The Bridge -

Close to home

Reporter1 — Wed, 27 Aug 2008 11:45:05 -0500

by Liz Riggs

For 70 years, Seward-based architectural firm has been designing Bridgeland

While the boxy wooden office building on the corner of East Franklin and South 31st avenues has housed the Close Associates for 55 years, the story of the architectural firm began 15 years before the building was constructed and extends into the neighborhoods of Bridgeland, where the business has firmly left its mark.

In 1938, architects Winston Close and Elizabeth Scheu (Win and Lisl to those who knew them, and for our purposes) started the firm Close and Scheu. The business later became Elizabeth and Winston Close and, finally, Close Associates, which this year is celebrating its 70th year. It’s a legacy that began with the Closes and is still growing under the watch of their protégé, Gar Hargens.

The founders

Win and Lisl met while studying for their master’s degrees at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The founding of the firm was not their only union in 1938 — the two got married, as well.

Win became a professor of architecture at the University of Minnesota, and he later held the position of campus advisory architect from 1950 to 1971. Win was largely responsible for the planning of the school’s West Bank campus. He also led design work on the Washington Avenue bridge, though his plans included a much grander bridge — with a moving sidewalk and shops on the top walkway — than was actually built.

During those years, Lisl ran the couple’s architectural firm. One of only a few female architects in the country during the early part of her career, Lisl designed her first home for three University of Minnesota professors in 1938. The house, at 252 Bedford St. in Prospect Park, cost just $7,643 to design and construct. (Fifty years later, an article in With Respect to Architecture stated that the house, with its flat roof and blue concrete sidewalk, “was so shocking in Minneapolis in 1938 that it was facetiously credited for giving a passerby a heart attack!”) In the decade that followed, Lisl designed several other houses in the neighborhood, including ones at 222 Melbourne Ave. SE and 19 & 21 Barton Ave. SE.

Never one to fill the traditional woman’s role of her day, Lisl, in past interviews, has attributed her accomplishments as an architect to having a good housekeeper. Ironically, that help around the house might have influenced her designs; the Close’s youngest son Bob, a Minneapolis-based landscape architect, said some who have bought Close-designed homes have criticized the functionality of one room in particular: the kitchen. “They were her weakness,” said Bob, “because she was never in one.”

The disciple

In 1968, aspiring architect Gar Hargens traveled cross-country to attend graduate school at the University of Minnesota. That fall, at the suggestion of the late Ralph Rapson — one of his professors at the School of Architecture — Hargens took a part-time internship at Close. He’s remained at the firm ever since and is now the principal architect.
“Having been here with them for so long, I really believe I’m a disciple of theirs,” Hargens said about his mentors. “I’m proud of them and what they’ve stood for.”

For the first few years that Hargens was at the firm, Lisl was on her own, directing a staff that varied in size from six to a dozen employees. Though Hargens describes Lisl as a slight Viennese woman, he said she had the potential to intimidate at times. “[I’ve] seen 250-pound superintendents quake when she was unhappy,” he said, chuckling.

But his boss had a soft side, too. Asked by Hargens toward the end of her career what the most important thing was to her in her practice, Lisl answered, “That we made a lot of friends.” Hargens said this caught him off-guard, “because she was always so vehement about architectural principles.”

The Close trademark

Both Roy and Bob Close said their parents’ designs took on certain trademark characteristics. Roy said their work features a “real attention to light and shadow,” as well as a relative absence of interior walls. Their use of natural materials — from redwood to homasote — was also a signature trait. Hargens said there was a sort of “egalitarian-ness about their designs, even though, later on, they were designing for the rich and the famous.”

Since Hargens has been at the firm, Close Associates’ Bridgeland designs have included a remodel of Prospect Park United Methodist Church, work on parts of the University of Minnesota Medical Center-Fairview and the interior work on the historic renovation of the Pratt School building.

But of all their Bridgeland designs, Hargens says the Close’s pride and joy was undoubtedly Ferguson Hall, the music school at the University of Minnesota. As musicians — Lisl was a cellist, Win a violist — their unique perspective and enthusiasm for the project was remarkable and left the project’s selection committee “beaming,” he said. Roy agreed.

“The opportunity to do that building was really important to them,” he said.
Over the years, the Closes won numerous awards for their designs both in and out of Bridgeland. In 1969, the two were elected to the College of Fellows of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and in 2002, Lisl was awarded the Minnesota AIA Gold Medal for Lifetime Achievement.

In what was a gradual progression, Hargens became sole owner of Close Associates in 1988, although the Closes continued to work with him on occasional projects into the early 1990s. Win died in 1997, and Lisl now resides in a Minneapolis nursing home and is in good physical health, though she has senile dementia which affects her cognitive abilities, Roy recently said. She celebrated her 96th birthday earlier this year.

Different styles, same mission

Despite his different architectural style, Bob and Roy Close said Hargens “was definitely influenced” by their parents. Like Win and Lisl before him, Bob said Hargens has a knack for understanding clients’ needs. Hargens said he’s learned the right questions to ask from designing living spaces, and attention to detail in smaller projects like residential designs has made Close’s larger projects better.

Gail Graham, who oversaw the construction of the Seward Co-op’s current building at 2111 E. Franklin Ave. more than a decade ago, said she was impressed with Hargen’s ability to deliver on the Co-op’s vision. “There’s always challenges working with architects,” Graham said. “They always have great ideas, and some of them cost too much, so you have to talk them back down to the ground along with you. I found Gar was able to create a vision and deliver a project … that kept us to our budget, and that was unique.” (Hargens also designed the Co-op’s future home, just a few blocks east of his Seward office.)
Since taking over the business from the Closes, Hargens said one of his biggest changes has been a departure from solely modernist architecture. He has also taken on more renovations in recent years, including additions to the Closes’ own designs. “I love those projects where we’re taking what Win and Lisl started, and adding to it,” he said.

Toward the end of Lisl’s tenure, Hargens talked her into doing a couple projects with peaked roofs. “She was kicking and screaming the whole way,” Hargens recalled, admiring his mentor’s staunch dedication to modernist architecture.

The Hargens legacy

To say Hargens’ impact on Bridgeland in recent years has been substantial would be an understatement. In addition to the Seward Co-op projects and Pratt School, other projects have included Dartmouth Place townhomes between I-94 and Stadium Village; Metro Place, a combination of shops and condominiums on East Franklin Avenue; the Ronald McDonald House at 621 SE Oak St.; and several private homes and home renovations in the Marcy-Holmes, Prospect Park and Longfellow neighborhoods. Additionally, Close Associates was commissioned four different times to renovate Dania Hall — the historic Cedar-Riverside community center. Nearing completion in 2000, however, the building and the project were lost to a devastating fire. Hargens calls it the project he “mourns the most.”

Hargens attributes the reason for so many Close Associates designs in Bridgeland to the friendships his former colleagues developed throughout their careers. “Architecture is largely a result of relationships,” he said.

While Close Associates celebrates a 70-year milestone this year, its owner just reached a landmark of his own. Hargens celebrated his 65th birthday not long ago, and though it’s an age most often associated with retirement, he’ll be the first to tell you he’s not planning to leave the business anytime soon.

The topic of retirement begs the question of the fate of Close Associates when Hargens does decide to leave — a prospect further complicated by the fact that he has been a solo practitioner for the last 15 years, hiring out for each of his projects based on the specific need and expertise each individual job requires. While Hargens seemed to dodge the question, the Close sons appeared confident that their parents’ legacy is more than just the name. “While it would be nice to see the name carry on, it probably wouldn’t be a high priority for my parents,” Bob Close said.

Dining al fresco

jeremy — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 12:58:27 -0500

by Jeremy Stratton

Bridgeland makes the most of sidewalk season

In Minnesota, we hold our summers precious. The long, Siberian-like winters mean we make the most of our temperate days, the likes of which So-Cal and Florida take for granted.

Of course, those days are far fewer than the long winter, which gives rise to phenomena like shorts-and-flip-flops during the February thaw and the anxious wait for the opening of outdoor seating at area bars and restaurants. For some, it can never come soon enough.

By August, the summer is in full swing and al fresco dining has taken over the city, from the humble chairs and tables parked on the sidewalk outside the mini-market to the sprawling patios and unique spaces designed to pay homage to the fleeting sunlit days and breeze-cooled nights of summer.

A brief tour of outdoor dining in Bridgeland must start where the city did: along the Mississippi riverfront. While the newly redeveloped, more urban Downtown side has a few remarkable standouts — such as Spoonriver and Harry’s Food and Cocktails — it is the east bank that takes the cake for scenery with your seating. A stroll down Southeast Main Street — from the upscale Nicollet Island Inn to the hit-the-spot, beer-and-burgers fare of Tuggs Tavern — offers a full range of dining and drinks with views of the river, St. Anthony Falls and the Downtown skyline beyond.

