Yesterday, the City adopted a collective bargaining agreement with the Police Officers Federation of Minneapolis (POFM). The agreement includes a historic pay increase and pivotal, incremental reforms.
The contract, which applies to the period January 1, 2023, through December 31, 2025, includes a 21.7% pay increase over three years. This pay increase moves MPD compensation rates from the bottom 25% to the top 25% statewide, and top 5 in the region.
Key reforms and contractual changes include:
Zipper clause
It is common for parties to a collective bargaining agreement to address issues that arise in the middle of the term of an agreement through one-off letters of agreement (LOAs). The City and POFM have, over many decades, entered these LOAs and there has been confusion about which ones were still in effect. In this agreement, the parties have re-looked at those LOAs, decided which ones should still exist, and agreed that only the ones that are actually included as part of the main agreement will continue into the future. This means the City, the Federation, and the public can know the full scope of what has been agreed to in writing at the start of the term of the contract.
Staffing flexibilities
In the past, the collective bargaining agreement has controlled multiple aspects of how MPD assigns work, both in terms of shifts and locations, and mandated numbers of promotions. The new agreement will give management more discretion over job assignments and staffing ratios, so that the Chief and his leadership team can assign officers to areas of the greatest need, and make promotions based on candidate readiness, not based upon a mandated percentage. The City also negotiated a change to significantly reduce the period of time it takes to fill vacancies.
Civilian investigators
Minneapolis has undertaken the hard work of re-imagining its community safety system, ensuring personnel are being deployed where they’re needed most. With fewer sworn personnel serving in MPD, the City has continuously worked to identify opportunities to assign specialized civilian staff to clerical and investigative work and enable officers to be out on the street and present in community, and more available to address critical needs. Through the new agreement, the POFM has agreed that the City can make permanent hires of hire civilians for to assist with investigative work. By “civilianizing” work that can be completed by a non-sworn employee, the Chief will be able to keep the limited complement of MPD officers focused on critical safety work.
Public data requests
Officers will no longer receive automatic notification of the identity of the person requesting public personnel data about them.
Leave time period
When there are allegations of severe misconduct, the Chief will have complete discretion to place the officer on paid investigatory leave for up to 180 days. In the past, the Chief only had complete discretion for the first 30 days. This gives the Chief more flexibility to take keep an officer off the street while focusing on the investigation
More information on the City’s contract negotiations with the POFM is available here.
Many of you may have had contact with one of our incredible Ward 11 policy aides, Corinne Horowitz. Corinne has accepted a new role with the State of Minnesota and will be transitioning out of Ward 11 over the next week. Her genuine care for constituents and industrious work ethic have served our city and neighbors well. We will miss Corinne and are endlessly grateful for her contributions to the Ward 11 team. Click here to say farewell and share your memories of Corinne.
We are excited to share that Emily Campbell, Ward 11 resident and City enthusiast, will be Corinne's replacement. We look forward to continuing to provide outstanding support for our constituents!
Parkway Lawn Service, a landscaping business at 6038 Pillsbury Ave in Ward 11, worked with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and City of Minneapolis’s Green Cost Share Program to replace their gas-powered mowers and other lawn equipment with electric models.
Gas-powered lawn equipment is a major source of air pollution. Their shift will reduce more than 2,400 pounds of fine particulate matter, nitrogen oxides, and volatile organic compound emissions annually.
Learn more here.
Thank you Parkway Lawn Service for your commitment to reducing environmental impact and improving community health!
Show your support for Black business development in Minneapolis with the City’s annual Black Business Week, July 22-28.
Highlights include:
- Black Business Week kickoff.
- Doing business with the City mini conference.
- Career and networking fair.
- Emerging developer project tour and social hour: Coliseum building
- East African business resource fair.
- West Broadway business area tour, discussion and networking event.
- Pop-up markets.
Watch a video featuring local Black business owners, view a full list of events and register for events on the City website.
Michelle Phillips was sworn in Tuesday, July 16, at City Hall. Mayor Jacob Frey nominated Phillips and the City Council unanimously confirmed her appointment in May.
Director Phillips joins the City after previously serving as the first Inspector General for the City of Oakland, California. She has a deep expertise in civilian oversight of police, providing leadership in the promotion of constitutional policing and building departmental infrastructure to ensure thorough and fair investigative processes. Prior to her service in Oakland, Phillips served as Deputy Inspector General with the City of Baltimore, leading an investigative team focused on rooting out fraud and abuse and building trust in local government.
The Minneapolis Department of Civil Rights is tasked with:
- enforcing the Minneapolis Code of Ordinances,
- investigating discriminatory practices,
- ensuring the protection of members of protected classes and
- promoting the understanding of civil rights among residents, businesses and government.
The department, through its Office of Police Conduct Review, also plays a critical role in implementing reform efforts required by the settlement agreement reached with the Minnesota Department of Human Rights.
Read more about Phillips appointment on the City website.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will host two public video webinars to discuss departure procedure updates around Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP) on Wednesday, August 14, and Thursday, August 15, 2024. These events will be held online. You may participate from your computer, or you may view the recordings online, at your convenience.
These events will feature presentations from the FAA, including regional leadership and air traffic control as well as representatives from airlines serving the airport.
