 Applications are now being accepted for a number of open board and commission positions that the City Council and mayor will appoint this fall. Board and commission members in the City of Minneapolis provide valuable insights, help shape key policy decisions and provide community-based input into administration of services. The City is seeking applicants with a diversity of backgrounds and experiences to strengthen the work of the City.
Applications will be reviewed beginning Oct. 21. The positions are open until filled. There are 151 open positions on 17 City boards and commissions:
Visit the City’s website for a list of appointment opportunities, position descriptions and the applications.
New Workplace Advisory Committee
The City Council passed a resolution Aug. 19 establishing a new Workplace Advisory Committee charged with advising City policymakers on workplace-related issues.
The 16-member committee will include a cross-section of business and worker stakeholders. It will advise City leaders on workplace initiatives, provide recommendations on community outreach, monitor implementation of workplace policies, and offer suggestions on ways to improve policies to better serve businesses and workers.
Boards, commissions and advisory committees
The City of Minneapolis has more than 50 volunteer-based boards, commissions and advisory committees that advise the City on issues and help with policy development and administration of services. Boards and commissions fall into a handful of categories: appeal boards, development boards, general advisory boards, and special service districts, which are defined areas within the city where special services are rendered.
Appointments to board and commissions are made twice a year — in the spring and fall.
This streamlined appointment process makes it easier for people to learn about volunteer opportunities, ensures a more open and understandable process for residents and staff, and increases the diversity of the applicant pool.
Residents and visitors who call 311
now have the option to speak to an agent in Hmong and Somali in addition to
English and Spanish. 311 partnered with Neighborhood and Community Relations to
add the new language options to its call greeting this summer with the goal of
increasing the use of 311 in underserved communities.
Since providing the new language
options in May, 311 has spoken to more than 200 Somali speakers and nearly 100
Hmong speakers. 311 added the Spanish language option to its call greeting in
November 2015 and has since seen 311 calls from the Spanish-speaking community
increase fivefold.
About 311
Minneapolis residents and visitors
can dial 311 for City information and services from 7 a.m. -7 p.m. Monday
through Friday and 8 am.-4:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Residents and visitors
can also access Minneapolis 311 through its online
service options and mobile app. Download the mobile app for an:
The October Learning Lab will be held on October 26th
from 6:30pm to 8:00pm. The location is yet to be determined. The tentative agenda is as follows:
- Group Discussion and Presentation from Regulatory Services
on the Open Data Portal and Neighborhood Profiles.
- Best Practices from representatives from several
neighborhoods who have successfully connected with a large population of
renters.
- Action items and follow ups for the future.
For more information or to RSVP, please contact Michelle
Chavez at 612-673-3564 or michelle.chavez@minneapolismn.gov
On August 5, 2016, the Minneapolis City Council approved the revised Community Participation Program Guidelines and the three-year allocations for the years 2017 to 2019. Community Participation Program funds can be used to support your neighborhood organization’s community engagement activities and related administrative expenses, as well as to fund work on priorities identified in approved Neighborhood Priority Plans. For more information, please visit the Community Participation Program webpage.
City Council Appointee
Term: 1st
Ward: 1
Neighborhood: Logan Park
Sub-committees: Neighborhoods 2020 Committee
Hi! My name is Pat Vogel. I’m a new member of the
Neighborhood and Community Engagement Commission.
I’ve been involved with the Logan Park Neighborhood
Association since 1990. Shortly after moving in, we meet a neighbor who warmly
welcomed us and strongly urged us to go to the neighborhood meetings. We did
and found that was a great way to meet more neighbors as well learn about what
was happening.
I was active during the NRP process, then took a break and
did other volunteer community work for a few years. In 2012, I became co-chair
of the 807 Task Force, the neighborhood-led effort to bring citizen
participation to the process of determining the fate of the former Minneapolis
Public School Admin building (located at 807 Broadway). Our work and success on
this project reinvigorated my interest in the neighborhood organization. I
became a LPNA board member and Treasurer.
Becoming a Neighborhood Board member is a good way to learn
how the city works, get to know the local businesses and organizations – and
create and advance projects that enhance the community and help neighbors. It’s
rewarding, occasionally frustrating and often fun. It is also a great way to
develop leadership skills, conflict resolution tactics and open yourself to new
perspectives.
The NCEC is my first foray into the ‘big league’ of
city-wide commissions. My goal is to bring my community experience to the
discussion of the future of neighborhood organizations.
More about Pat:
I’m a 3rd generation Northeast resident and a
graduate of Edison and the U of M. My work experience includes the Minneapolis
YWCA, Fundraising & Communication Services, Carlson-Wagonlit Travel and
Aveda. For the last 10 years, I’ve worked at Schutta & Zimmer CPA as an
accountant for small businesses.
***
The
“Meet a Commissioner” series of the monthly Minneapolis Connects newsletter is
intended for readers to get to know representatives of the Neighborhood and
Community Engagement Commission (NCEC). The NCEC is a 16 member board that
advises the Mayor and City Council on a wide range of community engagement
issues.
The
NCEC is responsible for developing guidelines for the City’s principal
neighborhood funding program, the Community Participation Program, as well as
the One Minneapolis Fund and the Community Innovation Fund. The Commission also
works to broaden participation on advisory boards and commissions and develops
recommendations for improving the City’s public participation process.
The
Commission meets every 4th Tuesday of the month at 5:00p.m. Learn more about the Commission. Executive
Committee and City Department Engagement Committee
Mayor Betsy Hodges presented her 2017 recommended budget to
the City Council Aug. 10. Council members will consider the budget from now
through early December with final approval of the 2017 budget scheduled for
Wednesday, Dec.7, 2016.
