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Welcome to Minnesota: A Conversation about Immigration and Human Rights

May

25

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Dan Gordon

About me

Dan Gordon (upagainstthewalrus@riseup.net) is a freelance writer in the Twin Cities.

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Empowerment Zone series in PDF format

By Dan Gordon, TC Daily Planet

Click on PDF for series of four articles on Empowerment Zones.

GreenStar shines in Seward remodel

By Dan Gordon, The Bridge

New state certification program guides sustainable home construction

The home of Neil Cuthbert and Louise Robinson, located at the foot of a tree-studded hill on the West River Road, was “green” long before the term became a marketing buzzword. Their living room coffee table, which Neil crafted out of old stage sets from plays the pair produced with their daughters, is a testament to the fact.MORE »

All power to what people? Community charges cronyism

By Trang Do

By Dan Gordon, TC Daily Planet

Minneapolis chose to run its EZ program as a function of the city government, rather than through a local non-profit as some other cities have done. That sometimes has meant allowing city priorities to eclipse those of the neighborhoods.

This is the fourth in a series of four articles on the Minneapolis Empowerment Zones.

MORE »

The color of funding

By Trang Do

By Dan Gordon, TC Daily Planet

“Economic disparity by race is perhaps the most significant problem facing Minneapolis today,” the city’s 1998 Empowerment Zone application warns.MORE »

Falling short—business development, housing, and job creation in Empowerment Zones

By Dan Gordon, TC Daily Planet

With no clear benchmarks by which to judge its success, it’s hard to find evidence that the EZ made a dent in poverty in Minneapolis, or has even gotten a few licks in. Job creation is a tangible goal. Project proposals aiming for job creation specify the number of jobs to be created for EZ residents, and reports say how many jobs have been created.MORE »

Public money for private business: Empowerment Zone bonding for former director's project

By Dan Gordon, TC Daily Planet

"There's something about it that just doesn't smell right."

Annie Young doesn't mince words when speaking about the bio-mass incinerator/generator project proposed for the Phillips neighborhood in South Minneapolis. Young, a commissioner-at-large for the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, adds, "A lot of us that were initially supportive of it are now changing our minds."MORE »

Burning wood and building an empire

By Dan Gordon, TC Daily Planet

Ed. note: District Energy is at the center of the burning controversy in St. Paul. Wood, coal, natural gas, garbage -- the arguments swirling around fuel sources sometimes generate more heat than light. This article looks at one of the major players: St. Paul's District Energy.
MORE »

Neighbors blast proposed Phillips biomass plant at public hearing

By Dan Gordon, TC Daily Planet

A standing-room only crowd overwhelmed the moderator at the December 13 public hearing and blasted both the developers and the MPCA for what they claimed was disregard of the plant’s impact on air quality, noise pollution, and quality of life in surrounding neighborhoods.MORE »

Contract negotiations underway for Minneapolis teachers

By Dan Gordon, KFAI

Teachers in Minneapolis' public schools are heading into negotiation for a new contract. Emma Hickson, chief negotiator representing Minneapolis Public Schools and the Minneapolis Federation of Teachers Local 59, says the school district hopes to bring the new contract more in line with its strategic goals of closing the student achievement gap.MORE »

Eagan's Best Brands uses immigration status to replace full-time workers with temps

By Dan Gordon, TC Daily Planet

On September 10, managers at Eagan’s Best Brands factory began summoning workers into their office one by one. By the same time the following week, the baked goods company had fired somewhere between 60 and 100 workers, almost a third of the factory’s staff by workers’ estimates.

Behind the closed doors, human resources staff told each worker that there was a problem.MORE »