitive nature of the Fringe itself, but the organization can—and should—take credit for its smart, engaging website design and a constant commitment to encouraging each and every Fringegoer to make his or her voice heard.

Best great idea in need of support: MinnesotaPlaylist. It's been a rough year for MinnesotaPlaylist, which is recovering from a complete website meltdown. The site is back, though, and still one of the best ideas in local arts journalism: a sort of Rotten Tomatoes for local theater, with opportunities for both critics and audience members to post their reviews of shows. I'm still surprised at how many companies don't take the time to regularly post their shows to MinnesotaPlaylist; the site just needs a little more critical mass to become a can't-miss destination for everyone interested in the local performing arts scene.

Coverage of issues and events affecting Central Corridor communities is funded in part by a grant from the Central Corridor Funders Collaborative.

©2013 Jay Gabler

Jeremy Iggers Iggers Digest

Highlights of a week of eating: 

Let's see—Sunday night Carol took me out for Father's Day for dinner and a show. The real highlight was actually the show, Clybourne Park at the Guthrie. It's one of the best plays I have seen in years: a sharp, funny, serious play about race that had the audience laughing out loud (and squirming in their seats). (Read Jay Gabler's Daily Planet review.) But the late night bite next door at Sea Change was also a treat. Sea Change offers a happy hour every night from 8 to 11 p.m.  (and also Sundays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 3 to 6, and Mondays from 5 to 6.) We split an order of fries, a cup of bouillabaisse ($6), crisp fried calamari with curry aioli ($7), and a shrimp cocktail ($8), all beautifully presented and robustly flavorful.

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Highlights of a week of eating: 

Let's see—Sunday night Carol took me out for Father's Day for dinner and a show. The real highlight was actually the show, Clybourne Park at the Guthrie. It's one of the best plays I have seen in years: a sharp, funny, serious play about race that had the audience laughing out loud (and squirming in their seats). (Read Jay Gabler's Daily Planet review.) But the late night bite next door at Sea Change was also a treat. Sea Change offers a happy hour every night from 8 to 11 p.m.  (and also Sundays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 3 to 6, and Mondays from 5 to 6.) We split an order of fries, a cup of bouillabaisse ($6), crisp fried calamari with curry aioli ($7), and a shrimp cocktail ($8), all beautifully presented and robustly flavorful.

I gotta say, June, July, and August are about the only months of the year when I don't wish that I was sitting under a palapa someplace tropical and sipping a tiki drink. But even on a beautiful summer day in Minneapolis, there is something enticing about lunch on the patio at Psycho Suzi's Motor Lounge. My last visit was at their original location (they moved three years ago), and I had this vague recollection of Psycho Suzi's as a hipster hangout, heavy on the tats. But the crowd on the deck last Thursday looked like a cross-section of the Northeast populace, from grannies to cyclists. I'm trying to cut back these days on fried foods and meat, so that ruled out the tater tots, deep-fried cheese curds, pulled pork sandwiches, burgers, etc. etc., but I contented myself with the pear and blue cheese longboard (i.e. flatbread pizza).

I'm a big fan of Somali cuisine, and one of my favorite places is the An-Nuur International Restaurant, tucked away at 2532 25th Avenue South in the Seward neighborhood. The clientele is pretty exclusively Somali men, but the manager makes an effort to make non-Somali guests feel welcome. The most popular dishes seem to be variations on the same basic theme: roasted or sauteed meat, savory rice and a green salad, with a very spicy green hot sauce and a ripe banana served on the side—and usually, a glass of fruit drink or a can or pop included in the price. What you see in the photo in the slide show is actually a half-portion of their roasted goat entree ($7); a full portion is $10, as I recall. The meat is a little chewy, but very flavorful.

Also read about Jeremy Iggers's 2012 experience shopping the Mill City Farmers Market with Sea Change chef Jamie Malone

Coverage of issues and events affecting Central Corridor communities is funded in part by a grant from the Central Corridor Funders Collaborative.

©2013 Jeremy Iggers

Terry Carter KFAI Radio

Next year, the new Central Corridor light rail trains will start running down University Avenue. Planning has been going on for years. But one element of creating a successful transit corridor isn’t as obvious as some of the more common concerns like right-of-way or parking.

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Next year, the new Central Corridor light rail trains will start running down University Avenue. Planning has been going on for years. But one element of creating a successful transit corridor isn’t as obvious as some of the more common concerns like right-of-way or parking.

It’s the question of how do people get to the train from their homes and workplaces in the neighborhoods surrounding the tracks. In many cases, the answer is – they’ll walk.

The District Councils Collaborative has been addressing this very issue of walkability, and to continue the conversation the group invited Gil Penalosa to St. Paul. Penalosa runs an organization called 8 – 80 Cities. He told KFAI's Terry Carter what that means. [Audio below]

© 2013 KFAI Radio

Ibrahim Hirsi TC Daily Planet

“The Youth/Dhalinyarada” project, which consists of portraits and a short video narration of both the success and challenging stories of 13 Somali-American men, was among the featured exhibits at the June 16 Community Day at the University of Minnesota’s Weisman Art Museum.