Just blocks to the north, the bustling East Bank neighborhood offers an even wider range of options. With another outdoor seating area around just about every corner, from tucked-away garden patios — like the one shared by Rachel’s and Punch Pizza — to sidewalk tables complemented by flowering planters, low fences or simply the street scene itself.

Of the Bridgeland neighborhoods, however, Cedar-Riverside wins the prize for sheer volume (thanks in no small part to Sgt. Preston’s), and the unique character of the neighborhood is reflected in the creativity of its outdoor dining. Several designated patios fill in spaces along Cedar Avenue, from the picnic tables out back of Palmer’s to the side-stretch of tables across the street at the Nomad World Pub, where on cold nights a
fireplace has been known to warm the assembled smokers.

To the north, Seven Corners is a Midwestern slice of the European café scene, while, south of the freeway, the street that holds The Cabooze and The Junction is like a Harley-crowd block party on summer weekends. Just a bit further down the LRT line, Bedlam Theatre’s rooftop patio offers an excellent view of passing trains and Downtown Minneapolis.

Seward sports several nodes of outdoor dining. There’s the nexus of Franklin Avenue and 22nd Street South, highlighted by the back-to-the-garden goodness of Seward Café’s Green Space; there’s the old Hub of Hell-area bars and bowling alley; and, famously tucked away in the neighborhood, the twin relaxations of the Birchwood and Cliquot Club along East 25th Street.

Near the southern border of Bridgeland, Lake Street features street-side seating near Minnehaha and the wonderful backyard patio at El Norteño, with other notables peppered along the finally paved street — including the original summertime stop, Dairy Queen.
In all of Bridgeland, however, Overflow Café on University Avenue gets the award for most ambitious outdoor seating area. Tables and chairs sit on the upper deck above — and around the grassy lawn beside — a pool (complete with a waterfall and fountain) that is larger than the café itself. It’s just one of the finds along the long hill of that Prospect Park thoroughfare. Further west on campus, students study at sidewalk café tables during the day — and don’t study at bar patios in the evening.

Only the largely residential Southeast Como neighborhood seems to be lacking in outdoor dining and drink. Manning’s has outdoor seating; otherwise, we found only a couple of tables outside the Subway on East Hennepin and Mississippi Market at 1828 Como.

But then, it’s not the patio itself that’s the point, is it? It’s the chefs, servers and bartenders that make Bridgeland’s al fresco dining more than a well-ventilated smoking section and our wealth of great restaurants and bars worth visiting — inside or out.

Little prairie in the big city

jeremy — Mon, 25 Aug 2008 12:50:12 -0500

by Roxanne Bergeron

Eco-yard Midtown is a vibrant example of natural landscaping

Imagination is a big part of gardening. One must look beyond the plain, weedy pedestrian vista taking up space in the now and envision something with decided grandeur — or at least a yard not quite so ho-hum. If that future-landscape bliss could be a verdant paradise that took care of itself, so much the better.

If that is what you see — a beautiful garden space requiring hardly any watering, fertilizing, pesticides or time — then visit the Eco-Yard Midtown and let your imagination run wild.

Established by Hennepin County Environmental Services, the eco-yard is located at the southwest corner of South 28th Street and Hiawatha Avenue, adjacent to the Midtown Greenway bike and pedestrian trail. The garden stretches east and west across the northern end of the Green Institute’s parking lot, with split-rail fencing serving as a border between the bike trail and the northern edge of the garden.

This lush urban landscape project is both testimony and teacher in promoting sustainable landscaping and developing environmentally friendly home gardens, lawns and landscapes.

Not just railroad daisies

In 2005, the Hennepin County Regional Railroad Authority made available for the landscaping project a small tract of land, reserved for future transit use.

But for now, three acres of sumptuous and intriguing prairie goodness, including a bird and butterfly garden, a huge rain garden, a swale to handle water runoff, fescue lawns, native trees and shrubs, foot bridges made of recycled plastic, and a water-permeable “hardscape” make up the classroom that is this demonstration garden.

Minimal amounts of pesticides, fertilizers and water are required to maintain the vitality of gardens built taking nature into account. From wildflower species to hearty, drought-resistant grasses that send their roots deep into the ground, Mother Nature’s storehouse provide a wonderland of choices for sustainable plantings.

A on-site, self-guided tour takes you through the garden. Sections are marked with information posts describing each area and defining the plants. A four-page pamphlet available at the first post has a complete plant list.

A natural tour

Gregg Thompson, landscape architect and landscape restoration and urban conservation specialist with the Metropolitan Soil and Water Conservation District, selected the various perennial wildflowers, grasses, trees and shrubs on display in the often-windy, sun-rich eco-yard and supervised their planting by volunteers.

On July 14, Thompson gave a free, guided tour of the garden. About a dozen residents joined the naturalist as he showed off the different sections of the garden, ticking off plant names by heart and tossing out invaluable gardening tips along the way.

The large triangular-shaped brick paver plaza located at the northwest corner of the garden is a water-permeable surface, with 18 inches of crushed rock beneath the crisscrossed pavers. On the plaza’s south side is the bird and butterfly garden, where Thompson pointed out the purple prairie clover plants, with their deep roots and bee-enticing properties.

The cluster of knee-high neon orange butterfly weed plants attracts — wait for it — butterflies!, particularly monarchs. The eight prairie smoke plants, sadly, were past their bloom: “The flower head looks like a troll doll,” said Thompson.
The blazing star, a late-summer bloomer, sends roots down 14 feet and is “super drought-tolerant,” said Thompson.

In the native trees and shrubs area, dogwood and snowberry keep company with switch grass. The bushes give “nice winter interest,” said Thompson.

Tour-goers learned that goldenrod does not cause hay fever but does stand up all winter after showing off its big yellow umbrella flower clusters in August and September.

Pussytoes in the garden does not mean little kitties have run rampant, but rather that the garden has a planting of a silvery-leafed groundcover with flowers resembling the pads under a cat’s paws. Thompson said they’re a great choice for a boulevard planting in part to full sun. “You can step on it, and it’s fine,” he said.

Thompson expounded on the virtues of the bush honeysuckle, bragging on its viability and vigor in both sun and shade, even under a black walnut tree. He decried Kentucky bluegrass (“It’s not a patriotic grass at all!”) and advocated for the use of a five- to six-species fescue blend, planted in fall after a good raking so that the seed comes in contact with soil. “It does awesome in the shade,” he said. “I’ve never watered mine.”

The swale is filled with sacred sweet grass, also called vanilla grass; it has grown long and lain down like a carpet. “I don’t know how to describe (the smell when it’s dried), but it’s really neat,” Thompson said.

The rain garden at the southeast end of the eco-yard is brimming with cup plants and a diverse collection of floral species, including blue flag irises, fox sedge, bottlebrush grass and prairie dropseed. This biodiversity is good for wildlife, Thompson said, and gives the entire garden “increased resistance to the impacts of drought, flood, insects and disease.”

Scheduled tours are over until next summer, but if your group would like to book a guided tour with Thompson, call 612-348-9266.

Thompson recommended other resources: The Lake Phalen native plant guide (check it out on www.rwmwd.org) and the website www.prairienursery.com for No-Mow lawn mix, wildflowers and native grasses.

Register Remember Vote

jeremy — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 15:14:32 -0500

This design is one of the top 50 chosen for the 'My Yard, Our Message' campaign. The signs will grace Seward lawns and windows this election season. Design by Katherine T. Nguyen. Click on image to link to story.

Seward neighborhood to act as 'gallery' for 'UnConvention' lawn sign project

jeremy — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 14:59:33 -0500

by Jeremy Stratton

50 signs will be distributed at Matthews Park on Saturday, Aug. 23

While the Seward neighborhood residents and businesses are known to sometimes wear their politics on their sleeves, some will be putting the message on their lawns and in their windows during this convention and campaign season.

Seward will act as a “gallery” neighborhood for the “My Yard, Our Message” campaign, sponsored by the Walker Art Center and mnartists.org.

This summer, artists submitted designs for the politically themed yard signs, 50 of which were chosen as finalists. Three of these winning designs — including the top two vote-getters — were created by Seward resident Teri Kwant.

On Saturday, Aug. 23, 50 signs — one of each design — will be laid out on the Matthews Park hill (near the corner of 27th Avenue South and East 25th Street) to be distributed, first-come, first-serve, starting at 9 a.m. The signs can also be purchased for $15 through the My Yard, Our Message website, where you may also view all the entries.

The yard-sign project is just one part of The UnConvention, a “ non-partisan collective of citizens and cultural institutions [that] provides a forum for promoting the democratic and free exchange of ideas during and after the Republican National Convention,” according to its website.

While many of the signs have a non-partisan “get-out-the-vote” theme, others lean decidedly to the left, like one that reads: “You shouldn’t be looking for humor in this sign. The joke is in the White House.”

Seward is the only Minneapolis “gallery” participating; two areas of St. Paul will also display the signs.

