Activists celebrate after plans to demolish Roof Depot in Minneapolis put on hold

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – The demolition of a Minneapolis-owned constructing is on maintain whereas a authorized battle continues.

Underneath a brief restraining order issued Friday, metropolis crews can’t demolish the Roof Depot constructing. Thatorder got here as a part of an ongoing lawsuit that’s been in court docket since 2020. Friday’s determination got here after the court docket denied a brief injunction requested by opponents of the demolition.

The Metropolis Lawyer’s Workplace despatched FOX 9 an announcement saying, “The order the choose issued Thursday reveals help for the Metropolis’s place on all counts. His ruling Friday merely permits the court docket of appeals to assessment.”

Activists and group members within the East Phillips neighborhood celebrated the information of the injunction throughout a block get together Sunday.

“It says that we now have an opportunity, and I believe that scares the town, however we’re not going to cease organizing. We will carry on preventing,” mentioned Joseph Very important, a volunteer with the East Phillips Neighborhood Institute.

The group celebration at Cedar Area Park included meals and music, and donations have been collected for residents. Activists are additionally elevating the cash they should cowl the $10,000 bond they must pay the town for the price of delaying the demolition.

The empty Roof Depot constructing sits on a former arsenic superfund web site. Metropolis officers mentioned the town purchased the constructing in 2016 and needs to show it right into a public works facility. The Hiawatha Campus Growth mission would mix three of the general public works areas into one central web site.

The East Phillips Neighborhood Institute produce other visions for the positioning, together with an city farm. EPNI volunteers mentioned they’re involved concerning the potential well being results of the demolition within the brief time period. In the long run, they’re involved concerning the impacts of getting extra truck site visitors within the space, which already has excessive charges of bronchial asthma.

“It is a very site visitors congested space. And one of many issues that site visitors does that is poisonous to our lives right here is it is one of many principal sources of bronchial asthma,” mentioned Karen Clark, a former state lawmaker and the manager director of Girls’s Environmental Institute.

Metropolis officers have been requested concerning the site visitors issues throughout a briefing Friday with reporters. They mentioned the variety of diesel autos can be low on the positioning. 

“We do declare that there are diesel autos, however the main autos that can be coming out and in of the positioning are each gasoline-powered or electrical autos,” mentioned Margaret Anderson Kelliher, the director of Minneapolis Public Works.

Barbara O’Brien, Minneapolis’ director of property companies, mentioned demolition is anticipated to take a few month. Public works officers reiterated they can not at present demolish the constructing however can proceed web site preparation. They mentioned they’re assured the demolition may be achieved safely as a result of the constructing itself isn’t contaminated, apart from with asbestos, which crews plan to deal with.

Town’s environmental consultants mentioned they really feel metropolis officers have gone “above and past typical engineering procedures” to ensure issues are achieved safely.

“Arsenic is – I assume I view it as a really minor difficulty on this property. The degrees pale by comparability to what was on the adjoining property, and that is why the adjoining property was on the state’s superfund … from a regulatory standpoint,” mentioned Steve Jansen from Braun Intertec throughout Friday’s press briefing.