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“The Youth/Dhalinyarada” project, which consists of portraits and a short video narration of both the success and challenging stories of 13 Somali-American men, was among the featured exhibits at the June 16 Community Day at the University of Minnesota’s Weisman Art Museum.

“This project highlights the contributions these men are making in America,” said Mohamud Mumin, a photographer and the man behind the project. “The subjects of these photographs share the conflict they feel in just trying to be themselves. As much as they try to adapt, they often feel foreign at home, here in Minnesota.”

The men featured in “The Youth/Dhalinyarada” include community activists, young professionals, artists and athletes.

Mumin added: “The project explores their journey from Somalia to America, how they are engaged in their community and what it means to be young, Muslim, and Somali-American [living in Minnesota].”

To those at the event, it was a chance to meet some of the men and ask Mumin questions about the project.

Abdi Farah — well-known as “Abdi Phenomenal” — is one of the men in the project. He’s a Twin Cities spoken word artist, youth activist and an actor.

Abdi Phenomenal took to the microphone, reciting a spoken work entitled “More Than Heroes,” which is about the challenges and hopelessness the Somali youth are facing.

In a poem, Phenomenal sent a message about how some of the Somali youth are “confused” with their “dreams broken” and have “no choice but to sell their dreams for a token.”

He continued reciting the poem, encouraging the youth to take the right path: Hope. Peace. Freedom.

Kaamil Haider, a University of Minnesota graphic design graduate, is another Minneapolis man, whose story is documented in “The Youth/Dhalinyarada.”

“I’m lucky to be selected as part of this project,” Haider said. “There is so much negativity in the media about Somali men. But Mohamud wanted to change that image, and because of that, I really wanted to support this.”

Brian Wiley, assistant professor at the University of Illinois, who works with Mumin on the project, said he learned a lot about the community through the project.

“When I first started working with Mohamud, I had really no reference to anything on Somali,” Wiley said. “You kind of learn things through the news, but it’s been an entirely different experience working side-by-side with Mohamud.”

The “Youth/Dhalinyarada” will be showcased July 13 through February 9 next year at the Weisman Art Museum.

© 2013 Ibrahim Hirsi

ktigue TC Daily Planet

Minnesota's 25th Juneteenth celebration, though dampened again by rainfall, was a success for thousands gathered on June 15 at North Mississippi Regional Park.

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Minnesota's 25th Juneteenth celebration, though dampened again by rainfall, was a success for thousands gathered on June 15 at North Mississippi Regional Park.

If you haven't heard about Juneteenth yet, then the reason for celebrating this holiday may be more poignant than you realize. Juneteenth celebrates the proclamation of the abolition of slavery in Texas on June 19, 1865. While the Emancipation Proclamation was issued in 1863, neither the news nor freedom arrived in Texas until the end of the Civil War. Juneteenth became an official state holiday in Texas in 1980, and has spread throughout the country, now being celebrated in over 200 cities in 40 states.

Jewelean Jackson, one of the founding mothers of the festival here in Minnesota explained what Juneteenth means to her community, why it's important and what she wants people to learn from it.

What is Juneteenth about?

Juneteenth is a celebration of when all of the rest of the slaves finally got word that Abraham Lincoln had in fact put forth the Emancipation Proclamation. There were certain places in the south where they didn't tell them that the Emancipation Proclamation had at least given them their freedom on paper. It was the troops riding into Galveston, Texas, two and a half years later that were the last hold-outs.

Why is this celebrated here? Why is this important?

I think that it's a part of our history. It's part of the legacy that we need to keep forward in our minds, and for us to keep in our minds to share with our children—and even though some of us would say we're still fighting for freedom, we at least need to know what is in place from a legal perspective.

So, you're a founding mother of this particular Juneteenth celebration here in Minnesota?

It was me, Michael Cheney and Gregory Earl Reed sitting in Mr. Reed's office at Oak Park Neighborhood Center... 25 plus years ago, that Michael Cheney brought back the idea from Detroit.

What should people who are visiting the Juneteenth celebration take away from it?

The importance of celebrating this African American holiday that's of, for and about black people. First and foremost, I want our own people to recognize, to value that yes, this came out of a dismal time in our history but it's our history, and we need to know it so it doesn't get repeated again. We need to know it to teach it to our children.

x x x x x x

In Minneapolis this year, thousands of individuals showed up to eat, dance, and even witness a reenactment of the famous day Rosa Parks defied social and legal expectations by not giving up her seat on the city bus.

Juneteenth started off with breakfast, and a morning bike ride, followed by musical performances from the Juneteenth Gospel Hour, Willie Walker Blues, Charlene Hayes, Kathleen, Mocha and Rhonda Johnson, Best Kept Secret (BKS), Shayde, Mario Dawson, the Maxx Band Soul Experience and many more.

Sponsors this year included the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, USTA Northern, KFAI, KMOJ, Phyllis Wheatley Community Center, Three Rivers Park District Kroening Interpretive Center, Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder, Insight News, Carto Graphics, U-Care and Glenwood Inglewood.

