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Sexual harassment has no place at the City of Saint Paul. Everyone who works for our city–regardless of their job title or boss deserves a safe and professional workplace. Especially when our employees are tasked with serving our communities.
Sexual harassment has no place at the City of Saint Paul. Everyone who works for our city, regardless of job title or boss, deserves a safe, professional workplace–especially when our employees are tasked with serving our communities. As a survivor of multiple sexual assaults, any allegations of sexual harassment are incredibly troubling. The allegations against Mayor Her are serious, and as your Council Member, I am taking them seriously.
Now more than ever, working families are struggling to pinch pennies together. I believe our city needs to respond accordingly and fund what really matters: services that make a direct impact on the daily lives of our residents. Local government is at its best when it is the first line of services and last line of defense for families.
Saint Paul is facing pressing issues that require fidelity of our values and integrity of leadership. The rise of technofascism by way of data centers and mass surveillance is coming our way and fast. We have no answer for how we’re connecting our neighbors living in tents with stable housing. We had libraries on the chopping block in our city’s budget. Just like you, the city’s leaders need to be clear-eyed about what we stand for and take on a $26M budget deficit.
I join the voices of our community members in their call for transparency and the immediate release of the investigation from Resolute Law. No matter how we use our city resources, be it for investigations or potholes, it must be done with transparency. Transparency is a vehicle for accountability. Understanding what was in the investigation and the subsequent costs paid by all of us who call Saint Paul home is a first and necessary step.
-Council Member HwaJeong Kim
After Mayor Her proposed her 2027 City Budget last month, City Council has been hard at work hearing from our city staff about their work and meeting with residents about what to prioritize. Join us for our upcoming Ward 5 Budget Event on Thursday, October 8 and weigh in on what you’d like to see prioritized in our 2027 City Budget! RSVP to the budget event here.
Ward 5 Budget Event
Thursday, October 8 from 6:00 – 7:30pm
North End Community Center (145 Lawson Ave W., Saint Paul, 55117)
Join the Como Community Council at their 6th Annual Harvest Festival on Saturday October 3 from 3-5pm at Tilden Park. Festivities include the annual Pie Contest, Urban Sustainability Demonstrations, a free flu shot clinic, field games, kids crafts, and more.
Como Community Council Harvest Festival
Saturday, October 3 from 3:00 – 5:00pm
Tilden Park (1521 Albany Ave, St Paul, MN 55108)
Join East Side community organizations for food and activities to celebrate the hard work put in by our neighborhoods to close Northern Iron and talk about what's next for the Northern Iron location.
East Side Community Celebration
Saturday October 3 from 12:00 – 3:00 pm
Indigenous Roots (788 E. 7th Street, St Paul, MN 55106)
Check out ToshoCon on Saturday October 10 from 11 a.m. - 3 p.m. at Arlington Hills Library and Community Center. ToshoCon is Saint Paul Public Library’s free, family-friendly anime convention—created for teens but open to all ages and all fans! This one-day event celebrates anime, East Asian arts, and pop culture through cosplay, hands-on crafts, live performances, and more. Learn more at the link here.
ToshoCon 2026
Saturday October 10 from 11:00am to 3:00pm
Arlington Hills Library (1200 Payne Avenue, Saint Paul MN 55130)
The rise of mass surveillance goes far beyond Flock cameras and drones. Come hear from local experts about the ever-increasing use of surveillance technologies, the impacts on our communities, and how we can organize to push back to protect our rights and our neighbors.
The panel will be facilitated by Saint Paul Council Member HwaJeong Kim, and the panelists include Minneapolis City Council Member Robin Wonsley, Professor Jessica West from Mitchell Hamline School of Law, Matthew Guariglia from Electronic Frontier Foundation, State Representative Athena Hollins, John Boehler from ACLU Minnesota, and Anna Madison from Women Against Military Madness. RSVP to the event here.
Technofascism: community panel on the rise of mass surveillance and AI in the Twin Cities
Monday October 19th from 6:00 - 7:30
North End Community Center (145 Lawson Ave W., Saint Paul, 55117)
Great businesses do more than serve customers—they actively build community.
