City Hall Scoop

Scoop Mailbag

2005-08-26T15:10:00.000-07:00

The mail - mostly other people's, anyway - has been seriously piling up here at the Scoop, so we thought we'd clear out the inbox today. Here's a quick rundown:
ABSENTEE BALLOTS - The Kelly campaign has already started an absentee ballot campaign, mailing out applications. "I urge you to fill it this out, check both boxes for the Primary and General Election and send it immediately," the accompanying letter, signed by the mayor, says.
AFSCME - The public employees union's political action committee is sending out a pre-primary mailing for Chris Coleman, reminding members of his opposition to the "Compete St. Paul" privatization effort lead by then-mayor Norm Coleman while Chris Coleman was on the city council.
"COURAGE" - A mailing by the Kelly campaign this week is an 8 1/2 by 11 card, showing a profile portrait of the mayor, headlined with "COURAGE." It hits his usual campaign themes, like public safety, education, taxes, help for seniors and Housing 5,000. But most of the text is devoted to defending his Republican ties to President Bush, Gov. Tim Pawlenty and U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman. "I know that rankles some folks who believe we should be divided in this country by political party designation. The fact is, when all is said and done, if I can help Saint Paul by reaching out across party lines, I will do it."
EDUCATION - The Scoop's spouse also this week got a window envelope with her name and address and a letter from Kelly about public education. Kelly came out publicly against the school board levy in 2002 but proposed another levy on his own this February - an offer the school board declined. The letter is signed by only one school board member, Tom Conlon but also by former City Council president Bill Wilson, who is now head of the Higher Ground Academy charter School on Marshall Avenue.
If you get any interesting campaign mail. Or any, for that matter, from any other candidates, tell the Scoop about it. Email scoop@pioneerpress.com or mail it to The Scoop at 345 Cedar St., St. Paul, MN 55101.

Out Loud!

2005-08-26T15:06:00.000-07:00

The Scoop has in the past few days acquired a new news toy, a Marantz PMD660 digital recorder, purchased at the suggestion of Minnesota Public Radio reporter Tom Scheck.
(The Scoop officially offers a nod here to his infinite wisdom in all things audio and Boston Marathon.)
This particular model supercedes the Marantz PM-222 cassette deck on which the Scoop has relied for much audio and interviewing, and while its quaint white-needled recording meter will be sorely missed, this is VERY good news for you, gentle reader.
Starting next week, it will be contributing to some of the many FREE UPGRADES you'll see on this site and in online political coverage by the Pioneer Press.
Cityhallscoop.com will be moving to a new blog provider, to Typepad, which will make it much easier to put up postings and hopefully clear up some of the Blog jams this site has encountered as it gathers steam. Just point your browser to cityhallscoop.com now and you won't miss a thing.
We'll clear out Robert Ingrassia, now moved into the lofty ranks of newspaper management and probably introduce you to a new Scoop contributor.
We'll also link you to a dedicated site on the St. Paul mayor's race, which will include archives and extras like online-only photos and audio (that's where the new toy comes in), as well as video from our colleagues at TwinCities.com.
And last, but not least, we'll be adding an RSS feed, so that you can be up to date every time we post to cityhallscoop.com.
Stay tuned. We've got lots more to come.

Jade that Middle Class!

2005-08-25T16:05:00.000-07:00

Someone is leaving some rather scurrilous communication around town, tacked to Randy Kelly for Mayor signs.

Kelly's son and campaign manager, Ryan, condemned the vandalism at a press conference this afternoon -- the second wave that's struck their campaign. (You might remember the "Supports Bush" graffiti we posted here a few weeks back.)

This new series of incidents involves letters with state seals and printed on authentic-looking city letterhead (listing the old address for the department of Licensing, Inspection and Environmental Protection, no less) and stuck to Kelly for Mayor campaign signs.

It reads:

"ATTENTION PUBLIC"

"I don't have any leadership ability, their has been negative business growth and negative job growth for the working poor. I'm not going to help the working poor; there is no hope for them. There is no welfare, or general assistance for the working poor, this is way their so much crime in the metro area. It has become unsurvivalable for the working poor. We want the working poor to go to prison, so they will suffer. We have a poverty crisis, but I'm not going to help the unemployable working poor. If you're pooor, I want you leave Minnesota. Our state of Minnesota is Billions in debt and this debt is hurting everyone. I want to jade the middle class and abuse the working poor. Many of the working poor have been out of work for years, I don't care."

"I want to make this city look beautiful, but I want to see you working poor suffer in poverty. I'm going to waste millions, but accomplish nothing for the middle class and the working poor."

The message ends with a common obscenity directed at the reader, followed by Mayor Kelly's name.

Ryan Kelly suggested that it was "highly organized" and said that the campaign received about a dozen complaints. "It's illegal. It's offensive. It's obscene. It's full of lies and slander," he said. "These type of political scare tactics are bringing St. Paul's political discourse to an all time low."

The Coleman campaign said they were equally disappointed in what's been happening on the lawn sign front, noting that they lost 30 lawn signs along Maryland Avenue this week.

"It's totally targeted on the East Side," said Coleman campaign manager Kris Fredson. "They just don't seem to want to allow any demonstration that Randy might be weak over there."

"A totally rewarding driving experience, like no other luxury car's."

2005-08-25T12:59:00.000-07:00

Since St. Paul is thinking about putting the city's drivers under the lens of photo cop, maybe its time to share a couple of shots that have come into the Scoop's possession lately.
Here's the first one:

This brand new Audi A6 was parked in the mayor's spot at 9 a.m. this morning in place of his official Ford sedan. This picture is actually from several weeks ago, when the Scoop spotted the car sitting in front of City Hall with the Maplewood Imports plaque still on the license plate holder.
It's the "3.2" version of the just-about-top-of-the-line Audi sedan, which rings up at the register for $42,600, according to the Audi.com website. The headline at the top of this item is a quote from the MotorWeek blurb on the Audi website.
Kelly staff members have told the Scoop that this new Audi belongs to St. Paul's first lady, Katherine Kelly, a ranking school administrator. It did have the mayor's blue "R. Kelly" parking permit on the dash, however.
Regardless of its ownership, there is a political point here, as one Scoop reader noted: If you consider an election campaign a job interview, the Kelly family seems to feel pretty good about the mayor's chances of landing a good position in the immediate future. Maybe they know something about the election that the rest of us don't yet.

Signs, Signs, everywhere the signs
We're a little late on getting this up, with all the activity of the last couple of days, but here's a shot of the front yard at Ward 4 council member Jay Benanav's house.

He apologized, as he looked it over, for not having the John Brodrick sign up to complete the trio of DFL endorsed school board candidates. But he was making no bones about the Green Party mayoral candidate displayed front and center. Benanav says he's a DFLer. He ran for mayor with the DFL endorsement and the support of Progressive Minnesota in 2001.
Both organizations are now backing former City Council member Chris Coleman.
"It's not mine," Benanav said of the sign. "I can't get him [his son, Sam] to take it down for anything. I continue to remain on the sidelines here. Chris has not asked for my support. The mayor did. He called me two days after the convention and asked for my support. I politely declined. But it is my son's lawnsign. And you know 16-year-olds. If I asked him to take it down, he'd put up three more."

Abortion polling, cont'd

2005-08-22T14:14:00.000-07:00

The Scoop got a call back from MDS Communications president Jay Mount this afternoon, who said that the autodialer survey the Scoop told you about earlier was in fact coming from his company, on behalf of Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life, the pro-life political powerhouse based in Minneapolis.
The calls are going to St. Cloud, St. Paul, Duluth and southwestern Minnesota, "a number of places that we think there will be a lot of political action," said MCCL executive director Scott Fischbach, when contacted by the Scoop. "Is it done for the St. Paul mayor's race? No. Is it done with the knowledge that there is an election happening there? Sure."
He said, though, that the calling is part of the organization's continuing statewide Citizen Action Project, an effort that dates back more than 25 years. "It's to help identify who's with us," he said of the calls.

Abortion polling: for whom does the ringer toll?

2005-08-22T13:15:00.000-07:00

The Scoop has come into possession of a partial recording of an automated survey call recently placed to a phone in St. Paul a few days ago.

The three-question battery seems to be asking respondents to indicate by pressing a number their opposition to or support for abortion rights, their feelings about abortion law and whether or not they vote on the basis of their position on abortion rights. (Again, the recording is incomplete.)

The automated survey offered a garbled call-back number, most of which tracks back to a telephone fundraising outfit called MDS Communications, with offices in Mesa, Ariz, and Bakersfield, Calif.

The firm's website categorizes its clients as "Christian Ministries," and "International Relief & Development Ministries and Organizations," and "Conservative Public Policy Organizations" and "Political Organizations." The latter two include the National Right to Life Committee and Concerned Women for America, as well as the Republican National Committee. Check it out at http://www.mdscom.com/

(MDS director of marketing, Shelley Nelson, took the Scoop's phone number and promised to get someone to call back about the poll. Nothing back so far, though. Stay tuned.)

Hard to tell what's going on there, since it's an off-election year. There are really only two political contests underway: the nomination of federal judge John Roberts to the Supreme Court and the local city races.

The Minneapolis mayor's race doesn't seem to have much stake in exploring the nuances of the abortion rights debate in that city. Both R.T. Rybak and Peter McLaughlin are abortion rights supporters, according to prochoiceminnesota.org (http://www.prochoiceminnesota.org/assets/files/mplsmayor_dfl.pdf).
But there is a difference in St. Paul.

Mayor Randy Kelly is a firm opponent of abortion rights. He is a regular speaker at the annual pro-life rally at the Capitol on the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. He is also a charter member of the Democrats for Life movement here in Minnesota.

Chris Coleman was a board member for the Minnesota chapter of the National Abortion Rights Action League in the 1990s, and Elizabeth Dickinson is an abortion rights supporter and did some lobbying at the Capitol for the Minnesota Aids Project on comprehensive sexual education.

None of the campaigns on Monday, though, claimed any association with the polling.
"We have no idea what this is," said Kelly campaign spokesman Vince Muzik.
"Not me!" said Elizabeth Dickinson.

"Absolutely not," said Coleman campaign spokesman Bob Hume.

If you get any such calls, or want to pass along any candidate contact you have, please drop us an email at scoop@pioneerpress.com

Is Kerry coming?

2005-08-18T15:04:00.000-07:00

The Scoop continues to hear rumors that U.S. Sen. John Kerry may come to town on behalf of mayoral candidate Chris Coleman. The Bush endorsement of last August continues to turn at the center of those opposing Kelly. Because it was pretty much Randy Kelly and Zell Miller on the Democratic side for the president last fall, Kerry could make the rounds of aisle-crossers pretty quickly, since Miller left office in January.
"We're not prepared to say anything about that right now," says Coleman spokesman Bob Hume.
He did hint, however, that the campaign thinks it might top Kelly's one-day fund fest on Summit Avenue, the gathering with Chicago Mayor Richard Daley that reportedly netted $100,000 in one fell swoop. It would take a big headliner for that kind of cash.

You've got mail!

2005-08-18T14:56:00.000-07:00

It looks like the Kelly campaign is enlisting the aid of the U.S. Postal Service to get out the blizzard of campaign literature the mayor's supporters are distributing around St. Paul.
The Scoop has recently been made aware of a large 11-by-17 card, folded in quarters, with this on one face: "Success. Some people measure it by what they did yesterday. Randy Kelly measures it by what he will do tomorrow." It has a black and white profile picture of the mayor.
The piece's mailing permit makes it look like it was sent out bulk rate. The mailing label has a bar code and a "Or Current Resident" tag on it. That probably means that it's the first mass mailing of the campaign season. It's enough to lift a blogger's heart.
Check your mail! You may already be a winner!

Recalling Recall Randy

2005-08-18T14:11:00.000-07:00

The Duddingston brothers, Dan and Dave, as well as Dan's bride, Lara, were up at Overlook Park on Summit Avenue for this morning for the official kickoff of their campaign to gather pledges to vote against Mayor Randy Kelly.

"We mean it this time," Dan said earlier this week, as he rallied the protesters outside the Daley fundraiser for the mayor.

It was a small event, between rain showers, but had some interesting information. The Duddingstons said that they've given out about 200 of their 1,000 "Republican Randy" signs and that they're getting inquiries about obtaining large quantitites of the signs and hinted they're happy to get more.

Dan also made an interesting admission during the presser across the street from the University Club. "I actually voted for Kelly last time," he said. Nothing like a Ward 1 voter scorned.

Lara Duddingston read off a litany of grievances with the Bush administration: the federal government has underfunded the St. Paul public school system by $13 million, the Bush administration ended the COPS program that paid for additional local police officers and Homeland Security funding has dropped precipitously in the last year.
(She was sporting one of those stamped rubber wristbands today, a blue one that read "DEMOCRAT.")

Most amazing, though, is that this may very well be the only political movement in St. Paul run by two nearly indistinguishable twins. Thankfully, they wore different colored shirts under their dark blazers today, or the Scoop would have never been able to get their mugshots straight.
Take a look for yourself.

Recall Recall Randy?

2005-08-15T14:00:00.000-07:00

The Recall Randy folks, dormant for months since a failed attempt to recall the mayor for his endorsment of President Bush, are apparently set to make a reappearance in St. Paul politics tonight.
Their website, which the Scoop noticed had gotten a recent updating, says the Recall Randy supporters are hosting a gathering of "true Democrats" across the street from the Kelly fundraiser featuring Chicago Mayor Richard Daley tonight.
The 5 p.m. gathering will be at 245 Summit Ave., across the street from the James J. Hill House and just a few doors down from the home of Richard and Nancy Nicholson, who are hosting the official 5:50 p.m. Kelly fundraiser. Republicans Gov. Tim Pawlenty and U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman are listed as "special guests" on the invitation.
"Let's all stop looking at the elephant in the middle of the room and pretending that it is not there," says the group's website.

Dave Thune gets down

2005-08-15T13:58:00.000-07:00

Dave Thune's son Dusty got married in Irvine Park this weekend, and from all accounts, the Ward 2 City Council member got down like few other fathers of the groom. His Backstreet Boogie Band played the wedding on Saturday night.
(They played "Here Comes the Sun" for the first dance between the bride and groom, by the way.)
St. Paulites familiar with the Harley-driving, boot-stomping council member will recall the band also played for one of his election fundraisers (Were his son's marriage to meet with such success. OK, maybe not quite that close a finish at the polls.) The band also played the classic rock stage at the Taste of Minnesota,
"It was a great night," said Thune. "It's just one more thing a dad can do for his kid."

Green Party budget response

2005-08-15T13:49:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth Dickinson had a press conference this morning in front of the Xcel Energy Center, saying the city ought to squeeze some more out of its $17 million franchise agreement the arena's sponsoring electric and natual gas utility. You can hear the statement she made by clicking here.

And if you can't even spare a mere nine minutes of your political life listening to the file, here are her remarks, as provided by the Dickinson campaign.
(If you haven't heard Dickinson speak, by the way, you ought to. The Scoop has heard her live three or four times, and this woman can seriously orate. A former actor, she may have the best speaking voice of any politician in town.)

"Today I want to offer key elements of a plan for keeping the City of St. Paul financially stable and restoring core city services including police, fire, public works and parks and recreation, while reducing pollution, and improving public health.

"I'm here to draw attention to some ways to improve St. Paul and St. Paul's revenue stream that have not been brought up by the other candidates.

"Mayor Kelly has proposed a budget that doesn't fully respond to years of decline in city services. That decline is largely because of reductions in local government aid. Ironically, tonight Governor Pawlenty - the man largely responsible for those reductions in LGA - will be at a fundraiser for Mayor Kelly's campaign.

