I am excited to share news of two upcoming housing projects that are great investments in Downtown Minneapolis. First, St. Olaf, AEON and Westminster Presbyterian Church are receiving public funding to develop 72 units of deeply affordable supportive housing with onsite services at 819 2nd Avenue South. Second, Trellis is receiving $600,000 in financial assistance to build 110 units of affordable and mixed income housing at the former office building – the Flour Exchange - at 310 4th Ave S. In the current economic climate, adapting existing buildings into housing is proving to be successful, thanks to policy and funding support from the City. I'm excited to welcome hundreds of new residents to the downtown core through such projects and investments in the years to come!  

Council voted to approve moving into Phase 2 of building our Biochar Facility. Construction will be completed this fall, and the goal is to be producing biochar by late 2025. Biochar is a specialized charcoal that pulls carbon out of the air and stores it in the soil. It also holds nutrients and water, helping plants grow. 

Once constructed, the Minneapolis facility will have the capacity to annually:  

• Process more than 3,000 tons of wood waste.
• Produce more than 500 tons of biochar.
• Remove nearly 3,700 tons of carbon dioxide from the air, the equivalent of taking more than 789 cars off the road. 

This is an exciting step towards our City climate goals, and I am looking forward to what this will do for our air quality, and community. 

Ordinance Notices, Introductions, & Referrals: Council Members introduced and referred to the appropriate committee ordinances and/or amendments on provisions related to: Downtown Business Improvement Special Service District renewal ordinance (2025 renewal) (2025-00834); and a Sign Ordinance (2025-00744) amending regulations related to on-premises and off-premises signs.

Today's question:

As you may have heard, over the past two weeks there have been episodes of mass car break ins throughout the City. Police are estimating 244 cars had windows smashed across the in Southwest and Northeast corners of Minneapolis. While there are currently no leads, we are in close contact with the Minneapolis Police Department to find out what is going on and how we can stop it. So far, only about a dozen reports have been filed. If you have experienced a car break in, or have any footage of the incident, please report to 311 or 911. Our office is here to help if there are any issues you are having with reporting. You can contact us at Ward7@MinneapolisMN.gov 

MPD is asking for people to be reminded of the following safety tips: 

• Report suspicious activity near vehicles to 911 immediately. Helpful information includes descriptions of suspicious individuals, if suspects were in vehicles and where they were last seen and headed.
• Park in well-lit and busy areas.
• Don’t leave keys in the vehicle.
• Hide or take valuables out of the vehicle. 

The Stone Arch Bridge is officially back in business. After over a year of construction, people can once again cross the mighty Mississippi using the City’s most scenic bridge. Come celebrate the reopening on Saturday, August 9th, from 11am-1pm, with a family- friendly festival. Find more details on the Minnesota Department of Transportation website.  

Our office has received concerns regarding data safety for the new Traffic Safety Camera pilot starting this September. In an effort to address reckless driving and speeding on City streets, the City Council has approved a vendor for the upcoming traffic safety camera pilot program. However, residents have expressed concern in how these cameras could be misused for community surveillance. After speaking with the staff overseeing this pilot, we have been asked to share the following restrictions in the data practices contract: 

• Cameras can only be used for traffic safety enforcement. Cameras can only record or retain data if the system identifies a potential violation. Cameras cannot capture pictures that can identify people. Cameras can only take picture of back license plate & vehicle in the context. 
• Cameras cannot be used as license plate readers.
• All data collected are private unless specified in the law (in line with best practices used for other similar violations). The state law provisions for traffic safety cameras specifically reference state law provisions that 3rd party contractors must follow data practices laws as if they are a government entity. 
• Traffic safety camera system data are not subject to State or local subpoena, discovery, or admission into evidence in any prosecution, civil action, or administrative process that is not related to speeding or red light camera enforcement.
• A contractor must use traffic safety camera-related data only for the traffic safety camera enforcement and must not share or disseminate the data with an entity outside of the City unless this is a court order.
• Traffic safety camera system data must be destroyed within 30 days if a warning or citation is not issued. Once a citation is resolved, data related to it must be destroyed within 3 years. However, the City intends to destroy the data on a much faster timeline.
• The City is required to audit our vendor to confirm compliance on data practices at least every other year. 

As we get closer to the rollout of this pilot, please continue reaching out to our office with your questions and concerns by emailing Ward7@MinneapolisMN.gov. 

Please trim brush and branches along the alley to help make our alleys safer for City crews and vehicles. With recent heavy rains, brush along many of the alleys has grown to where crews are having a hard time seeing the person behind the truck. 

Bushes, branches and tall grass hanging into the alley is a safety hazard. Unkempt vegetation cuts and scrapes collection crews, scratches vehicles, and reduces visibility. 

You can set properly prepared trimmings out for collection with your yard waste.