The
mayor’s proposed budget includes:
- $1,305,000 for 15
new sworn police officers, which includes 12 for community policing and three
for a police/mental health co-responder pilot program.
- Nearly $1
million for community-based strategies to improve public safety, including
$500,000 for community-driven public safety strategies in two locations with
high levels of youth violence.
- More than $1
million annually for a new, ongoing community service officer class to build
more capacity for a proven, effective pathway into the police department for
people of color.
- $400,000 for
five additional full-time sworn firefighters, which will allow the Minneapolis
Fire Department to better serve residents and reduce overtime dollars.
-
A total of
$14.5 million in affordable housing development, including a naturally occurring
affordable housing strategy, the Family Housing Initiative, and additions to the
Affordable Housing Trust Fund.
The City of Minneapolis has tentatively scheduled two public
comment hearings on the proposed 2017 property tax levy and budget:
Nov.
30 at 6:05 p.m.
Room 317 of City Hall
Dec.
7 at 6:05 p.m.
Room 317 of City Hall
Below are
additional key dates in the 2017 budget process. Dates and times are tentative
and subject to change.
- 1:30 p.m., Aug. 29 – Ways & Means
budget overview presentation.
- 5:05 p.m., Sept. 14 – Board of Estimate
and Taxation meeting and public hearing on maximum property tax levies and
the mayor’s budget.
- Sept. 22-Nov. 17 – Ways and Means
presentations and consideration of City departmental budgets hearings
(tentative dates can be found at www.minneapolismn.gov/finance/budget).
- 9:30 a.m.-noon and 1-4 p.m. Dec. 2 –
Ways and Means Budget Subcommittee budget markup.
- 6:05 p.m. Dec. 7 – City Council final vote on
budget after the public hearing.
Watch the 2017 budget process live on TV or the City website
You can watch the mayor’s
budget address and upcoming budget hearings on Minneapolis 79 (Comcast channel
79, CenturyLink channel 14), or on a smartphone, tablet or computer by visiting
the City of Minneapolis website at www.minneapolismn.gov/tv/79.
Open
Streets Minneapolis, an
initiative comprised of individual, one-day routes that give residents,
families and neighbors opportunities to walk, bike, skate, have fun and shop in
a safe, car-free environment, is looking to expand into other parts of the
city. Organizers are asking for ideas in the community to see what
neighborhoods would be a good fit for an Open Streets Minneapolis route.
More than a street festival,
Open Streets Minneapolis gives residents an opportunity to explore their
neighborhood and local businesses in a safe, fun, and family-friendly way. It
encourages the use of active transportation and healthy living, and has a goal
of giving residents an opportunity to rethink our streets as public space. The
first Open Streets Event was in 2011 and has since grown to eight events a year
that draw tens of thousands of pedestrians, bicyclists, skateboarders and
wheelchair users.
If you have a good idea for a
route or if you are part of an organization that would like to be considered as
a host of a 2017 Open Streets Minneapolis route, go to the application webpage
at www.openstreetsmpls.org/open_streets_2017_local_route.
Open Streets Minneapolis is a City of Minneapolis event hosted by the Minneapolis
Bicycle Coalition and presented by The Center for Prevention at Blue Cross and
Blue Shield of Minnesota.
For more information, visit the
Open Streets Minneapolis website at www.openstreetsmpls.org.
Regulatory
Services created profiles for each ward and neighborhood in the
city, highlighting information on department services and demographic data
within each area. These reports were recently recognized and presented at the
2016 ESRI International User Conference for using Geographic Information
Systems technology to effectively promote engagement.
The
reports have been used to communicate Regulatory Services’ work to external
stakeholders in various community engagement efforts while relating the
services to a broader context. A combination of tables, charts and maps
displays the data so a diverse audience can understand and use the
information.
Typical
data in these reports includes:
- Rental
license information.
- Land
use.
- Housing
vacancies.
- Nuisance
conditions.
This
is the second round of profiles created, and updates are planned annually.
The Minneapolis Regulatory Services Department is pleased to
announce the release of a Homeowner Resource
Guide. The guide was developed over the past year with help from the
Neighborhood Community Relations and Property and Finance Departments, with the
intent of helping neighborhood and community organizations, public employees
and service providers better assist residents with their housing related needs.
The guide provides information covering a range of topics including state, city
and neighborhood homeownership and home improvement programs and resources for
volunteer home repair programs, chore services, energy assistance,
foreclosure prevention and more.
East Side Neighborhood Services and Council Members Kevin Reich and Jacob Frey invite you to a FREE, fun and educational event for older adults and neighbors!
Date: Tuesday, September 13, 2016
Time:10:00 AM to Noon
Location: Eastside Neighborhood Services, 1700 2nd Street NE, Minneapolis, MN 55413.
Visit the event webpage for more information.
NCR is excited to assist with the Ward 11 Summit on
September 28, 2016 at 6:30pm at Windom
Park. This summit will bring together neighborhood board
members and staff along with elected Ward 11 representatives to discuss
important work being done in their communities. The summit is hosted by
Council Member John Quincy and staff. Boards will share news and
events, learn what services NCR can provide and plan for future
collaborative neighborhood events in Ward 11. For more information please
contact Mary Petersen at 612-673-2211 or mary.petersen@minneapolismn.gov
 The East Isles Residents'
Association (EIRA) seeks a part time administrator to perform administrative
duties and provide support for its projects and community engagement
initiatives. This is a 10-15 hours per week contract position.
Candidates should have strong
communication skills (both verbal and written); a working understanding of
Minneapolis city (including Neighborhood Revitalization Program and Community
Participation Program) and park board government; experience with community
engagement and working with volunteers; strong organizational skills; event
coordination; website support and administration; and be a self-starter.
Visit www.eastisles.org for more information.
Applications are due to Nancy
Johnston by Friday, September 16.
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