"It's clear that the city needs the additional police and firefighters added in the Kelly plan. It is not so clear that the threats described at some length by the mayor, in the form of the MS-13 or Mara Salvatrucha gang and its possible link to Al Qaeda, deserve to be highlighted. MS-13 has yet to make an appearance in St. Paul.

"The plan I propose goes beyond the Kelly 3 percent property tax increase - yes, it's necessary, and in fact it had become inevitable. However, alone it does not provide enough revenue for the city's long-term needs. Today I'd like to focus on the Xcel Energy Franchise agreement, set to expire in mid-2006. This is an important agreement, not just for Xcel but for all St. Paulites. Essentially, in return for granting Xcel a virtual monopoly to provide our heat-cooling and electricity and for allowing them to use the city streets and property to do so, we receive a franchise fee roughly equivalent to 5 percent of Xcel's gross earnings. This fee comes to slightly over $17 million dollars a year and is the third largest source of revenue for the city, at nearly 11 percent of the city's budget.

"Utility companies take these documents VERY seriously, and so should we. We are their valuable customers and we should expect value in return. I propose that we increase the franchise fees on Xcel from the current average of 5 percent of their gross earnings to at least 6 percent, as some other cities in Florida have done. This could bring increased revenue to the city of conservatively $1-2 million dollars. I am not being coy about what I call any attempt to raise revenue - whether you call something a tax, a user fee, or an assessment, it does mean money is coming out of someone's pocket. Xcel is given the authority through the Public Utilities Commission to pass along those costs to the customer.

"So in my proposal for instance, if your electric bill is $100 per month, you might pay an additional $1 per month, which would go into the general fund.

"With the additional $1-2 million dollars I propose that we more evenly spend it on the core city services: fire, police, public works and parks and recreation. With the active advice and help of the community, the city council and police, fire, public works, parks and recreation, we can decide where the money is most needed.

"To offset this increased charge on citizens, I propose that we also ask Xcel Energy to exempt low income citizens from the increased franchise fee, and to make their energy audits free to everyone, not just low income citizens. We might pro-rate electricity rates, so the less you use, the less you pay. We should be asking Xcel to aggressively market conservation programs, like their conservation improvement plan where any building designed more than 50,000 square feet given a free consultant to provide suggestions to make it the most energy efficient possible. Green architects tell me it's completely possible to achieve 15-20 percent better energy efficiency than current code and the payback is often only 1-2 years. Every single new building in St. Paul should be required to analyze and reduce its potential energy use.

"As an example of conservation, the School Energy Efficiency program in St. Paul will save $100,000 this year through their conservation programs - with the future potential to save at least 10 percent of their annual $7 million in energy costs. $700,000 can provide a lot of needed teachers. And this program should be extended through all city buildings, freeing up revenue for other things our city needs.
"However, there is additional value we can promote through creative use of the franchise agreement by creating a Community Benefit Agreement, with Xcel that helps them become true partners in the community.

"Currently, we are assessed for street lighting. According to ACORN, there are even high crime neighborhoods where residents are assessed for street lighting they don't even have. We know the use of lights can deter crime. The cost to St. Paul citizens of street lighting is $70,000 dollars per month. Other cities have given that responsibility back to the investor-owned utility. Why shouldn?t we ask Xcel to take over the costs of maintaining the current street lights AND extend lighting into the neighborhoods which are going without? Or why can't we ask for Xcel to pay for alley lighting, which neighbors currently have to fund privately?

"I also propose during the renegotiation of this franchise agreement that we require Xcel Energy to provide 25% of St. Paul's energy usage from clean renewable sources like wind power and solar power, and create a renewable energy standard for St. Paul. Minnesota has promised to get 19% of its energy from clean, renewable sources by 2015. Xcel offers a WindSource program which charges customers an additional fee to get some or all of their power from wind. Wind power is now competitive in price with more polluting fuels. Why should individuals be paying more for wind towards Xcel's profits when we could have all of St. Paul get a portion of its energy from wind power without additional charges?

"What else could we ask for?

"Other cities like Chula Vista in California have asked their utilities during franchise agreements to fund new public parks with price tags of $350,000.

"The point of all these suggestions is that we can create the most visionary and far-reaching agreement and partnership with Xcel through the franchise agreement.

"Finally, I believe Saint Paul needs to create a Sustainability Programs director position from the increased franchise fees as Seattle, Chicago, Portland and Cleveland have recently done to implement the goals of the city sustainability plan, to work with the Neighborhood Energy Consortium and other non-profit environmental groups and to make St. Paul the greenest and most energy-efficient - and the cheapest city in which to do business relative to energy costs.

"Property taxes are essentially regressive, hurting those on fixed and low incomes. I propose we look carefully at this other ignored source of revenue, because it is less regressive and its costs can be offset by building in conservation measures.

"Why do I and many other St. Paulites care about this? Because our use and mis-use of energy affects absolutely every area of our lives.

"Whether we talk about the consequences of an unjust war in Iraq to feed our foreign oil addiction which is draining our country of money and squandering the lives of our brave young people, or whether we talk about the polluting energy we use that poisons the air our children breathe and the fish they eat, or whether we just talk about the increased energy costs absolutely every citizen has to pay, there is no excuse for St. Paul to avoid taking a more proactive stance. We simply cannot wait for national or state leadership on this issue. This isn?t about cutting fat, it is about cutting waste--wasted energy, wasted money and wasted lives. It is mayors in other cities that are leadingthe way on energy conservation and environmental issues. And we have an opportunity through this election to do something about it.

"There is simply no greater challenge to this country, this state, and this city in the 21st Century than energy policy. It affects our security - far more than MS-13 - it affects our health, and it threatens to affect our very existence on this planet. So I leave you with a question: Why am I the only candidate for mayor of St. Paul talking about these critical connections, and this pivotal issue?

"Thank you."

News About Our Own

2005-08-15T12:26:00.000-07:00

Robert Ingrassia, a founding member of Scoop, is taking a new position at the Pioneer Press and will no longer be contributing to the blog. He is switching from reporter to editor, taking over a team leader slot for the local news desk. Reporters covering public safety, state and federal courts, Minneapolis and general assignment stories will report to Ingrassia. His new job begins soon. Ingrassia has covered St. Paul City Hall since June 2003. The paper has not yet named a replacement. Tim Nelson will shoulder the blog responsibilities on his own until Team Scoop is made whole again. Help him out by passing along news tidbits and other "blog-able" items

The High Tech Scoop

2005-08-12T12:58:00.000-07:00

The Scoop is going multimedia this campaign season, and the first thing we're going to bring you is audio from a recent Randy Kelly "block party," held at the Klub Haus, at 1079 Rice St., on Aug. 10. About 35 people attended the gathering, one of about 70 the mayor is doing around the city this campaign season.

The main event was a 13-minute speech Kelly gave after the crowd had downed some meatballs and chicken wings. It was the second time the Scoop had heard the speech and while it changed slightly between appearances, the core features remained pretty much the same.

Kelly was introduced by Bruce Larson, proprieter of the Klub Haus and general North End legend. You can listen to the audio by clicking here.

It's about a 3 meg file, and it runs about 13 minutes. If you have dialup Internet access or don't want to sit throug the whole thing, you can also read a transcript of the stump speech below.

"Well, Bruce, thank you for that very kind introduction.

"Thank you all very much for coming tonight. Let me once again extend my appreciation to Bruce Larson for being such a strong community supporter, a great partner for the North End, Rice Street, but for the community of St. Paul. Over the four years that I have gotten to know Bruce as mayor, whenever I have needed, needed something, I have been able to pick up the phone and I have been able to access Bruce and his generosity and his warm heart. And he always says, Mayor anything that is good for St. Paul, that he wants to be a part of, and for that I thank you so very very much. The fact is that this facility, this beautifully renovated facility in which we are in tonight, would not have been possible without Bruce Larson. This is just one of many things he does for our community and for that we are very very grateful.

"I am so pleased to have such a great combination of people here tonight. It's wonderful to have some of our North End, Rice Street successful businesses, business people, here. It is marvelous that folks have been on this avenue for so long, have stuck through thick and thin to keep this neighborhood and this community strong and prosperous, and I hope that I will be able to serve for the next four years as a partner to help work in partnership with all of you to keep Rice Street, North End flourishing and moving forward.

"Things in St. Paul, I think are good. I talked to several business people here tonight. I say 'How are things going?' And if I had asked that question several years ago, people would have kind of hung their head and said, 'Well, we're making it.'

"But tonight, as I talk to business people here tonight, people are saying that the economy is strong that things are good and that business is good. And that is encouraging to hear. I think that both at the local, the state and the national level the economy finally seems like it is now starting to pick up, gaining momentum and that is good news for all of us.

"As we know, four years ago, next month, was 9/11. And that was a pretty traumatic time for America. But it had some devastating impacts in addition to the thousands of lives lost; it had a tremendous negative impact on our economy. That one incident, we calculate, sucked probably over a million jobs out of the American economy in a very short period of time, and we are still recovering, from an economic standpoint, from that.

"But in addition to 9/11, as I was telling a group just about a half hour ago, we have seen in the course of the last four years a war in Afghanistan, a continuing war in Iraq. We have seen the dot com burst, we have seen corporate scandals, and then here in Minnesota, when governor Pawlenty was elected in November of 2002, discovered that we had the largest state deficit that this state had ever faced, 4.5 billion dollars. And that has had a very difficult impact on cities like St. Paul, cities that are dependent upon on the state for local government aid. Minneapolis, St. Paul, Duluth. We lost some 56 million dollars in 03, 04 and 05, in those three years, from the state of Minnesota.

"But you know, we didn't complain. We didn't wring our hands. We rolled up our sleeves, working with the city council and with great partners, we were able to balance our budget.

"Two thousand five marks the twelfth straight year that we have not raise the city's property tax share, and no other city, to the best of my knowledge, in Minnesota, can probably claim that. We did it by balancing our budget, not raising property taxes, not laying off police officers or firefighters. Not closing parks or recs or libraries.

"As a matter of fact, I was visiting with my library director some time ago, and she pointed out, she was comparing and contrasting St. Paul and Minneapolis. She said in the spring of 2003, St. Paul provided about 650 hours library hours (per week) to our community and Minneapolis was at about 700 (per week). Two years later, in the spring of 2005, we are providing 702 hours of library services. Minneapolis is providing 450. They have dropped that much. Their branch libraries are open only three days a week, and that is at a time when they have been systematically, each one of these years, raising their property taxes.

"So we have kept our city affordable, so that businesses and residents will not flee our city and be willing to grow and expand.

"We've kept our city safe. We've had double digit crime, overall crime decreases over the last, over the last three years. And that's important for...(A group of kids enter.) Welcome, welcome. Good to see you. And that's important because public safety is, of course, important if we are going to keep people in our city, keep business growing and expanding in our city.

"Our housing initiative is going very, very well in St. Paul. When I came into office, I pulled all of the housing stakeholders together and I said we need to build 5,000 additional housing units over the course of the next four years. That will bring over a billion dollars worth of housing production to St. Paul, allow possibly 10,000 additional people to move to our city to enjoy our quality of life. And we need to make sure that at least 20 percent of those, 1,000 of those units, are affordable to low income people. And I am happy to tell you that at the end of 2005, we will exceed that 5,000 goal and we will exceed our affordability goal and that means that our tax base is growing and expanding and that our neighborhoods are stronger.

"In terms of job growth, in spite of a sputtering economy over the last four years, things have begun to turn around in St. Paul and jobs are expanding in our city. This year we anticipate a job growth of about 2,300, so far as we calculated it, over 2,300 additional jobs in St. Paul. We will add a new corporate headquarters to our city every month during the year of 2005. Gander Mountain kicked things off in February -- the fastest growing retail sports chain in America -- by bringing over 230 some workers to downtown St. Paul. Kemps food has consolidated their headquarters in St. Paul, coming from Minneapolis. A company as far away as Boise, Idaho, an insurance company, moving to downtown St. Paul. Fifteen additional bioscience companies in our bioscience corridor as of September first, will be coming to St. Paul -- one as far away as Switzerland.

"Things are going well, we have heard good news on the transportation side. We all know that to have a healthy, prosperous, connected community you have got to invest in a strong transportation system. A little over a month ago we got good news form the U.S. Postal Service, saying that they would be willing to sell us their facility, their 16 story facility there on Kellogg right next to the river. That means that we can continue to expand and develop our riverfront. But more importantly, it means we can recapture the Union Depot, convert it into a multi-modal transportation hub, which will be the home for light rail transit, commuter rail, high speed rail, eventually to Milwaukee and Chicago, for our Jefferson bus lines, our Amtrak. And so I am very very excited.

"We are also completing this year, at the end of, I think, October, the Phalen Boulevard. And that has been a nine year process. That means we will have created over 1,200 housing units along that corridor. A couple thousand jobs so far on Phalen Boulevard. But we need to connect that to 35E and we were successful in getting some federal dollars to begin that process here just 10 days or so ago.

"But what we also need to do is we need to connect Pierce Butler where it stops right now at Dale Street. We need to push Pierce Butler under Dale Street and connect it to the Phalen Boulevard, creating a whole new east-west corridor from the East Side of St. Paul clear to Minneapolis and to the University of Minnesota.

"So there is much more that we need to do. We need to continue to make sure our city is affordable, that it is safe, that we continue to expand housing and provide people an opportunity to enjoy the quality of life that we do here in our strong neighborhoods. We need to continue to set a table here in the city of St. Paul, saying that this city is open for business, that we want business to prosper here and businesses to locate and relocate here.

"Now my opponent has, his major criticism of me, as far as I can tell, is that he believes that I am not partisan enough. And what I have been asking people is this: Is partisanship getting us anywhere in this country? I have talked to Senator. Coleman or Senator Dayton, Representative McCollum. Things are miserable in Washington D.C.. Democrats and Republicans fighting along political, ideological lines, rather than focusing on what's in the best interest of our country. And many times, in Washington, it results in gridlock.

"At the state capitol, we have seen that playing itself out for the last two years. The 2004 legislative session ended without getting much of anything done. It think we can shoot mourning doves now as a result of the 2004 legislative session . Two thousand five, again, the regular session ended because of partisan bickering, where they didn’t get a budget bill passed, education, a healthcare bill, transportation bill passed. And for seven weeks we watched partisan wrangling taking place to the point where we closed down part of state government, the first time in our 147 years as a state.

"That's what partisanship is getting us on the national and on the state level, and my opponent suggests that we need to visit that here in St. Paul.

"What I tell people is that over the last decade, the transformation that has occurred in our city and the renaissance that has taken place has not been the result of partisanship. It has been the result of partnership. People willing to work together. Democrats and Republicans. City working with businesses, working with labor, working with the neighborhoods, working with the foundations toward a common agenda of propelling St. Paul forward.

"And I can tell you as long as I am mayor, I don't care what your party label is. If we have a city that works, because we're willing to work with anyone who is willing to work with us to make St. Paul a better place.

"And so what I ask all of you to do is to be sure to get out and vote this fall in the primary, as well as in the general. I would love to have your support, your consideration.

"I am enthusiastic. I love this city. I am enthusiastic about its future, and I am enthusiastic about leading it in this first part of this new century. St. Paul has a tremendous amount of promise. We are a good city, but I can tell you that there are so many things that we can do to really become a great, great American city here in our country.

"So I would ask for your consideration, your support. I'll stop talking and I will be happy to answer any questions or to receive any advice and counsel that you good people might have for me. So thank you for being here tonight."

St. Paul: We're number 36!

2005-08-11T12:57:00.000-07:00

A new study by the Bay Area Center for Voting Research says St. Paul ranks 36th most liberal among the nation's 237 cities with populations of 100,000 or more.

The Berkeley-based think tank examined voting records across the country and ranked each city. Detroit, Mich, ranked as the most liberal and Provo, Utah, ranked as the most conservative.

