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MINUTES of the MHNA GENERAL MEMBERSHIP Meeting Tues. June 17, 2003
University Lutheran Church of Hope, 601 13th Ave SE, Minneapolis

1. Meeting called to order by outgoing president, Chris Wilson at 7:40 pm.
2. The agenda was approved with two additions (Sonny Schneiderhan announcement and Coalition for Non Profit Student Housing’s Rick Hosking with a response to possible the HPC designation of sororities and fraternities.)
3. The May minutes were approved (Dave Polaschek motion).
4. Annual Elections- A slate of candidates for officers was announced:
   • President – Kelly Carver
   • Vice President – Brian Biele
   • Secretary – Dave Polaschek
   • Treasurer- Thomas Lincoln

   Several board seats were open. Bob Distad and Ardes Johnson agreed to re-up and joining them are Arvonne Fraser, Brian Lundgren and Bill Huntzicker. Due to resignations or board members becoming officers, there are two vacancies for 1 – year positions. When nominations were open to the floor, none came forth, so those two seats will remain open until replacements can be found. A motion was made and passed to accept the slate of officers and board members (Sonny Schneiderhan).

5. President Wilson informed the group of board motions made earlier this evening. The board voted to oppose the zoning changes requested by the fraternities and sororities. The board has been meeting with members of the Coalition of Non Profit Student Housing for months and taken up the issue at several board meetings prior to tonight. No motion or comment was made by the general membership, so the board motion will officially prevail.
   Since our last meeting, we were notified of an application to expand non-conforming use for two properties owned by Joe Welp. Mr. Welp wanted to increase the number of dwelling units in rooming houses at 514 6th St. SE (to 13) and at 812 7th St SE (to 5 units). The Executive Committee voted to strongly oppose these applications. The Planning Commission voted to deny them and to not allow any units or expansion beyond a two-family dwelling (duplex) at each address. Both are located in the R2B zone, which allows no more than 3 unrelated persons per unit as maximum occupancy.
   The board passed a motion opposing the 2 am bar closing in Dinkytown. Members in attendance had many thoughts about this. Bill Huntzicker offered a motion to oppose 2 am bar closings, period. That motion was later withdrawn and a new one, to oppose the 2 am closing on the east side of the river was made instead (Huntzicker). Brian Biele questioned the intent of the motion, and Bill Huntzicker said it was to oppose 2 am bar closings in the East Hennepin area as well as Dinkytown. That motion did not pass. A third motion on the subject was made by Gordon Kepner: To oppose 2 am bar closings in our neighborhood. This motion passed with one opposed. Council Member Zerby urged individuals to weigh in on this as well before the council votes on Friday.
6. Paul Zerby updated us on his trip to Philadelphia, where he was part of a delegation that observed their Night Nuisance Court. There are no lawyers, just arrestee and police, and it happens at night in the neighborhood where the offense occurs. A second facet of the Philadelphia system is a Sat. morning class for people with summary offenses (drunkenness, fights, public urination). They can pay a fee ($175) and attend the class from 8 am – noon. It is a “scared straight” approach that seems pretty effective. Paul saw lots of kids with parents in attendance. Besides cutting down on bureaucratic process, this is a revenue- producing tactic. He is exploring ways the city of Minneapolis can adopt some of these procedures.
7. Our new CCP/SAFE team introduced themselves. Returning is Nicole Magnan and her new partner Officer Reid Brown, formerly an investigator and on the streets at the 5th precinct. CCP/SAFE has been reduced because of city budgets. The second precinct has two teams now. Nicole handed out the latest crime maps and statistics. She will carry on with the Noisy Party reports and info for National Night Out is going out shortly. There are a few changes to NNO this year.
8. Neighborhood Master Plan – Perry Thorvig and Adam Arvidson made a presentation on the document. Elissa Cottle, NRP coordinator, was introduced. Perry summarized the process that led up to the plan. It is now time to move it along from the neighborhood to the Planning Department. It is intended to serve as a guide for directing future development, zoning changes, crime and safety measures; a blueprint for city council to see what the neighborhood desires. Board Member Gordon Kepner told the group he was impressed with the planning process and he urged MHNA members to adopt it. The planners recommended a Development Oversight Committee (DOC) to make sure the master plan is consulted for all zoning and planning matters here.
