 You may have noticed that this week's newsletter is arriving a day early — our office and most city offices will be closed tomorrow in honor of Juneteenth. I want to wish everyone in Ward 7 and across Minneapolis a very happy Juneteenth as we honor the hard-won freedoms of African Americans and celebrate the innumerable contributions this community has made to our city. I hope you all get the chance to reflect, celebrate, and enjoy time with neighbors and loved ones tomorrow and throughout the weekend.
Right up front, I also want to acknowledge the shocking arrest and charges against 15 Minnesotans for allegedly conspiring against ICE officers. One of those charged is a Kenwood resident, who willingly turned herself in to officials yesterday morning and denies all charges. Thanks to all the Kenwood neighbors who turned out to support her on the morning of her arrest -- you continue to show up for your neighbors. If I learn of any way the community can further support her in this process, I will let you know.
 On a completely different note, the Ward 7 office has been hard at work planning our next Community Conversation, focused on downtown data centers, happening one week from today: Thursday, June 25 from 5:00–6:00 p.m. in the Public Service Building (505 4th Ave. S.), Conference Room 100AB. The event is free and open to the public, and parking passes are available for the Haaf Ramp (424 S. 4th St.).
Ward 3 Council Member Michael Rainville and I will co-host and co-facilitate a panel discussion with experts on the issues that matter most as regulation moves forward — downtown development, tax revenue, energy use, environmental concerns, jobs, infrastructure, and neighborhood impacts. Our panel brings perspectives from business, the environment, utilities, and labor featuring: Don Kohlenberger, President of Hightower Initiatives; Kathryn Hoffman, CEO of the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy; John Marshall, Regional Vice President at Xcel Energy and Chair of the Downtown Council & DID; and Dan McConnell, Business Manager of the Minneapolis Building and Construction Trades Council. We hope to see you there for what promises to be a lively and informative conversation.
One of the lesser-known privileges of serving on the City Council is representing Minneapolis on outside bodies. Among other appointments, I serve as the policymaker representative on the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District's (MCWD) Policy Advisory Committee. MCWD spans 178 square miles and 29 cities, from Lake Minnetonka to the Chain of Lakes and Minnehaha Falls. Guided by a vision it calls "balanced urban ecology," MCWD partners with its member cities to coordinate water planning with land use, infrastructure, and parks across the region.
This week I met with District Administrator James Wisker to learn about MCWD's work, especially the new 2027 plan that will guide how the watershed is managed over the next decade. The 2027 plan will ground its work in four key areas: sub-watershed planning, land and water partnership, flood management strategy, and metrics of success. Of particular interest to Ward 7, the plan includes MCWD's "Thriving Waters" partnership between the City of Minneapolis and Park Board. This work has a direct, visible impact on our neighborhoods as varied jurisdictions work together on joint projects with pooled funding to leverage impact. I’m excited to learn from this process and help our community protect and enjoy this incredible natural resource.
 Councilmember Shaffer with Traffic and Parking Services Director Allan Klugman and overnight painting team
Finally, I had the chance to help paint the crosswalks around Loring Park to get ready for Pride, which is coming up June 25-28. It was fun working alongside the Public Works crew that does this every night. I learned that each year the city repaints every single stripe on our streets and in our city-owned lots and ramps — around 453 miles of striping, enough to stretch from Minneapolis to Winnipeg, Manitoba. I painted two orange stripes and a blue one, and managed to get orange paint all over my pants. Well worth it to get our city ready for the second-largest festival in Minnesota – attended by over 650,000 people last year!
Relatedly, if you're a Loring Park resident who relies on street parking, please contact my office at Ward7@minneapolismn.gov — we may be able to offer some ideas to help with parking during Pride.
In closing, the Big Honking Truck Parade is this evening on Nicollet Mall at 5:00 p.m. The vehicles will roll for a few blocks and stop for all to enjoy exploring them up close! Hope to see you there.
