CITY BRIEFS

EARLY VOTING 

Early voting for the Nov General Election begins on Friday, Sept 23. Any Minneapolis voter may choose to vote early at the Minneapolis Elections & Voter Services center at 980 E. Hennepin Ave. or at the elections service area in the Hennepin County Government Center, Skyway Level, 300 6th St. S.  Except for designated holidays, the Minneapolis Center will be open Monday-Friday, Sept. 23 - Oct. 21 from 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m.; Monday-Friday, Oct. 24 - Nov. 4 from 7 a.m. - 6 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 29 and Nov. 5 from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. and Sunday, Oct. 30 and Nov. 6 from 12- 5 p.m. On Monday, Nov. 7 they will be open from 7 a.m. - 5 p.m. and on Election Day, Nov. 8, when all the precinct polling places will be open, they will be closed for voting but open for ballot drop-off open until 3 p.m. Visit the county elections website at https://www.hennepin.us/residents/elections/absentee-voting for details about hours, which are different from the city’s. To see your sample ballot, visit https://www.sos.state.mn.us/elections-voting/. 

 NEW CITY ATTORNEY  

The City Council has unanimously approved Mayor Jacob Frey’s nomination of Kristyn Anderson for City Attorney. To take the position Anderson will be leaving her job as Minnesota Management and Budget’s general counsel, enterprise employment law counsel and state ethics officer. Prior to that she worked at the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office for 13 years in civil litigation. She starts officially as City Attorney on Sept 26. 

GAS LINE WORK

This month CenterPoint Energy is installing natural gas piping to serve the new apartment building at 3050 Abbott Avenue S. To do so they will be working on Lake Street W. at Market Plaza, Market Plaza from Excelsior Boulevard to Lake Street, Excelsior Boulevard from Abbott Avenue S. to Market Plaza and on Abbott Avenue S. from Excelsior Boulevard to 31st Street W. During construction, there will be lane closures on these streets but with the access to local properties maintained. 

PARKING – NOT BIKE LANE – ON FRANCE

Hennepin County Commissioner Marion Greene shared that there will only be minor striping revisions along France Avenue to preserve on-street parking, add some painted medians and include left-turn lanes at key intersections. “Although on-road bike lanes were considered as an option, width constraints would prevent a continuous bike facility along the corridor,” she wrote. “In addition, current use and upcoming transit enhancements with Metro Transit’s upcoming E Line Arterial Bus Rapid Transit project led to prioritizing accessibility and mobility for people walking and taking transit along the corridor.” 

POLICE CHIEF FINALISTS

The city has announced three finalists for possible appointment to be the next chief of police for Minneapolis. They are Elvin Barren, the chief of police for Southfield, Mich.; RaShall Brackney, a former Chief of Police for Charlottesville, Va. and George Washington University; and Brian O’Hara. who is currently the deputy mayor of Newark, N.J. This is the result of a national search led by the Public Sector Search & Consulting Inc. that started last March. A special mayoral search committee also helped interview candidates and recommended the finalists to the mayor for consideration. The mayor is expected to make his nomination in the coming weeks and is not required to select one of the three. The mayor’s nomination then requires the approval of the council. If it not approved, the mayor will need nominate someone else.

LISTENING SESSIONS ON POLICE CONTRACT 

The city held its final community listening session on the next three-year contract with the Minneapolis Police Federation on Wednesday, Sept. 14. The federation is the official labor organization represent all police officers including the rank of Lieutenant and below. The meeting was held at Whittier Park Recreation Center, and was the third meeting the city used to explain the negotiation process and gather ideas from participants related to the contract. Formal negotiations with the police federation are expected to begin this fall.

LAKE NOKOMIS WATER STUDY

Professor Joe Magner, research scientist Kerry Holmberg and M.S. graduate student Grace Andriacchi, from the University of Minnesota, are researching water and sinking ground issues in the Hale, Page, Diamond Lake, Keewaydin, and Wenonah neighborhoods. As a part of their study, they are having conversations with residents and are asking all residents, whether they have had water issues or not, to complete an online survey.