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I spoke at a Renters Rights Forum hosted by the East Bank Neighborhoods Partnership. The forum was led by Student Legal Services and included Homeline, Council President Payne and myself, and the city’s Housing Liaisons. It was fantastic to hear SLS and Homeline empowering students renters with information about their rights and how to hold landlords accountable. I was excited to share the work my office has done in partnership with students, renters, and community advocates to implement new renter protections like Renters Rights Mandatory Disclosure and Banning Rent Algorithms, as well as our current initiative STOP Slumlords.
CM Wonsley presenting at the Renters Rights Forum and East Bank Neighborhoods Partnership meeting.
The Como Cookout is back for 2025! Celebrate community with an afternoon of food, fun, and connection at Van Cleve Park in Southeast Como. The Como Cookout brings together neighbors, University of Minnesota students and staff, and local partners for a free, family-friendly event. Enjoy yard games, bounce houses, and a resource fair for students and neighbors alike while grabbing a bite from the Qdoba food truck + cotton candy & ice cream. Whether you’re new to the neighborhood or a longtime resident, this is the perfect chance to meet others and enjoy a fall day in the park!
Como Cookout
September 20th 11-2
Van Cleve Park (901 15th Ave SE)
Flyer for the Como Cookout 2025.
East Bank neighbors have been organizing to rename Marcy Park. Marcy Park is about 15 blocks away from Marcy School, leading to confusion. Even more importantly, the park is named after William Marcy, Secretary of War under President Polk, who was a vocal advocate for slavery. Marcy had no documented association with Minnesota.
Neighbors successfully nominated the park for renaming. After an extensive public engagement process, Dinky Park was selected as the proposed new name. Read more about the resident-led renaming effort here.
There is one more opportunity to testify at a public hearing over renaming Marcy Park. You are invited to attend this public hearing to express your perspective on the possible renaming of Marcy Park. You can also reach out to Park Commissioners directly to ask that they rename Marcy Park.
Public hearing to rename Marcy Park
- Thursday, September 25th from 5-9pm
- Mary Merrill Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board Headquarters - Board Room
- 2117 West River Road North
Poster about the resident-led effort to rename Marcy Park.
Summary: The Mayor’s recent eviction of the encampment on East Lake Street demonstrates continued failure to implement Housing First.
Background: Earlier this summer, an encampment formed on a privately owned lot on East Lake Street in Ward 9, just south of Ward 2.
I do not believe encampments are a humane or dignified solution to homelessness. I and the majority of City Council support Housing First, an effective approach to homelessness that starts with providing no-barrier housing to unsheltered people. Unfortunately, Mayor Frey has not chosen to implement a Housing FIrst policy, and instead has moved unsheltered people from block to block, which has proven to be costly and ineffective in reducing homelessness.
A few weeks ago, Mayor Frey requested Council approval to take legal action against the property owner. Council voted to grant him this approval. You can read more about the questions and concerns around this request in my previous newsletter.
This week, there was a tragic mass shooting at the encampment. Shortly afterwards, Mayor Frey evicted the encampment. I recommend that everyone read the recent statement by Council Member Jason Chavez, who represents the area. He outlines how community members have stepped up in the continued absence of a serious plan by the Frey administration.
We are fast approaching winter. As we enter fall and colder months, residents, both housed and unhoused, will continue to feel the negative impacts of Mayor Frey’s refusal to take effective actions to address unsheltered homelessness, starting with implementing a Housing First approach. I will continue to work with my colleagues and community organizations to preserve Emergency Housing Vouchers, get a city-led Navigation Center, and other data-backed strategies that can humanely and effectively reduce homelessness.
Key votes: No votes taken.
Summary: Council Members Osman, Chowdhury, Cashman and I have introduced the STOP Slumlords ordinance with Support from Renters and Housing Advocates
Background: This week, Council Members, renters, and community advocates rallied to kick off the Slumlord Tier Oversight and Protection ordinance, also called STOP Slumlords. The ordinance requires a City Council vote on rental licenses for rental units that are below the City’s standards of health, safety, and livability. You can read more about the ordinance here.
