Minneapolis, MN
Minneapolis City Council introduces new safety plan with alternatives to police response
Minneapolis leaders lay out new safety plan
The new plan folds in efforts already underway like the behavioral response team which is sent on some crisis calls where police are not necessary, or a new traffic control unit that is staffed by people who are not sworn officers. But the real purpose of the Safe and Thriving Communities plan is to offer a sort of road map to public safety.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) – Minneapolis City Council members are asking the public for feedback on a new public safety model that they hope will restore trust in public safety services.
Officials say the Public Safety Beyond Policing Action Plan is based on an outline of a community safety system that will include “preventative, restorative and response services beyond policing.”
What we know
City leaders say they are moving to codify the Public Safety Beyond Policing Action Plan after the Minneapolis Safe and Thriving Communities Blueprint that was announced last year.
READ MORE: Minneapolis leaders lay out a new plan for community safety
The first draft of the Public Safety Beyond Policing Action Plan was presented earlier this week. City officials say public comment and feedback on the 10-year plan will be taken for 45 days.
An overview and briefing detailing the progress of the Safe and Thriving Communities Report was presented during Wednesday’s Public Health and Safety Committee (PHS).
Public engagement and comment sessions will also be held in front of the PHS committee before the final adoption of the plan, which is expected to happen in the fall of 2024.
What they’re saying
Minneapolis officials say “there has been little or unclear movement on implementation by the administration” since the last city-wide community safety plan last year.
A news release announcing the latest policing plan said there are concerns over a “lack of seriousness” about the city implementing a new comprehensive safety system.
Vice Chair of the Public Health and Safety Committee and City Council Member Robin Wonsley said the following in the same news release: “Council is serious about realizing the comprehensive public safety system that our residents have asked for since May 2020. We can have a city where there are a multitude of preventive, responsive, and restorative services to meet our public safety needs efficiently and equitably. The Safe and Thriving Communities Report and the Public Safety Beyond Policing Action Plan includes a clear ten-year guide to make this vision a reality.”
Public Health and Safety Chair and City Council Member Chavez said “Ward 9 is home to one of the most diverse communities in the whole state and residents are deeply engaged in leading on public safety work. Residents are tired of empty promises and slow progress when it comes to their safety needs. The time to act is now and the Council is ready to continue to lead on keeping all of us safe.”
Minneapolis City Council President Elliot Paynes released a statement saying “This is the City Council flexing our oversight responsibility. The administration put forward a plan with the Safe and Thriving Communities report and we are making sure the promise of this plan is fulfilled with transparency and with the input of our community at the center of it.”
Background
This is the latest development after the Safe and Thriving Communities plan was announced last year. Advocates say it took a “holistic approach” to public safety.
That plan came after the development of a plan was requested by Mayor Jacob Frey in 2021.
City officials say they are currently in phase one of implementing the Safe and Thriving Communities plan.
The Minneapolis City Council also approved a new police contract earlier this month that includes a nearly 22% pay raise for officers over the next three years.
Minneapolis, MN
After raising money for immigrant families, Minneapolis adult store asks community for help
After spending months helping immigrant families weather the economic fallout of federal immigration enforcement operations in the Twin Cities, Smitten Kitten is asking the community for help sustaining itself.
The adult retail store in Minneapolis’ Lyn-Lake neighborhood issued a public plea for community financial support.
The strain comes after months of directing staff and volunteer time, resources and fundraising efforts toward mutual aid work that supported immigrants during Operation Metro Surge.
The store became one of the most visible community aid hubs after the federal operation began. Following the killing of Renee Good, Smitten Kitten began collecting groceries, diapers, toilet paper and other essentials.
“Nothing is going to change unless we’re going to do something,” said Anne Lehman, Smitten Kitten social media manager and mutual aid advisor.
The store also helped direct efforts toward rent relief for immigrants facing heightened uncertainty and economic hardship.
“People had been hiding out since October. They’re going to need things like diapers, toilet paper and water.” Lehman said. “We ended up opening our store as a donation drop-off stop.”
Community support quickly exceeded expectations.
“It felt like every fifteen minutes someone was pulling up in an SUV that just came from Costco,” Lehman said. “As soon as we got it, it would be gone because of how great the need was.”
Lehman said that the attention also created safety concerns for staff and visitors.
“We had to move where our stuff was because U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement had caught on to what we were doing and tried to intimidate us,” said Lehman.
In response, the store decided to move its operations elsewhere and began to focus on raising money for necessities. According to Lehman, the establishment raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for various needs.
The operation, in part, ended by mid-February, and federal presence in Minnesota diminished. As things began to wind down, so did cash flow at Smitten Kitten.
“There were a lot of weeks where we were cutting it close on payroll,” said Lehman.
In a social media post, Lehman asked the community to come help support the store by asking for donations, asking people to shop at their store or online.
“We are asking for help, but also all of these things that we’re pouring all of our energy into is not going away,” said Lehman. “If we want to continue doing mutual aid, we have to have a solid foundation of our business as well.”
MINNEAPOLIS — Real Capital Solutions (RCS) has acquired 3701 Wayzata Boulevard, a 308,681-square-foot office property in the Urban West End neighborhood of Minneapolis, for $34 million. Situated on 25.8 acres overlooking Brownie and Cedar lakes, the nine-story asset is 99 percent leased and serves as the headquarters location for several companies such as Tactile Medical, SRF Consulting Group, Regis Corp. and MOBE.
Originally developed as a corporate headquarters campus for Prudential and later occupied by Target Corp., the property underwent a comprehensive renovation and repositioning in 2019. Amenities today include a fitness center, conference facilities, a golf simulator, onsite café, outdoor gathering spaces, a rooftop patio, bike storage and direct access to regional trail systems.
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