Dear Neighborhoods 2020 stakeholders,
Our country, city and communities are faced with an unprecedented public health crisis. The COVID-19 outbreak has drastically disrupted systems, the capacity of organizations and everyday life. We at NCR have been working with many of you, with community partners and many City departments to get public health and safety information out to the most vulnerable in our community.
We know that many of you have been doing similar work for your neighborhoods, and we very much appreciate both your commitment to your communities and your patience while waiting for news about the status Neighborhoods 2020.
We recognize that community members and neighborhood organizations are currently focused on these pressing matters, and more time will be needed to fully engage the community about Neighborhoods 2020. The Neighborhoods 2020 steering committee balanced the importance of moving this initiative forward with the challenges for neighborhood and community-based organizations to engage residents in a meaningful way.
For these reasons, the public comment period on the Neighborhoods 2020 program guidelines has been extended 90 days until July 15, 2020. The guidelines are now expected to go before City Council for a vote by mid-August.
The extended 90-day comment period also allows us to more fully engage the public in our city, and we are asking all interested organizations and Minneapolis residents to use this time to create a meaningful dialogue. NCR neighborhood specialists are available to help organizations that request assistance.
During the extended public comment period, NCR will expand our outreach and hold additional virtual public meetings. More information will be available as these meetings are scheduled.
We are also still moving forward with our April 2 informational meeting, it will now be in a virtual, webinar format. Staff will present information about the guidelines and participants will be able ask questions via the chat feature.
To join this meeting:
The coronavirus outbreak introduces a lot of uncertainty to the process. For that reason, the Neighborhoods 2020 steering committee will continuously reevaluate the situation and may make further changes to this time frame. I thank you all in advance for your patience and understanding as we all work to support our residents and our city.
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact your neighborhood specialist or NCR at ncr@minneapolismn.gov.
Regards,
David Rubedor
Director of Neighborhood and Community Relations ADA Title II Coordinator City of Minneapolis – Neighborhood and Community Relations Crown Roller Mill, Room 425 105 5th Avenue South, Minneapolis, MN 55401 Office: 612-673-3129 David.Rubedor@minneapolismn.gov
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