Crime, guns priorities for Don Samuels, one of three council members running for Minneapolis mayor

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After immigrating to the U.S. from Jamaica as a young man and representing one of the most troubled areas in Minneapolis, Don Samuels is looking for another challenge.Samuels, who represents the 5th Ward on the Minneapolis City Council, is the third city council member to announce an intention to replace R.T. Rybak as mayor of Minneapolis.Samuels said his campaign will be focused on crime prevention, gun violence and attracting businesses to Minneapolis.First elected to the 5th Ward, which contains parts of north Minneapolis, in 2003, Samuels said he’s emphasized lowering crime and would do the same as mayor.“When they look at the crime stats city-to-city, we want them to see Minneapolis as the safest city in the country,” he said. “That will be my goal.”As chair of the Public Safety, Civil Rights and Health and Regulatory Services Committee, Samuels has worked closely with the police department on that task. Former Police Chief Tim Dolan chaired Samuels’ exploratory committee.Denise Mazone, a real estate broker who spends time volunteering in north Minneapolis, said she’s noticed the positive difference Samuels has made in the area.“Being from one of the toughest wards in the city, I think he would be an asset to all of them,” she said.John Hoff, a north Minneapolis blogger, also agreed Samuels’ work on lowering crime in a tough ward could lend itself to the whole city.“He’s what you call a councilmember at large,” he said.But some residents have mixed views about the councilman’s hard-line stance against crime in north Minneapolis.In September, the City Council voted to overhaul the Civilian Police Review Authority, a civilian-led review board of police misconduct.Samuels led that proposal and drew criticism for what some said would decrease police oversight.Kenneth Brown, former chair of the city’s civil rights commission and a vocal opponent of the CRA changes, said that while Samuels has cracked down on crime, north Minneapolis is now essentially a “police state,” where racial profiling is the norm.“He has helped the crime over there, but it’s the way he went about it that’s the problem,” Brown said.With recent talks of gun control, Samuels said limiting gun violence is crucial to improving safety in the city.In 2012, the Minneapolis Police Department recovered 27.5 percent more guns as evidence than the previous year. Fifty-three percent of the guns were recovered in the city’s 4th precinct, which includes most of Samuels’ 5th Ward.Samuels said crime has been his biggest challenge as a council member, but it was also an opportunity to help the city. That attitude of facing problems head-on is something he said he’ll carry on into the mayor’s office.“I’m going to walk into the challenges enthusiastically and provide leadership that says ‘We shouldn’t avoid our problems; let’s identify them,’” Samuels said.Lowering crime not only improves public safety, but it can also attract business to the city, Samuels said.“Crime in one part of Minneapolis reflects on our statistics in the city, and impacts the willingness of corporations to come to our city,” he said.Mazone said Samuels has shown that he can bring jobs to his ward and was excited when he decided to run for mayor.“When no one else shows up, he does,” she said.But Brown said Samuels serves middle to upper-middle income people well, largely ignoring the main constituency of his ward: lower-income residents.“He’s ignoring those that really need fair treatment and want a job close to their house,” Brown said.The Vikings Stadium deal, which Samuels backed, also led some residents to claim he was out of touch with his constituency.Samuels said his background has provided him with a unique perspective among the mayoral candidates in that he can connect with immigrants in Minneapolis.“No matter where you are geographically, economically, ethnically, we’re all one city,” he said. Continue Reading

Theis, Johnson win special elections in Districts 14A and 19A

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Tama Theis and Clark Johnson will likely become the newest members of the Minnesota House of Representatives after each won a special election Tuesday.Theis (R-St. Cloud) received 54.5 percent of the vote to defeat Joanne Dorsher and Todd McKee for the District 14A seat that opened when former Rep. Steve Gottwalt (R-St. Cloud) resigned in January because of a change in full-time employment.Johnson (DFL-North Mankato) received 53.7 percent of the vote to beat Allen Quist and Tim Gieseke to win the District 19A seat formerly held by Rep. Terry Morrow (DFL-St. Peter). Morrow resigned in December to take a job in Chicago.The State Canvassing Board is scheduled to certify the results at 1:30 p.m. Thursday.A date for their swearing in has yet to be announced.With the results, the DFL holds a 73-61 advantage in the House. Continue Reading

Brett Buckner wants to shake up Minneapolis’ 5th Ward politics

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“Close to 40 percent of men 16 to 25 in north Minneapolis are unemployed.” That quote was the answer given by Brett Buckner, when asked why there needed to be a shake-up in 5th ward politics. “How do we prepare the young people to build a career right here in north Minneapolis? When you have that many men not connected and not contributing, it affects everyone,” said Buckner, who is seeking to be the DFL candidate for 5th ward councilman.Buckner recently held a gathering for supporters at Broadway Pizza, 2025 West River Road N., where he discussed his plans for the district, if elected. According to Buckner, creating jobs is his top priority.”The issues of North Minneapolis are not isolated to North Minneapolis,” said Buckner, who has lived in the area all of his life, except for when he attended Hampton University in Virginia. Continue Reading