At the kickoff, renters who are currently living in substandard rentals spoke about the City’s failure to hold the property owners accountable. They described mice, mold, leaks, and doors without doorknobs for years on end. A former tenant of Wahu, an apartment complex located in Ward 2 also offered a testimonial about the subpar housing conditions they experienced while living there. Should this policy pass, Ward 2 properties like Wahu would be held accountable for meeting City standards. City records show that there are over 160 property owners who have demonstrated that they aren’t able or willing to comply with local laws without added oversight and enforcement.
Minneapolis is a majority renter city. If this city is serious about upholding standards of safe and livable housing for every renter, then we have to use every tool at our disposal to enforce the housing code. Currently, when residents reach out to council offices with concerns about problem landlords, there is not much that council members can do other than encourage them to call 311. STOP Slumlords provides an added layer of oversight and accountability through the council process that renters currently do not have. I’m confident that it will enhance and support the city in holding landlords accountable as well as provide both council and the public a formal oversight tool that is sorely needed. Renters shouldn’t have to tolerate substandard housing in Minneapolis and I am excited that this ordinance will be an additional tool to support housing justice in our city. I encourage everyone to come testify in support of the policy later this month:
STOP Slumlords Public Testimony
Testify in person:
- STOP Slumlords Public Hearing at the Business Housing and Zoning Committee
- September 30th at 1:30pm
- Minneapolis Public Service Center: 250 South 4th Street– Room 350
- Read more about rules for meetings and tips to participate
Testify in writing:
- Testimony can be submitted in writing at any time using this form
- For “Subject or File Number,” write STOP Slumlords
Key votes: The Business Housing and Zoning Committee voted to schedule a public hearing on the ordinance for September 30th at 1:30pm. The Council could vote on the ordinance as soon as October 9th.
The STOP Slumlords kickoff including Council Members Osman, Wonsley and Chowdhury; directly impacted renters, and community supporters.
Summary: City Council enacted a fee on polluters to address climate change and reduce carbon emissions in spite of a three year delay by the Frey administration.
Background: I have been transparent about the challenges my office has encountered when working to advance legislation that Mayor Frey does not support, even when it reflects the priorities of Ward 2 residents and constituents citywide. Nothing is more demonstrative of this unfortunate reality than the almost three years it took for the City for the City to finally implement fees on carbon emissions from large polluters emissions from large polluters.
Within the first few weeks of coming into City Hall of January 2022, I received dozens of postcards weekly from Ward 2 residents asking me to take bold action and use the strategies outlined in the People’s Climate Equity Plan to reduce carbon emissions in an equitable way. One of these strategies was adding carbon dioxide to the list of pollutants that come with Pollution Control Annual Registration (PCAR) fees. Community members asked that carbon emissions be added to the PCAR list so that the City could begin charging big polluters for the cost of their carbon emissions. After many meetings with Ward 2 residents, I began the legislative process and gave a notice of intent to implement fees related to carbon dioxide.
After taking the first legislative step, my office convened meetings with interested council members, and key administrative leaders like the Director of Environmental Programs. My office articulated our intentions to the administration to advance PCAR fees on carbon emissions via the legislative process. The Director of Environmental Programs shared this memo with my office which included details of their research and development plan as well as a timeline. In addition to the memo, my office participated in several meetings with staff where it was repeatedly stated that the Health Department was collaborating with a consultant that would provide the data needed to complete this work.
After months of insistence that consultants had been hired to support their development of a carbon fee, the Health Department came to the Public Health and Safety Committee with this presentation, where they made the recommendation of $452 per ton of CO2e. Council moved forward with this recommendation, with the understanding that the fee schedule can be updated at any time to reflect new information about program cost. Mayor Frey vetoed the fee schedule, stating that the rate calculated by his own staff in the Health Department was inaccurate and opened the City up to legal risk. Council overrode the veto. In addition to overriding the veto, I led Council to allocate funding for a staff person to work on this issue as well as authored a legislative directive asking the Health Department to come back with a fee study and a recommendation in 2025.