You can see the listings yourself at http://votingresearch.org/USAliberalcities.doc.

There's some amusing correlations in the rankings. Madison, Wis., home to the nation's largest organized celebration of the marijuana harvest, known as Weedstock, ranked only two notches above St. Paul, and 11 spots BELOW that left wing bastion to the west, Minneapolis.

But it wasn't just a matter of politics, BACVR researchers found. They noted a direct correlation between voting patterns and racial makeup. The higher the proportion a city had of African Americans, the more liberally it tended to vote. "The great political divide in America today is not red vs. blue, north vs. south, costal vs. interior or even rich vs. poor. It is now clearly black vs. white," said Phil Reiff, a BACVR director in a release that accompanies the study.

That's certainly true in St. Paul, where minority and white precincts have been sharply divided in recent polling, particularly during municipal elections.

Green Party graffiti

2005-08-08T11:45:00.000-07:00

Vandals! Again!

The Kelly campaign isn't the only outfit in town dealing with illicit campaigning these days.

Freelance Green Party supporters were out this week tagging some windows with Elizabeth Dickinson graffiti, although it looks like they were kind enough to do it with a water-soluble paint marker.

Here's what the front of the old Play it Again Sports location looked like this morning on Cleveland. Willie's Guitars had similar scrawlings on one of its front windows, as well.

"We have a list of about two dozen places," said Dickinson campaign manager Mary Petrie (regular Scoop readers may remember her from the lawn sign kickoff, http://stpaulcityhall.blogspot.com/2005/07/campaign-notes-contd.html, in which she demonstrated how to properly support a candidate).

The Dickinson campaign, which says they didn't have anything to do with it and opposes the vandalism, has actuallly dispatched a volunteer already with a bucket of soapy water to remove the offending expressions of support at Grand Photo.

"We thought it would be the nice thing to do," Petrie said.

Dickinson's spokesman and husband, though, suggested today that darker forces might be at work.

"From the extremely well-organized and extensive nature of the tagging of small businesses especially, we can't help but wonder if someone supporting another candidate is trying to give us a black eye," Christopher Childs wrote in an email release "The moreso, given Elizabeth's focus on small businesses and our cultivation of support from them."

Kelly campaign spokesman Vince Muzik also condemned the vandalism on Monday. "People should be talking about the issues instead of doing stuff like this," he said.

That was April; this is August

2005-08-05T17:40:00.000-07:00

The Scoop has recently obtained an invitation to the Randy Kelly fundraiser that will feature a visit by Chicago mayor Richard Daley, billed recently as "America's Top Mayor" by Time magazine.

But that was April.

The new issue of Time -- which reportedly arrived in many mailboxes, by some reports, the same day as the fundraiser invite -- has another story on Daley, detailing the twin corruption scandals dogging the Chicago legend. Nearly a dozen city officials have pleaded guilty to bribery and patronage related charges in the last year. The Time article includes salacious details, such as U.S. Attorney Patrick Fitzgerald's allegations that a heroin ring was operating out of a Chicago water filtration plant.
Sheesh.

Between giving up the goods in the Karl Rove brouhaha and then following up its "Top Mayor" story with coverage of a Chicago scandal that broke in 2004, you gotta kind of wonder what's going on over there in the hallowed offices of America's news magazine.

But the Scoop does digress. Here's the cover of the Kelly fundraiser invite. The best details are inside.

The fundraiser is a "reception honoring Mayor Randy Kelly for his strong and principled leadership of St. Paul," and the invite lists as "special guests" none other than the state's top two Republican office holders, Sen. Norm Coleman and Gov. Tim Pawlenty.

The Scoop is practically salivating at the thought of being in the same Summit Avenue mansion with that political mix -- although since Norm Coleman is reported to be lining up as one of Rove's principal defenders, and the same prosecutor investigating that CIA leak is also after Daley, maybe they'll actually have a lot to talk about.

But alas, the suggested contribution to the Kelly campaign for the 5:30 p.m. reception on Aug. 15 is a whopping $500. The 6 p.m. "remarks by Mayor Daley," however, are half-price. You can hear Hizzoner at 6 p.m. for just $250.

A mayoral race record-breaker?

This will likely be the most expensive mayoral race in Minnesota history, and if you don't believe it, you should see the independent expenditures waiting in the wings.

The Scoop has obtained a fundraising letter sent out by the Chamber of Commerce's political action committee outlining some details of its "Victory 2005 plan."
You read earlier in the Scoop about the survey work the chamber has been up to. Well, expect some more calls.

"Thanks to our generous supporters, we have raised nearly half of our $100,000 fundraising goal," says the letter. The July 29 missive, signed by chamber executive Larry Dowell and board chair-elect Dan Foote -- and confirmed by the chamber this afternoon -- says the PAC wants to meet its fundraising goal by Aug. 16. That figures out to be about $115 an hour at the rate the group wants to raise it.

That's some real ching there for their candidate. The PAC endorsed incumbent Randy Kelly in February.

No sign of what Kelly's opponents are organizing. The chamber's bete noire, Progressive Minnesota, politely demurred about its plans on behalf of its endorsee, mayoral candidate Chris Coleman. "We will spend what we need to run an effective campaign," director Ben Goldfarb said this afternoon.

How much?

"I won't say," he replied. But in a polite way.

"In elections, there are several different kinds of power. Money is one of those. People are the other. And that's the resource we will bring to the table," Goldfarb said.

By the way, another independent group raising money out there is looking a little anemic these days. You might recall the Scoop's recent report of the state DFL's interest in the St. Paul mayor's race, since Minneapolis couldn't agree on a DFL endorsee in that mayoral race. The new state DFL chair, Brian Melendez (a Jay Benanav contributor back in 2001) sent out a fundraising letter this summer for the "St. Paul Coordinated Campaign." It vowed to "take back our capital city." The party, by the way, endorsed Coleman in April.

But check the state DFL's Web site, at www.dfl.org. The thermometer-type money gauge the party has on its home page has been stuck at a tepid $6,215 for more than a week now. Hmmm. That seems more like BUS FARE back to the capital city.

So Much for Security

2005-08-05T15:45:00.000-07:00

"An unbelievable mystery" unfolded at St. Paul police headquarters this week in a roomful of politicians, attorneys, cops and media, according to Paul Schnell, a police spokesman.

Before a Wednesday news conference about a major drug sweep in St. Paul, Pioneer Press St. Paul public safety reporter Mara H. Gottfried turned on her Sony micro-cassette recorder and placed it on a podium to get a quality recording.

St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly, Police Chief John Harrington and Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner were among those who stepped to the podium to speak.

After the news conference on the sixth floor, which houses the chief's office and can only be reached by keycard, Gottfried walked out of the room to conduct additional interviews. When she went to retrieve the recorder, the tiny tape inside was missing.

Gottfried immediately believed a theft had occurred, but Schnell questioned that theory.

"Who knows what the motivation would be in taking a tape?" Schnell said tongue in cheek Friday. "I'm not confident that you aren't trying to create a media event (by fabricating a report of theft from a room full of bigwigs)."

Scoop wondered whether the fiercely competitive atmosphere of Twin Cities journalism wars might be at play . . .

Nah, it was only a recording of a news conference, not a tape of Watergate-esque proportions.

Carl Kuhl, Kelly's spokesman, called the incident "strange," adding his assurances that it would be inconceivable that such a theft could be "the practice of anyone from the city when it comes to working with the media."

More polling data

2005-08-04T13:30:00.000-07:00

The mayoral pollsters were busy again last night, we hear, with the standard three-question Chamber of Commerce-esque survey, asking about issue priorities, party allegiance and mayoral candidate preference.

Apparently, one City Hall Scoop reader did the favor of playing dumb and asked who was running. The pollster listed Randy Kelly, Elizabeth Dickinson and Chris Coleman, although the Scoop doesn't know in which order. (They're listed here merely in reverse alphabetical, alternating with the usual alphabetical order).
A kindly Scoop reader even had the presence of mind to jot down the number on their caller ID. It was 866-471-6990. A call to the number this morning didn't yield much. "Our offices are now closed. Please call back at a later date." The dial-0-for-an-operator option was equally unproductive.

Drat. It's such a pleasure to call people back who call you at home to ask you a bunch of questions.

A fifth column?

The recent polling questions about Elizabeth Dickinson technically put the Green Party endorsee on the radar, even if Dickinson had only 862 votes in her last primary, the 2nd Ward council election in 2003. Even if she matched that in all six other wards in September, it still likely wouldn't be enough to get her through the primary.

But maybe she'll be getting a little help.

Some of the most pointed criticism of Chris Coleman this year has come from his left, particularly during the runup to the DFL endorsement in April. Or at least it SEEMED to be coming from the left.

Who knows who was actually responsible for it.

A series of e-mails critiquing Coleman's city council career appeared on the St. Paul issues forum, allegedly from a Mike Nelson of Mac-Groveland. (State records show there are three of them. One of them told the Scoop it wasn't him. A second died five years ago. The other doesn't have his answering machine on. E-mail replies to mikey1989_179@hotmail.com bounce back, and there haven't been any postings since April.) At any rate, the e-mails start with "Being rather new to all of this . . . " and then go on to recall, with admirable accuracy, Coleman's accession in February 2001 to an exception to the living wage ordinance for the city-funded downtown Dayton's store remodeling. That's back in the dim mists of time, politically speaking.

You can read the mail for yourself at
http://www.mail-archive.com/stpaul@mnforum.org/msg05944.html
http://www.mail-archive.com/stpaul@mnforum.org/msg06003.html
http://www.mail-archive.com/stpaul@mnforum.org/msg06029.html

They read a lot more like an opposition research dossier than the musings of a forum lurker, and the challenge to Coleman's liberal bona fides sound a lot more like a seasoned City Hall type than a Green Party upstart. A reliable source has told the Scoop that such suspicions may be well founded.

"It wasn't me," swears Jane Prince, who is the aide to 4th Ward Council Member Jay Benanav, the DFL endorsee who Coleman didn't support in 2001. That's just one of the positions Mr. Nelson takes Coleman to task for in the e-mails. Benanav backed Rafael Ortega's bid for the DFL endorsement that Coleman won in April, and Prince is supporting Elizabeth Dickinson this time around.

"I remember this guy, though, and I e-mailed him to ask him who he was," Prince said. "I never got a reply."

Vandals!

Normally, political lawn sign vandalism doesn't rise anywhere near the level of noteworthiness, but a sign at the corner of Dunlap and Portland caught the Scoop's eye the other day. So much so, that we're going to show it to you right here.
The interesting thing about this particular act isn't so much the content of the message.

Randy Kelly makes no bones about endorsing President Bush last year (some are even speculating that the recent $50 million pledged to the rehabilitation of St Paul's Union Depot might be the quid pro quo that the mayor has denied at every opportunity). And the endorsement scarcely needs repeating, since Kelly's opponents repeat it with mantra-like regularity.

What's interesting about this sign is the way it got painted. The words aren't just spray-painted on the sign. Someone actually made a stencil for it. To make sure the crime could be readily repeated. ("It's always in yellow paint, too," a Kelly campaign staffer notes.) The Kelly campaign seems to be replacing the signs as quickly as they're defaced, but the Scoop's hunch is that the illicit commentary is happening with some regularity.

"We totally discourage it," says Chris Coleman spokesman Bob Hume. "And our signs have been vandalized as well."

Out in the Field, Part II

2005-08-02T14:21:00.000-07:00

An outfit called Midwest Campaign Research is out in the field, polling prospective St. Paul voters.

The Scoop got a call last night from a woman who said she was calling from Montgomery, Ala. (alas, the Scoop, loath to pay the phone company an extra penny, has foregone Caller ID) and asking questions about the St. Paul mayor's race.

The pollster asked the Scoop to pick a top issue from a list that included housing, transportation, jobs, economic development and education. She also asked for the Scoop's party affiliation and preferred mayoral candidate. Alas, the Scoop should have played stupid and asked to be reminded who was running, but neglected to do so.

The caller said that she was not calling on behalf of any candidate, but the survey sure sounded a lot like the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce "survey" back in June (http://stpaulcityhall.blogspot.com/2005/07/chamber-of-commerce-out-in-field.html). The chamber endorsed Mayor Randy Kelly in February and counts among its ranks some of the incumbent's staunchest supporters.

If you get a similar call, or any other interesting campaign tidbits, do drop the Scoop a line and elaborate, would you? We're available 24/7 at scoop@pioneerpress.com.

A brand-new baby DFLer?
The former St. Paul mayoral spokeswoman may actually have been candid last summer when she said that she was leaving City Hall for personal reasons.

Laura Mortenson and her husband, Gary, are the proud parents of Lily Anastasia Aurora Mortenson, who was born July 25 at Abbott Northwestern, the Scoop has learned. From the mom herself, no less. Lily, who weighed in at 7 pounds, 5 ounces and measured 21-1/2 inches long, is home and eating like a champ, according to a statement released by mom this morning.

Mortenson, you may recall, was last spotted in the City Hall Scoop volunteering for the U.S. Senate campaign of Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar, a DFLer. Mortenson and Justin Buoen, another Kelly staffer, both departed just weeks after Kelly’s Aug. 1 endorsement of George W. Bush for re-election.

It must have been a coincidence.

The mayor with the bounty on his head

2005-08-02T11:17:00.000-07:00

In case you missed the recent developments in Chicago, the Cook County Republican Party last week put up a $10,000 reward for any information that leads to the indictment and conviction of Mayor Richard M. Daley.

Daley, by the way, last month endorsed St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly's re-election bid and is scheduled to come to St. Paul for a fundraiser on Kelly's behalf.

But it wouldn't be surprising if the mayor from Illinois had to take a scheduling pass: He is mired in several Chicago corruption scandals. Last Friday, an 11th ranking city official pleaded guilty to corruption charges in federal court stemming from bribes related to trucking firms hired to do city work. Another federal investigation is looking into charges that the Daley administration was offering political cronies -- allegedly including a dead man -- city jobs.

Daley, in the meantime, has floated a bid for the 2016 Olympics.

Cook County Republican chair Gary Skoien admitted to the Chicago Tribune that his party doesn't even have $4,000 in the bank, let alone $10,000, but he says he'll get the money if need be.

No Wage Wedge?

2005-07-28T11:54:00.000-07:00

Hopes among some progressives in St. Paul that the living-wage issue would become a club against Mayor Randy Kelly appear to be fading.

The mayor agrees with "75 percent" of what the St. Paul Living Wage Yes! Coalition is trying to accomplish, Susan Kimberly, Kelly's economic development director, told the City Council on Wednesday. Her comments blunt the notion that the topic would blow up in advance of the November election, driving moderates away from Kelly's camp.

The coalition, which includes a variety of grass-roots groups, labor unions and religious organizations, wants the city to adopt more stringent salary requirements for businesses that accept public handouts. The group is pushing for the council to pass an ordinance that would require subsidized firms to pay wages that would put a worker at 130 percent of the federal poverty line, or $12.09 per hour for someone in a family of four. A current city policy sets the salary minimum at 110 percent of the poverty line.

Kelly's opponent, former Council Member Chris Coleman, backs the coalition's drive, as does Green Party mayoral candidate Elizabeth Dickinson. Kelly remains concerned about the coalition's desire to put city contractors under the living-wage rules. The mayor also is pressing for broader input from business groups and others.

Quibbles aside, it looks like the living-wage issue may go out this fall not with a bang, but a whimper.

At least it wasn't in Honolulu

2005-07-27T11:23:00.000-07:00

The Ramsey County Board may be the most obscure government body in town -- other than the soil and water conservation board, anyway -- but one member of the panel gained a little attention lately.

County Commissioner Jan Parker (formerly known as Wiessner -- she's dropped the name that she used on the election ballot) shot a hole-in-one at the Island Lake Golf Center on July 21. She hit a 97-yard drive with a 7-iron into the cup -- during tournament play in the North Suburban Golden K Kiwanis Golf Tournament, no less.