The Saint Paul City Council is now accepting nominations and applications for the 2026 Saint Paul Business Awards. Now in its 10th year, this program honors the Saint Paul businesses that serve as the heart and soul of our neighborhoods, contributing to the City’s economic vitality, cultural richness, and community spirit.
Founded in 2015 as part of the City Council’s Open for Business initiative, the awards recognize businesses that provide critical services, invest in their employees, and demonstrate a commitment to Saint Paul’s values of equity and diversity.
Applications and nominations are open to all Saint Paul business. Winners will be selected by a committee of past award winners. The 2026 winners will be honored at a special City Council meeting in November 2026. Clear Channel continues to be a partner in supporting the Saint Paul business community and generously agreed to feature winners on their digital billboards throughout Saint Paul. Nominate a business that inspires you, and help us celebrate the people shaping a stronger future for Saint Paul by clicking the link here.
Last month my office organized Saint Paul’s first ever “State of the Youth” for city leaders to hear directly from our youth. The decisions made at City Hall impact everyone who calls Saint Paul home but in my time in office, our young people are rarely able to show up and speak to their needs and priorities for local government.
Thank you to all of our amazing young leaders who talked about the need for a Housing First approach to homelessness, funding for our CARES team, transit and safer streets, youth employment, and devastating impacts of ICE’s occupation this winter. I look forward to taking these priorities to our budget decisions in the coming weeks.
You can watch the full remarks by our remarkable speakers here.
For decades, Saint Paul has had a complicated franchise fee structure with Xcel, resulting in our residents paying a higher percentage of franchise fees than other ratepayers. I made it clear that my priority as we began negotiations earlier this year with Xcel was fairer distribution of franchise fees between commercial, industrial and residential ratepayers.
Last Wednesday September 23, City Council approved a new agreement with Xcel that means residents should see little to no increase in their gas and electric franchise fees for 2027 while also making key investments in critical climate work. Commercial and industrial franchise fees will increase to balance out the costs previously being shouldered by our residents.
I’m proud we secured a progressive franchise fee that shifts utility costs away from working families and ensured corporations and large users are paying their fair share. This victory would not have happened without years of organizing by UNIDOS and neighbors across our city, and hard work by Climate Action Coordinator Liz Boyer and our city staff.
Key Votes: Unanimous vote by City Council to approve the new franchise fees.
Last Wednesday September 23, City Council approved a 6.8% maximum levy increase for the 2027 City Budget. Mayor Kaohly Her’s initial budget called for the closing of the Dayton Bluff Library and axing rec center hours across Saint Paul. Myself and my colleagues on the City Council made it clear that we would not accept the closing of a library. Thanks to organizing by East Side residents, AFSCME and Budget Chair Cheniqua Johnson, Mayor Her introduced a new $574,000 supplemental budget proposal that keeps Dayton Bluff Library open and reverses much of the cuts to rec centers. Mayor Her is still proposing to close the Duluth and Case rec center.
With the maximum levy set, it’s now up to City Council to ensure we’re designing a city budget that meets the needs of everyone who calls Saint Paul home. Some of my top priorities heading into budget negotiations:
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Restoring funding for our Community Alternative Response for Emergency Services (CARES) team. As more of our neighbors turn to living in tents and cars because they can't afford their homes, we need to ensure we’re connecting people with the social services they need to get back into stable housing.
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Safe funding levels for our Fire Department. Mayor Her’s proposed budget will likely leave our Fire Department understaffed by the end of 2027. Running our fire stations and EMS short staffed will leave everyone less safe—both our residents and our firefighters.
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Repairing streetlights. An estimated 10% of Saint Paul’s streets are out. Mayor Her’s proposed budget does not include adequate street lighting funding and as a result, Public Works anticipates the number of lighting outages due to copper wire theft will only continue to increase. Ward 5 residents have made it clear that well-lit streets should be a priority for our city and that means speeding streetlight repairs.
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Eliminate expired TIF districts. Tax Increment Finance (TIF) districts shift the property tax burden from corporate developers onto our residents. Eliminating expiring TIF districts early will bring these large developments back into the tax base, reducing the impacts of rising property taxes on our residents.
Key Votes: Unanimous vote by City Council to approve a maximum levy increase of 6.8%. Proposal to increase the levy to fund the Dayton Bluff Library withdrawn after Mayor Her introduced a new $574,000 supplemental budget.
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