Topics will include:
- Current management of the Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP) airspace;
- Future implementation of Area Navigation (RNAV) departure procedures at MSP;
- Input from the Metropolitan Airports Commission (MAC) and the Noise Oversight Committee (NOC) on the design of new RNAV procedures;
- The environmental study process;
- Future opportunity to provide public comment on the planned departure procedures at MSP.
The first webinar will be held on Wednesday, August 14, 2024 from 1- 3 pm and the second will on Thursday, August 15th, 2024 from 6-8 pm.
Registration for these events is listed below:
Wednesday, August 14 Workshop Registration
Thursday, August 15 Workshop Registration
No pre-registration is required to view the event at a later time on the the FAA YouTube channel.
Minneapolis VOR Update (January 2023 - Current)
The FAA is modernizing the national airspace system nationwide by discontinuing outdated ground-based navigational equipment and by implementing GPS-Based procedures to enhance safety and efficiency of airport operations. At Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport (MSP), these actions will help reduce delays while increasing safety due to more efficient communications between pilots and air traffic control.
The MSP Very High-Frequency Omnidirectional Range (VOR) is one of approximately 300 ground-based navigational aids that will no longer be necessary due to the development and implementation of GPS navigation. It is scheduled for decommissioning in mid-to-late 2025.
The decommissioning of the MSP VOR, coupled with updated FAA safety regulations will require the amendment or cancellation of current departure procedures (implemented in 2015) and the development of new Area Navigation (RNAV) departure procedures.
- What is RNAV?
- The current procedures need to be modified to be compliant with current criteria and maintain safety and efficiency at the airport. These current procedures would need to be updated, regardless of the VOR decommissioning.
The FAA is working with aviation stakeholders to safely and efficiently replace the VOR’s function for MSP, enabling departing aircraft to fly routes that enhance safety and efficiency and with a focus on reducing aviation noise impacts.
- The upgraded RNAV departure flight procedures must be in place by summer 2025 when the MSP VOR is decommissioned.
- These upgraded RNAV departure are designed to initially use multiple headings on departure, as is done today, to disperse traffic above the airport’s surrounding communities.
The FAA is discussing these changes with members of the Metropolitan Airports Commission and the Noise Oversight Committee. Community input will be considered throughout the project.
The FAA will update the projects web page as details of the project are developed, including opportunities for community input.
Additional Background
The FAA is decommissioning approximately one-third of the nation’s VOR network. The remaining 600 VORs will remain in place in strategic locations throughout the nation to serve in the event of a satellite outage. You can learn more about the VOR Minimal Operational Network (MON) watching this video or reading this webpage.
As part of the Climate Legacy Initiative, the City’s Green Cost Share program is helping Minneapolis residents make weatherization and other energy-saving improvements to their homes.
Owners of single-family or 2- to 4-unit residential properties can receive funds to make their property more energy efficient through rebates of up to $14,000.
From insulation to air-source heat pumps, the City can help you save money on utility bills and make your home more comfortable year-round.
Minneapolis resident Jamie Laudert received City funds to make her 100-year-old home energy-efficient year-round.
Watch Jamie’s video.
Apply for funds to make your home more energy efficient on the City website.
Join City staff and an engagement team from 4RM+ULA and the Cultural Wellness Center for a facilitated discussion to create a community-centered vision for the area. Topics for the third visioning workshop will include memorial locations, the Peoples Way site and right-of-way design priorities.
Visioning workshop on the future of George Floyd Square 5:30 – 8 p.m. Tuesday, July 23 The Square 3736 Chicago Ave. S. RSVP online.
Refreshments will be provided.
Find out more about the future of George Floyd Square and sign up for updates on the City website.
This year’s celebration of the City of Minneapolis takes place July 24-27.
Mark your calendar for the parade, fireworks, music, triples tennis, water ski show, on-the-go AquaTivities and more.
Find details on the Aquatennial website.
Photo Courtesy of Minneapolis Downtown Council; photo by Hoskovec Photography
Legislation passed during the 2024 legislative session allows the City of Minneapolis to resume housing development under the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan. The legislation allows the City of Minneapolis to move forward with permitting long-stalled multi-unit housing projects.
The Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan was passed in 2019 and was the guiding vision for shaping how the city will grow and change for the next 20 years. This includes historic zoning reforms to allow for a diversity of use in all neighborhoods across the city.
In part due to the 2040 Plan, Minneapolis has seen record-breaking levels of affordable rental housing units produced in the past several years, while also keeping rents at some of the lowest rates in the country.
Explore the Minneapolis 2040 Comprehensive Plan.
Read more on the City website.
This month, the City launched the first Narcan vending machine.
The pilot program provides a free life-saving resource for people in need. It is located outside Fire Station 21 in an area that has seen a high amount of substance use and overdoses. So far this year, there have been 74 suspected overdoses and four suspected fatal overdoses. Between 2017 and 2021, there were 38 opioid-related deaths in the area.
Vending machine details
- Fire Station 21, 3209 E. 38th St.
- 24-hour access.
- Free to community members with no barriers.
Watch the news conference and hear from Minneapolis resident Christopher Burks who was saved by Narcan six times.
Find opioid and substance use resources on the City website.
With the State primary election coming up in August, know what you need to do to vote.
Any Minneapolis voter may choose to vote before Election Day. Early voting options are available beginning 46 days before an election.
Voters can vote early in person at the Early Vote Center, 980 E. Hennepin Ave. or by mail.
Find more information on the City website.
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