Living green every day

Reporter2 — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 11:37:24 -0500

by Jen Ortendahl

Some tips for living more sustainably

With all the stigma surrounding global warming and the rising pressure to live more sustainable lifestyles, drastic changes have been suggested that might disrupt most people in their everyday lives. However, there are some things that people can do to help the environment one little step at a time.

Many of these tips come courtesy of Prospect Park residents, via an e-list conversation that sprang up earlier this summer, including a list from the St. Frances Cabrini Peace and Justice Committee.

Energy audit

Have an energy audit through your electric company. One resident writes, “We thought it was worth it, if only to find out that our only ‘insulation’ was a single layer of tar paper.”
Your auditor will give you suggestions to help increase the energy efficiency of your home, as well as cut back on your electric bill.

Document destruction

Instead of letting your boss throw away all of the company’s important documents or worrying about all your previous confidential forms, find a company to shred your documents. One resident suggests:

American Paper Recycling Corp
615 Prior Ave North
Saint Paul, MN, 55104-1743
Phone: 651-644-7806

Your paper must be shredder ready — no binders, paper clips, or binder clips. Staples are ok. You may watch your paper being shredded if you wish.

Transportation

Obviously, walking is better for the environment than a car that emits greenhouse gases, but how can you implement walking into your everyday life? Go to www.walkscore.com and see how “walkable” your neighborhood is. You may be surprised by where your two feet can carry you.

When walking isn’t an option, use the HourCar program. People in the Twin Cities have the opportunity to participate in this car-sharing program that will save you money. Visit www.hourcar.org.

Solar power

“Our solar hot water system is working very well — it cut our summer gas use last year by 1/3 to 1/2,” wrote one resident. “We haven’t run the numbers for winter, but you’d be surprised how many days it kicks in even when it’s cold outside.”

Visit www.solarpowerdirectory.com for local solar power options.

Drying laundry

Hang it out to dry. You don’t necessarily have to hang all of it out, but every little bit helps.

Things to keep in mind when remodeling — suggestions from the EcoDEEP House, sustainable remodeling is made easier!

Wood — Ipe is more durable than redwood and cedar, has a life expectancy of 40 years or more, and is resistant to insects and decay. Ipe is sustainably harvested in Brazil, though it is not cheap. It can be even higher or similar in cost to redwood — but it is durable, so if you consider the life-cycle costs, it is easier to swallow.

Also, consider composite materials. Trex is made of 50 percent recycled wood and 50 percent recycled plastic. It never needs sanding, it doesn’t splinter and it is protected from insects and sun damage. Visit www.trex.com for more information.

Bamboo is another option. Although bamboo is a grass, it looks and functions similar to traditional hardwood floors. Visit www.teragren.com.

Cork is yet another option. The bark from cork trees is harvested every 9-12 years, without any harm to the tree. Visit www.tomkt.com.

Also available is wood made from the trees around Minnesota that have been cut down because of Elm’s Disease. Visit www.naturalbuilthome.com and search “wood from the hood”.

Carpet — FLOR is a modular carpet system made by Interface. It’s a do-it-yourself system that allows you to change and rearrange carpet tiles. If the carpet stains, you only have to change one tile instead of re-carpeting the whole room. Interface pledges to eliminate any negative impact they may have on the environment by 2020. FLOR is also completely recyclable. You can call up Interface and they will arrange to pay for shipping costs to send the FLOR tiles back to them at the end of their useful life. Visit www.flor.com.

Cement board siding — Cement board is composed of natural materials- wood pulp, cement, sand and water. It’s a very durable material with a 50-year warranty. Cement board resists damage from insects and flame spread. You can get the product in a pre-finished baked-on paint (limited colors) that has a 15-year warranty, or you can paint it. Paint holds on to cement board much better than wood, so it requires very little maintenance. Visit www.jameshardie.com.

Insulation — There are a few different options that offer different advantages. Cellulose is made from recycled newspaper. Cotton insulation is made from preconsumer denim scrap. As for spray foam insulation, closed cell polyurethane is used both for cavity installation and as an insulating roofing material. Open cell polyurethane are very effective for older buildings as they seal very well and their flexibility allows for some movement of the framing materials as shrinkage and expansion occur.

Countertops made out of recycled paper are durable, stable and available in many different colors. Papertone is one option. Visit paperstoneproducts.com, or www.shetkastone.com for a local provider.

Cabinets made out of recycled paper are also available. Visit www.richlite.com.

Flat roofs — If you’re remodeling your roof, why not make it flat? Flat roofs actually offer better insulation and they last longer. And, with a flat roof, solar panels are an easier option and you can make it all the greener by having shrubs and grass up there!

Visit Natural Built Home at 4020 Minnehaha Ave. They aim at being the one-stop shop for the safest and most sustainable building supplies. They have options for every room in your house and offer classes to help you make your home sustainable.

Tips on how to reduce waste

Bring your own Tupperware to restaurants for leftovers. If you have young kids, it is easy to just always keep a spare Tupperware in the diaper bag.

Re-use plastic bags, i.e. bread bags, bags from frozen veggies, etc. Many more plastic bags are recyclable than you might think (i.e. the liners in cereal and cracker boxes, plastic bags used in packaging and shipping, etc.). Grocery stores like Rainbow and Cub accept bags for recycling. They are also good for lining garbage cans.

Use small plastic bins for recycling rather than bags. The City seems to want us to use paper bags for newspapers, cardboard, and office paper, but they are okay with the plastic containers for glass, cans, and plastic.

Compost food waste.

On how to conserve water

Rain barrels are especially nice for watering potted plants, which need much more frequent watering. Also, if you run a dehumidifier, you can empty the water into the garden, rather than pouring it down the drain. Free wood chips are available from the City of Minneapolis, which helps keep the gardens from drying out so quickly. Locations for free wood chips can be found at www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us

Join a community supported agriculture organic farm and get deliveries of local organic food all summer.

Combine all errands into one trip and try to coordinate your routes to minimize the distance traveled.

Replace your incandescent light bulbs with compact florescent bulbs. Compact florescent bulbs not only use 75 percent less energy, but can also last ten times longer than incandescent bulbs.

Approx. per year savings Pounds of CO2 prevented/yr: multiply the number of bulbs replaced times $5 each year = $ ___ multiply the number of bulbs replaced times 100 pounds of CO2/ yr = ___ lbs

Turn off all lights when you leave your house. $10 and 300 lbs CO2/yr

Raise your Air Conditioning level 2 degrees. $20 and 400 lbs CO2/yr

When heating or cooling, close windows & doors. $10 and 300 lbs CO2/yr

When heating or cooling is no longer needed, open the windows and doors to warm or cool the house. $20 and 500 lbs CO2/yr

Lower your furnace thermometer 2 degrees. $50 and 550 lbs CO2/yr

Turn the knob on your water heater down 1/8 turn. $10 and 100 lbs CO2/yr

When the fire in your wood-burning fireplace is out, close the damper (fireplace doors save even more). $20 and 250 lbs CO2/yr

Take only five-minute showers. (Each person taking a 5-minute shower saves $25 and 250 lbs of CO2 each year)

Keep your car tires at full pressure, avoid quick starts and stops, and drive within the speed limit. $130 and 1,100 lbs CO2/yr

Carpool or take the bus once each week. $ 100 and 800 lbs CO2/yr

Replace your older car/SUV with a car that gets at least 50 miles per gallon. $750 and 6,000 lbs CO2/yr

Additional energy-saving ideas can be found through the Minnesota Energy Challenge.

Our public schools are still a good investment

jeremy — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 09:39:34 -0500

by Kate Towle

Opinion

The “Strong Schools, Strong City” levy referendum on which we will vote in November is a call for a breakthrough in Minneapolis education. Imagine this: we invest in our community schools and the growing needs of our urban students, and Minneapolis holds its own as one of the most highly educated populations in our country.

We have high numbers of high school and college graduates. According to the Brookings Institution’s 2005 “Mind the Gap” report, the latter has held true. In 2000, the Twin Cities ranked high for median income (14th) among the 100 largest metro areas.

According to a 2008 report by state economist Tom Stinson and state demographer Tom Gillaspy, however, the prosperity Minnesota enjoys today is due to “wise decisions made 50[-plus] years ago,” including “investment in education and human capital.”

Now, metro-area workers are aging, the achievement gap between white students and students of color is one of the largest in the country, and our citizens’ investment in education is not keeping pace with the rising costs of inflation. By the time you read this, the number of workers turning age 62 may have already jumped to 30 percent. As our baby boomers retire, Minneapolis will increasingly rely on the students in today’s urban classrooms.

Minneapolis Public Schools (MPS), like all public schools, is a cornerstone of democracy. MPS subscribes to the 100 percent rule, which simply means they agree to responsibly educate each child who comes through their doors, regardless of that child’s life circumstances.

