Schools Approve Pre-Labor Day Start for Next 2 School Years

Many parents also turned out for Tuesday night's board meeting to weigh in on the a new teacher contract.

Tuesday night, the Minneapolis Board of Education approved a new calendar that has the school district starting classes a week before Labor Day for the second year in a row. The school board also approved the district's 2014-2015 calendar, which also includes the early start date. Both calendars are posted at right. As with the 2012-2013 school year, administrators said the early start date was necessary to help boost student's scores on state standardized tests. From a district statement announcing the vote: Minneapolis Public Schools has one of the shortest school days and school years in the state. Adding quality student-teacher instructional time to the school calendar is another critical step in the work to significantly improve …

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Dibble Introduces Bill to Curb Police License Plate Readers

Controversial devices mounted on cop cars currently scan and store your license plate data.

On Friday, Southwest Minneapolis' state Sen. Scott Dibble (DFL-61) introduced a bill that would curb controversial devices that automatically scan and track license plate data. The scanners are typically mounted on police cars and log the time and location of any and all cars that pass by. The information is often used to catch car thieves and other criminals. The city currently stores this data for 90 days, but does not make it public. It used to make public nearly all data the plate readers generaged, enabling Star Tribune reporters to track the mayor's car across the city. Many state legislators have spoken out against the readers.  Dibble's bill would keep police from storing data on any car not linked to a criminal investigation, and …

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Editor's Notebook

Rybak Outlines 2013 Priorities—And Forgets Southwest?

What do you think of the mayor's priorities for his last year in office?

Skimming the list of Mayor RT Rybak's 2013 priorities (many thanks to the Star Tribune's Eric Roper for transcribing everything on that white board), I was struck at how little on the list seemed immediately relevant to much of Southwest Minneapolis. Among the 37-or-so main items on that list, only five seemed to bear specifically on this quarter of the city: In all fairness, a lot of items on that list, like the Reg Services reorganization, are city-wide projects or have city-wide resonance. But should Rybak be paying more attention to Southwest Minneapolis? What's going wrong around here that needs mayoral attention? Update 1/17/13 8:45 p.m.: I should clarify—Residents of Southwest Minneapolis, like other privileged parts of the world, …

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James Sanna

8:38 pm on Thursday, January 17, 2013

If you take a look at his "to do" list, though, there are a number of things that would technically be decisions by other governmental entities. I think by putting them there, he means "lobby for these." That said, though, I'm a little rusty on the current plans to pay for the streetcars.   more ›

What's the Deal With Minneapolis' 2013 Elections?

Just when you thought you were safe from politics, city-wide elections are coming next year.

As the recent flury of activity surrounding the race to replace RT Rybak as Mayor of Minneapolis attests, the city is slated to go to the polls in a little more than 10 months. What should you expect? Here's a handy expainer, courtesy of city spokesperson Matt Laible: Minneapolis municipal election will use Ranked Choice Voting in 2013 The 2013 municipal elections will be conducted using the voting system called Ranked Choice Voting (RCV). This change is the result of a referendum that voters passed in 2006, and was first implemented in 2009. Ranked Choice Voting combines the municipal Primary and the General Election into one event, so there is no Primary in 2013. In Ranked Choice Voting, voters can also mark a different 2nd and 3rd …

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Second Figure Jumps Into Council Race

Hodges is running for mayor.

Friday, a second person jumped into the race to succeed City Council Member Betsy Hodges (Ward 13). In an email to reporters, Linden Hills resident and community activist Linea Palmisano announced she was running for Hodges' seat. With Mayor RT Rybak's Thursday announcement that he would not run for a fourth term, Hodges confirmed she was planning to run for mayor in the city's 2013 elections. So far, only Palmisano and Nicollet-East Harriet Business Association leader Matt Perry have announced they would stand for the Ward 13 seat. Perry is an East Harriet resident. Most recently, Palmisano has been at the forefront of a group trying to get bicycle lanes installed in Linden Hills and Fulton. Neither neighborhood currently has any bike …

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Rybak Won't Run Again, Local Throws Hat In Mayoral Race Ring

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-…

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City Budget Open House Tonight

Got questions? The city has answers!

Want to know what goes into your property tax bill? What about how Minneapolis is trying to add new firefighters to its ranks? Southwest Minneapolis' City Councilmemer John Quincy (Ward 11) is hosting an open house Tuesday, Nov. 20 at 7:30 p.m., at Pearl Park.  With him will be Mayor RT Rybak, and together the pair will try to answer all your questions about the city's 2013 budget. If you want to do some homework in advance, you can check out the same budget presentations given to city councilmembers online. Just head over to the Minneapolis 79 website, and scroll down to the "Ways & Means/Budget Committee Budget Hearings" section. Agendas and PDF copies of the presentations can be accessed at this section of the city website.

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New Recycling Program Launches Next Week

Delivery of new single-sort receptacles begins at 10 a.m. ceremony.

After months of waiting, Southwest Minneapolis residents are poised to finally get a simpler recycling system. Thursday morning, Mayor RT Rybak and City Councilmember Sandy Colvin Roy will present the first batch of 9,000 new wheeled recycling bins slated for delivery to city residents between Nov. 12 and Dec. 1. A second phase of distribution will bring the blue carts to the rest of the city's 110,000 recycling customers in the spring.  The city has produced an interactive map showing when each block will get its blue carts. “By making it easier to recycle, we expect to collect more recycling and less trash from folks who don’t recycle yet or who don’t recycle as much as they could,” Mayor R.T. Rybak said in a written statement issued …

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Mayor Backs Off Restaurant Fees For Health Inspectors

Fee would have been hundreds per year.