Tuesday, April 2, 2013
The Star Tribune's MPLS. blog examined the 'wine inspector' issue raised at last week's mayoral debate. Do current on 'charter wine license' rules put an undue burden on wine bars in Southwest Minneapolis?
Star Tribune reporter Eric Roper fact-checked a statement about wine bars from last week's mayoral debate at the newspaper's MPLS. blog: “Did you know you can get a job in the city of Minneapolis as a wine inspector?" said [Gary] Schiff, a City Council member. "Your job is to go to a wine bar, and if a plate of bread doesn’t hit the table before that glass of wine, the business gets a $200 citation.” ... First, the city does not have a position called "wine inspector." ... Second, the only businesses where customers must order food in order to drink alcohol are wine bars located far from commercial nodes, usually deep in residential neighborhoods. These so-called "charter" wine licenses (because they are specifically allowed by the charter…
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Mayor's decision triggers potential domino chain in city races.
Thursday afternoon, Minneapolis Mayor RT Rybak formally announced he will not be seeking a fourth term, while declaring an ambitious agenda for his last year in office. “We will sprint across the finish line,” Rybak said in a statement emailed to reporters, “So fasten your seatbelts. This lame duck isn’t quacking yet.” Rybak's decision sets off a domino chain in city politics, freeing up several local greats to run for the city's top spot. Before Christmas, both City Council Member Betsy Hodges (Ward 13) and Minneapolis school board member Hussein Samatar (District 3) said they would run for mayor if Rybak didn't. Council Member Gary Schiff (Ward 9) had declared he would run regardless of Rybak's decision. Matt Perry, head of the Nicollet-…
Monday, September 17, 2012
City council wants them; critics say they're eyesores.
According to the Downtown Journal, Minneapolis may soon legalize flea markets. Minneapolis City Councilmember Gary Schiff is championing the idea of amending the city's torturous business regulations to allow such gatherings. The hypothetical ordinance would mimic that which regulates the city's farmers markets, Schiff told the paper. It would be another way to match not only consumer trends toward thriftiness. It would require a license, a parking plan, onsite bathrooms, set operating hours, a master lease holder, a permanent site and subcontracts for spaces. The ordinance would also require the markets to be located on commercial parking lots, not in residential areas. “Think of Lake Street. Think of Central Avenue. Think of the …
Monday, September 10, 2012
Mayor has called for investigation.
If you believe its worst critics, Minneapolis' City Planning Commission is full of cronyism. In a report in Monday morning's Star-Tribune, Commission members Dan Cohen and Councilmember Gary Schiff (Ward 9) attack the body for what they say are conflicts of interest among many of its members. The commission is made up of a mix of representatives from the Minneapolis School Board, Hennepin County, the Minneapolis City Council, the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, and a majority of mayoral and City Council appointees, and reviews redevelopment plans, zoning changes, and other aspects of new construction. Cohen represents Hennepin County on the commission, and Schiff represents the City Council It's those appointees, though, that has …
Wednesday, July 18, 2012
Minneapolis partners with tech startup SeeClickFix to help improve 311 response times.
Getting potholes and neighborhood problems in Minneapolis fixed just got a lot faster if you've got a smartphone, thanks to the city's new partnership with civic-minded tech company SeeClickFix. Today, Mayor RT Rybak and City Councilmembers Robert Lilligren and Gary Schiff will announce the launch of a new, free iPhone app for the city's popular 311 service. Blackberry and Android users will be able to access the same service through SeeClickFix's website. SeeClickFix started in 2008 as a way to bridge the gap between citizens and local governments that 311-type telephone services and cities' traditional ways of monitoring problems never really bridged. Leveraging a host of technologies like editable Google maps, the company aimed to give…
CHDaggett
10:59 am on Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Rincon 38 and Cafe Ena are "far from business nodes"?? THAT makes no sense - especially with Cafe Ena being right across the street from Kings WINE BAR. more ›