The (612)

The Hours

2006-07-07T08:20:00.000-05:00

Spring 1996

By a vote of 10 to 3, the city council recently passed a measure that will permanently extend the operating hours of liquor stores in Minneapolis. Now, booze businesses can hawk beverages until the wee hour of 10pm six nights a week.

Despite the fact that Minneapolis is finally entering the 20th century, liquor stores must still be closed on Sundays. Then again, some have sadly been closed for years...

Spring 2006

The Central Corridor

2006-06-29T08:52:00.000-05:00

By a vote of 15-2 yesterday, the Met Council approved the Central Corridor light rail line to be taken to the next level: The Federal Level. If the Feds approve the plan, construction could begin as soon as 2010, with a science-fiction film sounding completion date of 2014...kinda like 2022 or 2019...

Roughly 11 miles in length, the Central Corridor will connect the downtowns of Minneapolis and St. Paul...yet it is unknown whether the ride will make you as fucking insane as the 16 bus route does. It's also unclear whether or not the final stop in St. Paul will land you smack in front of a strip club, as it currently does in Minneapolis.

The Hockey "Riots"

2006-06-27T00:56:00.000-05:00

Of course this isn't New news, as it happened in either 2002 or 2003, but I discovered this video the other night. I list both years not because I am bad with remembering years, but because this type of rock n' rolling happened two years in a row...after the University of Minnesota won the National Hockey championship.

Living in upstate New York at the time, I was only able to read about this online, hear about it from friends, or see the national news only airing the worst chaos and tallest flames. Despite the obvious violence that happened in Dinkytown that night, this particular video highlights, for me, precisely how mundane a lot of the "activity" was. In short, the Dinkytown streets were riddled with a lot of dumb kids standing around.

But I must admit, I find the "interview" with the one blondish kid kinda fascinating.

The Buildings Way Up There

2006-06-27T00:24:00.000-05:00

There is nothing particularly illuminating about this.

The Central Library

2006-06-19T19:49:00.000-05:00

Last May, the shiny new Central Library of Minneapolis was finally open for...well, business. Unlike its previous incarnation, the new library's main entrance is located on Nicollet Avenue.

Designed by architect Cesar Pelli, the library's uppermost rooftop hangs over both Nicollet and Hennepin Avenues.

View from Hennepin Avenue entrance; looking directly up.

Of course, Mayor Rybak was there for the festivities...

...wearing differently colored socks.

Entrance at Nicollet Avenue

View from 4th floor stairwell

In the first 10 minutes of the grand opening, the escalator going Up broke down. It was cordoned off. It was fixed 10 minutes later.

Two days after the grand opening, there weren't enough bike racks to go round. Every free tree + post became suitable alternatives.

The Nicollet

2006-06-19T19:15:00.000-05:00

Let It Be, a downtown MPLS record store on Nicollet and 10th for as long as I can remember, closed shop last year. Its closing will make way for a new 56 story tower, pretentiously named...

The Nicollet

Outside of Chicago, The Nicollet will be the largest condominum tower in the midwest.

The Yugo

2006-06-19T19:07:00.000-05:00

As America gradually recognizes that the supposed luxury of SUVs ain't so...luxurious...I stood stunned the other day when happening upon an quasi-economically-quasi-efficient quasi-throwback:

Yes, it's a Yugo. A model that once cost $3995.

At the time, it was parked near the 35W exit of Lake Street. Who knows the trail it is blazing today...

