Southside Pride


	Phillips/Powderhorn Nokomis Riverside

JUNE 2008

Phillips/Powderhorn: June 2008

4,000 foreclosures in Minneapolis—
what is being done to help people?

by Dennis geisinger

Martha lost her home on Garfield Avenue in South Minneapolis, the house that her grandparents built and that has been her home for 30 years. She fell behind on mortgage payments after she'd refinanced a few years ago, rolling her credit card debt into a loan that made her unable to find permanent work, and made impossible demands on her budget. The house was sold in March in a sheriff's auction and she's awaiting the day that she'll be served with an eviction notice. (Photo by Dennis Geisinger)

“This is the biggest challengefacing the City of Minneapolis, and the biggest economic crisis to hit this country since the Great Depression,” said Minneapolis 9th Ward Council Member Gary Schiff about the ever-rising number of home foreclosures in Minneapolis. “The damage to our city is far greater than the crack epidemic,” Schiff said.

Schiff echoed the words of financier George Soros, who when asked during a May 13 airing of the PBS NewsHour to assess the strength of the nation’s finances today, said, “I think this is the most serious crisis of our lifetime.”

“It’s not just a housing crisis, but a crisis of the financial system,” Soros said.

NRP is a “work in progress”

by DENNIS GEISINGER


NRP funds allow neighborhoods to have more of a voice for funding projects within the city.

The future of the NRP Neighborhood Revitalization Program), which gives dollars and help with redevelopment programs to Minneapolis’ inner city, is still very much a work in progress, according to City Council members representing a large chunk of Southside neighborhoods.

“The City continues to move forward on its process regarding NRP’s future,” said Ward 13 Council Member Betsy Hodges. “We put a process in place last year, and are moving forward as quickly as a good, open process will allow,” Hodges said.

“I think there is a willingness to tweak the plans for continuing NRP,” said 11th Ward Council Member Scott Benson. “I think that’s what the work group is doing,” Benson said.

Powderhorn Crime watch

by DENNIS GEISINGER

Violent crime in the 3rd Precinct spiked over a significant period in May, driven by an increase in the number of robberies, rapes and aggravated assaults, yet remained at a lower rate compared to the same period last year. Minneapolis’ 3rd Precinct comprises Southside neighborhoods that lie between 35W and the river, south of the University of Minnesota.

Click here for a list of articles for June 2008

Nokomis: June 2008

Park Board accepts ads to raise funds

BY DENNIS GEISINGER


“We’re all in this together," said Scott Vreeland, park board District 3 commissioner, of the financial concerns facing city parks. (Photo by Dennis Geisinger)

During its June 4 regular eeting, the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board (MPRB) approved some $2.9 million from state bonding for restoration of the Minnehaha Falls area. The money will will used in addition to $1.6 million from the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District (MCWD) to restore the Lower Glen in Minnehaha Park after time and erosion have ravaged the walls of the bridge that spans the falls and banks and walking trails downstream. The $3.5 million dollar restoration will be part of a proposed $5 million restoration for Minnehaha Park, according to the Board.

Southside student wins MLK contest

by DENNIS GEISINGER


Essay award winner Robert G. Powell

“Although many Americans thinkwe’ve come a long ways, we still have a long ways to go,” said 18-year-old Robert G. Powell at graduation ceremonies for this year’s senior class of the Urban League Academy, 2201 Blaisdell Ave., in South Minneapolis. During graduation, Powell read, “Does the Dream Still Live On?” which won a $500 scholarship from TV One and Comcast for their “Live the Dream” essay contest on the progress that has been made on Martin Luther King’s dream—Are we living the dream today?

Powell says he’ll use the money toward college studies in journalism and his own dream of becoming a sports writer. He plans on entering Itasca Community College in the fall and hopes to later attend Georgia State University or Winona State, and said that he’s already secured financial aid money.

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New affordable housing development strives to meet community needs

by DENNIS GEISINGER

“I think that it symbolizes a new kind of urban development,” said developer Dale Joel recently about the soon-to-be-realized redevelopment of the Purina Mill site on the southeast corner of 38th Street and Hiawatha Avenue. “It mixes affordable housing, transit, retail, employment and environmental values in an attempt to satisfy the needs of the neighborhood with the vision of the city,” Joel said. The redevelopment of the property is underway.

Click here for a list of articles for June 2008

Riverside: June 2008

Mental health “services” involve much more than prescribing pills

by DENNIS GEISINGER


Beth Brokering created this illustration to depict the familiar eyes fogged and distant gaze of loved ones suffering from mental health issues, as well as the unwavering hope of affected family members.

Barnard began hearing voices when he was 17.

“It scared me because I didn’t know what they were,” he said. “I didn’t know,” said Barnard, who is highly intelligent and has been teaching himself about computers for a long time, “if the voices were there to hurt me or help me.”

Eventually, Barnard, who is now 24 and living with his parents on Portland Avenue in South Minneapolis, got his answer—the voices told him to kill himself and he tried twice.

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EPA’s arsenic cleanup criticized

by DENNIS GEISINGER


EPA graphic of cleanup area.

Federal Environmental Protection Agency officials in charge of arsenic cleanup for the Southside Superfund site came under criticism by the City of Minneapolis and neighborhood residents at a hearing for plan proposals held June 11 at the Midtown YWCA.

$2.9 million approved by Park Board

by DENNIS GEISINGER

During its June 4 regular meeting, the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board (MPRB) approved some $2.9 million from state bonding for restoration of the Minnehaha Falls area. The money will will used in addition to $1.6 million from the Minnehaha Creek Watershed District (MCWD) to restore the Lower Glen in Minnehaha Park after time and erosion have ravaged the walls of the bridge that spans the falls and banks and walking trails downstream. The $3.5 million dollar restoration will be part of a proposed $5 million restoration for Minnehaha Park, according to the Board.

Click here for a list of articles for June 2008