The first post on the official Ward 7 account! 🥳
On Thursday I had the honor of chairing the first meeting of the new Climate & Infrastructure Committee! Excited for what we will accomplish together this term.
I am thrilled to support the launch of the City's Vibrant Storefronts Initiative, which will match 8 currently-vacant commercial spaces right here in Loring Park with local artists and arts organizations who need an affordable place to hone their craft. 1/3
Council will reconsider our Fair Rides (rideshare) Ordinance with new data provided by the state at the next council meeting, April 11. In the meantime, a plan is in motion with State legislators, DLI staff, City staff, and Council to prevent a gap in service. 1/2
The Hennepin Ave S Reconstruction work is underway and will be phased over 2 years. Phase 1 will be from Lake St W to 26th St occurring in 2024. Phase 2 of the project is scheduled for 2025, covering the area between 26th St to Douglas Ave. 1/2
The City again has free yard signs for community members. Slower speeds on local streets make travel safer for everyone no matter how you get around. Speeding is the No. 1 factor in severe and fatal crashes in Minneapolis; please slow down to save lives. 1/3
Have you heard about the City of Minneapolis Government's Green Cost Share Program? Property owners of all types can apply for funds to complete a wide range of projects that make their buildings more energy efficient and reduce costs over time. 1/5
An appreciation post for Minneapolis' inaugural Poet Laureate, Heid E. Erdrich, a member of the Turtle Mountain Band of Ojibwe and Ward 7 resident! Heid was honored on January 8th and read a special poem as her first official act.
Learn more about Heid:
Got to be part of Minneapolis being named the 2nd UNICEF Child Friendly City in the US. Follow up on this at the Community Connections Conference this Saturday 9am-4pm. Catch me at the youth roundtable! See the whole program and register:
The next edition of the Ward 7 Newsletter is going out tomorrow! You'll find ways to engage with the Ward 7 Office, upcoming community events and resources, and, updates on Council committee and policy work, and more! Sign up:
Ward 7 Small Business Spotlight: Mumtaz and Arif Osman are 30+ year business owners of Osman Cleaners at 2500 Hennepin Ave. Visit them M-F, 7am-6pm or Sat, 9am-4pm for your cleaning, tailoring, leather and repair work. Let's support our businesses during Hennepin reconstruction!
Bring ya a** downtown this Friday to celebrate and cheer on our
@Timberwolves
at the
#WolvesBack
Block Party! Event will feature pre-game entertainment, food and drink, and a large screen to watch the game. 1/2
Our next "Coffee with Katie" gathering is happening tomorrow, June 3rd in Downtown. Stop by the 2nd floor of the Minneapolis Central Library (300 Nicollet Mall) from 5:30-7pm to talk with me and your neighbors about a range of topics. 1/2
The City's Arts and Cultural Affairs Department has launched the Minneapolis Music Census, a first-of-its-kind effort to capture quantitative information to help City and community leaders make more informed, data-driven decisions about the local music economy. 1/2
It’s important that we continue to center the drivers who deserve a fair wage for their work. Sign up for the Ward 7 newsletter for updates on our progress: 2/2
Our first Coffee with Katie meet and greet opportunity this monring at
@islesbun
was a success! Stay tuned to the Ward 7 newsletter for details on the next one:
The application period will open tomorrow, 7/26, for a chance to be selected as a tenant for one of the available spaces. Artists and arts organizations can apply individually or as a collective. Details here: 3/3
Thank you again to everyone who came out to
@SebastianJoes
in Lowry Hill last night! It was a great conversation with Senator Dibble, Representative Hornstein, myself, and neighbors about the wide range of policy issues taken up by the state legislature this year.
And also! Our first Ward 7 newsletter will be going out this Friday. We'll share what has been happening in our office during my first three weeks in office, what's ahead, and how to stay engaged with us.