Thank goodness she did it in Shoreview, so the Scoop wouldn't have to explain that she accomplished that during the National Association of Counties convention in Hawaii last week, since she didn't go.

Parker, of New Brighton, scored the ace shortly after most of her board colleagues, including Tony Bennett, Jim McDonough, Victoria Reinhardt, Toni Carter and Rafael Ortega, wrapped up their work on the island paradise. Commissioner Janice Rettman also stayed home.

That's Cap'n Andy to you!

Andy Dawkins, St. Paul's Neighborhood Housing and Property Improvement program director, seems to have really ticked off Jim Swartwood and the rest of the staff at The Watchdog, the Minneapolis tabloid published -- by the looks of it -- to air the views of rental property owners.

The May/June issue portrayed Dawkins as a vampire ready to sink his fangs into a bedridden St. Paul woman. The new July/August issue features the former legislator on the cover with blacked-out teeth and a skull-and-crossbones cap, straddling a treasure chest barefooted. The cover story refers to him as a "property pirate" and calls him "ever the progressive fascist."

Yeow.

The Scoop is moving!

2005-07-26T15:33:00.000-07:00

Well, given the recent changes in interest rates and the cooling of the housing market, the Scoop decided now would be a good time to find a new home.

So, the Scoop is moving to a brand spankin' new site, with a cool, easy-to-remember domain. From now on, you'll be able to find us at www.cityhallscoop.com.

It'll be the same witty banter, the same heart-stopping political gossip and all the fun, pointless analysis you've come to expect from the Scoop.

So, bookmark it now, and you'll be able to go right to the very heart of the matter. Instantly.

Go ahead. Try us now: www.cityhallscoop.com.

Cover Boy

2005-07-25T01:44:00.000-07:00

Mayor Randy Kelly made the cover of the latest issue of Lavender, which bills itself as "Minnesota's Gay-Lesbian-Bisexual-Transgender Magazine."

The mayor sat for an interview with Lavender contributor Heidi Fellner. But if you pick up the free biweekly publication, don't expect to be enlightened on Kelly's thoughts about gay marriage or any other issue percolating through the GLBT community in the Twin Cities. None of the 10 questions put to Kelly touches on issues specific to the magazine's target audience.

Instead, Kelly talks at length about the city's business climate, transit projects and downtown development. The magazine didn't ask the mayor about his decision last fall to cross party lines and endorse President Bush, who backs a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage. (Scoop notes that when Kelly announced his Bush endorsement Aug. 1, he said he would prefer that the president focus greater energy on the federal budget deficit and "resist those who believe gay marriage should be an issue to divide America to win an election.")

Softball interviews aside, Kelly still faces an uphill fight to win support from the gay community in this fall's mayoral election. The gay and lesbian Stonewall DFL caucus has endorsed Kelly's rival, former City Council Member Chris Coleman.

Is that a speargun, or are you just glad to see me?

2005-07-22T16:14:00.000-07:00

Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff was in town to observe a joint exercise at the Emergency Operations Center at St. Paul police headquarters today and pronounced himself satisfied with the results of what officials at a press briefing called a "port security" exercise.

Hmmm. The story in the Pioneer Press this week about riverboat tourists being banned in St. Paul got the Scoop thinking about what exactly they were practicing. You might recall that passengers are being put ashore in Red Wing and bused to St. Paul because Lambert's Landing here hasn't been declared "secure."

The Scoop asked mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl about it. Here's what the Scoop understands they were contemplating in St. Paul's situation room:

The Mississippi Queen riverboat is heading for St. Paul with 500 passengers ready to disembark amid the city's Taste of Minnesota and Fourth of July celebrations. Also on board is a U.S. senator, a ranking member of the Armed Services Committee, in the middle of a heated re-election race.

"As the vessel approaches Lambert's Landing, the St. Paul Police Department receives a call from the FBI. They have received credible intelligence that a terrorist cell has been located in the area and has purchased fishing boats and diving equipment," says a draft summary of the situation.

Hmm. The Scoop wonders. This sounds vaguely familiar, not unlike the Grand Excursion the St. Paul Riverfront Corp. put on last year. Except for one thing: that Armed Services committee assignment. Hey! That's not Norm Coleman slaloming between terrorist cells for a patriotic return to his adopted hometown! He's on the Permanent Subcommittee for Investigations!

Let's see . . . who does the Scoop know that's on the Armed Services committee?

Why, that looks like Democrat Mark Dayton waving from the rail of the Mississippi Queen! And who's that dressed all in black and throttling up their Evinrude under the Robert Street bridge?

No, no. Not Ron Maddox! The other guy! And, even more importantly, who would Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty name to serve out the rest of the late senator's term in Washington if this terrorist scenario came to pass?

FIRE!

2005-07-21T19:00:00.000-07:00

The International Association of Fire Fighters Local 21 is a little ticked at St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly, and members decided to remind him of that fact on Thursday at the groundbreaking for a new downtown fire station at Minnesota and 10th Street.

It replaces the 70-odd-year-old Station 8 on the east side of Minnesota. The new station will be in the southeast corner of what looks like the parking ramp for the Elmer L. Andersen Human Services Building going up where the old Capitol Square office building was torn down.

Kelly attended a groundbreaking ceremony with one-time interim St. Paul Fire Chief Al Bataglia and his successor, Doug Holton, among others. But standing at the back of the crowd were some of St. Paul's other finest, four members of the city's fire union, wearing their "Firefighters for Chris Coleman" T-shirt.

Captains Mike Selander, left, and Doug Wardell, center, and firefighter Randy Bibeau, right, all came downtown for the occasion. "Looks like the guys took scowling lessons," said one fire official who eyeballed the protest.

Kelly's staff, who'd heard there might actually be picketing at the groundbreaking, was underwhelmed. "We'd heard there were going to be a hundred," said one Kelly staffer. "So much for their organizing."

The firefighters union has been working without a contract for more than a year and officially endorsed Coleman in his bid for mayor this spring. Union head Pat Flanagan said there were better uses for city money than building new fire stations.

"The building there at Station 8, there's nothing wrong with that building. It's old, but it was built well ... If we are in such a crunch financially, why are we paying $300,000 in lease payments that we didn't have before?"

Ahoy, Indianapolis!

2005-07-21T11:41:00.000-07:00

St. Paul City Council Member Dan Bostrom is heading to Indianapolis today for a reunion of the survivors of the U.S.S. Indianapolis, lost to a Japanese torpedo on July 30, 1945, only days after delivering the first U.S. atomic bomb to a Pacific air base to be dropped on Hiroshima.

It was the worst sea disaster in U.S. naval history: Of 1,196 men aboard, about 900 made it into the water before the ship sank, but only 317 survived the five days of deprivation and shark attacks that followed the attack. The Navy had been unaware the ship went down until an anti-submarine patrol spotted the survivors.

So what does St. Paul have to do with World War II in the Pacific, you might ask?

Well, as it happens, one of the 90 or so living survivors is St. Paul native Lyle Pasket, now of Eagan.

The cruiser Indianapolis was also a "sister ship" of the "Fighting Saint," seen here. The U.S.S. St. Paul fought in World War II, Korea and Vietnam. Her bell was shipped to St. Paul's City Hall in 1971, after the ship was decomissioned, and stands just outside the City Council chambers now.

"I was here when it arrived," Bostrom said this week. A former St. Paul police officer, he was the department's driver for legendary Mayor Charlie McCarty when St. Paul got the bell. Or rather, John Landmark, building superintendant at the time, got it, according to this photo.

Bostrom is taking nearly 100 miniature "Seaman Snoopy" statues, which commemorate the U.S.S. Minneapolis-St. Paul, to Indianapolis for presentation to the survivors of the World War II attack.

Finney: 'I'm supporting Chris Coleman.'

2005-07-19T17:23:00.000-07:00

Contrary to suspicions, hopes, fears and whatever else might have been going on, former St. Paul Police Chief Bill Finney is NOT running for mayor, just as he said last November.

Ramsey County elections officials gently pointed out to the Scoop this afternoon that the same form Finney picked up this morning could be used to file for any number of races -- including the Ramsey County Sheriff election next year, so his visit to the election bureau in the hours before the mayoral and school board filings closed wasn't as momentous as the Scoop would have led you to believe.

The Scoop deeply regrets the error.

As for Finney, here's what he had to say this afternoon, after having campaigned with former City Council Member Chris Coleman today: "I am with Chris Coleman. I am supporting him and I want to see him become the next mayor of St. Paul."

There was one additional filing this afternoon. Jesse Nicholas, a political neophyte from the West End, filed for school board. As the seventh candidate in the race, he put down his $2 filing fee and forced a Sept. 13 primary for the school board.

Is Finney bluffing?

2005-07-19T00:35:00.000-07:00

The Scoop has confirmed that former St. Paul Police Chief Bill Finney is in possession of the filing materials to run for mayor of St. Paul.

Finney stopped in the Ramsey County elections bureau this morning, asked for -- and left with -- the filing document, Minnesota Campaign Manual and other associated paperwork required to run against Mayor Randy Kelly, former City Council Member Chris Coleman, Green Party activist Elizabeth Dickinson and others heading for the Sept. 13 municipal primary.

Elections officials say he didn't fill out or turn in any of the paperwork, nor did he elaborate about why he wanted it. He is serving as an interim St. Paul school board member, a seat that will be up for election this fall and a race that he's run and won before. Filing for that office is also open.

But the Scoop's sources say it was a mayoral packet he picked up this morning.

Finney himself told the Scoop last week that he won't even consider entering the race. He is a co-chair of the Coleman campaign and said he continues to believe that Coleman can beat Kelly, the first-term incumbent.

The former chief did not return a message left for him this afternoon.

Finney hasn't been shy about his political aspirations, vying to be U.S. marshal when he was chief, suggesting he might challenge Kelly even before he left the police department and then applying to serve out Toni Carter's school board term after she was elected to the county board. The Pioneer Press also reported last month that he was exploring a bid to challenge Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher.

Mayoral filing closes at 5 p.m. today. Stay tuned to the Scoop for the latest.

Finney back in the race?

2005-07-14T14:10:00.000-07:00

A posting by East Side DFL operative Eric Mitchell on the online St. Paul Issues forum created something of a stir this afternoon, when he suggested that there was talk of former Police Chief Bill Finney filing for mayor yet this year.

Wrote Mitchell: "Former St Paul Police Chief Bill Finney is getting some pressure from folks to throw his hat in the mayoral race. Talked with two area political reporters and they are hearing the exact same thing. He's got until next Tuesday to file, so far he says he won't, but people are still asking and pushing. I'm not privy to poll numbers, but I'd bet anyone a buck that his negatives are much lower than the other two DFLers, and people generally have a good perception of him. How fun would that be? Or, what kind of mess would that create?"

(Sound here of the Scoop's mind boggling.)

Finney did hint long and hard that he wanted to take on Randy Kelly during his final months at the helm of the police department. The relative quiet of the mayoral campaign has also led to some grumbling, by Mitchell and others, that the Coleman campaign isn't "getting traction," as Governing magazine says in its July issue (see the "Minnesota Maverick" posting below).

Finney laughed, at great length, when he heard of Mitchell's suggestion, a few minutes after it was posted. (Finney himself has made news on the forum before, publicly castigating the mayor in February for keeping aide Sia Lo on board, despite an alleged FBI probe into Lo's dealings with a Hmong funeral home development on the West Side.)

But Finney -- who is co-chair, with George Latimer, of Coleman's campaign -- cast off his usual reticence today to say that he is in no way considering getting a late start on the mayoral race.

"I'm committed to supporting Chris Coleman and the DFL-endorsed candidate, and that's what I will do. I still think Chris has got the best chance of beating Randy this fall," Finney told the Scoop this afternoon.

"And for me, it's a matter of integrity. If I say I am going to support you, I am going to support you until you aren't there any more."

Will Bush backing backfire?

2005-07-14T13:10:00.000-07:00

A new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll is out today. "Public losing faith in Bush, Not in the War," says the WSJ headline on page A4.

From the story: "Mr. Bush's political standing has been weakened as he confronts controversy over a top aide's discussion of a Central Intelligence Agency operative's employment, a Supreme Court vacancy, his Social Security plan and Iraq. Majorities of Americans disapprove of the president's handling of the economy, foreign policy, and Iraq. And a plurality rates Mr. Bush negatively for 'being honest and straightforward' for the first time in his presidency."

The poll found that "fully 52 percent of the nation is 'off on the wrong track,' while just 34 percent say it is "headed in the right direction.' "

Senior citizens in particular are ticked off at Bush for his proposals to partially privatize Social Security, opposing it 71 to 19 percent, according to the WSJ poll. And those folks, who don't have to have the Presidential Dog and Pony Show to get them to the voting booth, are a big factor in off-year elections like St. Paul's.

Still, whether any of this makes any difference this fall is hard to tell.
Although Mayor Randy Kelly endorsed the president's re-election bid on Aug. 1, it's hard to argue bad poll numbers today would mark any new threat to Bush's allies.

Here's the final tally from the presidential elections in St. Paul in November:

Kerry: 99,832; 73.5 percent
Bush: 35, 663; 25.8 percent
Nader: 985; 0.8 percent

The interesting figure here is the Kerry margin, 64,169 votes. That's 7 percent more than all the people that showed up at the polls in November 2001, let alone Kelly's own 403-vote margin.

Governing Magazine: Kelly is 'Minnesota Maverick'

An item under Adam Greenblatt's byline in the new issue of the Washington, D.C.-based Governing magazine asks the same question on many political minds in St. Paul these days: "What was Randy thinking?"

The five-paragraph item leads with Kelly's endorsement of Bush and notes that Kelly has lost the support of his party "and has no easy way to get it back."

Still, the subsidiary of the Congressional Quarterly opines, "The reality is that politics in St. Paul is more fragmented than it appears in presidential vote totals. A freelance incumbent such as Kelly may have an easier time stitching together a winning set of constituencies than an opponent who has to stick to the program of a broad-based party."

Of Chris Coleman, the item says, "The challenger isn't gaining much traction so far on issues of governance," but it also says Coleman "is challenging Kelly in the general election this fall," which primary election voters, rather than Governing magazine, will be determining. So you can take that for what it's worth.

You can read the whole item at: http://66.23.131.98/archive/2005/jul/observer.txt

Chamber of Commerce out in the field

2005-07-13T18:20:00.000-07:00

The Scoop has received no less than four reports of this week's St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce calling, most of them dating to Monday night.

"It's a survey, not a poll," said C of C public affairs veep Sandra Westerman, when asked about the calls today. She declined to discuss the questions or responses, although she did say the group is not done yet.

The chamber, you might recall, endorsed Randy Kelly in February, only hours after he formally announced he was running for re-election. No one the Scoop talked to, though, has reported that the chamber is actively touting its candidate over the phone.

Here's the rest of what the Scoop gleaned from several survey participants:
The survey was short and lasted less than 10 minutes. It had probably 10 or fewer questions and touched on some very familiar themes, such as taxes and Compete St. Paul, the Coleman-era outsourcing effort.

One question apparently asked respondents to name their top two issues and offered a list that reportedly included "toeing the line on taxes" and "education." No one seemed to recall if "public safety" was on the list, but the Scoop would be (doing our best Claude Rains here) shocked, shocked to find that subject in the survey.

A second question reportedly asked whether it was important to "do whatever it takes to keep taxes down," or increase taxes to maintain services or "contract services out to reduce costs."

There reportedly also was a yes/no question on whether light rail should go down University Avenue -- an idea that the chamber has been standing four square behind lately -- and whether the opening of Ayd Mill Road was a good idea. There also seemed to be a question regarding whether council members should represent their neighborhoods or the city as a whole.