This year, the Health Department contracted work on this issue for the second time in two years, and produced a report by Braun Intertec that you can find here. The report is detailed, but what I found to be extremely troubling is that the recommended number by Braun was $5.00 per ton. This was a significant departure from staff’s original recommendation of $452 per ton. There are several concerns that I have, which include questions related to the city contract with a consultant that the Director of Environmental Programs stated was in process back in 2023. Council has never seen outcomes from that contract. I also have major questions on how the Mayor’s administration, who we are told to be subject matter experts on this issue, landed in such a different place than the Braun report. This report essentially affirms that in almost three years, the Mayor’s staff have provided no reliable data or meaningful policy proposals to address carbon reduction, despite telling the Council as well as the public that it was a top priority.
The report from Braun Intertec solidifies that the Council cannot rely on the Frey administration to provide policy support on critical issues our residents say are most important to them. Mayor Frey repeatedly highlights through media releases that Council must work with City staff to accomplish policy goals, but he has failed to take accountability for when his own staff provides unreliable or inaccurate information that compromises Council’s abilities to meet the needs of their constituents and advance citywide priorities like climate resiliency. The Health Department is tasked with the bulk of the Climate Equity Plan, which leaves me with significant reservations of their ability to manage this work effectively until it is better understood why so many mistakes and miscommunications were permitted to happen regarding carbon fees. I plan to ask these questions at the next Public Health and Safety Committee meeting and I am already in conversation with my Council colleagues on how we can utilize the legislative body and sharpen our tools of oversight as well as expand the resources on the Policy and Research division. Investments in the Council’s ability to research and pass policy ensures unnecessary delays such as this one do not occur in the future.
I will provide more updates on potential oversight tools as well as potential amendments to next year’s budget in the upcoming weeks.
Key votes: The Public Health and Safety Committee unanimously voted to receive the report at the next PHS meeting on October 1st, so that staff could be present and available for questions.
Summary: The City Auditor presented the recommendations that stem from their review of the Helix Health and Human Services contract.
Background: In fall of 2023, Mayor Frey’s failure to enact Housing First strategies resulted in significant encampments of unsheltered residents at Camp Nenookaasi. Health and safety challenges were impacting both encampment residents and neighbors. In response, Mayor Frey urged the City Council to pass a sole-source contract for about $1 million to an organization called Helix Health and Human Services. A sole-source contract is given without a competitive process to identify the best value or quality of services.
After the contract was approved and Helix began to provide housing and social services to encampment residents, a coalition of housing and social service professionals reached out to the Mayor and Council with concerns about the funds being misused and significant problems with if and how the services were provided. They described substandard housing, inappropriate use of airbnbs being reported as supportive housing, and more. In response, Council requested the City Auditor evaluate the administration of the contract.
The City Auditor reviewed the contract and “identified $177,462.92 in what we classify as ‘overpayments’ to Helix Health & Housing Services, a single-source vendor contracted in November 2023 by the Health Department at the urgent request of the Mayor’s Office… We also identified significant gaps in contract management and oversight. This creates an environment where the opportunity for fraud to occur is significant due to insufficient internal control.”
This week, the City Auditor presented a summary of their recommendations to the Public Health and Safety Committee. Several of these recommendations align with efforts I am already leading to improve Council oversight over the Mayor’s administration of financial and contracting matters, such as requiring quarterly disclosure of all contracts that are entered into without Council approval. Other recommendations are being implemented by the City Attorney’s Office, which has now trained over 300 of the Mayor’s staff in more responsible contract management practices to prevent conflicts of interest and fraud.
Thank you to the community members who raised concerns about the Helix contract. Your work helped the City Council ensure there was oversight of the Mayor’s administration and City contractors. Ultimately this oversight helped us identify a significant misuse of funds and strengthen our practices to prevent similar risks going forward.
Key votes: No votes taken.
Summary: MPD presented about their proposed 2026 budget.