© 2013 Kristoffer Tigue

Rebekah Peterson My Broadsheet

Monday night (6/17), Sandy Colvin Roy announced that she would be withdrawing from the race for the 12th Ward City Council seat.

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Monday night (6/17), Sandy Colvin Roy announced that she would be withdrawing from the race for the 12th Ward City Council seat.

While Colvin Roy said that she believes she has unfinished work at the council, she lists several reasons for deciding to leave the race, including not receiving the DFL endorsement at the convention earlier this spring.

She wrote, “I talked with delegates about the effort and effective leadership I have provided for our environment, public safety, fiscal responsibility, and support of our schools. While many of them agreed and supported me, many others felt it was time for a change and the Ward 12 convention ended with no endorsement. Each of the four elections I have been engaged in has been hotly contested. I have won them all and the campaign this year is no different. I could run and win.”

Additionally, she notes that her work in the City Council has taken a “tremendous toll on daily life.”

Ward 12 City Council Candidates

There are currently two candidates that remain in the Ward 12 City Council race:

• Andrew Johnson, DFL candidate
• Chris Lautenschlager, Green candidate

For a full list of our 2013 Election coverage, visit our Election page.

*The image used in this article was taken earlier this spring at the Ward 12 Forum.

© 2013 My Broadsheet

Cynthia Boyd MinnPost

Fresh U.S. Census data shows Asians to be the fastest growing ethnic group in the state, their numbers driven by immigrants pursuing high-tech jobs and young families having babies.

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Fresh U.S. Census data shows Asians to be the fastest growing ethnic group in the state, their numbers driven by immigrants pursuing high-tech jobs and young families having babies.

Minnesota’s Asian population increased 3.4 percent between 2011 and 2012, an increase of 7,750 persons in a single year.

What’s unique about the Asian population is its “tremendous diversity’’ on many fronts, explains state demographer Susan Brower. Take, for instance, the fact that 82 percent of Asian Indian Minnesotans have bachelor’s degrees or higher compared to 14 percent of Hmong, the largest Asian group in Minnesota, Brower said Friday.

Community Sketchbook focuses on the economic and social challenges facing communities, especially low-income communities and communities of color, and how people are trying to address them.

It is made possible by support from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, The Minneapolis Foundation, and some Minneapolis Foundation donor advisors.

Community Sketchbook articles may be republished or distributed, in print or online, with credit to MinnPost and the foundations.

Income closely follows educational attainment, with about one-third of Hmong Minnesotans living in poverty compared to about 3 percent of Asian Indians. “A large proportion of our Asian population is facing some pretty serious barriers,’’ Brower says.

The long-term trend, she stresses, is that the state will continue to see growth among populations of color.

Migration began in 1970s

Minnesota became more diverse beginning in the 1970s with the migration of Chinese, Japanese and Filipinos, and then Southeast Asians in the late 1970s and 1980s, including Hmong, Lao, Cambodian and Vietnamese. For the past couple of decades refugees from Tibet, Burma and Thailand have made Minnesota home.

About 6.9 percent of Minnesotans are foreign-born, according to data posted on Minnesota COMPASS, and about 17 percent of Minnesota’s residents, according to the Census Bureau, are minority -- a significantly smaller portion than the rest of the nation at 30 percent. Blacks make up the state’s largest minority group, followed by Hispanics, Asians and American Indians.

“We do well as a group,’’ says Sia Her, new executive director of the Council on Asian Pacific Minnesotans. But keep in mind, Her says, that the Asian Pacific community is made up of groups from more than 40 countries.

“Look at Asian Indians and Chinese communities,” she says. “They are some of the most educated and wealthy. Then look at some of the most recent arrivals: Hmong, Karen, Karenni, a small ethnic minority from Burma.’’ Her is of Hmong descent.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Note: The census figures released last week focus on population differences from 2011 to 2012. The numbers in this table and the table below reflect population changes over a 10-year period, from 2000 to 2010.

You’ll find, she says, they are culturally different in many ways and vary in health, income, educational attainment, whether they are immigrants or refugees, whether they’re first generation immigrants or more established here.

“There are big differences, but similarities as well, the ties that bind us,’’ Her says, pointing to Asians groups’ tendency to focus on the importance of family, traditional gender expectations and Asian parents’ expectation their children will succeed.

‘American story’

Some things change the more Americanized and more individualistic these populations become, she says, and birth rates drop. “That is the American story,’’ Her says.

Education turns the social dynamics upside down with children becoming more powerful than parents in many ways because they speak English better than their parents and know how to navigate social systems, she says.

The effects of those dynamics are showing, says MayKao Y. Hang, president and CEO of the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation in the city of St. Paul. The city leads the state with 7.22 percent of its population being Asian and Wilder has an established history of serving that population. The social service organization has many programs directed at Southeast Asian groups particularly, including settlement services for newly arrived immigrants and mental health services for children and adults.

“Now, with multiple generations of Asian-Americans here, we’re seeing real change in the social strata: people who have moved out of poverty, like my family, and then those who have fallen into intergenerational poverty and are unable to move themselves up and out of poverty and into the middle class,’’ says Hang, who at 4 years old immigrated to the United Sates with her parents.