None of the respondents the Scoop has talked to recalled being asked about any specific names, such as Kelly opponent and DFL endorsee Chris Coleman or Green Party candidate Elizabeth Dickinson.

As we suggested above, this is mere hearsay about the survey. The Scoop's spouse hung up on the poll when the Chamber called on Monday night, so the Scoop doesn't have any direct knowledge of the survey. To the Scoop's GREAT consternation.

But if you get better intelligence on what's going on out there, drop us a line at scoop@pioneerpress or call 651-292-1159.

You'll feel better that you did. Really.

Why, look. Here comes the DFL! And right on time!

2005-07-13T15:20:00.000-07:00

You may recall the Scoop's May 20 post (http://stpaulcityhall.blogspot.com/2005/05/aw-heck-lets-go-play-in-st.html), when we speculated about the effects of the meltdown in the Minneapolis race here in St. Paul.

The DFL couldn't nail down an endorsement over there for incumbent R.T. Rybak or Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin despite trying for most of a Saturday to get the job done. And it was just a week before the state party meeting that selected a new state party chair. We suggested that the incoming chair might get a running start here in St. Paul, where there IS an endorsee and where the office has some real heft.

The Scoop has recently come into the possession of an e-mail from that very party chair, Brian Melendez. "Subject: Send Bush a Message and Take Back our Capital City!" It's addressed to "Dear DFL friend" and announces the formation of the "St. Paul Coordinated Campaign" and has a "Take Back Our Capital City" logo at the top.

(Shuffling sound here as the Scoop digs around for the 2001 fax the DFL sent out crowing about how the winners of both big city elections were DFLers, even though neither had the party endorsement and Kelly beat the party pick outright. Darn. Must have recycled that back in 2003. Another reason the Scoop will celebrate the demise of the fax machine.)

At any rate, the most interesting part of the e-mail isn't about the DFL, though: The missive mentions George W. Bush no less than five times.

While you might just chalk that up to being sore losers, the Scoop suspects that the DFL thinks -- and may even have evidence to the same effect -- there's some voltage left in that 2004 election battery. Kelly, after all, is still waving the Republican flag.

The June 16 letter his campaign sent out over Rudy Giuliani's signature includes the following passage:

"Give him a challenge and he'll met it. Tell him it can't be done and he'll show you it can . . . That's the mark of a leader. President Bush shows us those qualities every day and so does Randy Kelly."

Kelly may not have gotten any stage time with the commander in chief last month, like he did last fall (spokesman Carl Kuhl said Hizzoner didn't go out to the Maple Grove event in June) but he’s not exactly dodging the guy, either.

Anyway, here's the text of the e-mail from Brian Melendez for your perusal:

"Next year, in elections across Minnesota, voters will decide our state's direction and future. This year, a preview is underway in St. Paul: the battle over who will lead our state's capital city as its Mayor. This election is about more than who will lead one city. It's about whether voters will embrace the Bush administration, its ally Randy Kelly, and their agenda -- or will reject their failed policies, and send a message that we won't let the Republicans and their allies undermine our values and our safety.

"Last year, as Republican budget cuts threatened our quality of life, Randy Kelly was one of only a handful of Democratic officials around the country who endorsed George W. Bush for President. George Bush -- a President who has taken police officers off the street, and has slashed funding for homeland security, fire departments, and transportation, while spending our tax dollars paying for a foreign war.

"For years, Randy Kelly traveled under the Democratic banner when it suited his career. But last year, even though a solid majority of Minnesotans agreed that President Bush was taking our nation and our state in the wrong direction, Randy Kelly betrayed Democrats in one of the most important elections in history, and traded in his party and his principles for the national spotlight.

"How can we fight back? Randy Kelly's corporate allies have deep pockets, and we expect that big businesses will fund two-thirds of his campaign, spending over a million dollars on his behalf! We need your help in order to compete in St. Paul. While Randy Kelly spends money on slick advertising, our ground troops will be educating voters about what President Bush and the Republicans have done to our country, our state, and our capital city, and how Randy Kelly has endorsed these policies.

"We must reclaim our capital city so that it can again be a model for others. But we need your help.

"Please click here to make your contribution of $50, $100, $200 or whatever you can afford and help us meet our goal of $25,000 for this campaign. Your money will help fund organizers right now who will work to ensure a committed true-blue Democrat is elected to stand up to Washington and fight for our Minnesota values.

"Our DFL-endorsed candidates need your help to fight the policies that are destroying our Minnesota values and our way of life. Click here to find out more about our endorsed candidates. Please help today!"

Campaign Notes, Cont'd.

2005-07-11T17:30:00.000-07:00

Signs, signs, everywhere a sign, Part II

The Scoop went around to check out the sign blitz in St. Paul this weekend, and even hung around the Kelly campaign office for the official kickoff of the mayor's lawn sign campaign.

Here's a shot of Mayor Randy Kelly pounding the ceremonial first stick of rebar at Idaho Avenue and Dunlap Street early Saturday. He said his campaign planned to put up as many as 1,000 signs over the weekend, although that seems like a lot. With Kelly is supporter John Boulger, who did the driving for the mayor on Saturday morning.

The Elizabeth Dickinson campaign started putting up its own signs this weekend, too, although the Scoop has only seen a couple of them. Here you see Mary Petrie getting a little help from her 6-year-old daughter, Scarlett Thompson, and 9-year old son, Stryker (named after the West Side avenue), when they put up a sign for the Green Party candidate on Mound Street, near McLean Avenue.

It took a mere 90.5 hours for the first complaints of sign vandalism to make their way to the Scoop, by the way. Only about 2,846 hours to go until the general election!

Campaign veterans join the race

The Socialist Workers filing for St. Paul city elections this afternoon mark the entry of some veteran campaigners into the race.

School board candidate Rebecca Williamson may be a South St. Paul meatpacker now, but she was a candidate for the 4th Congressional District in Illinois last fall, although we couldn't find any indication that she got any votes on the Cook County or Chicago election Web sites. But then again, Democrat Luis Gutierrez pretty much won the election 5-to-1, so maybe you can just chalk it up to the scorched earth of Democratic Chicago politics.

Even more interesting, though, is that Jacob Perasso was an actual election opponent of Hillary Rodham Clinton. He ran against her for U.S. Senate in New York in 2000. You can check it out for yourself at www.fec.gov/pubrec/fe2000/2000senate.htm. He got 3,040 votes that year, finishing 3,744,270 votes behind Hillary.

Campaign Notes

2005-07-08T17:30:00.000-07:00

Signs, signs, everywhere a sign

The official political flower of summer started sprouting around St. Paul on Thursday night: lawn signs for the mayoral and school board races started going up in yards around the city.

The DFL started passing out its signs at the Labor Center, at 411 Main, and this "Chris Coleman for St. Paul" sign on Marshall Avenue was up by 8:30 p.m. The Kelly campaign is launching its sign campaign at 10 a.m. Saturday at the campaign headquarters at Bandana Square.

Jeanne Schnitzen, the lawn sign coordinator for the Dickinson campaign, just told the Scoop that she's got signs ready to go and will also start putting them up this weekend.

School board candidates John Brodrick, Elona Street-Stewart and Tom Goldstein have some large "DFL endorsed" co-op signs going up, listing all of their names.
All three candidates have online sign request forms. Check them out at chriscolemanformayor.com, elizabethdickinson.org, or randykelly.com.

On the Net

The Coleman campaign also put up the second iteration of its Web site on Thursday, a much-needed refresher that has some upcoming events, photos and campaign information.
It's an improvement over the last version, but still isn't quite up to speed with the Kelly site, which has a fairly regularly updated, albeit rather formal, "mayor's blog," among other things.

The mayor's campaign is also sending out a weekly "Campaign Countdown," a truly droll e-mail communique that has, if nothing else, as much political minutiae as even the Scoop can stand.

From this week's "Intern's Corner" feature: "They really seem to appreciate his message of bi-partisanship and working together to get things done for our community," intern Logan Martin says of the people he meets while literature dropping (" 'lit dropping' for short," he says) for Hizzoner.

That Logan. There's a guy with a future in politics if there ever was one.

See the Guy to Whom the Scoop Owes it All

Al Gore, erstwhile vice president, largest vote getter in the 2000 presidential election and a founder of the Internet, is going to be in town on Tuesday at the Science Museum of Minnesota, for a "one of a kind multimedia presentation on global climate change."

The reception starts at 5:30 p.m., with the show an hour later. It's free, but you're supposed to RSVP at 651-221-9444.

No word on whether Gore will be doing any politicking in town, but the event is sponsored by the Gegax Family Foundation (that's Tires Plus founder and Paul Wellstone supporter Tom Gegax, whose son T. Trent used to work with the Scoop at the Minnesota Daily back in the day. (Trent was the "Newsweek Guy" in the 2000 "Journeys With George" campaign documentary, as well as uber-Democrat and Minnesota Wild minority owner Vance Opperman.)

A tip of the hat to Andrew "Scourge of the Ruling Class" Hine for shooting us the notice on the Gore visit.

Opening up a second front?
Progressive Minnesota Executive Director Ben Goldfarb said this week that his organization is getting “extremely positive results” from its door-to-door effort to boost a proposed living wage ordinance in Macalester-Groveland and Highland Park, Council Member Pat Harris’ turf.
It’s also some of the most fertile political ground in the city. More than 21 percent of the votes in the last municipal election were cast in the 3rd Ward in 2003, and it’s likely to be a key battleground again this year.
Coincidence?
Ten years ago, you might recall, there was another living wage initiative making its way through the city, spearheaded by the Minnesota Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, better known as ACORN.
That complicated initiative — the wording nearly filled one side of the ballot, according to descriptions of the election — went down to defeat at the polls, by a nearly 2-to-1 margin. It was opposed by the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce and Mayor Norm Coleman. The living wage effort also coincided with council elections.
But the referendum (either a blow for justice or “economic terrorism,” depending on whom you asked) didn’t seem to move the political needle very much. Six of the seven council incumbents returned that fall, and Dan Bostrom joined the council from the 6th Ward to become a staunch Coleman ally.
Still, the effort did have on interesting side-effect: Erich Mische, then a Coleman staffer and currently a Kelly adviser, took a three-week leave of absence from City Hall to fight the initiative, the Pioneer Press said at the time. That was certainly a distraction for that administration.
And Goldfarb also said that PM was getting stacks of postcards for council members in Minneapolis, where it’s planning to launch a similar effort. You can bet the St. Paul petitions that canvassers were carrying around will come in right handy for voter ID after the PM endorsement later this month.

It's Baby Time!
You know how deaths always seem to come in streaks, like Mother Teresa and Princess Diana? Well, births are coming in bunches, too, in St. Paul political circles these days.
The birth of legislative aide Jennifer Dunn's new son and Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher's boy, Robert James ("He looks like his grandfather, but with more hair," the sheriff said of late Council Member Jim Reiter) looks like its going to coincide pretty closely with a new baby for Song Lo Fawcett, one of the figures at the center of the Hmong Funeral Home flap in City Hall.
She's a Metropolitan Council member and the sister of former mayoral aide Sia Lo, who was forced out of his post while the FBI probes alleged influence peddling. The Scoop saw her making her way through Town Square the other day, and it looks like that baby will be here any day now. Reports say it will be her third.

Where's Paul Snook?
An e-mail to the city's economic development director Paul Snook brought an interesting reply to the Scoop this week.
The former EDD for the city of Shakopee got a big introduction at the business edition of Mayor Randy Kelly's StreetBeat meeting at Ideal Printing in December. Snook was going to be the go-to-guy for business in the city. But he seems to have gotten the hook.
"Paul Snook is no longer with the City of St. Paul," says an auto reply sent from his city e-mail address, at paul.snook@ci.stpaul.mn.us. We had heard he might be on his way out, but mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl was EXTREMELY circumspect about the departure when the Scoop asked him about it. "We won't have anything to say for three weeks," Kuhl told the Scoop recently.
Alas, we've been unable to track Mr. Snook down himself to get his side of the story. If you're out there, Paul, drop us a line at scoop@pioneerpress.com.

The Scoop at Home
The Scoop, his wife and two children were paid a visit last evening by none other than a Progressive Minnesota canvasser, out working the neighborhood on the Living Wage issue.
It was only about 74 hours after the launch of the campaign in Rice Park on Monday, and Joshua — he didn’t offer his last name — looked like he already had 10 or so signatures by supper time on the clipboard he was carrying around Macalester-Groveland last night.
Pity the canvasser who visits the Scoop at home and finds himself or herself invited to step inside and be grilled by the entire family about what they’re doing, only to discover it’s all for naught because the Scoop’s day job pretty much precludes signing on to ANYTHING.
We were, nonetheless, able to extract some interesting information from the canvasser.
The Scoop’s spouse asked him for some written information, which elicited a dated PM handout that included a notice for the upcoming “Bowling for Victory” event, which the Pioneer Press covered in March. (Note to Ben Goldfarb: Time to get that new issue of the newsletter out.)
Joshua also informed us that he and his colleagues were working the 3rd Ward, in hopes that Council Member Pat Harris might be amenable to signing on to the effort after 5th Ward Council Member Lee Helgen puts the matter before the body in August.
He also said that they’d be over working the East Side, around Lake Phalen, apparently in hopes of putting some pressure on 6th Ward Council Member Dan Bostrom.
It’s interesting geography, if nothing else. It looks from where the Scoop lives like Living Wage supporters may think the council’s four-member liberal bloc is already in the bank, and its time to get a head start on a fifth vote for a veto override.

Polling the Polls
The Scoop has it on pretty good authority that the Kelly and Coleman mayoral camps — or at least their allies — are poised to begin the Great Polling Derby of 2005.
We want you to know that we at the Pioneer Press have such respect for the Do Not Call List that we won’t even think of calling people at random across St. Paul to see if they’ve been called by some pollster prying into their feelings about the mayoral race.
But that doesn’t stop YOU from giving us a jingle.
Please. Please. For the LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD IN THE WORLD, take that opportunity to push the “record” button on your answering machine when you pick up the phone and find a political pollster on the other end. Take notes. Mental ones even.
And when you hang up, get right back on to the phone to the Scoop. Give us a call at 651-292-1159 or e-mail us at scoop@pioneerpress.com. Play back those poll questions for us. Relate to us the many inquiries they had for you. Vent your outrage at the political conclusions they’re trying to get you to draw.
Whatever.
This is your chance to fight back! Drag those anonymous speed-dialing busybodies out of the boiler rooms they’re hiding in and into the bright daylight of Democracy, Truth and the American Way!