While we may compare our public schools to other businesses from time to time, let’s be clear on one thing: our public schools do not get to choose their raw material. In addition, our schools pay much less towards administration. While most businesses scream if their administrative budget is less than 7 percent of their income, MPS pays only 3.5 percent of its costs towards its administration (compared to a 4.2 percent average for most Minnesota districts). Yet, the mission of MPS is firm: to grant all children — even those with compromised access to housing and health care — an education that will lift them from poverty to meet the challenges of a global economy.

Our state has invested well in our Minneapolis children, and for good reason. According to MPS data for 2008–2009, 65.6 percent of our students receive free or reduced-cost lunches (a standard gauge for poverty); 23.2 percent are English language learners and 15.9 percent are in special education.

More than 70 percent of Minneapolis public schools students are students of color, and by nearly any indicator, the statistics are not in their favor. According to the Brookings Institution, minority households in the Twin Cities metropolitan area have incomes at least $20,000 lower than white households. Their home-ownership rate is 20 percentage points less than that of whites, and they live with a wide disparity of health care resources — 33 percent of Latinos lack health insurance, compared to 5 percent of whites and 12 percent of African Americans.

Unfortunately, our state investment in Minneapolis children has not kept up with the rising costs of energy and fuel oil, gasoline, educational books and supplies, and medical care for education professionals. However, mandates for high-stakes testing, special education services, transportation, English language learning, health and safety, physical education, drug and sex education (to name a few) are rising exponentially.

The cuts over the last decade have cost us dearly in other ways: fewer enrichment programs like art and music, books and technology that are often older than our students; poor facility maintenance, and a greater reliance on parent fundraising (which can exacerbate equity disparities among schools).

Something — someone — has got to give. I suggest that it be us, the citizens of Minneapolis. Our schools’ burden is our opportunity. We in Minneapolis are smart enough to know that, in our globalized world, with the growing diversity of residents and students, maintaining our current standard of living means that we must invest in our human capital — our public school students.

Our schools can make a significant difference in closing the race and class disparities that plague our urban students. There are proven interventions that work, and MPS’s new Strategic Plan aims to apply them: to help all children read at grade-level by third grade, to prepare all children for algebra by eighth grade, to expose all students to cutting-edge technology and culturally-competent textbooks and, finally, to continue an investment in lower class sizes.

The referendum will allow our schools to do all of the above at an increase of $60 million in annual revenue per year. For the average homeowner, this amounts to a monthly increase of $17. That’s about 50 cents a day to bring critical resources to many children whose greatest hope is a strong education.

50 cents a day to boost our schools’ achievement at a time when fuel costs are attracting families back into the city. That’s a small price for our future adults whose earnings will fund our retirement and Minneapolis prosperity. And we can also expect home values to increase as our schools and their students grow stronger.

Kate Towle is co-chair of the MPS District Parent Advisory Council, a member of the Strong Schools, Strong City volunteer committee and the parent of two MPS students. She lives in the Prospect Park/East River Road neighborhood.

A not-so-magic lamp guides me back to my neighborhood hardware store

jeremy — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 15:46:50 -0500

by Bruce Johansen

Praise for independent, locally owned businesses — in Seward and beyond

It all began with a lamp purchased during a rare visit to a big-box store. Rare because, since childhood, I’ve been drawn to idiosyncratic, local businesses; places like Al’s Breakfast in Dinkytown, City Lights Bookstore in San Francisco, and Chicago’s Uncle Fun. There’s a magic to these one-of-a-kind places that ubiquitous, cookie-cutter businesses rarely if ever replicate.

Still, every so often I find myself thinking that maybe, just maybe, one of the bigger stores will have the very item I need and save me a few pennies too. Such was my thinking as my partner and I entered a big-box best known for selling fashionable furniture at reasonable prices.

Roaming that store’s sprawling 336,000 square feet — spread over two floors — proved interesting at first but quickly became overwhelming. It felt like a maze, and my feet started to ache. Finally, two-and-a-half hours after arriving, relieved to be winding our way to the exit, we began picking up a few items. A bundle of coat hangers here, a potholder there, some scratching posts for the cat. And then we spotted the lamp. It was striking in appearance and the price was right. So we stuck it in a second oversized, mesh bag and proceeded to look for light bulbs.

Let me repeat that we had been in the store for over two hours, and not once during that time were we greeted nor intercepted by a store employee offering help. As a result, it didn’t occur to us to seek anyone out when we reached the light bulb stage. Instead, concerned that we’d picked up the right product, we double-checked, then triple-checked, comparing the pack we’d selected with what was in the display model. Satisfied that we had, we continued to the checkout line.

Maybe you can guess what happened after we left the store.

We got the lamp home, took it out of its box, began screwing the first light bulb in, and it got stuck. After beating ourselves up for not seeking assistance and then cursing the store for not providing sufficient customer service, cooler heads prevailed. As so often happens these days, we realized that the solution was clear. We would take the lamp to Welna II Hardware in the morning.

For years I’ve heard homeowners proclaim the importance of having a trusted, preferably small, independent hardware store nearby. When business districts revitalize, the call for a good hardware store always tops residents’ wish lists. Now, as a new homeowner in the Seward neighborhood, I’ve come to appreciate why.

On my first visit to Welna II — a member of Ace, the national cooperative — I was greeted by owner Jim Welna. Not in an imposing, nor an intrusive way; he simply and politely asked, “Can I help you find something today?” He then took the time to really help, offering his advice on this product and that. Some were cheaper than the ones I’d been eyeing; some were locally produced, or more eco-friendly. In the midst of a subsequent visit, after helping once again, he surprised me with, “Hey, would you like a hotdog? I’ve got some on the grill out back.” How often does that happen at a store of any size?

Over time, I’ve discovered that the owner’s kind and helpful service carries over to everyone who works for him — a fairly large and diverse staff. Most live in the neighborhood and walk or bike to work. Clearly, Welna instills in them the golden rule of customer service: treat your customer the way you, yourself, would want to be treated. He knows this to be a good business practice, that consumers have plenty of other options available to them, and that the quality of service he provides is essential to bringing people back and making them loyal to his store.

The morning we hauled our lamp into Welna, we were welcomed by a young employee who had waited on us several times before. “Hey, what can I help you with today?” he asked as soon as we entered. After explaining our dilemma, he recruited a co-worker, found the right tools, laid the lamp down on a hard surface and went to work. Halfway through the operation he turned and said, “I can’t believe they let you walk out of the store with the wrong kind of bulbs.” “I know,” I replied, “It really shows the difference between a store like this and those big-box places.”

Big-box and local, independent stores are different in so many ways. Like its companion store — the original Welna on Bloomington — Franklin Avenue’s Welna II is within walking distance of home for many residents of a densely populated urban neighborhood. Besides the convenience, this means it’s more environmentally friendly to patronize than its big-box competitors, which typically require a long drive.

Like most independent businesses, Welna is owned by someone who lives close by. You’ll see folks like Jim Welna working the floor, ringing up sales, even shoveling the walk on a snowy morning. Because they’re on the premises, the Welnas of our communities form relationships with their clientele. In turn they’re responsive to customers’ needs in ways that heads of corporate chains — beholden first and foremost to their stockholders, and with a constant eye on the bottom line — are not.

With a stake in their community, these neighborhood entrepreneurs serve on planning committees and task forces, and donate to local causes. Jim Welna, for example, is President of the Seward Civic & Commerce Association and belongs to various city and neighborhood planning committees. He mingles with residents at community-wide potluck picnics. And he donates generously to local causes, including the annual South Minneapolis Housing and Home Improvement Fair.

It’s become clear to me that businesses of this kind provide more knowledgeable and attentive service than those many times their size. I always walk away from Welna confident that I have in my hands the right part, tool, or supply. I know that I haven’t been sold the most expensive item if something more economical will do. Plus, I’m impressed that they’ll always go the extra mile, as they did with our lamp.

Perhaps most importantly, dollars spent at independent stores like Welna circulate more widely through the local economy. A study by the research firm Civic Economics shows that, for every $100 spent at an independent store, an additional $68 in local economic activity is generated. By comparison, $43 of every $100 spent at national chains circulates back into the local economy. According to Stacy Mitchell, author of Big-Box Swindle, this is because the primary allegiance of chains is to their parent company, not the local community.

Chain stores generally keep local spending to a minimum because centralized purchasing is more cost-efficient for them. By contrast, independent retailers purchase most of their supplies and services from other local businesses. Plus they bank locally, advertise in community newspapers and carry goods produced by local firms. Seward’s Birchwood Café provides a map in its monthly newsletter showing where its food comes from, local providers like Peace Coffee (1.4 miles away) and River Bend Farm (31 miles.) Not only that, but independent retail stores have larger local payrolls that extend to services they hire from local accountants, web designers, and so on.

Finally, with its hand-painted sign, Welna II adds character to the neighborhood, contributing to that “sense of place” that many of us crave.

