Comments for The Mayor Blog

Comment on Fighting to keep property taxes down by redinthecity01

redinthecity01 — Mon, 13 Dec 2010 05:11:19 +0000

The property tax increases are unacceptable!! I’m doing everything I can to stay afloat. While my property value has going down significantly and continues to, I thought I would get a reprieve on my taxes. I was absolutely astonished to my property tax rise 11.2%! I have been thinking about selling my house and getting out of this city and going to another state; and with this tax hike I may just do that! If I am still here, you definitely lost a voter Rybak!!

Comment on In defense of artistic drinking fountains by Jess Chapman

Jess Chapman — Fri, 10 Sep 2010 03:57:09 +0000

I’m as opposed to public arts funding as the next person, but considering that all of the money is going into these drinking fountains (which aren’t really a bad idea in principle, although I don’t see the point of making them pretty), it’s a much better expenditure than, for example, dedicated graffiti walls or genitalia-related performance art. Still, given the recently announced cuts to the police force, I do have to agree with the above commenter who says the money would be best transferred from the capital budget to the general budget.

Comment on 50,000 nice rides by bianchibroadway

bianchibroadway — Thu, 02 Sep 2010 19:18:55 +0000

If you are lauding the states #1 bike status, I think you need to address the issue of the growing animosity between bikers and motorists. And what’s felt as a bias on city council and the police for painting all bicyclists as reckless, unruly, and in need of extra policing even though they are far outnumbered by motor vehicles. In a car on car accident, inattentive driving and drinking are often seen as primary factors, but suddenly, when it’s a bike-car accident, this changes to probably a reckless bicyclist. I’m not sure when this all started and not sure what the reason for it is, but I think it needs to be addressed before you can expect Nice Ride to flourish.

Comment on Electricity in the darkness by mcrottier

mcrottier — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 16:24:35 +0000

Thanks for the post! It’s a long read, but it’s a good way to find out a lot of information.

Comment on What we’re doing to fix potholes in Minneapolis by midcenturyguy

midcenturyguy — Wed, 17 Mar 2010 23:28:37 +0000

Great article answering the question on everybody’s mind. Also, good to point out the 311 page on the Cities’ website.

Comment on Helping another small business grow: Holy Land Deli expands by September 30 Morning Roundup « The Heavy Table

September 30 Morning Roundup « The Heavy Table — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 09:17:44 +0000

[...] Rybak praises the expansion of Holy Land Deli (which snagged a city small business loan), Channel 12 visits Surly [via MNBeer], three seven fails [...]

Comment on The first steps in Access Minneapolis are underway…but we can’t stop now. by susandra

susandra — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 23:40:23 +0000

I’m very glad to see that you agree with me and my neighbors that the LRT to the western suburbs HAS to include Uptown. Otherwise, what does our city get out of the deal? That route would pass through high density areas, where many people would use the LRT, and would also benefit the businesses there. To have the LRT pass through Kenwood just because the right of way is there is crazy. That route is great for the folks in the ‘burbs, but not for our city! What can we do to get our voices heard better? We’ve been to the hearings, but there is a feeling that it’s a done-deal, and that our input is not getting any traction.

Comment on Minneapolis one of the world’s top biking cities by Jeremy Hanson

Jeremy Hanson — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 17:41:32 +0000

Thanks for the comment, bikecommuterinstitute. I couldn’t agree more about the need for education and awareness for safer biking. This is exactly why we worked with Bike + Walk TC to start our bike ambassador program, which does exaclty what you propose. Check it out at http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/bicycles or http://www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/bicycles/ntp-bikewalk-ambassadors.asp or call Lynnea Atlas-Ingebretson at 612-333-2450.

Comment on What it REALLY takes to tackle budget challenges by Jeremy Hanson

Jeremy Hanson — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 17:37:36 +0000

Thanks for the feedback, realitytax. My main point regarding the Governor is that his refusal to be honest with taxpayers about the budget is a big reason why the state budget is in a giant deficit and will be for years to come.

Comment on What you can do at National Night Out to make this a Safe Place To Call Home by Jeremy Hanson

Jeremy Hanson — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 17:35:38 +0000

Thanks olsonjolene. We hope that other cities will follow our lead. As with our 3-1-1 phone system, our wireless internet, Minneapolis is a city that strives to be on the cutting edge of technology that makes our city better and safer.