Background: The City Council has begun our work on the 2026 Budget. As part of the process, each department presents their proposed budget for 2026. This week, MPD presented to the Budget Committee. A significant portion of all property tax revenues go to support MPD, and Council Members need to use our oversight authority to ensure that MPD spending aligns with improved public safety outcomes for residents.
MPD presented a $229 million budget request. You can watch the presentation and discussion here. Several Council Members asked questions about the MPD mounted patrol (horses). MPD is the only police department in the state to operate a mount patrol unit. Over the years, multiple Minneapolis City Councils have removed funding for the mounted patrol to reallocate the funding to data-backed strategies of public safety. Despite previous funding cuts, including the Council removing funding for it last year, MPD has continued to operate and maintain the program. MPD leadership explained that they have funded the program using savings in other areas. Questions related to private funding came up because many offices have been reached out regarding fundraisers for the mount patrol residents have seen on social media. Although the Downtown Council and other groups have hosted fundraisers for the mounted patrol, MPD stated that no funds have been received.
Council Members also asked multiple questions about why MPD has not hired two of the five Civilian Investigators that Council added to their budget last year due to MPD’s backlog of over 5,000 unsolved cases. I was incredibly disturbed to hear that MPD still has thousands of unsolved cases. For example, in 2024, MPD had a 22% clearance rate for non-fatal shootings. In comparison, last year St. Paul implemented a taskforce to target investigations related to non-fatal shootings. In response to those additional investigative resources, St. Paul’s clearance rate for non-fatal shootings doubled from 38% from 2023 to 71% in 2024. In the presentation Chief O’Hara highlighted that hiring Civilian Investigators are extremely beneficial and helps support MPD in their public safety functions. A functioning public safety system must solve crimes and give closure to victims. This is an area of weakness for MPD and I’m disappointed to see them doubling down on this pattern through their choice to not use their full strength in investigations.
MPD leadership also clarified that the reduction in $3.6 million in Critical Staffing Overtime funding, which is double pay overtime, was not in the 2026 budget because of a Letter of Agreement between City of Minneapolis and the police union that will expire at the end of 2025. Earlier this summer, Mayor Frey falsely represented this existing contract approved by Council as an executive decision he made independently.
There were numerous other questions that Council Members asked that MPD will be following up with in a written memo. I look forward to deliberating with my colleagues on what a responsible MPD budget for 2026 looks like.
Key votes: No votes taken.
The City of Minneapolis Health Department Asthma Program is conducting a Gas Stove Swap Out Pilot for 2025-2026 for families enrolled in the program to address the environmental risks associated with gas stoves.
Enrollees in the asthma program already enjoy a free in-home asthma assessment conducted by a trained professional in Asthma and Housing Inspections to find common asthma triggers and educate families on ways to reduce and remove those triggers.
After the home visit, enrollees are also given durable medical equipment such as:
- Air purifiers
- Vacuum cleaners with HEPA filters
- Allergen-proof mattress and pillowcase protectors
As part of the pilot project, families enrolled in the program are now eligible to have a licensed mechanical and electrical contractor swap out their gas stove for an electric induction-type cooktop.
Benefits of electric induction cooktops:
- Healthier indoor air
- Burning gas during cooking creates pollutants like nitrogen dioxide that aggravate respiratory illnesses like asthma.
- Safer and more energy efficient
- They heat up very quickly when turned on and cool down just as fast when turned off.
The stove swap pilot demonstrates the positive impact energy improvements will have on resident health and highlights the opportunity for program overlap. To qualify for and for questions about this free program, contact Asthma Coordinator Vu Tran at 612-449-0778.
Contact Ward 2
Visit: minneapolismn.gov/ward2
Email: ward2@minneapolismn.gov
Phone: 612-673-2202
City Hall
350 S. Fifth St., Room 370
Minneapolis, MN 55415
For reasonable accommodations or alternative format please contact 311. People who are deaf or hard of hearing can use a relay service to call 311 at 612-673-3000. TTY users call 612-263-6850. Para ayuda, llame al 311. Rau kev pab, hu 311. Hadii aad caawimaad u baahantahay, wac 311. |