 St. David's CEO Julie Sjordal speaking at groundbreaking
As many of you know, the downtown YWCA facility was acquired by St. David’s Developmental & Therapeutic Services in 2024, which promptly announced a three-phase renovation and service expansion plan for the property. St. David’s provides children’s mental health care, autism treatment, and other pediatric therapies, and with a waiting list of over 2,000 children, it needs room to grow.
On Wednesday, I attended a ground-breaking ceremony marking the start of phase two of the renovation project, which will include a new two-story entrance, training center, and partial completion of a first floor Pediatric Assessment and Treatment Wing with four therapeutic classrooms and multi-use assessment and treatment space. The ground-breaking was ceremonial and humorous as dignitaries dug their shovels into a sandbox.
St. David’s is a welcome addition to the southern end of Nicollet Mall, providing services for families and children that are in high demand throughout the Twin Cities.
 Even when there’s not construction work going on in your neighborhood, the vast majority of our homes are heated to at least some extent by natural gas. Earlier this week I had the chance to sit down with the government affairs team from CenterPoint and learn more about their work in the area, which was interesting and informative, touching on topics ranging from long-term capital improvements to hydrogen blending to lower emissions.
For a number of us in Ward 7, CenterPoint has been hard to miss these past few months, as there’s been widespread service line and gas meter work in our neighborhoods. As previewed in prior editions of this newsletter, work is just finishing up in the Lowry Hill neighborhood, and just as that wraps up, it’s ramping up in East Isles. While for the most part this work tends to go smoothly, you can easily report any problems by phone at (612) 542-6198, or by email: mnconstruction@centerpointenergy.com.
 Mark your calendars – the Stevens Square Farmers Market is coming back for its thirteenth season, starting Sunday, June 21st, 11:00 – 3:00 p.m., in the parking lot of Plymouth Congregational Church. Its regular schedule will be each Wednesday, 2:00 – 6:30 p.m., through September 30th. It’s a great way to get fresh food and connect with your neighbors!
 Among the many events happening downtown this summer, every third Wednesday is Downtown Wednesday, 3:00 – 7:00 p.m., where Nicollet Mall is closed to vehicle traffic between 9th and 10th Streets. The event features DJs, food, drinks, other vendors and more – all for the low admittance price of absolutely free. This month’s installment happened yesterday and was a little soggy, but future events are scheduled for July 15, August 19, and September 16. It’s a great time – come check it out if you can. Sponsored by the Downtown Council and the Downtown Improvement District – thanks!
Monday, June 22: Stevens Square Community Organization Executive Committee Meeting, 6:00 – 7:00 p.m., via Zoom.
Monday, June 29: Downtown Minneapolis Neighborhood Association monthly meeting, 5:30 p.m., via Zoom. Click here for meeting link.
Tuesday, July 7: Lowry Hill Neighborhood Association monthly board meeting, 6:30 – 8:00 p.m., at the Kenwood Rec Center. Click here for more information.
Wednesday, July 8: Bryn Mawr Neighborhood Association monthly meeting, 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. at Bryn Mawr Presbyterian Church, 420 Cedar Lake Road. Click here for more details.
Wednesday, July 8: Cedar-Isles-Dean Neighborhood Association monthly meeting, 6:00 – 7:30 p.m., Jones Harrison Senior Living, 3700 Cedar Lake Avenue. Click here for full details.
Monday, July 13: Kenwood Neighborhood Organization monthly meeting, 6:30 – 8:00 p.m., at the Kenwood Rec Center, 2101 W. Franklin Ave.
Monday, July 13: Citizens for a Loring Park Community board of directors meeting, 6:30 – 8:00 p.m., via Zoom.
Tuesday, July 14: West Maka Ska Neighborhood Council monthly meeting, 6 – 8 p.m., Bakken Museum Great Hall, 3527 Zenith Ave. S.
Tuesday, July 14: East Isles Neighborhood Association monthly meeting, 7:00 – 9:00 p.m., at Grace Trinity Church, 1430 W. 28th Street. Click here for more information. |