Now I can imagine some skeptics — especially those for whom shopping is synonymous with chain stores and shopping malls — reading this and saying, ‘Sure, he’s had terrific experiences at his neighborhood hardware store. So what? That’s just one independent business.’

However, what’s striking is how frequently I have such experiences at locally owned stores wherever I go. Just in Seward, there’s Zipp’s Liquors, where the staff offers friendly, down-to-earth advice about wines. No snootiness there. And there’s my favorite hangout, the 2nd Moon Coffee Café. Because it, too, is a place where people enjoy their work. It has a stable, personable staff that knows its customers, often by name. It’s not uncommon for Kari or Nicole to greet me, then grab a mug and start to pour before I utter a word. And they always take time to engage in conversation before the next customer comes along. Compare that with bigger retailers, where ringing up sales is the primary value and training programs instill in clerks, wait staff, or baristas a rigid set of rules about permissible interactions.

I could offer more examples, but you get the idea. While it’s true that there’s an occasional lapse in service, the satisfactions that come from frequenting local, independent businesses far outweigh the frustrations. And they’ve always been my ticket to getting a handle on a community’s culture. As a new Seward resident, local businesses enhance my sense of well-being by helping to ground me where I am. In a world that’s increasingly more transient and where so many of our relationships are mediated, the sense of connection to place that comes through such face-to-face encounters is something I celebrate, on top of local business’s many other virtues. Not surprisingly, when it came time to shop for a teapot, I decided to forego the big-box stores. This time I headed right to a local, independent store, where I found the perfect item that was put to immediate use.

— Bruce Johansen is a Seward resident.

Public hearing on framework and funding of NRP, Aug. 20

jeremy — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 14:39:58 -0500

by Jeremy Stratton

Proposal would direct as much as $8 million a year to neighborhoods through new city department

On Wednesday, Aug. 20, members of the public will have a chance to respond to the proposed “Framework for the Future” report, which addresses the future of the Neighborhood Revitalization Program (NRP). The meeting begins at 5 p.m. in City Council chambers, room 317 of City Hall, 350 S. Fifth St.

The NRP Work Group — consisting of representatives from the City Council, Mayor R.T. Rybak’s office and NRP Director Bob Miller — is recommending that NRP be transitioned to a new city department of Neighborhood and Community Relations and overseen by an 18-member advisory board with nine representatives elected by neighborhood organizations, seven appointed by the City Council and two appointed by the mayor.

Last week, the mayor proposed a funding plan for the program, committing $8 million a year for ten years, beginning in 2011, from tax-increment financing from Downtown development projects. Annually, $3 million would be split between Minneapolis’ neighborhood groups for administrative support, and the remaining $5 million would be split between a Neighborhood Investment Fund (90 percent) for neighborhood-designated priorities and a Community Innovation Fund (10 percent), from which neighborhood associations could apply for grants to pay for other initiatives.

The exact amount of funding and “final allocation decisions” will be determined by the mayor and City Council, according to the report.

You can read the full final report here (click on “amended report”). The Committee of the Whole will hear the public comments at the Aug. 20 hearing and is expected to review the recommendations at its regularly scheduled meeting the next day, Aug. 21, at 10 a.m.

Public comment on the Framework for the Future can also be submitted until Sept. 11 to Committee Clerk Anissa Hollingshead at anissa.hollingshead@ci.minneapolis.mn.us or by mail to Council Committee Clerk, 350 South 5th Street, Room 304, Minneapolis, MN 55415.

Watch for further coverage of this issue online after the Aug. 20 public meeting and in our September issue.

Native Minneapolis, from pre-history to today

jeremy — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 08:50:59 -0500

by Roxanne Bergeron

First of Central Library lectures features American Indian stories both personal and political

Last month, Scott Anfinson, Minnesota’s state archaeologist, opened the first of four monthly lectures on Minneapolis history with some bad news: there is no prehistoric archaeology in the city.

“There has never been an archaeological dig of a prehistoric site in Minneapolis,” Anfinson said. “The rapid expansion of the city basically destroyed most of the archaeological sites here.”

While archaeological signs may be scarce, the speakers that shared the Downtown Central Library stage with Anfinson on July 22 proved that the words and culture of the area’s pre-settlement population are alive and evident.

The July event was the first of four scheduled to take place at the library through the end of October. The series, part of the city’s ongoing sesquicentennial celebration, will trace the history of Minneapolis from its prehistoric roots to the future of architecture. Local historians, writers and educators will serve as presenters during the series.

The remaining lectures are:
Aug. 19 — Building Minneapolis, 6–7 p.m. and Minneapolis: Late 19th and Early 20th Century Growth, 7:20–8:20 p.m.
Sept. 23 — Our People and Their Stories, 6–7 p.m. and New Stories from New Arrivals, 7:20–8:20 p.m.
Oct. 21 — Buildings and Their Tales, 6–7 p.m. and Architecture and the Future, 7:20–8:20 p.m.

Visit the Central Library website for more information about upcoming lectures or to hear recordings of the July 22 event.

Before ‘history’

Anfinson buzzed through a slide show outlining Minnesota’s last 14,000 geographic years, describing the placement of burial mound sites along waterways and lakeshores throughout what is considered “prehistoric” times — a period in which written records were not maintained.

The earliest prehistory, Anfinson said, is evidenced by a few projectiles found on the surface of the ground. Late prehistoric evidence exists from burial mound distributions, but archaeologists no longer excavate burial mounds and have not done so “for over 30 years in Minnesota,” he said.

The existence of plentiful burial mounds is evidence that people were moving into the metro area during the Woodland period, from about 500 BC to 1000 AD, Anfinson said. Key areas for the Dakota people were Lake Minnetonka, which had about 600 mounds located in groups; Lake Mille Lacs, which had mounds all around them (90 perecnt of which are now destroyed); and the Red Wing area. Villages existed along the Minnesota River and along the Mississippi River below Fort Snelling, with a few small villages on Minneapolis lakes.

Nowadays, Indian Mounds Park in St. Paul is the easiest place to see what is left of the burial mounds in the Twin Cities.

In 1650 the French fur traders arrived, Anfinson said, and that was the end of the prehistory period. At that time, the Dakota were located mostly north of the Twin Cities, and the Iowa were located mostly to the south, making the current metro area a zone between the two groups at the time of contact.

Anfinson left the audience with this cryptic caveat: “Beware the chamber of commerce approach to history,” he sad, citing stories of Indian princesses dying while going over waterfalls.

“You never hear about Indian princes,” said Anfinson.

Let’s talk

Linguist Arlo Omaha, with his measured melodic voice and primer on Lakota Dakota pronunciation, was like a change-up pitch after Anfinson’s information fastballs.

His first order of business was to teach the right way to say Iowa — with a short “i” sound instead of a long one, so that our southern geographic neighbor sounds like “Ee-yo-wuh.” Omaha then popped off lots of other linguistic tidbits.

A single word with a few syllables could have an extensive and elaborate meaning For instance, Lakota means “I am your true friend and I am willing to die for you.”

“It just goes on and on,” said Omaha.

Just like pronunciation, stories can be different, Omaha said. He has read much and concluded that storied history is inconsistent in the print media.

There are two “Cloudman” stories, Omaha said, adding that one of the Cloudmen is his great-uncle. “It’s not all the same,” he said.

Omaha then shared a bit of his personal story. He spent his first seven years of life as a native child before being sent to missionary school, where he was “grabbed by the ear by a nun and told not to speech my language anymore,” Omaha said. “My mouth was washed out with soap.”

The jingle dress

The period during the 19th and early 20th centuries were difficult years for the Ojibwe and other Indian people in Minnesota, explained Brenda Child, a history professor at the University of Minnesota. Poverty and health issues combined with aggressive, predatory land consolidation, allocation and relocation legislation and practices, and the withdrawal of the protective trust relationship with the Bureau of Indian Affairs.

Then, around 1920, a remarkable tradition arose in Ojibwe culture: the jingle dress dance.

As Omaha intimated, story origin can be a varied thing, and the history of the jingle dance is no exception. In Child’s version, a young Ojibwe girl became very sick. Her father saw a vision on how to save her life and learned about the dress and dance through a dream. Dad made the dress (a cloth dress with rows of metal cones sewn across it) for his daughter. He asked the girl to dance just a few steps “in which one foot was never to leave the ground” while wearing the dress. His daughter started to feel better, got a little stronger and kept dancing. After her recovery, she continued to dance in the special dress her father made for her.

Nowadays the jingle dress dance is a fixture on the powwow circuit. The very act of dancing in the dress, Child said, constitutes a prayer for healing and is an example of hidden spirituality and ritual taking place in a public forum. It is a “creative approach to adversity, illness and poor health, with a foundation solidly rooted in traditional Ojibwe song and dance.” said Child. “Its introduction rallied a communal spirit among Ojibwe people and sustains Indian people of diverse tribal backgrounds today.”