The Asian population increase is no surprise to Mark Pfeifer, editor of the Hmong Studies Journal and consultant to the Hmong Cultural Center in St. Paul, given the group’s high fertility rate, he says. The Journal published a special edition focused on an analysis of 2010 U.S. Census data.

Pfeifer sees the Census data as valuable. “I hope policy makers and others will recognize the importance of the Hmong and Asian community, how important they are to the economic growth,’’ he says.

Source: U.S. Census Bureau

A grant writer for the Hmong group, Pfeifer says he hopes foundations and government will funnel more money to programs he says these communities value, including arts and cultural programming. Minnesota is respected for its Hmong institutions, including the cultural center, libraries and charter schools, he says.

Hang says we need to recognize the changing demographics in Minnesota and across the nation.

“I think the demographics drive service decisions, business decisions, how we educate people. It’s good for us to know we are changing,’’ Hang says.

She points to two small examples to make the point: “Asian-Americans don’t eat dairy products. Asian-Americans tend to be shorter, they like smaller cars. So Camrys sell better.’’

© 2013 MinnPost

Stephanie Fox Global Groceries

Friday, June 14 was a busy day for the gardeners at 3437 Garden in the heart of South Minneapolis’s Powderhorn Park Neighborhood. The city-owned lot is one of 13 neighborhood gardens available to not-for-profit organizations willing to jump through a few bureaucratic hoops and pay some relatively small fees to grow their own food. The lots chosen are too small to develop and should remain gardens well into the future.

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Friday, June 14 was a busy day for the gardeners at 3437 Garden in the heart of South Minneapolis’s Powderhorn Park Neighborhood. The city-owned lot is one of 13 neighborhood gardens available to not-for-profit organizations willing to jump through a few bureaucratic hoops and pay some relatively small fees to grow their own food. The lots chosen are too small to develop and should remain gardens well into the future.

“The way it works is a not-for-profit chooses a garden, comes in and says, ‘We’d like to lease a lot,’" says Jane Shey, the coordinator of Homegrown Minneapolis, a plan adopted by city hall in 2011 as part of a larger effort to encourage a healthy and sustainable local food culture. 

“It costs $1 a year for a three- to five-year lease. There’s a deposit that you get back at the end of the year. You have to have liability insurance and if it is through a neighborhood association, you can get a rider on your insurance. For a new garden, you have to show how it will benefit the community and give a layout of the garden,” says Shey.

Not all the lots have been leased, but the one wedged between two low-rise brick apartment buildings at 3437 15th Avenue (hence the garden’s name) was grabbed up three years ago by the Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association and now has more than two dozen 12'x4' raised bed gardens, as well as two compost piles, straw for mulching, a Web presence, and a Facebook page.

It’s one of the more successful city lot gardens, and they don’t lack for volunteers. This Friday, a group showed up to tear down the garden’s small shed and bring in a new, larger shed from six blocks away. “It is huge and heavy, maybe 1,500 to 2,000 pounds, and a little dangerous to move,” says Vienna Rothberg, who manages the garden through Gardening Matters, a local gardening advocacy organization.

The new garden shed is rustic-looking and pretty (it’s got a kind of Scandinavian look), made possible with a $500 grant from The Wedge Co-Op. The grant will also cover the costs of new garden tools.

“I am especially excited about getting kid-sized tools,” says Rothberg.

Rothberg says beginning gardeners are encouraged to come and learn. There are a lot of beginners. Many are like Devin and Fabiola Clarkson are planting an ambitious selection of tomatoes, broccoli, collard greens, basil, and squash. “We joined because we want to meet people, to be outdoors, to grow our own produce,” said Devin. 

They have a lot of questions. I show them where to find planting information on seed packets and tell them how deeply to plant their small tomato plants. I also explain how to thin the rows of seeds once they sprout. “Don’t dig them up,” I tell them. “Just grab them and yank them out.” You can eat the sprouts, if you like.

Nahila Ahsen is also new to gardening. “I should know more about it,” she says. “I grew up in Stockton, California, in the Central Valley. It’s very agricultural there, but I never gardened.” She came to the Twin Cities for graduate school, studying economic development and thinks that the city plot gardens is a great idea to increase the quality of urban life. “It’s one of the things I really like about Minneapolis.”

Linette Cortez-Jimenez and her older cousin Janett Jimenez are young, but they are already experienced gardeners. “This is my fourth year gardening,” said Jimenez. Her family got the small plot to teach younger family members to learn how to work the soil, she says. She likes eating the vegetables and herbs she grows, especially the cilantro. “I like gardening a lot,” she says. “It’s fun and I get to know a lot of people here.”

The Powderhorn Park Neighborhood Association is already organizing for the future, planning to sign a new lease for another three years. Other neighborhoods, like Beltrami and Bryant, also have popular city lot gardens. But other lots, mostly in North Minneapolis, lie fallow, still waiting for a neighborhood association, a church or other group to bring people, plants, compost and some love.

City Council has authorized funds for some start-up costs for new gardens, hoping to attract more organizations to the program. And, the kind of government compost delivered free of charge to the gardens is welcome.