   Chris Wilson summarized tonight’s board action on this item. The board agreed to let the Executive Committee work out a way to integrate the DOC into our existing Zoning & Planning process. A comment will be added re: better enforcement of city ordinances, like parking on yards. Wording will be added to support improved Mississippi River watershed quality. Those three items were approved by the General Membership tonight, on motions made by Cordelia Pierson, Ted Tucker and Bill Huntzicker.
   The board also wanted to add wording about behavior expectations of people who use the neighborhood who may not be permanent residents and a desire to have a balanced distribution of uses like rehab programs and alternative schools city wide.
   Discussion on that item followed. Bill Huntzicker felt this would call attention to the fact that we may not have as many of these supportive services as other neighborhoods, maybe we need to take more… Gordon Kepner felt the board motion allows this to be a debatable point, that we can act on a case by case basis later. Kelly Carver said that he is very supportive of Portland House, where he is a board member, but he feels the concerns of others regarding some of these behavior issues. A motion to amend the board motion and put more emphasis on livability issues and less on city-wide distribution was passed (Huntzicker motion, with 4 noes and one abstention).
   Additional comments were requested. Cordelia Pierson thanked the committee for their work and made a motion to: Clarify in Chapter 5 that we are part of MNRRA (Mississippi National River & Recreational Area), which is a federal designation and could make federal or state resources available. (passed unanimously)
   A motion was made by Cordelia Pierson to: add Non Profit Partners to the Impelmentation section page 18 and to have them included in the executive summary as partners, not just funders. (passed unanimously)
   A motion was made by Cordelia Pierson to delete references (wording and symbols) to the Dinkytown Bypass and to remove them from maps unless it is essential, in order to stay consistent with our neighborhood’s non support of that proposed roadway. ( Motion passed)
   The staff at DSU will incorporate these comments into the final draft of the Neighborhood Master Plan.
9. Elissa Cottle, NRP, talked about re-allocating the last $500,000 of our Phase I money. She received 35 responses with 45 projects recommended. The NRP Implementation Committee then narrowed the list to a Top 10. Before any money can be re-allocated, a 30 day notice must be given to the entire neighborhood. Elissa used this time to announce a special meeting on Tuesday July 15 to take a vote.
   Cordelia Pierson had some questions on the application process. She was not certain that the project she suggested had an adequate hearing. Discussion followed as to whether a separate meeting needs to be held, or if the vote could occur the same night of the August MHNA meeting if it adjourned early. Gordon Kepner felt it needed a significant chunk of time and Joe Stokes felt it needed to be held before August. Ted Tucker made a motion to have a special mid July meeting to hear proposal presentations and vote on re-allocation of remaining NRP funds. The motion passed with 1 no and 2 abstentions.
10. Heritage Preservation Department’s Amy Lucas presented information on the city’s recently finished study of possible historic designation for the greek letter chapter houses (fraternities and sororities) at the U of MN. Some are located in Marcy-Holmes and others, like Fraternity Row/University Ave SE, are not within our boundaries. The study was prompted when one of the Fraternity Row houses, Delta Tau Delta, applied for a demolition permit. If city planning staff believes a property could be a “historic resource”, it won’t grant a demolition permit. In this case, the study was done to see if this or any of the other greek houses, could be considered a historic resource. Delta Tau Delta eventually withdrew their application when their new building plans were found to be not in compliance with zoning laws. But the study went ahead, looking at a district or significant grouping that should be preserved.
    The district studied has not yet been designated “historic”. It will take several months to review the study and a public hearing will be held in August at the earliest. A staff report will be written and several official bodies, state and local, will weigh in. If the Heritage Preservation Commission recommends the district’s historic designation, it will go on to the city council for a vote. There are eleven historic districts in the city, two in Marcy-Holmes. That makes approximately 2500 buildings that are designated. The Heritage Preservation Commission is a citizen volunteer group, made up of people who own historic property, are real estate agents or historians.
