A Thriving Minneapolis
What do you enjoy most about Minneapolis? For me, it’s relationships that come first…family, neighbors, friends, constituents. Next, I think of all the great amenities we get to experience…. the parks, theater, restaurants and sporting activities. The past five years we have experienced real hits to the economic engine of our city and they seem to keep coming. A recent report stated two Ward 7 Starbucks on 22nd and Hennepin and 25th and Nicollet may be targeted for closing. I would encourage residents to reach to reach out to these stores, give them business and talk to employees and management about this direction. Even with this recent news, I am excited about our future. That future starts with us, living together in community, and together we can make our way forward.
What is our vision for Minneapolis the next four years? Economic vitality and public safety are cornerstones. How do we promote economic vitality as part of that vision, especially as Downtown and Uptown are both in Ward 7? First, city governance needs to provide well-run core city services that citizens and businesses can depend on. Public works and first-responders need to be efficient, effective and reliable. In addition, the city needs to set and promote a long-range vision that balances the needs of residents, current business owners, start-ups, and labor.
Right now, the most compelling long-range economic vision we have in Minnesota is unfolding in Rochester. Back in 2013, some familiar Minneapolis names were brought together to kick off a truly consequential public-private partnership, Destination Medical Center. RT Rybak, Bill George, Jim Campbell, Tina Smith, and others were tapped for their development expertise, and created a vision that’s now being implemented in a big way. A recent Star Tribune article stated “the next decade of construction in downtown Rochester is ‘what most cities experience in 100 years.’”
We need to bring this same kind of focused, experienced visioning to Minneapolis, and we absolutely have the tools to do it. We have already have several plans that can serve as a general roadmap for our downtown core, including the city’s Downtown Action Plan and the Downtown Council’s 2035 Plan. The Minneapolis Foundation also recently released a report “Downtown Next.” A focus on downtown is essential, but I’d also like to see this level of intentional focus and planning for every neighborhood in the city. Uptown, in particular, has started getting more attention, and needs to be an area of high priority. Looking to Rochester, I appreciate the specific mapping and focus for every area within the Destination Medical Center boundaries (pg 11), and believe we need to be taking that same, granular approach here in Minneapolis.
But every good plan needs a strong team to see it implemented. I am encouraged by the formation of the Downtown Action Council, a group of business, non-profit and governmental sector leaders coming together for just this purpose. The group includes the Minnesota Vikings, Target and the Guthrie Theater, to name just a few. We also need to work closely with the county in these economic development initiatives, which could help leverage our funding for maximum impact.
I’ll get behind ideas that drive practical, demonstrated improvements as quickly as possible. I’d like to incentivize residents to open small businesses in the same communities where they live, as residents tend to know best the services and opportunities their neighborhoods need. In addition, we should look at offering tax incentives for businesses looking to move into Minneapolis or stay in our city, and we should consider lowering our downtown sales tax rates to make it easier for everyone to spend their money downtown. But, most importantly, I look forward to leading Ward 7 stakeholder groups to gather input and ideas from a variety of sources, including small business owners, renters associations, faith leaders, commercial property owners, educational leaders, and neighborhood organizations.
Yesterday I was door knocking across from the Central Library on Hennepin, and asked one resident, Raymond, what he thought Minneapolis needed most at this time. He said “community,” and a sense of “coming together.” I couldn’t agree more.
We can be resilient in the face of adversity and grow and thrive. We’ve done it before and we can do it again. Through intentional, thoughtful dialogue we can form relationships that transcend individual interests, and we can gather ideas and funding in a collaborative way that drives life back into our city. Together we can shape a common vision for a thriving Minneapolis that’s both grounded in reality and leads us forward in hope.