Powderhorn gardener Kamia Waddell says that for her, the community support she finds at 3437 Garden is a big draw. “People share,” she says. “If we have extra plants, we share. We share manure and advice and if I have too much of something, I’ll ask if anyone wants some. There are two sections in the front and everything there goes to food shelves.” That’s how good neighborhoods work, she says.

Above: A tiny lot between two apartment buildings can help feed two dozen families.

Above: Cousins Linette Cortez-Jimenez and Janette Jimenez are two of 3437's more experienced gardeners.

Above: Devin and Fabiola Clarkson are new to gardening.

Above: In May 2010, the garden was a vacant lot.

Above: Neighbors are encouraged to contribute to the compost pile.

Above: Salad greens and other vegetables do well in compost-enriched soil.

Above: The garden is busy, even on a Friday.

Above: The new garden shed, almost ready to use, sits at the back of the city lot.

Above: The old shed wasn't much good.

©2013 Stephanie Fox

Staff TC Daily Planet

Rain or shine, this year's Rock the Garden on Saturday, June 15 made it happen in both.  Here's a sampling of tweets from the event.

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Rain or shine, this year's Rock the Garden on Saturday, June 15 made it happen in both.  Here's a sampling of tweets from the event.

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[<a href="//storify.com/mhalaska/rock-the-garden-2013" target="_blank">View the story "Rock the Garden 2013" on Storify</a>] ©2013

Patrick Dunn TC Daily Planet

The Los Angeles Indie Pop band Fitz and the Tantrums performed their soul-inspired jams for two back-to-back sold-out shows this week in Minneapolis. Out in support of their new album More Than Just a Dream, the high energy dance party entertained established and new fans and provided a good workout as well on Monday, June 17. Their unique sound which features horns and keyboards in place of guitar (that’s right, no guitar) has caught the attention of a diverse group of listeners.

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The Los Angeles Indie Pop band Fitz and the Tantrums performed their soul-inspired jams for two back-to-back sold-out shows this week in Minneapolis. Out in support of their new album More Than Just a Dream, the high energy dance party entertained established and new fans and provided a good workout as well on Monday, June 17. Their unique sound which features horns and keyboards in place of guitar (that’s right, no guitar) has caught the attention of a diverse group of listeners.

The Lineup:
Fitz and the Tantrums are led by the vocals of Michael Fitzpatrick (Fitz) and Noelle Scaggs. The rest of the talented Tantrums include James King (horns), Joseph Karnes (Bass), John Wicks (drums) and Jeremy Ruzumna (keyboards and beats).

Saints of Valory is an interesting group of great players with a sound that has come out of influences from all over the world considering each member is from a different country. They played a set of music that was easy to enjoy without even needing to know the tunes.

Ivy Levan (The Dame) has a unique look and sound and put on an entertaining set of music she refers to as “swamp hop”.

The Venue:
A group of people in line before the show were discussing how they were first introduced to Fitz and the Tantrums at Basilica Block Party. They were so excited to have gotten tickets for this show at the Varsity Theater knowing it would be such a fun place to see the band. We are lucky to have Sue Mclean and Associates lining up these memorable shows in the right rooms. The stage setup for Fitz included a backdrop of light bars that provided a disco feel which helped get the crowd dancing. The room sounded right with a comfortable mix that had a good amount of punch for the beat heavy material.

The Music:
Fitz chose a fun tune off the new album “Keeping Our Eye’s Out” to start with and set the tone for their set. Some of the big songs off the first album were standouts like “Breakin’ the Chains of Love” and especially the title track; the Motown influenced “Pickin’ Up the Pieces.” A great rendition of Eurythmic’s “Sweet Dreams” fit into their style so well; it could have been mistaken for one of their own. Noelle called out, “If you think you’re sexy in this house make some noise” leading into the new single “Out of My League.” One of the signature traits of this band is the infectious tonal harmonies between Fitz and Scaggs, which really sounded flawless on “6am.” The crowd helped get “Dear Mr. President” rocking by singing along with the “Hey – Woo” intro. The hour long set ended in full swing with everyone waving their hands and dancing to “L.O.V.” while even the chandelier lights were flashing for added effect.

Encore:
Keeping the intensity at its max, the Tantrums returned to the stage and dove into their biggest hit “Money Grabber.” In addition to “The Walker,” great crowd appreciation earned an extra song to close out the 4 song 20 minute encore with “News 4 U.”

Fan Interaction:
Fitz and Noelle have boundless energy and did an exceptional job of connecting with the audience. Fitz said he was humbled to be able to play two special shows in Minneapolis and several times made sure to thank the crowd for being real people and real music fans supporting their efforts. They even made that extra effort to spend time with fans in the lobby after the show to sign autographs and take pictures.

 

Saints of Valory

 

 Ivy Levan

 

Fits and the Tantrums

 

Coverage of issues and events that affect Central Corridor neighborhoods and communities is funded in part by a grant from Central Corridor Funders Collaborative. ©2013 Patrick Dunn

Michele St. Martin TC Daily Planet

Now that same sex couples can legally marry in Minnesota, how will their families look different than those headed by straight people? Not very, if the Melchert-Zimmerman family is any indication.

