BRIEFS June 16, 2022

Tangletown contract to explore merger
The city council has approved a $20,000 contract with the Tangletown Neighborhood Association to provide administrative support for the Tangletown, Kingfield, and Lyndale Neighborhood Associations as part of the Neighborhoods 2020 Shared Resources and Collaborations Fund. This fund was started in 2021 to support collaboration and partnerships between neighborhood organizations. Tangletown, Kingfield, and Lyndale neighborhood associations plan to use these funds to explore merging into one organization that would serve the South Nicollet Avenue corridor neighborhoods.

August 9 primary election races
On Aug. 9, there will be a primary election in Minnesota. At the city level both the Republican and Democratic Farmer Labor (DFL) parties will have primaries in the 5th congressional district race. There will also be primary elections in the nonpartisan Hennepin County Attorney and sheriff races that will determine which two candidates will be on the ballot in the November general elections, as well as for the Minneapolis School Board Member at-large and district 5 races. Because more than one candidate has filed with the DFL for Senate Districts 62 and 63, as well as for House District 62A, there will be DFL primary elections held for those races as well. On Aug. 9, State Senator Omar Fateh is being challenged by union organizer Shaun Laden in 62, which includes a portion of southwest Minneapolis. State Representative Aisha Gomez is being challenged in the primary by Osman Ahmed, who also ran unsuccessfully for the same seat in the primary in 2018. State Senator Zaynab Mohamed is being challenged by Todd C. Scott. You can vote early June 24-Aug. 8.

SASHA COTTON RESIGNS
Sasha Cotton, Director of the Office of Violence Prevention, will be leaving her position with the city on July 15 to become the Deputy Director for the National Network for Safe Communities (NNSC) at John Jay College of Criminal Justice. Starting as the Youth Violence Prevention Coordinator and later leading the Office of Violence Prevention (OVP) as its first Director, over her eight years with the city, Cotton is credited building on the public health-based approach to community safety, implementing a Groups Violence Intervention program, and initiating the MinneapolUS Strategic Outreach program. According to the press release announcing Cotton’s departure, the city will use a competitive, national search process to secure the next director who could, under a proposed government restructuring plan, lead a new Neighborhood Safety Department under a yet to be formed Office of Community Safety.

Fire Chief and Emergency Management Director Nominated for Reappointment
Mayor Frey has nominated Barret Lane for reappointment as director of the Office of Emergency Management (OEM) and Bryan Tyner to be reappointed as Fire Chief. The after-action report released in March by the firm Hillard Heintze of the city’s response to the civil unrest following the police killing of George Floyd was critical of the Minneapolis police (MPD) and fire departments (MFD) and the failure to follow established rules and protocols for command and control in emergency response. The fire chief at the time, John Fruetel, has since resigned, but Lane was Director of Office of Emergency Management (OEM) at the time. The report found that OEM did not seem integrated with the MPD and MFD command. The report stated that “many interviewees expressed concern that many resources and efforts were put into creating and operating the OEM and developing the EOP [Emergency Operations Plan], but they did not see OEM as playing a role in the response.”

Hazardous Waste and Fix It Clinic
Hennepin County is collecting unwanted household products including paint, chemicals, fluorescent bulbs, batteries and fuel that are typically not accepted in normal waste collection services. People can drop off materials between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. July 8 and 9 at Patrick Henry High School, and, Aug. 12 and 13 at South High School, 3131 19th Ave. S. People can get free help with repairing broken household items at a Hennepin County’s Fix-It Clinic where volunteers offer free, guided assistance to fix small household appliances, clothing, electronics, mobile devices and more. Clinics are held on the second Saturday of every month from noon to 4 p.m. A Southwest Mpls. Fix-it Clinic is scheduled for Saturday, Aug. 13, at Mount Olivet Lutheran Church, 5025 Knox Ave. S.