Sign up here:
My heart is broken, and I join my colleagues and our entire city in grieving for Officer Mitchell, the other two community members lost, and their loved ones. We will honor his life and remember the sacrifice he made. 4/4
It's been a busy couple of weeks out in the community for the Ward 7 team! A few points of engagement include:
• Attending the MPD Chief Brian O'Hara and Somali American Police Association’s iftar with
@MplsWard6
and other community leaders 1/5
Join us tomorrow at Big Hill Books in Bryn Mawr for this month's "Coffee with Katie" community office hours from 5-6:30pm! Come and go as your schedule allows.
The project team will provide weekly updates and answer your questions via downloadable PDFs, the project email list, and weekly stakeholder meetings held virtually each Friday at 10am beginning on 4/5. Bookmark this page for details: 3/3
As many of you now know, a tragic incident occurred earlier this evening here in south Minneapolis’ 5th Precinct. MPD officers responded to a shooting in an apartment building on the 2200 block of Blaisdell Ave. S. 1/4
This requires Routes 6, 17, 23, 114 & 612 to detour through Uptown for the duration of this year's construction season. View this map for detour routing, which began on Monday, 4/1. 2/3
Tonight's open house on the Cedar Lake Road Bridge replacement project at Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church has been postponed due to the inclement weather. Stay tuned to the project webpage for reschedule details:
Join us this coming Monday from 12-1:30pm to share your thoughts on the creation of a Labor Standards Board that would study and report on the working conditions in specific industries. Ward 7 constituents can also share their ideas with us here:
After years of advocacy at City Hall, I'm authoring an Ordinance alongside
@MplsWard12
and
@MplsWard7
to establish a Minneapolis Labor Standards Board to help craft policy solutions for working people. Join us Monday at 12-1:30pm for a Listening Session to share your perspective!
Check out the Minneapolis Sculpture Garden Art Fair happening this Saturday and Sunday, featuring lots of art for sale, a botanical market, and numerous food and drink options. Details here:
Lowry Hill residents! We hope to see you on Monday at Sebastian Joe's (1007 W Franklin Ave) for a roundtable discussion recapping this year's state legislative session with Senator Scott Dibble and Representative Frank Hornstein. Come and go as your schedule allows from 4:30-6pm.
Stop by
@dunnbroscoffees
in Loring Park (329 W 15th St) tomorrow morning from 9:00-10:30 to chat during our 2nd "Coffee with Katie" community office hours opportunity! Share the ideas and concerns that are top of mind for you; come and go as your schedule allows.
Community arts do so much for our neighborhoods and our collective health and identity in the city. We are excited to get this program off the ground and hope to see it expand in the years ahead to the other important areas of town also struggling with commercial vacancies. 2/3
The South Cedar Lake and Minnesota River Bluffs trails are now open for public use from the Midtown Greenway in Minneapolis to Shady Oak Road in Minnetonka! Sign up for regular Green Line Extension updates below. 👇
Celebrate Bike Week with me! Join us tomorrow morning for a group bike ride from the Walker Sculpture Garden to Commons Park. We will be gathering at 8:15am to depart by 8:30am, taking a slow pace on protected bikeways and arriving at the Celebrate Bike Week event by 9am. 1/4
Happening TONIGHT at 6pm at the Public Service Building, Room 100, 505 Fourth Ave S: Community Commission on Police Oversight is holding a public hearing to receive community comments on policies, rules, practices and special orders. 1/3
@KristenACooper
Thank you for letting us know about this. Could you reach out to ward7
@minneapolismn
.gov with any additional info you may have about this incident or past occurrences? Much appreciated.
• A site visit with Canopy Roots, Minneapolis’ Behavior Crisis Response (BCR) provider working in partnership with MPD
• A conversation with
@MplsDowntown
Council's Adam Duininck and business community stakeholders about the unique roles downtown plays in our city 2/5
Tonight starting at 5pm the City Council will be hosting a public hearing on the proposed contract between the City and the Police Officers Federation during our Administration & Enterprise Oversight Committee. 1/3
The survey includes questions on demographics, workspace needs, health & wellness, housing history, & sentiments around diversity, equity & belonging. All adults working in the music industry in Mpls can participate in the music census, through 4/26.