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Now that same sex couples can legally marry in Minnesota, how will their families look different than those headed by straight people? Not very, if the Melchert-Zimmerman family is any indication.  Paul Melchert and James Zimmerman, both 41, met when they were introduced by a mutual friend nine years ago, and married seven years ago at Macalester Plymouth United Church. They come from traditional families: both Melchert’s and Zimmerman’s parents have been married for 44 years. Their lives when they’re not working are mainly centered around their adorable four-year-old twin boys, Gabriel and Emmett. “We like gardening, cooking [Melchert’s the chef, Zimmerman’s the sous chef], reading, talking… we’re kind of boring,” said Melchert. “We exercise every morning before the kids get up. We try to incorporate them into everything.”

Accidental activists
Melchert became involved in the fight for gay marriage when he was contacted by Project 515 and Minnesotans United and asked if, as a pediatrician, he’d speak out about the health of children raised in same-sex parent families. He was glad to step in and speak about his professional experience, even as his personal experience as a gay husband and dad. “As a pediatrician, I worked with families and I knew the literature,” he said.

“Initially Paul and I were a little hesitant about putting our children’s faces out there everywhere,” Melchert says. They decided to sacrifice some personal privacy for the greater good.  A YouTube video of Paul speaking at a press conference while Emmett started to grab the microphone, Paul’s mouth, and anything else within his reach, went viral.

It seemed only natural that Emmett and Gabriel accompany Paul and James to the Hennepin County Government Center on Thursday, June 6, the first day same-sex marriage licenses were issued in Minnesota. The family spent the morning there: Paul and James were among the first same-sex couples to receive a Minnesota marriage license, while Emmett and Gabriel played on a toy structure, gathering a small crowd of admirers. Later the twins split a donut while Dad (Paul) and Papa (James) chatted with a reporter over coffee.

Beginnings
Melchert grew up in Chaska, the middle child of three. “I have wonderful parents. They were very religious, Missouri Synod Lutheran. I grew up in that religion, it isn’t very tolerant,” he said. “I was a good student, in 4H --”

“He was the grand champion of desert dish gardening at the State Fair,” Zimmerman interjects.

“Coming out was hard,” Melchert admitted. He struggled to accept his sexuality. “It took until I was in medical school to accept it. The messages I’d gotten from church, home and school as I was growing up, about gay people – there was no positive messaging about being gay. There were only negative stereotypes [in the media].”

In contrast, Zimmerman, who grew up in a military family, with the usual number of moves and different schools, said he experienced “no messaging about gay people. No bombarding of negative images while my self-esteem was forming.” Though there was an absence of gay role models, “My family is very diverse; there’s a recognition of personal differences,” and he found the military community to be a close and welcoming one.  When he came out to his parents as a young adult, “There was total acceptance. They weren’t shocked, but concerned about how I’d be treated by others.” Like many parents, the Zimmermans suspected their son was gay; “They said, ‘we didn’t ask because we didn’t want make you uncomfortable.’”

 “From almost the moment we met, we hoped for a life together,” Melchert said. “We both had always wanted a long-term relationship – marriage, kids.” Glancing at Zimmerman, who is negotiating the splitting of a donut, he said, “In all honesty… he’s kind, gentle, loving, incredibly smart, he’s HOT, he’s the handsome one – I married up.”

Forming a family
“Once my parents met James, they saw some really wonderful changes in me. I had a little angry edge when I went home, had never brought anyone home, felt a little resentment.  After I talked about James my parents asked to meet him. They saw what James did for me, he made me a better person. My brother-in-law said, ‘that’s the one.’ My parents stopped worrying about me.”

The boys were born using donor eggs, sperm from both men, and the services of a gestational surrogate.  When she became pregnant with twins (each man is the biological father of one of the boys) “We were thrilled – ecstatic!” said Melchert.

“Having twins was amazing, a dream come true,” Zimmerman said. “We wanted to find out/didn’t want to find out [their gender]. Having twin boys was enormously exciting, but knowing that we likely wouldn’t have another child, there was a sense of loss about not raising a daughter, helping her plan a wedding, that very unique and different relationship.”

Most of their family lives in Minnesota and Wisconsin. “We have two Christmases, family reunions, vacations together,” says Melchert. Last Thanksgiving was celebrated at the Melchert-Zimmerman home,with 21 people in attendance. Melchert changed jobs more than a year ago (he is still a pediatrician) in order to have more flexibility and family time (Zimmerman has worked in sourcing and procurement for a retail chain for nearly 18 years).

Going forward
When their video went viral, “I got Facebook requesst from every state in the union and countries around the world, including closeted people in Muslim countries like Dubai, Kuwait,” said Melchert. “They said things like, this is what a family looks like, can look like. Aside from anonymous YouTube comments, we’ve had nothing but support from the community, straight and gay.”

They hope to stay active in the community. “We’re so grateful to those who led the way, many years ago,” Melchert said. “We’ve really realized how important it is to be involved. If you want change, you have to be.” They’re particularly interested in transgender youth, safe schools, advocating for homeless youth.