Child explained that the appearance of the dress coincided with two things: the World War I Spanish influenza pandemic of 1918 and the 1921 “Dance Order” – the “last gasp of assimilation politics” before Roosevelt-era reforms (the so-called “Indian New Deal”) took place. The Dance Order order outlawed ritualistic dancing, including powwow dancing and the Sun Dance.

Child said there is little doubt women ignored the rule, as there are pictures of them wearing the dress in every decade since the 1920s.

“It was, in effect, anti-colonial,” Child said.

The new practice, considered an innovation consistent with Ojibwe traditions of song and dance, flourished under this ban on ritual dance. It spread through Minnesota out to the Dakotas, down into Iowa and eventually throughout North America.

In essence, women applied the jingle dance ritual “like a salve to fresh wounds,” Child said,

Urbanization over the last 50 years

The second hour started with a talk by W. Roger Buffalohead, who helped establish the University of Minnesota American Indian Studies department. He was its first director.

Buffalohead came to the Twin Cities in the spring of 1970 after a friend and colleague encouraged him to help develop the program. The fledgling department had to serve both the native and academic communities equally well. Teaching Ojibwe and Dakota languages as part of the curriculum was crucial, as the languages were on the verge of dying out due to assimilation strategies.

“The process (of assimilation) nearly did its job,” Buffalohead said. “We needed children speaking their language again.”

Historically speaking, relocation from the reservation to an urban center was initially voluntary, Buffalohead said. If you agreed to get some training, he explained, the BIA lent financial assistance for a time to help with basic needs, rent and insurance.

But relocated people found themselves in what were the beginnings of ghettos in these large urban areas. Once the assistance stopped and the Indians took a hard look around at their urban surroundings, they had trouble adjusting. There was a lot of movement back and forth between these large urban communities and the reservation by people lonely and needing community.

Economic justice, said Buffalohead, was one of the key things that had to occur if Indians were going to successfully adapt to an urban environment.

“Out of that [need] came the foundation of an activist movement that began to change the whole perception that native people had of themselves,” said Buffalohead. “This was the kernel of the activist movement.”

‘Recognize the Indian people’

When Buffalohead was done, Clyde Bellecourt, life-long Indian activist and co-founder of the American Indian Movement, made his way to the podium, his hair knotted in a long black and silver braid that trailed well down his back. Once there, he let loose with his version of Native American Urbanization.

If you did not know before hearing him speak, you knew when he was done that his anguish and outrage have no bottom, even after all of his 71 years, his successes, his Sun Dance powwows, and his cleansings. Still he burns inside.

Bellecourt told stories about his parents and their humiliation in the throes of relocation politics, and he recounted his own years spent in a reform school in Red Wing. He said the bars were his community center when he came to Minneapolis. He would sing “Rock of Ages” at the mission to score a bowl of macaroni soup and a PB&J sandwich.

Bellecourt became overwhelmed with anger as he talked about the cultural scourge that was the 1963 textbook “Minnesota: Star of the North,” and he took a swipe at Minneapolis Mayor R. T. Rybak, whom Bellacourt said failed to mention the American Indian people in his Aquatennial speech this year at the annual Minneapolis celebration, which Bellecourt called an “all-white event.”

“I asked him a week ago, before I went to Sun Dance: ‘Say something! Talk about reconciliation. Say something!’ He told me, ‘I don’t know how to apologize to the Indian people.’”

“I’m not asking you to apologize,” Bellecourt told the mayor. “Just say something! Recognize the Indian people. Recognize the contributions that they have made. Recognize all the work that is being done today.”

Activist, scholar and author Laura Waterman Wittstock, who introduced both Buffalohead and Bellecourt, summed up the span of history covered at the lecture.

“When I was looking at the slides of what was called the prehistoric period, in our case, we’re still here,” Wittstock said. “And so we have this wonderful ability to not only have lived in the past [to be] but here in the present and able to talk to you about culture and things that have happened in the modern era.”

Arrests made in Longfellow murder, Marcy-Holmes break-ins

jeremy — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 11:30:10 -0500

by Roxanne Bergeron

Boy arrested in fatal stabbing in Longfellow

Minneapolis police have arrested a 15-year-old juvenile suspect in the stabbing death of an unidentified male that took place in the early morning hours of August 7. Police responding to a 911 call shortly before 1 a.m. forced entry into a home in the 3200 block of 31st Avenue South and found the victim. He was transported to Hennepin County Medical Center where he died later. His identity had not been released as of press time.

The suspect is reportedly an acquaintance of the victim.

Brothers charged in burglary may be linked to other Marcy-Holmes break-ins

Two brothers, Deandre and Maurice June, were charged Monday in Hennepin County District Court with a residential break-in that took place on Aug. 3 in the 1000 block of 17th Avenue Southeast. The pair had climbed onto the roof and were cutting through a second-story window screen when they were spotted by the resident, who called police. The men were apprehended less than a block away from the home.

Minneapolis Police Second District Lt. Bill Whisney told The Bridge that the method of the burglaries — entry into a home by cutting the screen on a second-story window after climbing onto the roof — matches the method used for a Roseville break-in, as well as several Marcy-Homes and Southeast Como residential break-ins over the last six weeks. An investigation is underway to explore a potential link tying the men to additional burglaries.

The break-in zone being examined in The Bridge coverage area is bordered by Interstate 94 to the west, East Hennepin Avenue to the north, 22nd Avenue Southeast to the east and Como Avenue to the south.

The Junes live in north Minneapolis. Deandre was arrested four times in 2004 and charged with assault and burglary.

Both Deandre and Maurice June have prior criminal histories. In July, 2004, Deandre was arrested for burglary of a dwelling and charged with burglary, damage to property and two counts of assault.

Crime stats and summaries

jeremy — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 10:37:42 -0500

by Roxanne Bergeron and Jeremy Stratton

Seward businesses burglarized; thieves target catalytic converters; crime stats by neighborhood, June 17–July 21

Seward businesses burglarized

In the early morning hours of Sunday, Aug. 3, Cindy Kangas, owner of Second Moon coffee shop, got a call from her alarm company. At the café, she found the front door had been smashed with a brick paver from an adjacent parking lot. Thieves had stolen change from the register.

It was the second break-in in a month at the café at 2225 E. Franklin Ave.; over the 4th of July weekend, Burglars used one of the same pavers to break a window. In each case, less than $10 was stolen. Kangas has kept next to no money in the store overnight ever since burglars took the safe from the backroom a couple of years ago.

The first of the summer Second Moon break-ins was one of at least three the night of July 5; the Birchwood Café had its glass door smashed with a tire iron, and police reports show a break-in at an architecture firm. The Cliquot Club, down the street from the Birchwood, was reportedly broken into earlier in the summer.

Like Kangas, Tracy Singleton, owner of the Birchwood, said the burglars gained little but left a headache for her and her business. “They got nothing and made a big mess,” she said in mid-July. The incidents leave both businesses owners facing expensive repairs — in the case of the Birchwood, a new $3,000 door.

Though the targeting of cafes may seem like a pattern, there have actually been few burglaries of business this summer, according to

Although Shun Tillman, crime prevention specialist with the Minneapolis Police Department’s (MPD) 3rd Precinct, counted only three burglaries of businesses on MPD crime maps between June 1 and mid-July — fewer than the number of home break-ins — crime maps show five in Seward in the last two weeks.

Those crime maps show only those that are reported to police. Tillman urged business owners to report such crimes, even well after the fact. He said police cannot recognize trends or respond to crimes if they are not reported.

He offered some tips to business owners to prevent break-ins and minimize loss:

Leave no more than $5 in change in the register
Mark valuables such as tools and computers with an “operation identification”:http://www.ci.mpls.mn.us/police/outreach/operation-id.asp number and display the related sticker. “Operation ID,” as it’s known, allows police — and pawnshops, for example, to identify stolen goods.
Some safes can be bolted to the ground and/or fireproof.
Install “good locks” and “steady doors” that make the effort of breaking in too time-consuming — and loud, so that neighbors might hear and call 911.
Motion lights or an alarm may also draw attention. “Anything you can’t due to draw attention to the business during the course of a break-in is a positive,” said Tillman.

Tillman said the MPD will conduct a free business security survey upon a business owner’s request.

Still, in some cases — like the recent smash-and-grabs, which police have seen before, said Tillman — no prevention strategies will keep burglars out. “You can do all the right things, but if someone is determined to get in, it doesn’t matter if you’re double-bolted and do all those things.”

Obviously, the pair of recent break-ins have left Kangas frustrated. “It’s a drag to think about having to put metal on the windows and doors,” she said. “It looks foreboding, it makes people uneasy,”

Kangas focused on the method of entry — the brick pavers recently installed in the Milwaukee Avenue Homeowners Association (MHNA) parking lot, which abuts her building. She plans to approach the MHNA about possibly replacing them with something that is not so easy to use to smash a window.

