emperatures drop well below freezing in any Minnesota winter but nothing compares to the wintry blizzard and aftermath of December 13 at Minneapolis City Hall. Minneapolis neighborhood organizations had been diligently working with the City for the past three years and were poised to participate in the new Community Participation Program offered by the City's new Neighborhood and Community Relations Department (NCR). This program would have complemented the existing action plans that all of our neighborhood organizations are using in the Neighborhood Revitalization Program (NRP).
But our neighborhood organizations got a surprisingly different word on December 7 when they read about a major pending decision on the Minneapolis issues forum from StarTribune's Steve Brandt. Brandt wrote there was a proposed amendment to the 2011 budget that would "freeze...NRP transactions pending the legislation and an attempt to equalize the impact among neighborhoods." (www.startribune.com/local/111421489.html?page=2&c=y)
The amendment proposed by City Council President Barbara Johnson, Council Member Betsy Hodges and Mayor Rybak was offered to "trim property taxes." There was much debate during the week regarding the proposed amendment. On the following Monday, December 13, despite a blizzard that dumped two feet of snow, the city held its truth in taxation budget hearing. Public testimony was heard for over five hours by 70 residents, property owners and residents who testified about hardships from proposed rises in their 2011 property tax bills or cuts in neighborhood programs.
One item not addressed by the City Council was the proposed "Staff Directions," from the Finance Staff and the Ways and Means Chair, which had no impact on the 2011 budget. With a vote of 10-3, Council President Barbara Johnson, Ways and Means Chair Betsy Hodges, Community Development Committee Chair Council Member Lisa Goodman, and Council Members Don Samuels, Elizabeth Glidden, Gary Schiff, John Quincy, Diane Hofstede and Sandy Colvin Roy voted to approve the Staff Directive attached to the proposed 2011 Budget and approved the proposed budget, with no amendments or reductions. The three opposing votes were Council Members Robert Lilligren, Cam Gordon and Meg Tuthill.
The Council adopted the Staff Directives after three attempted amendments from Council Vice President Robert Lilligren to adjust them were defeated. Rybak stated during the amendments discussion that he would veto any budget sent to him that did not include the proposed language. So besides approving a budget for 2011 with no property tax relief for 2011, the Staff Directions adopted on December 13 were to: Not renew the NRP Joint Powers Agreement when it expires December 31, 2011; to direct IGR staff to report in January 2011 "on an amendment to the City's state legislative agenda which would incorporate a proposed strategy to seek legislation consolidating neighborhood programs and eliminating the need for the Joint Powers Board; to direct the Finance and NCR departments "to allow neighborhoods to contract up to 50 percent of the un-contracted balance of their Phase II allocation (excluding Phase II allocated but not Contracted Reserve funds), as of City Council adoption of the 2011 budget, but not to exceed a total contracted amount of 50 percent of their Phase II allocation." The Council also directed the NCR to work with the NCEC and to report back to the Council on "mitigating equity issues among neighborhoods related to the suspension of new contracts."
In 2009 the NRP Policy Board received a legal opinion from attorney Michael Norton indicating that the new city NCR department lacked legal authority over the treatment of NRP funds. The NRP legal opinion said, "NRP Law mandates that there be an NRP Program with all the required indicia, that is, neighborhoods creating and implementing neighborhood action plans, a multi-jurisdictional NRP board addressing program issues and approving neighborhood action plans, and the City approving qualified expenditures." NRP advocates believe the correct interpretation is that the city is the fiscal agent or trustee of the NRP funds but that it is not entitled to "freeze" the funds, and then subsequently use those funds for the city's own purposes.
NCR Director David Rubedor and NRP Director Robert Miller had spent months negotiating a proposed consolidation plan acceptable to their respective governing bodies and constituencies to avoid redundant administrative costs and to achieve service integration for neighborhoods. The NRP Policy Board had approved the "NRP and NCR: Collaboration, Cooperation and Consolidation Plan" on September 27. The plan sought a transition that would ensure four goals: Reduce or eliminate any duplication of administrative expenses; maximize funding for neighborhood organizations; provide a seamless transition for neighborhoods from NRP to the NCR Department; and maintain the integrity of both NRP and NCR programs." In November the NRP LINK had reported continued progress toward NRP/NCR consolidation. The plan was awaiting action by the City.
But a week later on December 20 on another snow filled Monday afternoon with downtown traffic gridlocked, the NRP Policy Board rescinded approval of the consolidation plan, and also told Miller to "end all collaboration efforts with the NCR and NCEC, effective immediately upon adoption of this resolution." The Policy Board also ordered the termination of all detailing of NRP staff to the NCR immediately upon adoption of the resolution, and prohibited the director from initiating any new staff detailing without the express consent of the Policy Board. And the Policy Board directed Miller to "pursue options for the benefit of NRP and provide a report to the Policy Board at its January 24, 2011 meeting."
So what does this mean for Camden residents and neighborhood organizations and where does it leave them in the new year? The NCR has announced the "Community Participation Program For Minneapolis Neighborhood Organizations" with funding of up to $3 million for 2011 that was approved by the NCEC and adopted by the City Council on December 10. Streamlined application forms are due to the NCR by January 14.
Impacts of the City Council action are still being evaluated by Camden neighborhood organizations; the McKinley Community Phase II plan was approved by the NRP Policy Board with an allocation of $580,500, but under the City Council Staff Direction the neighborhood may only contract up to 50 percent. McKinley Community Executive Director Chris Morris said at the Policy Board meeting, "We're going to be figuring out what our next steps are."
It's tentative whether the dispute between the City and NRP will land in the lap of the State Legislature during the 2011 Session, find its way into the courts or be resolved through some other means. What is clear is that the relations between the City and the NRP have been temporarily frozen like the Minnesota winter. Camden News readers should watch the NRP and NCR websites for updates on neighborhood programs. The U of M CURA staff has produced NRP data/maps showing potential impacts on neighborhood NRP funding under current city property tax budget proposals: visit www.mcno.umn.edu/InformationandResourcesAboutProposedChangestoNRP.html.
City officials, NRP staff, elected officials and other stakeholders will continue to debate the nature of Minneapolis neighborhood and community engagement programming that impacts the lives of residents across the city and in Camden. For info contact your neighborhood organization; see pages 8 and 9.
Editor's note: Jeff Strand is a City Council appointee to the Neighborhood and Community Engagement Commission and served 2005-2010 as the elected Protection Neighborhood Representative on the NRP Policy Board, but he does not represent either the NCEC or the NRP Policy Board in this article for the Camden News.