Recently in Meetings Category

Join us on Wednesday, March 2 at 7:00 p.m. at the Waite Park Community Center at 1810 34th Avenue NE for the Waite Park Annual Town Meeting. This is a great opportunity to learn more about what is happening in our neighborhood and throughout Northeast Minneapolis.

Minneapolis School Board member and Northeast Minneapolis resident Jenny Arneson will be on hand to talk about the state of Northeast schools and answer any questions regarding education in the area.

The Waite Park Community Council is always looking for interested parties to join our board and help to craft the direction of our neighborhood. Anyone that lives, works or owns property within the Waite Park Neighborhood and is 18 years or older is eligible to join the board. If you are interested in this volunteer opportunity or have more questions regarding the Waite Park Community Council or the neighborhood, please email us at waiteparkcc@gmail.com.

We hope you will join us on Wednesday. Childcare will be provided free of charge.
 

What happens during foreclosure and what do homeowners need to know?
What rights do homeowners have?
What options are there?

Get your questions answered by local nonprofit foreclosure counselors. Free, confidential advice provided. Three upcoming sessions are listed below.

Presented in collaboration with the Hennepin County Taxpayer Services and Minnesota Home Ownership Center.

Nice Ride Minnesota launched the largest public bike sharing system in America on June 10. As we approach the 100,000-ride milestone and the close of our first season, Nice Ride is planning a major expansion!
 
Part of our expansion is already funded. We will add at least six stations in North Minneapolis next year and are holding planning meetings there now.
 
But Nice Ride has much bigger plans. Mayor Rybak, Mayor Coleman, and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota CEO Pat Geraghty are helping Nice Ride seek Phase 2 funding for a major expansion. We want to serve neighborhoods on all sides of downtown Minneapolis, downtown St. Paul, and the Grand Avenue/University Avenue corridor.
 
We kicked off Phase 2 planning with a metro-wide meeting on September 15. Now we are holding workshops so you can show us where you want a Nice Ride station in your neighborhood.
 
NICE RIDE NEIGHBORHOOD WORKSHOP SCHEDULE:
 
Northeast Minneapolis Workshop
Tuesday, November 9, 6:30-8 pm, at Hedberg Maps, Northrup King Building (enter by Van Buren Street) / 1500 Jackson St NE, Suite 314, Minneapolis, MN 55413 / 612-706-9686
 
If you are unable to attend a workshop, we still want your ideas. Please send an e-mail to ideas@niceridemn.org.
 
Nice Ride Minnesota is a local non-profit. Our current system includes 65 self-service bike share stations and 700 bikes. We bought this equipment through generous contributions from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota; Bike Walk Twin Cities, a program of Transit for Livable Communities; and the City of Minneapolis.

Jameel Amed, the owner of Auto-Giants is interested in rebuilding his facility at 3650 Central Avenue Northeast that burned down on April 30, 2010. The nature of the business operation is used car sales, with incidental, minor vehicle repair, which will take place in the enclosed garage. He is applying to the City for:
 

1. A Conditional Use Permit for minor auto repair.

2. Expansion or alteration of a non-conforming use.

3. Site plan review. This will be discussed at the Columbia Park Neighborhood Association meeting at 6:30 p.m. on Monday, November 15th at Columbia Park Golf Chalet, 33rd and Central Avenue.

The Auto Giants site is in Columbia Park neighborhood. Central Avenue is the boundary between Waite Park and Columbia Park neighborhoods. Waite Park residents and business people are encouraged to attend this meeting.
 
The Minneapolis Planning Commission will hold a public meeting on these applications at 4:30 p.m. on Monday, December 13th in Room 317 City Hall, 350 South 5th Street.

An illustrated project narrative is available here:
October 18 - Narrative for Auto-Giants-1.pdf

Is Your Home Ready for Winter?

Community Energy Services, a one-stop residential energy program, is helping homeowners save energy and money.  And what better time to participate than in these waning days of warm weather?  Waite Park homeowners are invited to attend a FREE educational workshop:

Tuesday, October 19th, 6:30 p.m.