Melchert spoke at the bill signing. “Standing on the steps of the Capitol, holding Gabriel, was the most incredible moment of my life, other than our marriage and the birth of our kids. It was so meaningful. My parents were in the audience, my brother, his wife and son…

“It’s right. We didn’t do all of this trying to incite anger. It was about standing up for family and what’s right. That’s what made it easy to do.”

 

c 2013, Michele St. Martin

Corcoran News

¿El exterior de su casa necesita pintura nueva? Mientras que hay proviciónes, el vecendario Corcoran ofrece pintura y la pintura base gratis para el exterior de la casa a los dueños de propiedades en Corcoran (usted puede estar rentando o dueño de casa) gracias a una donación de Valspar Foundation. Una “rueda” de colores están disponibles para que usted puede pegar con los colores que ya tienen o seleccionar un color nuevo. Hay un límite de 5 galónes a cada propiedad para 2013.

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¿El exterior de su casa necesita pintura nueva? Mientras que hay proviciónes, el vecendario Corcoran ofrece pintura y la pintura base gratis para el exterior de la casa a los dueños de propiedades en Corcoran (usted puede estar rentando o dueño de casa) gracias a una donación de Valspar Foundation. Una “rueda” de colores están disponibles para que usted puede pegar con los colores que ya tienen o seleccionar un color nuevo. Hay un límite de 5 galónes a cada propiedad para 2013.

Los dueños de propiedades pueden pedir la pintura por manera de email a eric [at] corcoranneighborhood [dot] org con su nombre, dirección de la propiedad que quiere pintar, una descripción corta de su proyecto, y la cantidad de galónes que necesita (depende de la textura, planee que un galón cubre 400 metros cuadrados). Tambíen, incluya el nombre y numero de color para cada color que quiere (o diga “Todavía necesito escoger colores”). Los participantes recogerán su pintura en una ubicación de Valspar en San Pablo. El tiempo desde que pide la pintura y recoge la pintura será 1-2 semanas.

Si no tiene aceso a correo electronico, mande la información en una carta a CNO, 3451 Cedar Ave S, Minneapolis, MN 55407.

Contribute, advertise, or learn more about Corcoran News.
Click here for current edition.

© 2013 Corcoran News

Corcoran News

De nuevo Corcoran está ofreciendo un programa de comida a los jóvenes. Niños de los edades 0-18 pueden venir y recibir una merienda a las 3:00 a 3:45 y una comida a las 5:00 a 5:45 diario. El programa empieza lunes el 10 de junio y continua lunes a viernes hasta el 16 de agosto. El programa es gratis a todos los niños. Juntamos en las mesas de picnic cerca el recreo y piscina si el clima nos deja. Si el tiempo es malo, nos reuniremos en el edificio. La comida viene por Minneapolis Public Schools Nutrition Center y hay reglas que tenemos que seguir. Todos los niños tienen que comer la comida en el sitio designada y no pueden traer la comida a casa. No podemos dar comida a personas que son mayor de edad (arriba de 19 años). La comida será nutritiva y no contiene productos de puerco. Si tiene preguntas sobre este programa, por favor llame a Corcoran Park.

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De nuevo Corcoran está ofreciendo un programa de comida a los jóvenes. Niños de los edades 0-18 pueden venir y recibir una merienda a las 3:00 a 3:45 y una comida a las 5:00 a 5:45 diario. El programa empieza lunes el 10 de junio y continua lunes a viernes hasta el 16 de agosto. El programa es gratis a todos los niños. Juntamos en las mesas de picnic cerca el recreo y piscina si el clima nos deja. Si el tiempo es malo, nos reuniremos en el edificio. La comida viene por Minneapolis Public Schools Nutrition Center y hay reglas que tenemos que seguir. Todos los niños tienen que comer la comida en el sitio designada y no pueden traer la comida a casa. No podemos dar comida a personas que son mayor de edad (arriba de 19 años). La comida será nutritiva y no contiene productos de puerco. Si tiene preguntas sobre este programa, por favor llame a Corcoran Park.

 

Contribute, advertise, or learn more about Corcoran News.
Click here for current edition.

© 2013 Corcoran News

Corcoran News

sabado, 15 de junio de 9:00 de la mañana a 3:00 de la tarde

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sabado, 15 de junio de 9:00 de la mañana a 3:00 de la tarde

¡Empiece a limpiar ahora en preparación para la venta de garaje de vecendario más grande en Minneapolis! El undécimo año de venta de garaje en los vecendarios de Standish, Ericsson, y Corcoran será el 15 de junio. El año pasado incluyeron más que 150 casas, trajeron aproximadamente $30,000 a los vencendarios, y reciclaron miles de artículos.

Mapas serán disponibles GRATIS para todos el 15 de junio. Se llevará acabo, sin importar las condiciónes del tiempo.

Contribute, advertise, or learn more about Corcoran News.
Click here for current edition.