The living wage issue rises again

A coalition of labor unions, liberal groups and religious organizations resurrected the controversial living wage issue Tuesday afternoon with a press event and rally at Rice Park, kicking off what promises to be an interesting political drama this summer and fall.
The effort already has touched off some second-guessing among insiders at City Hall, particularly over how the campaign was launched. Tuesday's rally, hosted by a group calling itself Saint Paul Living Wage Yes! Campaign, made it clear that dyed-in-the-wool progressives are leading the charge for a tougher living wage policy.
Having progressives in the driver's seat is a risky move that could potentially hamper the effort to win City Council and mayoral approval of a new living wage ordinance. The coalition already stepped on the toes of some of its most likely backers.
Council President Kathy Lantry agreed last week to speak at the rally but said she didn't learn until Tuesday that the coalition was already putting forward a specific proposal. (The group wants companies that get city handouts to pay wages that would put a worker at 130 percent of the federal poverty level. The city's current guideline calls for wages at 110 percent of the poverty line.)
Lantry spoke at the event, but didn't endorse any specific plan, instead urging the coalition members to put forward facts and arguments that could win over enough council members (five) to override any veto from Mayor Randy Kelly.
The coalition also received a lukewarm reception from Council Member Dave Thune, who would have been expected to embrace the cause immediately, considering he has long championed the living wage issue. Thune, who sponsored the policy the council adopted in 1997, has spoken in recent months about giving the policy more teeth by putting it in ordinance form, as opposed to its current status as a guideline. Thune even said in late April that he planned to draft an ordinance.
But at the request of the liberal grassroots group Progressive Minnesota, he agreed to hold off. After the coalition announced plans for its rally, Thune said he supported revisiting the living wage issue but did not offer support for the coalition's proposal. He did not attend the rally.
Council Member Lee Helgen, one of the most liberal council members, has now taken the lead and plans to introduce a measure in August.
The result is that the living wage drive now is taking on a familiar "Progressives vs. Randy Kelly" cast. The issue also could become a wedge in this year's mayor's race. Former Council Member Chris Coleman, the DFL-endorsed mayoral candidate, and Green Party activist Elizabeth Dickinson, who announced her candidacy Tuesday morning, attended the Rice Park rally.
Moderates who support revisiting the living wage issue see a possible lost opportunity to win consensus on a topic that created a huge divide is the mid-1990s. They note that Kelly created an opening at his April 26 State of the City address, where he laid out an initiative to tackle poverty and chronic homelessness. In his speech, Kelly said: "We must focus on high wage, living wage jobs."
Whether Kelly now has been pushed into a defensive corner on the issue may not be known for some time. This week, he issued the following statement: "I am open to discuss proposals that may lead to action for projects receiving funding from the City of Saint Paul. However, this is the first I have heard of this particular ordinance and will need to take some time to analyze the proposal to make sure that both employees and employers win."
Helgen said he hopes the living wage issue will be part of the council's economic development policy discussion, set for July 27. A draft ordinance would follow within a few weeks, he said.

It’s not easy being Green
Some observations from this morning’s announcement that Green Party activist Elizabeth Dickinson is running for St. Paul mayor:

Lurkers
First, as is usually the case, the people standing around watching were as interesting as the person doing the talking up on Prospect Boulevard. On hand for the announcement was freshly shorn Dean

Zimmerman, the Minneapolis City Council member who rode the bus and his bike over from the Big City.
Even more interesting though, were staunch DFLers, including Gail Daneker, Molly Wilbur-Cohen and Jane Prince, who all joined the crowd standing around Dickinson. Prince, legislative aide to 4th Ward Council Member Jay Benanav — who endorsed Chris Coleman rival Rafael Ortega — actually introduced Dickinson, calling her “my family’s great new candidate for mayor.”
Clearly, the hand-holding and bridge building at the April 30 DFL convention left a few people at the wayside.
Said Prince later: “I’m still a DFLer. And I’m a good DFLer, but what we have this year is two guys for whom DFL purity hasn’t been an issue. These are two guys that have been fine supporting other people against the endorsement.”
But she is in NO WAY interested in becoming a Green, Prince — a former DFL city party chair — wants you to know.
There were some other interesting lurkers, as well. Former Ruminator bookseller David Unowsky was standing among Dickinson’s supporters. Coleman campaign manager Kris Fredson was on hand to watch the proceedings, as was Progressive Minnesota’s executive director, Ben Goldfarb. That organization is expected to screen mayoral candidates next week and usually serves as a political foil to the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, which already has endorsed Randy Kelly.
And way, way back, practically on the other side of the street, was Como Park High School teacher Roy Magnuson, a Progressive Minnesota board member and Ortega campaign operative, looking generally noncommittal and politely declining to offer his counsel about Dickinson’s entrance into the race.

It’s like 2003 all over again
One of the Dickinson supporters NOT lurking at Tuesday’s announcement was Cristy DeLaCruz, the campaign manager for Lee Helgen’s wild and woolly ride to the 5th Ward seat on the same council that Dickinson ran for.
DeLaCruz has signed on as volunteer coordinator for the Green activist’s mayoral campaign. “You wouldn’t believe the number of people that have called already,” she said.
There has been some speculation that her move last year to the 3rd Ward might be a tip to her own city council ambitions, but a question about her prospects elicited what sounded just short of a guffaw from the free-lance consultant on Tuesday. “I prefer to be behind the scenes,” she said.

In case you missed it
Here are Elizabeth Dickinson’s prepared remarks from this morning, as supplied by her campaign.

Good morning and thanks to all of you for coming today.
My name is Elizabeth Dickinson and today I am announcing my candidacy for Mayor of St. Paul. I want to be a leader for all the people of St. Paul.
As my Latino friends say it: Quiero ser la alcadesa para el pueblo.
And as a Hmong friend of mine translates it: [Phonetic] KOO SAH OOH-AHH THU TIE-YAH DOE TOO-AHH HI NENG
What does this mean?
It means I will honor the universal Green principles of grassroots democracy and non-violence by bringing my deeply collaborative nature to the mayor’s office, promoting both vision and cooperation between the city council, the neighborhoods, and small and large businesses. Of paramount importance is restoring the balance in government by inviting the neighborhoods back into the decision-making processes, particularly around issues of development, creating more affordable housing, and maintaining and expanding green spaces in the city.
It also means having an “open door” policy at the mayor’s office where individual voices are listened to respectfully. It even means bringing back a spirit of kindness to all and the politics of joy back to the city during difficult budget times.
Another value I want to bring back to the city is environmental wisdom and justice. As many of you know, I was instrumental in Clean Energy Now, which successfully pressured Xcel Energy to make the cleanest choice available by transforming two of its dirtiest coal burning utilities to natural gas, saving $1.2 billion in health care costs.
And while we must acknowledge our successes, we simply must do better with energy conservation efforts and promoting renewable energy, not just for St. Paul, or for the U.S., but for the people of our world and the planet itself. Investments in energy efficiency yield two to ten times as many jobs per dollar invested, as do investments in fossil fuels and nuclear power. I’m going to repeat that: Investments in energy efficiency yield two to ten times as many jobs per dollar invested as do investments in fossil fuels and nuclear power.
That’s beside the fact that when we cut down on energy use through simple behavioral changes and simple fixes, it saves money, prevents the pollution that changes the climate, gives our kids asthma, and makes our water unfishable, undrinkable and unswimmable. St. Paul can be a green leader not just through developing a sustainability plan, although that’s important, but through exercising its collective political will through franchise agreement negotiations to make our utilities more accountable through investments in renewable energy. And if they won’t do it, than we need to look at setting up our green municipal utility with a better commitment to service, conservation, and renewable energy.
And I want to take a moment to acknowledge the SEE Program (School Energy Efficiency program) in our schools whose goal is to reduce energy consumption by up to 25 percent. The St. Paul Public School System will exceed savings of $100,000 this year. If we were to conserve at a 25 percent level of the $7 million energy budget in the St. Paul Schools, it would mean savings of one and three-quarter million dollars. You can bet that could pay for an awful lot more teachers.
This type of conservation program should be implemented all over St. Paul. We should also offer low interest loans to homeowners to be able to install solar hot water heaters as they do in Minneapolis. For heaven’s sakes, my parents installed solar hot water panels in the mid-seventies during the Carter administration. We need to be further ahead! St. Paul has more sunshine than Jacksonville, Florida, and Houston, Texas.
I am also working with Fresh Force, the student service learning group and the Department of Commerce to see if we can get an anemometer or wind measuring device near one of our schools to see if we have wind speeds sufficient to make a wind turbine economically feasible. Again, we must be aggressive in becoming energy independent.
I would also like to speak about economic and social justice. I fully support the current union-led coalition striving to tie our city¹s investment in companies to the need for a living wage. It’s just common sense that if the city gives hard-earned taxpayer dollars to assist companies with development that we should expect something in return that allows our citizens to live with dignity. If we value work the way we say we do, then that work must allow our citizens to afford the basics — food, decent affordable housing, and health care.
We must also support small businesses. I am a member of MIBA, the Metropolitan Independent Business Alliance that promotes the interests of small, locally owned businesses. I am very proud of the way the Green Party has engaged in this effort. Small businesses account for over 75 percent of the new jobs in this country. We must explore ways to adjust the tax structure so that small businesses are not taxed at the same level as multinational corporations. We need to look at giving tax breaks for landlords that promise to give rental breaks to new small businesses, and explore size caps for big box development.
Obviously there are other issues dear to the hearts of St. Paulites, including education. I fully support excellent educational opportunities for ALL in St. Paul. Education is the pillar of our democracy and our economy and the main avenue for becoming a productive citizen and moving ahead in life. I will work with the school board, teachers, and students to ensure good communication and to try to involve business in a more substantive way to improve our educational options. I will also be ready at a moment’s notice to appear at the Capitol to lobby for school funding.
There are obviously more issues than I have time to address today, including the need to maintain core services like police, fire, and medical services, the need to improve our mass transportation options, and the ever present worries around health care. But before I open up to questions, I would like to acknowledge all of you here today here to support me.
This is going to be an energetic, focused campaign, and I am going to need all of your support, including financial, intellectual, emotional and spiritual help. You have called upon me to provide a progressive voice and I have answered the call. Thank-you for your faith in me and I will do all I can to carry and articulate our collective dreams for a cleaner and kinder St. Paul. Let’s all move ahead together.

St. Paul on the radio
Minneapolis-based community radio KFAI is coming across the river, news director Ann Alquist said on Tuesday.
“We’re mobilizing the troops to cover St. Paul,” Alquist said on Tuesday, as she was prowling around the Green Party mayoral announcement on the West Side. “We’re going to start off with ward tours. We’re going to hit the streets with the residents.” She said St. Paul will have its own news editor, Kate Hannaher, although she’ll be a volunteer, like much of the station’s staff.
Alquist, who covered the contentious 5th Ward council race in 2003, said that about 70 percent of the station’s support and listeners comes from the West Metro. But she said St. Paul news gets a welcome reception even in Minneapolis. “Every single time I cover St. Paul, people call and thank me. I even get responses from Minneapolis,” Alquist said.
The “St. Paul Monday” show will premiere at 6 p.m. July 11 at 106.7 FM in St. Paul and 90.3 in Minneapolis, “although sometimes you can get the 90.3 signal better in St. Paul,” Alquist said. “I don’t know why that is.”

Boy, howdy!
Bob Fletcher is a dad, again.
The three-term county sheriff, former St. Paul city council member, mayoral contender and inveterate politico is the father of a son born Saturday night to Kris, his wife and the daughter of the late 5th Ward Council Member Jim Reiter.
The Scoop is still waiting for the vitals on the boy, but Undersheriff Dave Methusalem broke the happy news to the County Board this morning when he apologized for the sheriff’s absence during discussion of a budget amendment.
“He’s home,” Methusalem told the board. Sheriff department staffers outside the meeting reported that Kris and her son are also home, and doing fine, thank you. The Scoop will post more details as soon as we ferret them out.

Arena of Dreams?

It was standing room only at this morning’s official opening of the Mexican Consulate on East Seventh Street. The Mexican ambassador to the United States, Carlos de Icaza, said he was fulfulling Mexican President Vicente Fox’s promise to open a diplomatic outpost “aqui,” in St. Paul.
It was a long time coming, and welcomed by all in attendance, but the event didn’t go off without an acknowlegement of several other less-diplomatic hang-ups.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty didn’t attend and sent Lt. Gov. Carol Molnau in his place, because he was waiting to see if DFL Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson was going to take Pawlenty up on his offer to step outside and settle their budget differences at Camp Ripley.
One-time Pawlenty rival and now U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman was on hand, and thanked the Mexican government for their decision to open the consulate.
“One of my favorite movies is ‘Field of Dreams,’ the ballfield in Iowa, and it is the line that we remember so well, “If you build it, they will come,” Coleman said. To which someone, at the front of the room interjected with a jab at the Xcel Energy Center, dark for last year’s NHL lockout.
“We built it, here,” Coleman said. “And they’re going to play hockey again in September, too, by the way.”

City to accept free skeeter repellant

Here's an odd item on next Wednesday's City Council agenda: "Resolution 05-565 — Authorizing the acceptance of a donation from Parks Programs L.L.C. of 50,000 sample packets of Deep Woods OFF insect repellant for use by City Parks and Recreation employees."
Parks director Bob Bierscheid said his department is willing to accept such product placements if they benefit the city. In this case, he said, the free samples will be handed out this summer to people attending events at various city parks. Bierscheid says there's a public good in having patrons avoid insect bites.
"The bottom line is that there has to be some value to the city of St. Paul for us to do something like this," he said.
Bierscheid said Parks Programs is a marketing entity working on behalf of the OFF! brand, which is manufactured by SC Johnson, a Racine, Wis.- based company.

Chamber lets its purple hair down

The St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce doesn't exactly evoke images of mohawks, nose rings and black lipstick. But members of the east metro business group will get a chance to go punk this fall. Of course, being the chamber, this would be cutting loose in high style.

An item on chamber President Larry Dowell's weekly online newsletter explains:

"Your Chamber's suite is available to lease for the Green Day concert at Xcel Energy Center on September 16, investment is $1500 and includes 16 tickets."

The chamber newsletter (dare we say blog?) is available at www.saintpaulchamber.com/news/friday_facts.asp.

Andy Dawkins: Undead?

The Watchdog, a Minneapolis-based tabloid dedicated to skewering public officials, journalists and other ne’er do wells, has finally put its May/June issue on line.

And it’s a corker.

The cover features a pale and fanged Andy Dawkins hovering menacingly over what appears to be the corpse of a 68-year-old St. Paul woman with what looks like a city “Notice to Vacate” serving as her epitaph. “Count Dawkins Out For Blood” is the issue’s lead story.

The article recounts, one-sidedly and fairly comically, an alleged elaborate conspiracy by Dawkins and the city, meant to force a purportedly innocent and well-meaning senior citizen from her home and straight to the grave. Another article recounts the aftermath of a “drug bus” (sic) at rental property the publisher owns on Cook Street and a meeting of bar owners “in scenic North Minneapolis, amidst flying used contraceptives, intermittent gun-fire and smashed 40 ounce Mickey’s Malt Liquor bottles.”

The Watchdog is published by Minneapolis landlord Jim Swartwood and is dedicated to “advocating on behalf of property owners, the small business owner and exposing improprieties at City Hall. We are dedicated to preserving the lost art of photojournalism.”

The emphasis is clearly on the “art” at the Watchdog. The cover photo alone is worth a visit to the Web site. Check it out at www.minneapolis-watchdog.com.

Reiter Redux?

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher has been back in the news a bit lately, which prompted the Scoop to start scouring around his old stamping grounds in the 5th Ward. Fletcher won the ward as a mayoral candidate in 1989, and it was the scene of a dramatic — albeit tragic — election race he helped run in 2003.

You might recall that election as a bit of a sleeper race until the sudden death of City Council member Jim Reiter, who had been suffering from a heart ailment and been in and out of the hospital for many of the final weeks of the campaign. Although he came in second in the primary, he had come from behind to win the general election before and had been considered tough to beat.

His daughter, Kris, filed to succeed Reiter shortly after he died, touching off a free-for-all between challenger Lee Helgen, Reiter’s daughter and three other candidates. Reiter’s residency was a particularly sore spot: At the time, she owned a home in the suburbs, which her campaign manager — Bob Fletcher — lived in, and she listed another suburban home, which Fletcher owned, as her official residence. They’ve since married and are expecting a child.

Now, the Scoop has learned that her brother may be taking a cue from his father and sister. Realtor Jim Reiter Jr. has told Pioneer Press reporter Gita Sitaramiah that he might consider a pre-emptive real estate transaction and move back to St. Paul to enter politics. He’s already been elected president — of the St. Paul Area Association of Realtors.

The Reiter kids grew up in St. Paul, and if James Jr. returned to the 5th Ward for a run, it would be the third Helgen-Reiter matchup in four years, a battle that’s destined to qualify for “legendary” status.

