Inspired by Rotarian who helped him finish high school in Liberia, James Kpoto has high hopes for new North Minneapolis Rotary Club

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“When the war started, I lost everything. But his address stayed in my brain.”James Kpoto tells of looking up Charlie Mooreland on the internet and finding him in Atlanta, Georgia. Kpoto was in 10th grade in 1975 when the now 82-year-old man and he met. Kpoto was washing dishes and clearing tables at a hotel where his father was a cook, in Monrovia, Liberia.The elder Kpoto cooked for several U.S. ambassadors, and a Rotary conference that Mooreland attended. It was the same time Andrew Young was there for a conference of Mayors.In December 2012 James had other business about four hours away from Atlanta, so he set out to visit Mooreland, the African American Rotarian who had become his mentor and assisted him with funding to complete high school in 1977.January 24 Rotary CelebrationThe North Minneapolis Rotary Club will have a celebration of the club becoming official on Thursday, Jan. Continue Reading

Minneapolis: 26th Avenue and other RiverFirst development updates

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Last year’s fantastical visioning hits this year’s harsh realities as the RiverFirst design team digs in to get about half-way done with the schematic design work necessary to price out the upper Mississippi River plan, the plan for the area between North and Northeast Minneapolis along the banks and into the neighborhoods.The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) and the United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) in October 2012 drew a line against sand, saying that no further money should be spent on reclaiming Hall’s Island from the former Scherer Brothers site.At an update presentation January 17, planners said they’ve modified the proposal to address the DNR and USACE rule that no fill be used unless to benefit habitat. Where the original vision was for a built-up, active island including a man-made pool, the new island is much flatter, with three zones—flood plain forest, emergent habitat and wet prairie habitat. It’s more like a preserve with human access, part of a chain of trails.The new plan would have a wider channel between the island and shoreline. That “back channel” is seen as an important slower moving launch point to the larger river, and it’s designed to collect sediment naturally to strengthen the island but not require dredging.The presenters said DNR and USACE staff “informally do not endorse its habitat viability. No formal response has been received.” They asked people to express support for restoring Hall’s Island by filling out comment cards or contacting the Department of Natural Resources, Keith Parker, director of the Central Region, keith.parker@state.mn.us.On a more hopeful note, the team talked, as they have in the past, about the Upper Harbor Terminal in North Minneapolis as the “low hanging fruit.” Council President Barb Johnson stopped in to say with the end of the barge operator’s contract coming at the end of 2014, there’s a sense on the Minneapolis City Council that the land is too valuable to continue in that use. Continue Reading

Don Samuels to run for Minneapolis mayor

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After this November’s ranked choice voting, Minneapolis will have a new Mayor and any number of city council seats may have new occupants.DFL Party operators say they have set things up such that sitting politicians have to decide what seat they’re running for and not have feet in two camps.Current Fifth Ward Council Member Don Samuels is choosing to run for mayor.Most sitting politicians in Minneapolis are DFLers; in future articles on the various races NorthNews will seek Republican, Green Party and other information as well.Precinct caucuses will be held April 16 at various locations, and the Fifth Ward DFL endorsing convention is May 18 at North Commons. Various wards will hold their conventions between April 27 and June 14. The City convention is set for June 15, at which candidates for Mayor, Park Board, and Board of Estimate and Taxation will seek the party’s endorsement.Candidates will file their candidacies with the city from July 30 through August 13. There will be no separate primary, and all candidates regardless of party designation will all be on the same ballot Tuesday, Nov. 5. Continue Reading

Libraries offer free classes on ‘eBook basics’

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“It’s harder than I expected it to be,” said Claire Burgoyne, one of about 15 people who brought their Kindle e–readers to the Columbia Heights Public Library to learn how to access eBooks on Saturday, Jan. 5. While most of the new users were older, young Cheyenne Mercier was also wrestling with getting on line with her new device.Later in the afternoon, 10 people brought their iPads. Most of the iPad users left pretty confident they would be able to master their new tools, said Jill Smith, Adult Services Manager for the Anoka County Library system. “For the Kindles, many still have to do it on their own computer, so I hope if they get stuck they’ll give us a call and we can walk them through it.” The Kindle Fire has direct wireless access to internet; other types of Kindles require a user to download a book on their own computer and transfer it to the device.“You can have five things checked out at one time, and you’ll have a choice of seven or 14 days,” said Smith. Continue Reading

A look inside the old Minneapolis Public Schools complex at 807 Broadway, now for sale

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“It’s a place that really could be anything,” city planner Haila Maze repeated whenever anyone speculated what the city or school district might go for in a private development of the former Minneapolis Public Schools headquarters building at 807 Broadway St. NE. Four, possibly more potential development teams toured the building with her, Mark Garner of the City of Minneapolis Community Planning and Economic Development Department, and Chad Carr of Minneapolis Public Schools Jan. 3. Another group will go through on Jan. Continue Reading

Minneapolis: More liquor sales coming to Central Avenue?

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Just months after a high-end wine and spirits store opened near the Quarry, brothers Dan and Pierre Kerkinni proposed to put a store selling craft beers and unique liquors on the going-home side of Central Avenue. They’d be renting—from the Truelsons—the old Porky’s at 19th Avenue, near the police station.Windom Park Citizens in Action’s land use committee heard their proposal Jan. 8 and had not quite decided as of press time how to proceed. The group is one of three the Kerkinnis would approach, along with Holland and Logan Park. Though none of them have the ultimate say-so, city council members listen, at least in theory.A post card for the already-scheduled regular Windom Park neighborhood meeting Jan. Continue Reading

East Side Neighborhood Services expanding programs for Minneapolis seniors, youth

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If you’re a senior needing a job with new work skills to make ends meet, or if you’re a young student or have one in the family, East Side Neighborhood Services (ESNS or “East Side”) could touch your life, as the agency’s been touching and improving lives since 1915.After an economically rough five years, ESNS Executive Director Bill Laden said, grants received allow expansions in some key program areas. Laden talked about these programs with Associate Director Susan McCauley and Jazmin Danielson, Youth Department Director. We reminisced about how the agency’s evolved since the days of government commodities distribution in the early 1980s, our mutual time in the neighborhood.The subject of food came up because East Side’s other expansion was taking over operation of Greater Lake Country Food Bank (GLCFB) in September 2012, after its founder, Hy Rosen, died. East Side already ran the Glendale Food Shelf serving 500-600 monthly, and the Senior Food Shelf at 1801 Central Ave. NE serving 450-500 monthly. Continue Reading

Where does North Minneapolis go for night life?

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Where does North Minneapolis go for night life? The answers include “home” and “to church” as well as “out.” For this third article in a three-part series on dining out in North Minneapolis, NorthNews looks at places that serve alcohol and are open in the evenings.

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Rounding up developments in North Minneapolis

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Construction continues on the Van White Boulevard exit from 394. In mid-October photos, one could see some of the curbing. In photos taken Nov. 21, the first asphalt is in and they were moving dirt in the new median and along the roadside. Stay tuned to see what these big Styrofoam blocks (left) are for.

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