© 2013 Corcoran News

Corcoran News

A pesar de unas semanas difíciles de clima al comienzo de la temporada, las cosas están comenzando a entrar en calor en el Mercado Granjero de Midtown. Venga este mes de junio al mercado y vea lo que tienen para ofrecer nuestros fabulosos vendedores ambulantes: espárragos, espinacas, col, lechugas, cebollas verdes, rábanos, chicharos, brotes, ruibarbo, fresas, una variedad de carnes, huevos, queso, mantequilla, yogurt, miel, pan artesanal, alimentos cocinados, conserva, café, artes y manualidades y una gran variedad de deliciosas comidas; desayuno y almuerzo, para disfrutar en el mercado.

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A pesar de unas semanas difíciles de clima al comienzo de la temporada, las cosas están comenzando a entrar en calor en el Mercado Granjero de Midtown. Venga este mes de junio al mercado y vea lo que tienen para ofrecer nuestros fabulosos vendedores ambulantes: espárragos, espinacas, col, lechugas, cebollas verdes, rábanos, chicharos, brotes, ruibarbo, fresas, una variedad de carnes, huevos, queso, mantequilla, yogurt, miel, pan artesanal, alimentos cocinados, conserva, café, artes y manualidades y una gran variedad de deliciosas comidas; desayuno y almuerzo, para disfrutar en el mercado.

También durante el mes de junio asegúrese de asistir a la Campaña de Donación de Sangre, el sábado 1 de junio, administrada por los Centros Memorial Blood, el centro de sangre comunitaria, sin fines de lucro e independiente, más grande de Minnesota. La campaña de donación será de 8:30am a 1:30pm y los primeros 25 donantes recibirán una playera gratis, y todos los donantes que participen entrarán a un sorteo para ganar de 1 a 20 pares de boletos para ver a los Minnesota Twins. ¡Por favor venga y done! El mercado también será anfitrión de dos días marcados y titulados, durante junio, incluyendo Dirt Day el sábado 15 de junio y Bike Day el sábado 29 de junio. Dirt Day incluirá una variedad de grandiosas actividades en torno a compostaje y condición de la tierra. También, tendremos jardineros maestros y fertilizantes a la mano para contestar a sus preguntas sobre jardinería y compostaje. Para el Bike Day, este año ofreceremos revisiones de seguridad; desde talleres de bicicletas del área, tours de estaciones de NiceRide, servicios de valet para bicicletas y la oportunidad de ganar una variedad de grandiosos regalos cuando usted traiga su casco al puesto de información del mercado para entrar al sorteo. Acompáñenos a todo lo que el mercado tiene para ofrecer este mes de junio. ¡Esperamos verle por ahí!

El Mercado Granjero de Midtown se encuentra ubicado en la esquina de East Lake Street y 22nd Avenue South y ofrece comidas locales y frescas cada sábado de 8 de la mañana a 1 de la tarde, de mayo a junio; y, martes de 3 a 7 de la noche, de junio a octubre.

© 2013 Corcoran News

Corcoran News

Favor de LLAMAR AL 911 inmediatamente, para reportar un crimen o si observa actividades sospechosas.

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Favor de LLAMAR AL 911 inmediatamente, para reportar un crimen o si observa actividades sospechosas.

Mantengamos nuestro vecindario seguro y agradable.

Lo que usted puede hacer:

• Sea extremadamente cuidadoso de su entorno. Confíe en sus instintos. Tome en consideración a los extraños que deambulan por su área.
• Sea especialmente consciente de su entorno cuando saque la basura o al dirigirse a su auto de noche. Si alguien está deambulando en el área, llame al 911.
• Evite las distracciones. Los celulares, iPhones y otros aparatos electrónicos, pueden ser una distracción para usted y podrían llamar la atención de alguien que quiera adueñarse de ellos.
• Esté atento. La policía quiere que usted llame al 9-1-1 para reportar cualquier actividad sospechosa: extraños caminando en las yardas o entre las casas, el sonido vidrios rompiéndose o golpes fuertes, camiones desconocidos o camionetas que perduran mucho tiempo en su callejón. Hable con sus vecinos acerca de estos eventos y le pedimos que esté alerta ante cualquier actividad sospechosa. Necesitamos la ayuda de todos.
• Si usted es víctima de robo repórtelo inmediatamente, llamando al 911. Trate de recordar cuanta información le sea posible, al momento de estar hablando al 911.

¡Gracias por su ayuda!

Departamento de la Policía de Minneapolis

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Click here for current edition.

© 2013 Corcoran News

Corcoran News

Reduzca la posibilidad de que su casa sea vulnerable a la entrada forzada, programe una inspección de seguridad que ofrece la Unidad SAFE del Departamento de Policía de Minneapolis. Para más información, contacte a John Reed (612-673-5579; John [dot] reed [at] minneapolismn [dot] gov).

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Reduzca la posibilidad de que su casa sea vulnerable a la entrada forzada, programe una inspección de seguridad que ofrece la Unidad SAFE del Departamento de Policía de Minneapolis. Para más información, contacte a John Reed (612-673-5579; John [dot] reed [at] minneapolismn [dot] gov).

Contribute, advertise, or learn more about Corcoran News.
Click here for current edition.

© 2013 Corcoran News