Gary Schiff, council member since 2001, joins race for Minneapolis mayor

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Minneapolis City Councilman Gary Schiff will formally announce his candidacy for mayor Tuesday night at Blarney Pub and Grill in Dinkytown.Schiff, a University of Minnesota graduate, filed paperwork to run in December and has been raising money and gaining supporters since.Councilwoman Betsy Hodges announced in November she would run and Councilman Don Samuels is launching his campaign on Wednesday.After three terms, Mayor R.T. Rybak announced in late December that he would not seek a fourth.A councilman since 2001, Schiff is well-liked by small business owners and was the driving force behind easing regulations on micro-breweries.Schiff said creating jobs is one of the most important issues facing the city and small businesses play a key role in providing work.“If small businesses can’t succeed in Minneapolis, nobody succeeds,” he said.In 2012, the Twin Cities Business Journal named Schiff as Minneapolis’ most business-friendly City Council member, citing his “desire to simplify regulations that make it challenging for businesses to get started.”Mike Stebnitz, president of Stillwater Companies in Minneapolis, said Schiff’s reputation is well-earned.“He seems very interested with what’s going on in our neighborhood,” he said. “We’re supportive of him.”Along with announcing his candidacy Tuesday, Schiff will release a list of 100 small business owners who will support his mayoral run.Despite the accolade from the Business Journal, the publication also notes that Schiff is “by no means universally beloved by Minneapolis business people, largely because of opposition to a tax-supported Vikings stadium.”Brew backerAlong with small businesses, Schiff has established himself as a major supporter of micro-breweries in Minneapolis. He changed laws restricting micro-breweries from selling their own products on site in Minneapolis, which has led to several micro-brewery licenses being approved by the city in the last few years.Jeremy Pryes, who’s nearing the opening of his Uptown-area micro-brewery, said Schiff has been a major advocate for local brewers.“He’s gone out of his way to not only contact us and help us when we’re in need, but he’s also been there any time we need help,” he said.Pryes said he and his company will support Schiff’s mayoral campaign.“We’d definitely support Gary in his future endeavors,” he said. “He’s a good man.”It was no coincidence that a large group of business owners hosted a fundraiser for Schiff at Dangerous Man Brewing Co. in Northeast Minneapolis in December.Dangerous Man’s owner Rob Miller was initially unable to open the brewery because it was across the street from a church. 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

Amendments on front burner at 2012 fall media forum

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Many had yet to catch up on sleep from a late election night four days earlier, but that didn’t keep around 90 people from attending the Twin Cities Media Alliance 8th Annual Fall Media Forum. Held at the University of Minnesota’s Urban Research and Outreach-Engagement Center (UROC) on November 10, this year’s theme was, “After the Elections: Change Work, New Media and the Challenges Ahead.” The day-long event provided an opportunity for participants to make sense of election results, analyze media coverage, contemplate challenges, and share ideas about valuable tools and strategies. It also served as the final major piece of TCMA’s New Normal 2012: Get Connected! project. Continue Reading

MN VOICES | Rosa Tock finds “sense that working together, we can achieve things” in Minnesota

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For Rosa Tock, a first-generation immigrant from Guatemala, the sense of possibility is what impresses her most about Minnesota.  “In Minnesota, I have that sense of possibility that things can be done,” Tock said, “There is always the sense that working together, we can achieve things. That sense of possibility is one thing that really makes me feel at home.”Tock first came to Minnesota on a Fulbright Scholarship to finish her Master’s Degree in Public Policy at the University of Minnesota. As part of the program, Tock was required to go back to Guatemala for at least two years after graduating.However, her husband was still in Minnesota, so she eventually made her way back, drawn to the possibilities that the state offered. Tock started out as a human rights investigator with the City of Saint Paul, looking at incidents of potential discrimination. Continue Reading

FREE SPEECH ZONE | What we REALLY should learn from this election

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Commenting on the recent election in well regarded post mortems, various pundits have cogently described what the ramifications of Barack Obama’s reelection will mean to the country. Most seem astute – but missing from these analyses was probably the most important consequence we could and should learn from this election. That would be a careful look at the election process itself in America today. And, it isn’t pretty.Free Speech ZoneThe Free Speech Zone offers a space for contributions from readers, without editing by the TC Daily Planet. This is an open forum for articles that otherwise might not find a place for publication, including news articles, opinion columns, announcements and even a few press releases. Continue Reading

FREE SPEECH ZONE | A suburban senate race gets tough for right winger

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Cyndy Brucato over at MinnPost wrote on 10/30/2012 that conservative Republican Senator David Hann (SD 48 – Eden Prairie, Minntonka) is avoiding questions about his employment.The back story is that Minnesota Progressive Project investigative blogger Tommy Johnson learned that Hann — who chairs the Senate Health and Human Services Committee — has taken employment with an Eden Prairie Company that sells, among a number of things, health insurance.  Mr. Hann’s committe regulates companies that sell health insurance.  Johnson smelled something foul, trailed the mucky tracks that Mr. Hann could not mop up and then exposed the facts and released them into the blogosphere.Brucatto reports that as a result, Mr. Hann’s DFL challenger, Laurie McKendry’s campaign will be getting a welcome shot of money and support from the State DFL.  McKendry was not expected to do well in a district that has been dominated by conservatives like Hann and U.S. Representative Eric Paulsen –  It snuggles up to the Tea Party redoubt that is Carver County.  But McKendry, a moderate Democrat, has worked hard and smart in Senate District 48.  Laurie McKendry is a business owner, was raised tough by a single mom, a waitress, who got her daughter through college with honors.   McKendry has made several appearances on Democratic Visions, the cable TV program I produce for DFL Senate District 48.   You can watch it here, via our YouTube Channel.  You can also help the McKendry team with lit drops over the next few days. Free Speech ZoneThe Free Speech Zone offers a space for contributions from readers, without editing by the TC Daily Planet. This is an open forum for articles that otherwise might not find a place for publication, including news articles, opinion columns, announcements and even a few press releases. The opinions expressed in the Free Speech Zone and Neighborhood Notes, as well as the opinions of bloggers, are their own and not necessarily the opinion of the TC Daily Planet. Continue Reading