The Skyway to Heaven

2006-06-18T13:26:00.000-05:00

Edward Baker, architect of the Minneapolis Skyway System

Baker, Edward Frank age 80, passed away Thursday, June 15, 2006, in Mpls. He was born May 24, 1926 in Chicago, IL. He moved to Mpls., in 1932, enrolled in the U of M 2 quarters prior to high school graduation. He majored in engineering and received honor grades. He enlisted in the U.S. Navy April 1944 until 1946 and then enrolled in U of M Architect School in 1946. He graduated with distinction in 1950. He went to work for Larson & McLaren Architects. As an apprentice, he worked on projects that included the Daytons Department Store, Dayton Radisson Ramp, Marquette Bank, First Federal Savings & Loan and numerous smaller banks and office interiors. Registered as Architect in 1955. NCARB member. Formed Edward F. Baker Associates Architect which was located in the Mobile Oil Building. He was then commissioned as architect for the Northstar Center in Downtown Mpls. He went on to be registered as an architect in 48 states. Baker and his firm received national and international acclaim for some notable local projects. He was owner of Baker Associates and Downtown Auto Park. He was responsible for joint planning & design of the IDS Center, as a joint venture partner of Philip Johnson and presented the AIA Gold Metal for the building. Achievements include Northstar Center, 1955 Downtown Plans for Future 1965 Minneapolis published by the Star and Tribune showing the first idea for a second floor city, sketches for the development of Nicollet Ave. Mall in 1958 covering the street, and ultimately incorporating the first skyway system into the Northstar Bldg. and planning approximately 16 skyways into projects that turned into a true pedestrian system. Their projects included the Mpls. . Center (Gambles Center) and Norman Center, Northland Center, Sofitel, Mpls. Jewish Community Center, St. Louis Park City Hall, Hazeltine Country Club Building, Brooklyn Park City Hall, Gleason Lake Apts. in Wayzata, Marquette Bank, Twin City Federal Complex, Energy Center Building & Ramp, The Peavey Building, The Wells Fargo Bank of Wayzata (Wayzata Bank & Trust), Design architects for the remodeling of the Baker Block, and developed the Nicollet Center (Law Center), and other banks and community buildings. He was president and founding member of the Hennepin Center for the Arts, member of the Nicollet Mall Advisory Committee, Skyway Advisory Committee, Dunwoody Board of Directors, Sister Kenny Board of Directors, Officer of the Mpls. Chapter AIA, member of the Downtown Council since 1959, and served on the Board, member of Citizen League, Member of Zoning Appeals for St. Louis Park, board member of Plymouth Music Series, Calhoun Beach Club, Children's Heart Fund, and co-chaired with his wife, the Annual Fund-Raising Heart Ball. He was recently awarded "The Father of the Waters" Award at the Downtown Council of Mpls. and the Greater Mpls. Building Owners and Managers Association awarded him "The Trend Setters" Award for the design of the first skyway. His great joy was launching projects from pen & pencil on an architect's pad to concrete and steel realities enhancing the skyline of Mpls. and its suburbs. He shared a love of music with Karen and they seldom missed a concert these past 25 years while in Mpls., when not traveling. He took great pleasure in sharing ideas with his family and respected their views. He had great respect for his family, friends and community leaders who made a difference in the community. He never said no to the young people who wanted to get his advice about a career in architecture or business. Married Sylvia in 1948. She passed away in 1979. Also preceded in death by parent, Benjamin and Rose Baker. Survived by wife, Karen who he married in 1981; children, Sara Baker, Jonathan (Carol) Baker, Matthew (Melinda) Baker; and Karen's children, Leslie MacDonald, Steven Hyde, and Todd (Liesl) Hyde; grandchildren, Paul Baker, Chana Engel, Jared Hillman, Max Baker, Joshua Engel-Baker, Madelaine Hyde, Misha Baker, and Gabriel MacDonald; brother, Leonard (Beverly) Baker. Private family services will be held at Lakewood Cemetery. SHIVA will be held at the home of Matthew & Melinda Baker, 3900 West 25th St, Mpls (Monday from 6-8 with a service at 7 pm). Memorial Service will be held MONDAY, JUNE 26, 2006, 12 NOON at TEMPLE ISRAEL 2324 Emerson Ave S, Mpls. Memorials may be directed to Minnesota Orchestra or Abbott Northwestern Hospital.

[from today's Star Tribune]

For more on the Minneapolis skyway system:
The Rake
American City
Wikipedia

The Cat Was Fast As Lightning

2006-06-17T00:32:00.000-05:00

After spending a few days visiting friends in New York City last weekend, I returned home to Minneapolis this week, only to see one theme constantly splayed across the covers of our local newspapers and websites:

CRIME!
According to an FBI report released Monday, crime in Minneapolis last year jumped a whopping 35.5% from 2004. Although the MPLS police department was quick to point out that a "computer glitch" had affected the reported statistics -- suggesting that crime had increased only by 15% -- the damage had already been done. A slew have articles have thus been penned, many detailing the need for an adequate response by the Mayor's office, as well as the expected call for more neighborhood meetings and citizen watch groups. In short: a need for Vigilance. Or, in other words: a Minnesota Nice version of Giuliani Time!

From a recent Star Tribune editorial:
11 June 2006

Minneapolis could learn from New York

Minneapolis is a city moving rapidly in opposite directions.

As its grand new downtown library prepared to open last month, crews were dispatched to scrub the reeking bus stop/public urinal just across the street. As the Guthrie scrambled to open its new theater with majestic views of the river, workers hastened to remove graffiti smothering the Third Avenue Bridge. As luxury condo towers continue to rise, new residents hesitate to explore downtown on foot, not for fear of crime -- downtown is remarkably safe -- but because a perception of neglect and distrust grips the sidewalks. Many are treeless and shabby, lined with broken fences, crumbling curbs and blank storefronts. Some are sprinkled with panhandlers, drug dealers and foul-talking youth.