Visit
Tomorrow is Juneteenth! Observed June 19, Juneteenth commemorates the day in 1865 when the last of enslaved people in the US received news of their freedom and entitlement to natural born human rights under law, 2 1/2 years after the signing of the Emancipation Proclamation 1/2
SWLRT Update: Expect a one-day full road closure of W 21st St at the rail crossing (btwn Thomas Ave S and Upton Ave S) on June 1, weather permitting, from 9AM-8PM. The purpose of the closure is to shift the freight rail tracks on the west side of the rail corridor. 1/2
• A tour of Cordia Energy , which provides a significant portion of downtown Minneapolis’ district energy used for heating and cooling buildings
It’s a pleasure and an honor to serve in this role and connect with so many community members moving our city forward. 5/5
You can pick up a free “20 is Plenty” yard sign from any of the free sidewalk sand pickup locations:
• North: 2710 Pacific St, outside the main Public Works gate.
• Northeast: 1809 Washington St NE, outside the fence at Jefferson St and 18th Ave.
2/3
The latest edition of the Ward 7 Newsletter is out! It's been a busy two weeks: updates on the Rideshare Minimum Compensation Ordinance, a new MPD Recruitment Campaign, approval of the Public Health and Safety Committee Workplan, & more. Check it out -->
It has been confirmed that MPD Officer Jamal Mitchell and two civilians, including the suspected shooter, have been killed. Several others sustained injuries that were non-life threatening and are receiving care. 2/4
Tonight is National Night Out! It will be a beautiful evening to get outside and make new connections with your neighbors. Lots of block events happening in Ward 7 from 5-8pm.
Here are a couple neighborhood-wide events to check out in Loring Park and Downtown.
The agenda below details the ways for members of the public to engage such as:
-Submitting written comments;
-Signing up to speak in person (Public Service Center, 250 S 4th St, Room 300)
-Watching the public hearing via the City's livestream
3/3
Had a great time this morning with community members and City colleagues welcoming Ward 7's newest coffee shop,
@skcoffeeplease
to the Skyway! SK sources and roasts single-origin micro-lots, exploring unique and rare profiles from around the world. Check them out at 50 S 6th St.
Projects for buildings located in a Green Zone or along a parcel eligible under the City's Great Streets Program (blue or orange on the map) are eligible to receive a higher level of funding. View the interactive Great Streets map here: 2/5
Not an owner? Renters can share this info with their property managers to encourage them to apply. Greener, more cost-effective buildings in our neighborhoods benefit everyone. 5/5
It's officially Black Business Week in the City of Minneapolis! From July 22-28, the public is invited to participate in a range of events and opportunities aimed and showcasing the work of Black entrepreneurs and Black-owned businesses.
Details here:
• Participation in a community visioning workshop focused on revitalizing the Warehouse District
• Time spent with students and educators at Emerson Elementary in Loring Park as a “celebrity reader” 4/5
• Conversation with 30+ neighbors at our monthly “Coffee with Katie” event, this time in Bryn Mawr (thanks again to Big Hill Books for hosting us!)
• Meetings and site tours for 4 new multifamily housing projects currently in development 3/5
Event tickets are free but required for entry: ...
Thank you to our amazing Public Works crews who worked overnight to paint the street, touch up crosswalks, and install temporary street signage around the arena to support the team. 2/2
• South: 27th St just east of Longfellow Ave near the Public Works gate.
• Southwest: 6036 Harriet Ave S, at the southwest corner of 60th St and Harriet Ave.
The signs come with metal stands and are available to pick up 24 hours a day while supplies last. 3/3