Washburn High School (201 W. 49th St.)

Tuesday, November 9th, 6:30 p.m.

Minnehaha Academy South Campus (4200 West River Parkway)

To reserve your spot at a workshop or for more workshop dates contact

Ashley Robertson at 612-335-5869 or arobertson@mncee.org

Participants of Community Energy Services are eligible to receive a customized home energy visit that includes diagnostic tests as well as installation of energy and money saving materials, energy tracking and feedback and access to specialized rebates.  The program offers up to $400 in services and materials for a co-pay of only $30.  The Waite Park Community Council will cover $10 of the co-pay for the next 19 homeowners who participate!

For more information visit www.mncee.org.  Community Energy Services is a partnership with the Waite Park Community Council, Center for Energy and Environment, City of Minneapolis, CenterPoint Energy and Xcel Energy with funding provided by the MN Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund.

At the Waite Park Community Council meeting for October, Susan Young and Paul Miller from the City of Minneapolis and Amy Roering from Hennepin County will be on hand to address the proposed household hazardous waste transfer facility at 27th Avenue and University Avenue NE. You can learn more about this joint City-County run facility at the City of Minneapolis' Solid Waste Recycling page. This page includes frequently asked questions posed by residents in the Northeast area.

The Waite Park Community Council will also be holding a discussion on the future of neighborhood engagement and funding introduced by the City of Minneapolis' Neighborhood & Community Relations Department.

We encourage Waite Park residents to attend and learn more about these projects. The next Waite Park Community Council will be held on October 6 at 7:00 p.m. at the Waite Park Community Center (1810 34th Avenue NE, adjacent to Waite Park Elementary School). We hope to see you there!

In the coming years, the City of Minneapolis, through its Neighborhood and Community Relations (NCR) Department will provide funding of at least $3,000,000 per year for the 72 eligible neighborhood organizations throughout the city. With the sunset of the NRP program that has provided the necessary funds for neighborhood organizations to thrive and fund various initiatives throughout the city, the City of Minneapolis will now assume the financial responsibility to funding neighborhood groups like the Waite Park Community Council.
 
The new arrangement will require neighborhood organizations to meet new criteria for community engagement. Eligibility and community participation requirements will help to ensure that all neighborhood organizations are fully engaged with their residents and community stakeholders in order to receive funding from the city. Guidelines for these requirements can be found below.
 
While the operating costs of different neighborhood organizations can vary dramatically, the average level of funding is approximately $41,500.
 
Eligible neighborhood organizations will be allocated community participation funds according to the following formula:
 
Neighborhood Size (30%)
Population - 20%
Housing Units - 10%
 
Under‐represented Groups (40%)
Non‐Homesteaded Housing Units - 10%
Index of Racial/Cultural Diversity - 20%
English as a Second Language (ESL) Students - 10%
 
Income (10%)          
Median Household Income - 10%
 
Neighborhood Livability (20%)
Crime Statistics - 10%
Foreclosures - 10%
 
A complete version of funding allocation formula can be downloaded here:
DraftCPPGuidelines.pdf.
 
While the City of Minneapolis has not officially released funding amounts for individual neighborhoods, a chart showing a tentative distribution has been released. View image The minimum level of funding can be between $5000-10,000 with the maximum funding potentially reaching $140,000.In a typical year, operating costs for the Waite Park Community Council come in at approximately $30,000.
 
The NCEC and NCR will review the guidelines and formula in mid-2011 before organizations prepare their three-year program proposals. Under the draft, the program is built on a three-year funding cycle, with 2011 being a one-year "bridge" so the program can be up and running in January 2011. NCR and NCEC will be receiving written feedback to the draft program guidelines during the 45-day review period, which began August 27th and ends October 11th at 5 p.m. The draft guidelines will be discussed at the Waite Park Community Council (WPCC) Board Meeting at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, October 6th at Waite Park Community Center, 1810 34th Street, and you are encouraged to attend.
 
Written feedback can be sent to NCR@ci.minneapolis.mn.us.