Kangas said she doesn’t feel singled out. Unfortunately, cars, homes and other businesses are getting hit, too.

“It’s a sign of times,” she said. “Gas prices are high, the economy’s bad. People feel kind of desperate right now.”

— Jeremy Stratton

Platinum and palladium prices driving thefts of Catalytic converter thefts in Bridgeland

Did you hear the one about the guy who woke up to find his catalytic converter was missing?

Well, it’s no joke. Catalytic converter theft is a national phenomenon, according to the July 6 edition of USA Today. Thieves use Sawzalls or a reciprocating saw to remove the converters, which then can be sold for scrap. As of July 18, a “troy” ounce of platinum —slightly more than a common ounce — was selling for $1865, according to the Johnson Matthey Platinum Group Metals price bulletin.

Last fall, Seward resident Peter Munene experienced such a theft in the middle of the night; Seward e-democracy bloggers shared stories of similar experiences last October. On July 1, Prospect Park resident Bill Kahn complained on the Prospect park e-list of a similar theft from his Toyota 4Runner.

The cost of replacing a catalytic converter depends on the make and model of your car but can reach into the one-thousand-dollar range. The tip-off that your car has been hit is a big, loud, horrible noise when you start it up.

Minneapolis Police Second District Crime Prevention Specialist Carol Oosterhuis does not believe there is a catalytic converter theft trend afoot in the second district, but she does believe residents need to exercise safety tips, such as parking in well-lit areas and using their garages.

“It’s a problem, but it’s not horribly frequent,” Oosterhuis said, adding that when it comes to car break-ins, “the weather makes a big difference.”

Prospect Park e-listkeeper Lois Willand also made recommends:

Keep your cars locked.
Keep valuables out of plain sight.
Call the police to report any and all crimes.

The Minneapolis Police Department crime prevention tip page, including links to tips on preventing auto theft and theft from autos, is online.

— Roxanne Bergeron

Neighborhood crime summary, June 17–July 21, 2008

Violent crimes are defined as homicide, rape, robbery of business, robbery of person, aggravated assault and domestic aggravated assault.

Nonviolent crimes are defined as burglary of business, burglary of residence, auto theft, theft from motor vehicle, larceny (theft), arson, recovered vehicles, narcotics arrests, weapons arrests and loitering arrests.

MPD crime maps and statistics are available here

Cedar-Riverside

Summary: The murders of Abdullahi Abdi and Joseph Sodd remain unsolved. A rape, 3 aggravated assaults, 3 robberies of person and 10 car thefts have occurred in this five-week period.

Total violent crimes: 7

Rape: 1
Robbery of person: 3
Aggravated assault: 3

Total nonviolent crimes: 37

Burglary of business: 2
Burglary of residence: 1
Auto theft: 10
Theft from motor vehicle: 7
Larceny (theft): 9
Recovered vehicles: 4
Narcotics arrests: 3
Weapons arrests: 1

Cooper

Summary: Cooper neighborhood has had a quiet five-week period crime-wise. No violent crimes took place; four resident and four car break-ins occurred.

Total violent crimes: None.

Total nonviolent crimes: 11

Burglary of residence: 4
Theft from motor vehicle: 4
Larceny (theft): 1
Recovered vehicles: 1
Narcotics arrests: 1

Downtown East

Summary: A single violent crime occurred during this time period. Three car thefts and 3 car break-ins were reported.

Total violent crimes: 1

Aggravated assault: 1

Total nonviolent crimes: 9

Burglary of business: 1
Auto theft: 3
Theft from motor vehicle: 3
Larceny (theft): 1
Weapons arrests: 1

Longfellow

Summary: One rape, one domestic assault and two robberies of person took place in Longfellow over this time period. Theft shows high numbers for business, residential and car break-ins, car theft and larceny.

Total violent crimes: 4
Rape: 1
Robbery of person: 2
Domestic aggravated assault: 1

Total nonviolent crimes: 34

Burglary of business: 2
Burglary of residence: 7
Auto theft: 4
Theft from motor vehicle: 8
Larceny (theft): 10
Narcotics arrests: 1
Weapons arrests: 1

Marcy-Holmes

Summary: Six violent crimes took place in the last five weeks, along with 49 nonviolent crimes with 14 crimes of larceny topping the list.

Total violent crimes: 6

Robbery of person: 3
Aggravated assault: 2
Domestic aggravated assault: 1

Total nonviolent crimes: 49

Burglary of business: 1
Burglary of residence: 13
Auto theft: 3
Theft from motor vehicle: 17
Larceny (theft): 14
Recovered vehicles: 1

Nicollet Island/East Bank

Summary: A single violent crime and seven cases of larceny were reported in the neighborhood over the last five weeks.

Total violent crimes: 1

Aggravated assault: 1

Total nonviolent crimes: 14

Burglary of business: 1
Burglary of residence: 2
Theft from motor vehicle: 3
Larceny (theft): 7
Arson: 1

Prospect Park

Summary: Ten car break-ins took place over this five-week period in Prospect Park.

Total violent crimes: 1

Robbery of business: 2

Total nonviolent crimes: 20

Burglary of residence: 2
Auto theft: 1
Theft from motor vehicle: 10
Larceny (theft): 5
Arson: 1
Recovered vehicles: 1

Seward

Summary: Over the 4th of July holiday weekend, both the Birchwood Cafe and the Second Moon Cafe experienced burglaries. Twelve car break-ins and 11 incidents of larceny took place during this five-week period.

Total violent crimes: 5

Rape: 2
Robbery of person: 2
Aggravated assault: 1

Total nonviolent crimes: 38

Burglary of business: 2
Burglary of residence: 3
Auto theft: 8
Theft from motor vehicle: 12
Larceny (theft): 11
Recovered vehicles: 2

Southeast Como

Summary: Three violent crimes, seven burglaries of business and seven cases of larceny top the list during this five-week period.

Total violent crimes:
Rape: 1
Robbery of business: 1
Aggravated assault: 1

Total nonviolent crimes: 25

Burglary of residence: 7
Auto theft: 5
Theft from motor vehicle: 3
Larceny (theft): 7
Arson: 1
Recovered vehicles: 2

UMPD (statistics are from June 24 – July 14)

Summary: Eleven violent crimes and over 150 nonviolent crimes were report by the UMPD over this three-week period. Larceny and car break-ins top the list.

Total violent crimes: 11

Rape: 2
Robbery of person: 6
Aggravated assault: 3

Total nonviolent crimes: 155

Burglary of business: 12
Burglary of residence: 15
Auto theft: 33
Theft from motor vehicle: 39
Larceny (theft): 45
Recovered vehicles: 9
Narcotics arrests: 3

— Roxanne Bergeron

News briefs, August 2008

Reporter1 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 10:22:11 -0500

by Jeremy Stratton

Chowgirls departs; scooter death prompts discussion of corner's safety; Central Corridor gets public comment

Chowgirls to leave Dinkytown

In mid-August, Chowgirls Killer Catering plans to leave its Dinkytown digs at 1316 SE Fourth St., which the business has called home for two years. The girls aren’t moving far — to 1222 NE Second St., just a bit outside Bridgeland — but fans of the current Dinkytown lunch counter will have to eat elsewhere or plan a party; business has grown, and the new Chowgirls kitchen is focused 100 percent on catering. “We loved our stay in Dinkytown, but we grew out of space,” said Chowgirls’ employee Melissa Slachetka. For information about Chowgirls Catering, visit www.chowgirls.net.

Fatal scooter accident prompts talk of traffic safety

On Tuesday, July 15, 21-year-old Tommy Earl White died when the scooter he was riding collided with a semi turning off of University Avenue onto Malcolm Avenue in Prospect Park. According to police and witness accounts reported in the media, White — who was not a University of Minnesota student — appeared to try to race the truck and beat it through the intersection as it made a wide, right-hand turn from the left lane of traffic. White struck the side of the trailer and was killed.

Friends left a small memorial for him on a utility pole at the intersection.

The incident was not the first fatality involving a semi, the likes of which make regular use of the intersection. Prospect Park resident Charlie Betz recalled the death of his neighbor in 2001. The man was crossing the street at the crosswalk, said Betz, when a
truck turned quickly off of Malcolm and struck and killed him.

The July 15 accident sparked conversation on the Prospect Park e-list, with some saying the intersection is dangerous. John DeWitt, who chairs the Prospect Park/East River Road Improvement Association’s (PPERRIA) transit committee, said the intersection has always been somewhat problematic. “There’s so much truck traffic there, and the trucks are really long,” he said.

Right now, trucks have two lanes and a bus stop/right-turn lane, DeWitt said, noting that the construction of the Central Corridor light-rail line down University will make the intersection even tighter. DeWitt said he planned to package the comments from the e-list and forward them to Central Corridor staff, to make them aware of the issue.

