Schools…an example of the solution

Thank the education gods they are coming to Minneapolis. We need more of this ASAP. This is an example of what to expect of the school system, instead of what we have to settle for www.startribune.com/local/25489944.html?page=1&c=y

A City ranking to be proud of!

Congrats to the city of Plymouth from The Minneapolis Shadow and the Urban Renaissance Coalition for ranking number one among cities with population between 50,000 and 300,000 according to Money magazine. See the StarTribune article for details http://www.startribune.com/local/west/25335494.html?location_refer=$urlTrackSectionName.
Now this is a ranking one can put some stock into when choosing a place to live and a perfect place to begin our MICR effort. It is rooted in comprehensive analysis and based on the key livability factors of education quality, cost of living, business climate, and crime. A serious ranking regarding the quality of a city must be rooted in an honest assessment of factors such as these. The other rankings, some highlighted on our blog, are rooted in the more subjective factors and sold as “best places to live”. The more honest approach would be to label the lists based on the subjective nature. A list that covers green friendly factors should read “Best Cities to Live for the Earth-Friendly Minded” or such other title is appropriate. This is the problem with most of the “best city” rankings.

What is wrong with Minneapolis…A serious look

The main goal of the Urban Renaissance Coalition is to uncover issues, explore solutions, engage the public and elected officials on the issues, and advocate for the solutions. We bridge the gaps between the public, issues, government, and solid reform.
We are going to over the next week(s) explore the issues that are plaguing our fair city and the reasons why. We are going to explore options to address these issues and the characteristics that it takes to address them. I’m referring this series as the Minneapolis Initiative for City Reform (MICR). Some of the topics here will be specific to Minneapolis and some will be more national in scope.

I look forward to presenting these concepts, engaging you in the conversation, and blazing a trail towards what could ultimately be real sustainable change in policy and direction for Minneapolis.

Minneapolis budget busting Swamp Water…Yum Yum Give me some

Minneapolis has budgeted $200,000 to promote the swamp water that comes out of our tap. Pure propaganda. Not only that but the “rain tax”, otherwise known as the water runoff fee that you are forced to pay on your water bill, supposedly goes towards the sewer system in order to help keep a clean water supply. The water out of our tap smells bad, tastes bad, and is scary to look at. The only way to combat this is to buy a house filtration system, but I thought we didn’t need to do that because of all the extra money “mama Minneapolis” collects to freshen our water for us. Guess I was wrong to trust “mama Minneapolis”.
BTW, how many cops can you buy with $200,000?

The Mayor has the idea to build water fountains that cost $50,000 each, OMG (that’s “oh my gosh” for you non texting folks like me out there). He wants to have big gushing water fountains like the ones he remembers from years ago as a little mayor. Every time the Mayor gets to feeling nostalgic for the “good old days” we the tax payers get a bit liter in the pocket books. Remember he also thinks back to Hennepin avenue in downtown being a two way, wants to build Washington avenue into the Champs Elysees of Midwest, and he is fond of trolley cars. Maybe Mayor Rybak is more suited for paying the video game Sim City than the seriousness it takes to run the real thing. At least with the game you can enter a cheat code when you need more money to plant your dreams instead of fiscally raping the citzens.