Reiter didn’t return a call from the Scoop about his plans, but he and his family haven’t exactly been politically reticent of late. The late council member’s widow and another daughter were on hand in downtown St. Paul when the St. Paul Police Federation announced its endorsement of Mayor Randy Kelly. James Jr. and his mom, Darlene, also maxed out their campaign contributions to Randy Kelly with $500 each in January.

Keep an eye on the properties around Gervais Lake in Little Canada.

1989 redux?

Word that former Police Chief Bill Finney is thinking about taking on Sheriff Bob Fletcher raises an interesting question:

Has he beaten him before?

They’ve never run head to head in an election, but they have crossed paths on a 1989 St. Paul ballot when Finney ran for the school board and Fletcher ran for mayor. Finney was the top vote getter in the September primary, when Fletcher was running against then-council president Jim Scheibel. Finney had 14,161 votes, and Flecther had 9,604. And although Finney came in second to Becky Montgomery in the general election, Finney’s 29,640 citywide votes beat Fletcher’s mayoral total of 27,850 that year.

Those are different races, of course, so you can’t compare them directly.

But there is a lingering question. Finney wasn’t exactly a bystander in the Scheibel administration: He was named to the transition team only days after the election and appointed police chief by Scheibel three years later. Maybe he’d been some help for Scheibel at the polls.

Let’s take a look at the general election results:

Fletcher’s worst ward that year was the 1st Ward, where he was beaten almost 2 to 1. By comparison, it was Finney’s best ward. He got nearly one in every four school board votes in that ward. It was the strongest showing in any ward by any school board candidate that November — even better than top vote getter Becky Montgomery.

In an interview Friday, the winner of that mayoral race says Finney “definitely helped” that year, although he said it was hard to gauge exactly how and by how much. They marched in the Rondo Days parade together, and Finney door-knocked with Scheibel in the 1st Ward.

But the ballot listing the two of them drew the best 1st Ward turnout in any recent local election.

Scheibel also recalls Finney door-knocking with him in the 7th Ward, where Finney lived and where Scheibel pulled off something of an upset. That’s been one of the most conservative parts of town for years but was taken by one of the most liberal candidates in the post-George Latimer era.

Still, the Finney connection isn’t all there is to the story: There were plenty of other factors on the ballot that year.

Kiki Sonnen, the 4th Ward city council member who had served as Fletcher’s aide when he represented that same area on the council, was also on that ballot. She succeeded Fletcher, but she didn’t boost her old boss’ s prospects much, getting defeated by Paula Maccabee in the general election. Fletcher lost his old ward by more than 1,600 votes in the mayoral election, his third-worst showing in the city.

That election also had the legendary 1st Ward battle between Bill Wilson (the incumbent and first African-American on the council) and Roy Garza, who would have been the first Hispanic on the council. Theirs was a squeaker eventually decided by a mere two votes after much back and forth over the results. The closeness of the race may have been another factor in the 1st Ward turnout in 1989.

And it wasn’t just a golden era for 1st Ward, either. The 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th wards all have steadily declined in turnout since that first election after Latimer retired.

And in the end, the 2,297 votes Fletcher lost by in the 1st Ward really didn’t make much difference. Fletcher was beaten by more than 8,200 votes that year and still would have mustered only a 47 percent result if he’d traded 1st Ward results with Scheibel. Finney’s second-best ward was the 5th Ward, which Fletcher won.

In the end, Fletcher said at the time, it would have taken “a small miracle” to beat the DFL party that Latimer left as his legacy.

Waiting for Veto

City Council President Kathy Lantry doesn't think a council resolution ordering an audit of the city's contracting practices has much chance of surviving.

After Wednesday's 4-3 vote approving the measure, Lantry said flat out she expects Mayor Randy Kelly to veto the resolution. Lantry also said she doesn't hold out much hope that one of the three council members who opposed the resolution would change their minds and support a veto override. (The council would need five votes to put a resolution into effect over Kelly's objection.)

"No one is going to flip," Lantry said. Council members voting against the resolution were Dan Bostrom, Pat Harris and Debbie Montgomery.

The measure directs the council research staff to begin the process of hiring an outside firm to study whether the city and real-estate developers have complied with ordinances and laws designed to ensure equal access to contracts for minority- and women-owned businesses.

Kelly's aides have said the mayor opposes an audit, preferring instead to focus on making forward-looking changes. The mayor's office has not said yet whether Kelly will sign or veto the council's resolution. If Kelly does nothing, the resolution takes effect five business days after his office receives the measure from the council.

A veto before next Wednesday's council meeting could put two rival items on the agenda. One would be a possible override vote. The other would be a resolution that Montgomery introduced Wednesday. Her measure backs Kelly's pledge to conduct a "disparity study" that would assess the number of minority- and women-owned firms in various industries in the Twin Cities area, allowing the city to set realistic contracting goals for itself and real-estate developers. Montgomery's resolution also would create a standing committee of business and community groups to monitor contracting progress.

Viva Kelly!

The news today that Mayor Randy Kelly and school superintendent Pat Harvey had chosen a pair of books by Latina authors should come as no surprise to political watchers

"A Place Where the Sea Remembers" by Edina resident Sandra Benitez will be the choice for adult participants in the St. Paul Reads program. "Esperanza Rising" by Pam Muñoz Ryan will be the youth reader book.

Far be it from the Scoop to ascribe political motives to the selection, but both books – involving tales from Mexico – fit quite nicely with the Kelly re-election effort.

That’s because St. Paul’s East Side isn’t just Randy Kelly’s home turf. It’s also home to one of the fastest-growing Hispanic communities in the state. The Mexican consulate, lured to East Seventh Street with the help of the mayor’s good offices, is scheduled to open later this summer.

In addition, Kelly staffers said earlier this year that the mayor’s re-election will involve greater focus on St. Paul’s 2nd Ward, the traditional home of the city’s Latino population.

And while parts of the West Side have some of lowest voter turnout in the city, Kelly clearly sees some opportunity there. As mayor, he’s already christened a street named after Cesar Chavez, started a new sister city relationship with Manzanillo, Mexico, and appointed a Latino city attorney in Manuel Cervantes. Kelly was key in bringing Mexican President Vicente Fox to St. Paul’s East Side to visit the Academia Cesar Chavez charter school.

The book selection also comes at a cultural crossroads for the mayor and the City Council.

Last night, they approved a proposal for an independent look at how the city measures up to the diversity goals it set in the late 1990s. The city’s own data haven’t been greatly encouraging, a recent Pioneer Press analysis found. Kelly has threatened to veto the audit, which will likely kill the effort, since the council doesn’t look like it has a fifth vote to override Kelly.

The Scoop would like to assure you that this is all merely coincidence.

Correction

Scoop listed the wrong name of a community newspaper in a post Tuesday about the ongoing flap over the Jeremiah Program project on Concordia Avenue. The correct name of the paper is Midway Como Monitor. Thanks to Jane McClure at the Villager for pointing out the error. (McClure's e-mail noting the mistake arrived at 12:02 a.m. Thursday. When queried what she was doing reading Scoop at such an hour, McClure replied: "The neighborhood press never sleeps." So now we know.

Jeremiah jab

Hard feelings still persist in the 1st Ward over last week's City Council vote on the Jeremiah Program's planned apartment complex for single mothers.

Council Member Debbie Montgomery, the 1st Ward representative, opposed a zoning change that will allow the project to move forward on Concordia Avenue near Milton Street. She had hoped colleague Jay Benanav was going to vote her way, but he wound up casting the deciding vote Wednesday in favor of the project. Montgomery was upset at what she viewed as the council majority imposing an unwanted zoning change on her ward.

Now she's tweaking Benanav for what appears to her to be a severe bout of inconsistency. Montgomery posted a quote from Benanav on a glass partition between the 1st Ward offices and a common council hallway. The quote is from the Midway Monitor, a neighborhood newspaper, about the possible relocation of a bus layover facility in Benanav's ward:

"My concerns are for the Ward 4 residents," he says. "Redevelopment should not be done at the expense of the community."

East Side, West Side, all around the town

Is it the best of times or the worst of times?

Hard to know during a mayoral election year, but you can be sure about one thing: This year will be a tale of two cities when it comes to the mayor’s race.

Take a look at the 2001 mayoral results first.

East of Edgerton Street, Randy Kelly won by a whopping 3,686 votes four years ago. West of Edgerton, he lost by 3,283 votes. Either one of these numbers are the kind of margins that can swing an entire election, to give you some perspective on the geographic gap between Kelly and Benanav.

It’s harder to map out a Coleman/Kelly race. Although Highland Park and Macalester- Groveland put up the biggest share of money and votes for an election, the 2nd Ward (which includes downtown, West Seventh Street, the West Side and the Summit Hill area) could be a “hot spot” this year, to borrow the mayor’s terminology. Kelly staffers say they expect to be more competitive there this time around. But it’s also Coleman’s home turf, the ward he represented on the city council.

The mayor is going to be defending his turf fiercely, for his part. He’s scheduled an East Side fundraiser at Governor’s restaurant on Arcade Street next Monday, hosted by not just two Controneos, but two Hitchcocks, as well. That’s some serious name dropping in that 55106 ZIP code. “Please join us in supporting St. Paul’s first East Side mayor,” says an invite the Scoop recently acquired.

An accompanying letter reads:

“Over the course of our Capital City’s 150 year history, we have had many bright stars come from St. Paul’s East Side. Be it Justices of the Supreme Court, world renowned athletes and coaches, successful entrepreneurs, or bold political leaders, the people of the East Side truly shine. However, over the course of our City’s great history, we have only elected one East Side mayor: Randy Kelly.

“Today we are writing you to let you know just how critically important it has been to have a Mayor representing St. Paul who calls the East Side his home.”

Campaign junkies

Send us your pamplets, your invites, your direct mail yearning to be free!
For the record, the Scoop LOVES junk mail. Fundraiser invitations. Campaign literature. Reports of calls from pollsters. Lawn sign sightings. Call us gluttons for punishment, but we just CAN’T get enough of that campaign rhetoric. Ever.

So if you see something interesting, no matter how trivial, drop us a line, won’t you? We can be reached online at scoop@pioneerpress.com, via fax at 651-292-1897 or by mail to Tim Nelson or Bob Ingrassia at 345 Cedar St., St. Paul, MN 55101.

You can take next Friday off

At least one of the rumored mayoral campaigns looks like it won’t be setting forth, as some supporters were hoping.
Backers had been shopping his entry around in the back of the room at Mayor Randy Kelly’s State of the City address earlier this spring and lining up backers for a run against the first-term incumbent.
Downtown St. Paul art gallery owner and architectural illustrator Bill Hosko said Friday that there won’t be a kickoff announcement for his second mayoral run on June 10.
Despite what supporters call plenty of pledges to back the would-be mayor and would-be council member (he ran for the 2nd Ward seat in 2003), Hosko says that he’s got other irons in the fire these days and has decided not to run.
His most recent project is Sweet William and Tea, a tea shop next to Hosko Gallery in the Endicott Arcade, at 142 E. Fifth St.
“I just opened it four days ago,” Hosko said. “If it had been four months ago, things might have been different.”
Hosko has had mixed success at the polls. On Sept. 11, 2001, he finished eighth in the mayoral primary, just behind perennial candidate Sharon Anderson. He beat her pretty handily in 2003, though, coming in just out of the limelight, behind fouth-place finisher and now 2nd Ward legislative aide Donna Swanson. Christine Nelson won that primary, followed by Dave Thune (who went on to win) and Green Party contender Elizabeth Dickinson.
(BEGIN OPTIONAL TRIM)
Hosko probably had them all beat in one aspect (OK, not Sharon Anderson on this one, either): his biography. There are two full pages of his personal tales on his Web site at www.billhosko.com, detailing his many adventures and his home in Montana. (State records do show he’s a St. Paul resident, by the way). He also stood out from the pack in the 2001 mayoral campaign with a note on his literature noting that he was gay “because I would rather you hear those words now rather than later from someone else.”
(END OPTIONAL TRIM)
Hosko has made his mark in St. Paul in other ways, as well. He’s painted several of the “Peanuts” statues that have decorated downtown in recent years and pushed to spruce up the District Cooling water tower near the interchange of interstates 35E and 94.

Welcome, Bob Hume!

The Chris Coleman campaign has added a new communications director. Everybody welcome Bob Hume to the show!

Hume, who grew up in Cottage Grove and Woodbury, went to Hamline University, majored in political science and graduated in 2003. “Then I went to Washington to look for a job.”

Job isn’t really the word for what he found. Hume signed on with the ill-fated re-election campaign of U.S. Sen. Tom Dashcle, of South Dakota, who lost the race of the year — aside from the presidential contest — to Republican John Thune.

Hume punched in at Coleman campaign headquarters this week and is already getting a feel for the place, he says. Not that he won’t find it somewhat familiar.

“I’ve crossed paths with some of these folks before,” Hume says of the Kelly campaign.

True enough.

Take a look at the Political Money Line site, at www.fecinfo.com, and you’ll see that Minnesota put a fair amount of money into that Thune race. (Contributors from the Gopher State chipped in about $193,000, according to the site.)

More interesting, though, are those who ponied up: A quick check shows the names of Otto Bonestroo, Douglas Coleman, John Grundhofer, Carl Drake, David Frauenshuh, Karen Hubbard, Stanley Hubbard, Esther Kellogg, John Kinkead, Robert Klas, Doug McMillan, W. McNerny, Glen Nelson, Ford Nicholson, Todd Nicholson, Tuan Pham, David Powell, and Doug Seaton all have appeared on both Thune’s contributor lists and Randy Kelly’s.

The Scoop only had time to run through the list quickly, but you get the point. It looks like about 7 percent of the Thune contributors from Minnesota have chipped in on the Kelly campaign, too, at some point along the line.

For the record, Minnesota gave money to the Daschle campaign, too — some $206,000. There were some interesting crossovers there: John Cowles III, the Pohlad family, lobbyist Ron Jerich, Vance Opperman, St. Paul attorney Bill Tilton — all Kelly contributors in the past — pitched in for Daschle.

But alas, the 105 contributors Coleman has on the official record don’t seem to include anybody who sent aid to the South Dakota battle.

The Scoop formally apologizes to Jason Anderson

The Scoop would like to acknowlege a grievous error on our part, regarding last weekend’s Melaleuca Freedom Celebration 10K. That tall trotter in the green Randy Kelly T-shirt was NOT the Jason Anderson of the city’s marketing department. He was the Jason Anderson of the Randy Kelly campaign.

(We’d love to look up his race time, but organizers STILL haven’t posted results from Monday’s contest)

At any rate, it seems Anderson has left the city’s employment and devoted his days to the re-election of his former boss, according to mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl, who got his own start as a driver for the first Kelly campaign. Unbeknownst to the Scoop, Anderson officially had joined another former city marketing guy — now Norm Coleman’s chief of staff, Erich Mische — in the 2005 mayoral race. Kelly has credited Mische in the past with the role of an “adviser” to his political effort.

Anderson’s move was greeted with some clucking in city council offices, where his mom, Nancy, used to work, and where there hasn’t been enough distinction between marketing the city of St. Paul and marketing Randy Kelly for some officials’ tastes.