    The study recommends most of the pre 1930 buildings for historic designation. Most are on University Ave. Contrary to some people’s misconceptions, historic designation is not unusually restrictive. In Minneapolis, vinyl siding is allowed, as are aluminum replacement windows. Each district has its own set of guidelines which address how exterior alterations should be reviewed. Interiors are not generally designated, so not subject to any guidelines.
    Rick Hosking, Coalition for Non Profit Student Housing, spoke on behalf of some of the fraternity/sorority alumni board/owners, mostly on Fraternity Row. They are concerned that historic designation would put them out of business and add to their costs. He cited an extra application process as a concern. Ms Lucas replied that there is no extra application process. Mr. Hosking represents a greek house that was built in 1906, at 1609 University. He said that the MSA was opposed to historic designation and that many students have signed petitions. When asked for specifics, Mr. Hosking brought up the Sigma Nu house that is in need of a roof. He talked about the expense of a new slate roof there. Ms Lucas replied that no application for a new roof has been made yet. Kelly Carver stated that Skott Johnson, on the alumni board of Sigma Nu, has said they are replacing the slate roof with funds they raise from alumni, and they expect it will not be a problem to return the house to its 1930-era origins. Skott offered to share his house’s alumni fund raising strategies with the other greek houses so they would also be able to successfully raise funds to renovate their houses. MHNA member Millie Acamovic said that she has lived in her 100 yr old home for 10 years, and although she has never met Amy Lucas in person, she has conferred with her by phone and she has never found her house’s historic designation to be a hindrance. Instead, she has found the process to always be speedy and pleasant.
    No actions were taken tonight. There are two copies of the study in the MHNA office along with a FAQ sheet about historic designation. Members can borrow the studies if they call the office. It is too large to copy and mail, but you can purchase a cd of it to read on your computer. Send a check for $5(made out to Minneapolis Finance) to Amy Lucas, Heritage Preservation/Planning Department, 210 City hall, 350 South 5th Street, Minneapolis, MN 55415.
11. Ted Tucker gave a brief report on the Schafer Richardson Task Force that has formed since our last meeting. Several MHNA members are involved, as well as a Winslow House resident and a representative of a nearby business, the Soap Factory. The group has met three times. The developers have until July 24 to act on their option to purchase the property. There is an EAW (Environmental Assessment Worksheet) being done currently. Things are moving along quickly enough that decisions may have to be made before the next (Aug) MHNA meeting. The original proposal hasn’t changed much. There is still concern about the height. Other entities may join the group – Dept of Natural Resources, State Historic Preservation Office, MNRRA – to give greater perspective. So far, the developer has gone to the Planning Department only informally. A lot of parties are interested top see what happens here. J. Michael Orange will be the city planner assigned to the project.
    Ted is glad to have the Master Plan to define our positions, now that we have ratified it. His group will follow up by getting the plan out to all the places the developers have met with, so our position is clear. A question being considered is how to treat the block face on Main Street differently than that on second. Next meeting is Monday at 4:30.
12. SE Library Update- Kathleen Reilly, of Save our SE Library, reported on a library board meeting held last month. About 50 people from the SE library attended and many, including Kelly Carver and daughter, spoke against closing our branch library. A petition was sent around for signatures. The petitions will be delivered at the June 24 meeting at Catholic Eldercare in NE Mpls. Kathleen’s group submitted a request to devote some NRP re-allocation funds to improve handicap accessibility at the library. The meeting room in the basement needs an elevator or a ramp – this seems to be one of the issues that is driving the library board to favor closing our library. People were urged to take home petitions for more signatures.
13. Sonny Schneiderhan reminded all that the Summer Solstice dance performance will be held in our backyard/ Stone Arch bridge Friday and Saturday at 8:30.

Meeting adjourned at 9:50 PM Melissa Bean, MHNA Staff