As author Malcolm Gladwell has written, context matters. People act as their environment suggests. Most people will avoid even the perception of hassle or disorder; criminals flock to such an environment.

Downtown is increasingly where the high life meets the low. Police describe a developing turf war between the hundreds of thousands of lawful people who daily live, work and visit one of America's best and liveliest downtowns, and a handful of persistently disorderly people who threaten the city's aspirations. This is a delicate matter because poverty, race, culture, mental illness and Minnesota's social conscience are all in play.

But the single most important feature of successful urban life is trusting the stranger. When trust breaks down and comfort recedes, when cities overlook small crimes -- from littering to loitering -- they risk losing everything. Minneapolis has not reached New York's 1980s tipping point, as described in Steve Berg's essay on this section's front page. It may never. But the astonishing rebirth of Times Square -- and much of Manhattan -- offers lessons.

Aggressive policing (sometimes overly aggressive) did remove thousands of petty criminals from the streets and played some part in New York's dramatic decline in violent crime. Just as important was a beefed-up court system designed to swiftly handle livability cases, as well as an insistence on restorative justice and a menu of generous and mandatory social services. New York's approach balanced the public's right to clean and non-threatening public spaces with offenders' needs for drug treatment, job training, housing and other services. Minneapolis, too, should employ both the hammer and the helping hand.

Citizens must demand higher standards for public behavior and the upkeep of property. Police must act decisively while making clear that arrests are based solely on behavior, not race. Courts must stop dumping livability offenders back on the streets. They need clearer procedures, better computers and far more resources, especially for probation and mental health. Judges and legislators, meanwhile, must acknowledge more fully the cumulative cost of livability crime. Hundreds of millions of dollars and untold dreams have been invested in new downtown homes, cultural venues, transit and businesses. Having come this far, the city cannot now retreat.

The city has responded in a couple of ways to fight the supposed onslaught of "low life," one technique is indeed provocative (despite its Orwellian undertones). On Friday, the Minneapolis city council approved $325,000 for a technology called the ShotSpotter. Mounted on top of utility poles and buildings covering four square miles of the city, ShotSpotter's sensors can detect the precise location of where a gunshot was fired. Within eight seconds the Police are on it. As Keith Summey, mayor of North Charleston, South Carolina, succinctly testifies: "This gives us a step up over the bad guys. " Well said, Mayor. Bad Guys. For further evidence of how effective the device works, ShotSpotter's website displays a photo of a gun in a cardboard box. Nice work, indeed.

Also this week, Metro Transit took its own steps to purge Downtown of its great unwashed by enlisting a Superhero. Rest assured, it didn't lure Batman away from Gotham -- it got the next best thing....

Hello...Dolly!

Yes, cruising around Block E at a breakneck speed of 16mph, the segway is the Metro Transit's latest attempt of crushing those cheaters who fail to pay their light-rail fare. And, according to a recent Strib article on it, it's pretty goddamn "cool."

The Cop on the Beat Simply Glides Down the Street
by Bill McAuliffe
June 15, 2006

photo by Stormi Greener, Star Tribune

In the heart of the Minneapolis theater district, two Metro Transit police officers stole the show Wednesday.

Officers Donn Wallin and Scott Tinucci combined law enforcement with what looked like a circus act, putting their new Segway Human Transporters through a street and sidewalk test.

"Cool!" several passersby said. Three skateboarders gave them a thumbs-up.

"How fast do those things go?" asked a motorcyclist turning a corner in front of them.

"One hundred!" Tinucci shot back with a laugh.

The two $6,000 cruisers actually top out at about 16 miles per hour, but officials expect them to be a valuable addition to downtown street patrols.

"That's faster than I can run," Wallin said.

The two-wheeled, battery-powered devices are expected to move officers quickly through crowds and help them see and be seen over most people's heads. They'll be used primarily at the Metrodome light-rail platforms on game days and along Hennepin Avenue and Nicollet Mall.

More than 125 law enforcement agencies around the world use Segways, according to Carla Vallone, spokeswoman for the manufacturer. St. Paul police have a pair, donated by a business group, for use downtown. In some cities, parking monitors and utility inspectors use them to help lower emissions and fuel costs, Vallone said.

Bloomington's bomb squad, which works all over the state, uses them so that its bomb-searchers can cover more ground and expend less energy in non-breathable, 100-pound suits.

Metro Transit bought the Segways with federal money.

In only their second day on the rigs, Tinucci and Wallin said their biggest problem was watching out for sidewalk obstacles, particularly low-hung signs. And they were able to respond to one traffic accident and help with one collar.

"Plus, people love these things," Wallin said.

Sigh. Ahh, love.