DeWitt, a longtime transit activist who served on the citizens advisory committee for the existing Hiawatha light-rail line, said one option may be to make the corner a much broader turn, rather than the typical right-angle turn. “Then the problem is it becomes pedestrian unfriendly,” said DeWitt.

“The broader issue,” he said, “is why are trucks driving on these streets that weren’t designed for [them]?”

Public comment on Central Corridor closes Aug. 25

A Supplemental Draft Environmental Impact Statement (SDEIS) for the Central Corridor light-rail transit project is available for public review through Aug. 25. An environmental impact statement is a comprehensive study and document intended to guide local decision-making on a wide range of impacts related to large development projects.

An earlier Alternatives Analysis/ Draft Environmental Impact Statement (AA/DEIS) for the Central Corridor was published in April 2006; the more recent SDEIS is to “inform the public, resource agencies and local governments of changes proposed to the project” since that time, and to published “refinements proposed and analyzed during preliminary engineering,” according to the Central Corridor website.

The SDEIS offers a project summary, including proposed stations and key project elements, and it addresses the project’s history; key changes and refinements; social, environmental and transportation issues; agency coordination and community outreach; and next steps and actions.

The public has an opportunity to comment on the SDEIS and “participate in the decision making process.” An electronic version of the complete SDEIS (as well as a much shorter executive summary) is available online at www.centralcorridor.org. Copies are available for viewing at Hennepin County, St. Paul and Met Council libraries and at the Central Corridor offices in St. Paul. (Locations include the Southeast, Franklin and Central libraries.)

In addition, three public hearings will be held in August:

Monday, Aug. 4 at noon at the Wilder Foundation, 451 Lexington Parkway N., St. Paul An open house will precede the hearing, beginning at 11:30 a.m.

Thursday, Aug. 7, 6 p.m., at the Brian Coyle Center, 420 15th Ave. S. An open house will precede the hearing, beginning at 5 p.m.

Saturday, Aug. 9, 2 p.m., at Goodwill Easter Seals, 553 Fairview Ave. N., St. Paul. An open house will precede the hearing, beginning at 1 p.m.

Comments can also be left by calling the Central Corridor LRT Project Office at 651-602-1645; by email to Kathryn O’Brien at kathryn.obrien@metc.state.mn.us; or by mail to:

Kathryn O’Brien
Central Corridor LRT Project Office
540 Fairview Ave, N., Ste. 200
St. Paul, MN 55104

SPPA suggests fuel options for Rock-Tenn

Reporter1 — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 09:54:24 -0500

by Mary Turck, Editor, Twin Cities Daily Planet

Anaerobic digestion and production of biogas, at a scale not previously seen in the United States, is the recommendation of the St. Paul Port Authority (SPPA) to fuel Rock-Tenn in the years ahead. The recommendation, presented to the Rock-Tenn Community Advisory Panel (RCAP) at its August 4 meeting, came after more than a year of often-contentious study and debate.

Anaerobic digestion would start with agricultural or food processing byproducts as fuel and bacteria as the agent to turn that fuel into methane (also called bio-gas.) Anaerobic digestion for production of industrial quantities of biogas is a relatively new technology. Pete Klein, who presented the SPPA recommendations at the meeting, identified animal manure, rendering plant wastes, and ethanol stillage as raw materials that have been identified for generation of biogas for this project.

To read the full article, visit the Twin Cities Daily Planet.

‘Go in the direction of the things you love’

jeremy — Tue, 05 Aug 2008 16:28:12 -0500

by Jeremy Stratton

Seward honors the unique life of Ivar Vikingstad

Editor’s note: Longtime Seward resident Ivar Vikingstad died on Sunday, Aug. 3, just days after this story was published in the August issue of The Bridge. You can read a sample of Vikingstad’s stories, essays and poetry here

Ivar Vikingstad is a remarkable man. Born in 1928, the longtime Seward resident has been an inventor, musician, writer, philosopher, poet, photographer, businessman, electrical engineer and even a state-champion bodybuilder. Written off at school as “retarded” (his own words) due to a hearing impairment — unacknowledged by his teachers — he went on to become self-taught, mastering just about everything that interested him. Karen Aslagson, Vikingstad’s friend of 30 years, calls him a genius.

This summer, the Seward Neighborhood Group honored Vikinsgtad’s lifelong achievements with an official letter of recognition, and, over the past few months, his neighbors have recorded a series of interviews with Vikingstad in order to document his marvelous life and approach to living it. Jean Johnstad has transcribed notes (from which most of this article is drawn) on the 10 hours of tapes, which will go into the SNG history project archives.

Sadly, Seward’s recognition of Vikingstad’s life comes very near to the end of it; as July wore on, he was in the late stages of throat cancer, which he had chosen not to treat, preferring instead to remain in his Seward home.

Milwaukee Avenue holdout

Vikingstad’s family moved to Seward in 1935, when he was seven years old. He recalls depression-era poverty, and he slid through school, moved on from grade-to-grade “because he did not cause trouble” until he was “kicked out” of South High School and encouraged to attend trade school. There he followed his interest in science and electricity, inventing a machine to test tubes. Later, he owned a TV repair business near Cedar and Riverside avenues.

He was drafted during WWII but failed the physical because of his deafness, which he was told surgery could repair. He declined, figuring it would make no sense to then die on the battlefield, he said. Instead, he worked at the Flour City Ornamental Iron Building making depth charges for the war effort.

In 1953, Vikingstad bought a house on Milwaukee Avenue, and he was one of the last holdouts roughly 25 years later when the city wanted to buy him out — for $5,000 — to make way for urban renewal. During the interviews, Vikingstad recounted how the title to his house “disappeared” from city records, and how his power was cut off and his mailbox was removed in an attempt, he believes, to make the property seem abandoned. When the city questioned his occupancy, he produced receipts of utility bills back to 1953.

His wife Carol recalled how the negotiations — which lasted nearly a decade, she said — came down to his poem, When Is a House a Home?, which Vikingstad read to city officials. “I could see instantly the changes on the faces of the men around the table,” said Carol,” and I knew Ivar had won.” In the end, the couple was offered $20,000 for the house. All-too coincidentally, they won the right to buy their current house through a city lottery system — for $20,000. His original house was demolished.

A small Arnold Schwarzenegger

Bodybuilding was just one of the many interests Vikingstad took on during his lifetime. As with most of his endeavors, he excelled, taking two state titles in the mid-50s for his weight class. (Small in stature, he told his interviewers to “imagine a small Arnold Schwarzenegger.”) He also posed for art classes, where he could “get paid for not moving.”

Even later in life, Ivar took up music, mastering the harmonica and customizing a guitar so he could play chords by holding down the strings with a thumb and strumming with the other hand. He also devised a system that allows him to easily transpose music from one key to another (which a friend worries no one else understands).

Vikingstad frequented open stage nights at local venues, where he would play and sing or read from his self-published books of children’s stories, poems and philosophy. His “Mr. Electricity” act was a favorite; Vikingstad toyed with 20,000 volts of electricity, even lighting a long fluorescent bulb while a volunteer — often a pretty woman — held it.
‘Find what you like and do it’

During one interview, Vikingstad commented on his beliefs. Writes Johnstad: “They are derived from the methodology of his decisions: observe, accumulate data, develop a hypothesis, and make tentative decisions. He believes that most people have belief systems that have been imposed by others, and that they don’t test them.”

Vikingstad said he prefers Popeye’s “I am what I am” to Descarte’s “I think therefore I am,” and he posits in his book Practical Philosophy that human action is a function of genetic wiring, personal experience and response to suggestion — a concept he says can lead us to be more generous-minded towards others. “We can understand how useless it would be to blame the tiger for his claws and fangs, and his corresponding impulse to use them,” he writes.

Vikingstad also offers a more succinct strategy for happiness: “Go in the direction of the things you love.” To be happy, he suggests: “Don’t want too much,” and he explained to his interviewers: “Working hard at something I enjoy is the best. Find what you like and do it.”

Johnstad said that Vikingstad was pleased to conduct the sometimes-long interviews despite his illness and the effort and pain of speaking. After one session, he apologized if he didn’t make the next weekly interview, but he did indeed return — with a concertina and harmonica to play for neighbor Teri Schweitzer’s children. “He insists that he loves to talk,” Johnstad writes. She called him a “fascinating man.”

Vikingstad has chosen to write the last chapter of his life like the rest of it: on his own terms.

More than two years ago, doctors gave Vikingstad three weeks before he wouldn’t be able to move. They wanted to perform an invasive surgery, which Vikingstad didn’t trust.
Since that the grim diagnosis, Vikingstad has re-roofed the house and laid a series of heavy pavers near the front steps.

Vikingstad’s sister Betty Hall, who lives about a mile away, said weekly visits have brought her closer to her brother in those two years.

Johnstad said she brings more than a historic record from the interviews. “I have really learned a lot from him,” she said. She’s not the only one, and, with the words, work and memories that Vikingstad has created, she won’t be the last.