Tough call for the council

Several City Council members said last night’s decision on the fate of the Jeremiah Program's proposed apartment complex for single mothers in the Summit-University neighborhood was among the toughest choices they have had to make as elected officials.
A request for a zoning change enabling the project to move forward passed 4-3, with Jay Benanav, Pat Harris, Lee Helgen and Kathy Lantry voting in the majority. Debbie Montgomery, whose 1st Ward includes Summit-University, led a failed effort to defeat the zoning change. Dave Thune and Dan Bostrom voted with her.
The vote put the council majority in the uncomfortable position of thwarting the desires of a colleague who represented the neighborhood affected. An informal tradition dictates that on zoning matters, council members generally defer to the wishes of the home council member.
Montgomery said she had nothing against the Jeremiah Program, a Minneapolis-based organization that runs supportive housing for low-income moms. But she said the vacant lot at 932 Concordia Ave. was not appropriate for high-density apartment zoning.
Like others in the neighborhood, Montgomery has expressed desires for senior-oriented housing on the site. She had hopes that Ed McDaniel, a former Minnesota Vikings player, could acquire the land.
Benanav cast what appeared to have been the deciding vote. He had expressed mixed feelings about the project in recent weeks. Montgomery had hoped Benanav would go her way, a wish he acknowledged last night when he said he knew people believe he had "flip-flopped" on the issue.
The Jeremiah Program's proposal sparked impassioned pleas from both sides. There were two items before the council, the zoning change and an appeal of the Planning Commission's approval of a conditional-use permit for transitional housing.
After the zoning vote, there were cheers from the side of the chambers where Jeremiah backers had gathered. Some of the single mothers living at Jeremiah's Minneapolis apartment complex jumped up and waved their arms. On the other side of the room, a few opponents booed. Katie McWatt, a longtime St. Paul civil rights activist, shouted across the chambers for the Jeremiah supporters to move to Summit-University if they really cared about the neighborhood.
Lantry, the council president, tried to soothe tensions, essentially asking everyone to play nice and try to move forward in a positive way. Most of the opponents then left the council chambers, even though the council had yet to take up the permit issue. Montgomery vacated her seat, too, having been informed by the city attorney's office that her prior public statements on the issue had rendered her biased. (The council sits as a quasi-judicial body on zoning matters, forcing them to act in some ways like judges.)
Even Nathaniel Khaliq, president of the St. Paul NAACP, walked out. His group was among those that had appealed the Planning Commission's permit decision. He didn't even stick around for the vote on his appeal, saying the writing was on the wall. Khaliq left with attorney Joel Franklin. The two said a decision on whether to take the issue to Ramsey County District Court would be made soon.
The Jeremiah Program is proposing a three-story, 38-unit building, but the new zoning would allow a five-story building at higher densities. Bostrom warned his council colleagues that the neighborhood could get stuck with a parcel of high-density apartment zoning if the group's project falls through.
Mayor Randy Kelly could in theory veto the zoning change, but would have to wait until the council passes an ordinance memorializing its action Wednesday. The council would need five votes to override a veto.
Thune, who voted against the zoning change but then backed the housing permit, said today he would vote to override any mayoral veto. He said it was time to "move forward" and called the zoning change "veto proof."
Mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl said today that Kelly would not veto the zoning change.

Honoring a St. Paul Cop
One day in early May, Sgt. Steve Frazer walked into what he thought was going to be a routine staff meeting at police headquarters. Then Mayor Randy Kelly showed up, surprising Frazer with the news that the officer was the 2005 recipient of the city's Karl Neid Award.
Frazer, a homicide unit supervisor, had a bit more time to prepare for Wednesday's official awards ceremony in the City Council chambers. With his wife, Jacqueline, and their three children looking on, Frazer accepted the award for his work in the community. He's coached East Side youngsters in T-ball, football and soccer.
Frazer kept his remarks brief. "I'm truly humbled to be part of this club," he said. "It doesn't seem like you should get an award for something that's truly, truly a joy to do."
The officer wrapped up his speech with a quote from Theodore Roosevelt: “It is no use to preach to (children) if you do not act decently yourself."
The award was established in 1993 in honor of Neid, a city employee and council member who died of a heart attack in 1992 four months after being elected to the council. The award is given for exemplary public service and contributions to improving the quality of life in St. Paul.

Campaign Notes

Signs, signs, everywhere a sign
The official political flower of summer started sprouting around St. Paul on Thursday night: lawn signs for the mayoral and school board races started going up in yards around the city.
The DFL started passing out its signs at the Labor Center, at 411 Main, and this “Chris Coleman for St. Paul” sign on Marshall Avenue was up by 8:30 p.m. The Kelly campaign is launching its sign campaign at 10 a.m. Saturday at the campaign headquarters at Bandana Square.
Jeanne Schnitzen, the lawn sign coordinator for the Dickinson campaign, just told the Scoop that she’s got signs ready to go and will also start putting them up this weekend.
School board candidates John Brodrick, Elona Street-Stewart and Tom Goldstein have some large “DFL endorsed” co-op signs going up, listing all of their names.
All three candidates have online sign request forms. Check them out at chriscolemanformayor.com, elizabethdickinson.org, or randykelly.com.

On the Net
The Coleman campaign also put up the second iteration of its Web site on Thursday, a much-needed refresher that has some upcoming events, photos and campaign information.
It’s an improvement over the last version, but still isn’t quite up to speed with the Kelly site, which has a fairly regularly updated, albeit rather formal, “mayor’s blog,” among other things.
The mayor’s campaign is also sending out a weekly “Campaign Countdown,” a truly droll e-mail communiqué that has, if nothing else, as much political minutiae as even the Scoop can stand.
From this week’s ‘Intern’s Corner’ feature: “They really seem to appreciate his message of bi-partisanship and working together to get things done for our community,” intern Logan Martin says of the people he meets while literature dropping (“ ‘lit dropping’ for short,” he says) for Hizzoner.
That Logan. There’s a guy with a future in politics if there ever was one.

See the Guy to Whome the Scoop Owes it All
Al Gore, erstwhile vice president, largest vote getter in the 2000 presidential election and a founder of the Internet, is going to be in town on Tuesday at the Science Museum of Minnesota, for a “one of a kind multimedia presentation on global climate change.”
The reception starts at 5:30 p.m. and the show an hour later. It’s free, but you’re supposed to RSVP at 651-221-9444.
No word on whether Gore will be doing any politicking in town, but the event is sponsored by the Gegax Family Foundation (that’s Tires Plus founder and Paul Wellstone supporter Tom Gegax, whose son T. Trent, used to work with the Scoop at the Minnesota Daily back in the day. Trent was the “Newsweek Guy” in the 2000 ‘Journeys With George’ campaign documentary as well as uber-Democrat and Minnesota Wild minority owner Vance Opperman.
A tip of the hat to Andrew “Scourge of the Ruling Class” Hine for shooting us the notice on the Gore visit.

Opening up a second front?
Progressive Minnesota Executive Director Ben Goldfarb said this week that his organization is getting “extremely positive results” from its door-to-door effort to boost a proposed living wage ordinance in Macalester-Groveland and Highland Park, Council Member Pat Harris’ turf.
It’s also some of the most fertile political ground in the city. More than 21 percent of the votes in the last municipal election were cast in the 3rd Ward in 2003, and it’s likely to be a key battleground again this year.
Coincidence?
Ten years ago, you might recall, there was another living wage initiative making its way through the city, spearheaded by the Minnesota Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, better known as ACORN.
That complicated initiative — the wording nearly filled one side of the ballot, according to descriptions of the election — went down to defeat at the polls, by a nearly 2-to-1 margin. It was opposed by the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce and Mayor Norm Coleman. The living wage effort also coincided with council elections.
But the referendum (either a blow for justice or “economic terrorism,” depending on whom you asked) didn’t seem to move the political needle very much. Six of the seven council incumbents returned that fall, and Dan Bostrom joined the council from the 6th Ward to become a staunch Coleman ally.
Still, the effort did have on interesting side-effect: Erich Mische, then a Coleman staffer and currently a Kelly adviser, took a three-week leave of absence from City Hall to fight the initiative, the Pioneer Press said at the time. That was certainly a distraction for that administration.
And Goldfarb also said that PM was getting stacks of postcards for council members in Minneapolis, where it’s planning to launch a similar effort. You can bet the St. Paul petitions that canvassers were carrying around will come in right handy for voter ID after the PM endorsement later this month.

It's Baby Time!
You know how deaths always seem to come in streaks, like Mother Teresa and Princess Diana? Well, births are coming in bunches, too, in St. Paul political circles these days.
The birth of legislative aide Jennifer Dunn's new son and Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher's boy, Robert James ("He looks like his grandfather, but with more hair," the sheriff said of late Council Member Jim Reiter) looks like its going to coincide pretty closely with a new baby for Song Lo Fawcett, one of the figures at the center of the Hmong Funeral Home flap in City Hall.
She's a Metropolitan Council member and the sister of former mayoral aide Sia Lo, who was forced out of his post while the FBI probes alleged influence peddling. The Scoop saw her making her way through Town Square the other day, and it looks like that baby will be here any day now. Reports say it will be her third.

Where's Paul Snook?
An e-mail to the city's economic development director Paul Snook brought an interesting reply to the Scoop this week.
The former EDD for the city of Shakopee got a big introduction at the business edition of Mayor Randy Kelly's StreetBeat meeting at Ideal Printing in December. Snook was going to be the go-to-guy for business in the city. But he seems to have gotten the hook.
"Paul Snook is no longer with the City of St. Paul," says an auto reply sent from his city e-mail address, at paul.snook@ci.stpaul.mn.us. We had heard he might be on his way out, but mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl was EXTREMELY circumspect about the departure when the Scoop asked him about it. "We won't have anything to say for three weeks," Kuhl told the Scoop recently.
Alas, we've been unable to track Mr. Snook down himself to get his side of the story. If you're out there, Paul, drop us a line at scoop@pioneerpress.com.

The Scoop at Home
The Scoop, his wife and two children were paid a visit last evening by none other than a Progressive Minnesota canvasser, out working the neighborhood on the Living Wage issue.
It was only about 74 hours after the launch of the campaign in Rice Park on Monday, and Joshua — he didn’t offer his last name — looked like he already had 10 or so signatures by supper time on the clipboard he was carrying around Macalester-Groveland last night.
Pity the canvasser who visits the Scoop at home and finds himself or herself invited to step inside and be grilled by the entire family about what they’re doing, only to discover it’s all for naught because the Scoop’s day job pretty much precludes signing on to ANYTHING.
We were, nonetheless, able to extract some interesting information from the canvasser.
The Scoop’s spouse asked him for some written information, which elicited a dated PM handout that included a notice for the upcoming “Bowling for Victory” event, which the Pioneer Press covered in March. (Note to Ben Goldfarb: Time to get that new issue of the newsletter out.)
Joshua also informed us that he and his colleagues were working the 3rd Ward, in hopes that Council Member Pat Harris might be amenable to signing on to the effort after 5th Ward Council Member Lee Helgen puts the matter before the body in August.
He also said that they’d be over working the East Side, around Lake Phalen, apparently in hopes of putting some pressure on 6th Ward Council Member Dan Bostrom.
It’s interesting geography, if nothing else. It looks from where the Scoop lives like Living Wage supporters may think the council’s four-member liberal bloc is already in the bank, and its time to get a head start on a fifth vote for a veto override.

Polling the Polls
The Scoop has it on pretty good authority that the Kelly and Coleman mayoral camps — or at least their allies — are poised to begin the Great Polling Derby of 2005.
We want you to know that we at the Pioneer Press have such respect for the Do Not Call List that we won’t even think of calling people at random across St. Paul to see if they’ve been called by some pollster prying into their feelings about the mayoral race.
But that doesn’t stop YOU from giving us a jingle.
Please. Please. For the LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD IN THE WORLD, take that opportunity to push the “record” button on your answering machine when you pick up the phone and find a political pollster on the other end. Take notes. Mental ones even.
And when you hang up, get right back on to the phone to the Scoop. Give us a call at 651-292-1159 or e-mail us at scoop@pioneerpress.com. Play back those poll questions for us. Relate to us the many inquiries they had for you. Vent your outrage at the political conclusions they’re trying to get you to draw.
Whatever.
This is your chance to fight back! Drag those anonymous speed-dialing busybodies out of the boiler rooms they’re hiding in and into the bright daylight of Democracy, Truth and the American Way!

The living wage issue rises again

A coalition of labor unions, liberal groups and religious organizations resurrected the controversial living wage issue Tuesday afternoon with a press event and rally at Rice Park, kicking off what promises to be an interesting political drama this summer and fall.
The effort already has touched off some second-guessing among insiders at City Hall, particularly over how the campaign was launched. Tuesday's rally, hosted by a group calling itself Saint Paul Living Wage Yes! Campaign, made it clear that dyed-in-the-wool progressives are leading the charge for a tougher living wage policy.
Having progressives in the driver's seat is a risky move that could potentially hamper the effort to win City Council and mayoral approval of a new living wage ordinance. The coalition already stepped on the toes of some of its most likely backers.
Council President Kathy Lantry agreed last week to speak at the rally but said she didn't learn until Tuesday that the coalition was already putting forward a specific proposal. (The group wants companies that get city handouts to pay wages that would put a worker at 130 percent of the federal poverty level. The city's current guideline calls for wages at 110 percent of the poverty line.)
Lantry spoke at the event, but didn't endorse any specific plan, instead urging the coalition members to put forward facts and arguments that could win over enough council members (five) to override any veto from Mayor Randy Kelly.
The coalition also received a lukewarm reception from Council Member Dave Thune, who would have been expected to embrace the cause immediately, considering he has long championed the living wage issue. Thune, who sponsored the policy the council adopted in 1997, has spoken in recent months about giving the policy more teeth by putting it in ordinance form, as opposed to its current status as a guideline. Thune even said in late April that he planned to draft an ordinance.
But at the request of the liberal grassroots group Progressive Minnesota, he agreed to hold off. After the coalition announced plans for its rally, Thune said he supported revisiting the living wage issue but did not offer support for the coalition's proposal. He did not attend the rally.
Council Member Lee Helgen, one of the most liberal council members, has now taken the lead and plans to introduce a measure in August.
The result is that the living wage drive now is taking on a familiar "Progressives vs. Randy Kelly" cast. The issue also could become a wedge in this year's mayor's race. Former Council Member Chris Coleman, the DFL-endorsed mayoral candidate, and Green Party activist Elizabeth Dickinson, who announced her candidacy Tuesday morning, attended the Rice Park rally.
Moderates who support revisiting the living wage issue see a possible lost opportunity to win consensus on a topic that created a huge divide is the mid-1990s. They note that Kelly created an opening at his April 26 State of the City address, where he laid out an initiative to tackle poverty and chronic homelessness. In his speech, Kelly said: "We must focus on high wage, living wage jobs."
Whether Kelly now has been pushed into a defensive corner on the issue may not be known for some time. This week, he issued the following statement: "I am open to discuss proposals that may lead to action for projects receiving funding from the City of Saint Paul. However, this is the first I have heard of this particular ordinance and will need to take some time to analyze the proposal to make sure that both employees and employers win."
Helgen said he hopes the living wage issue will be part of the council's economic development policy discussion, set for July 27. A draft ordinance would follow within a few weeks, he said.

It’s not easy being Green
Some observations from this morning’s announcement that Green Party activist Elizabeth Dickinson is running for St. Paul mayor:

Lurkers
First, as is usually the case, the people standing around watching were as interesting as the person doing the talking up on Prospect Boulevard. On hand for the announcement was freshly shorn Dean

Zimmerman, the Minneapolis City Council member who rode the bus and his bike over from the Big City.
Even more interesting though, were staunch DFLers, including Gail Daneker, Molly Wilbur-Cohen and Jane Prince, who all joined the crowd standing around Dickinson. Prince, legislative aide to 4th Ward Council Member Jay Benanav — who endorsed Chris Coleman rival Rafael Ortega — actually introduced Dickinson, calling her “my family’s great new candidate for mayor.”
Clearly, the hand-holding and bridge building at the April 30 DFL convention left a few people at the wayside.
Said Prince later: “I’m still a DFLer. And I’m a good DFLer, but what we have this year is two guys for whom DFL purity hasn’t been an issue. These are two guys that have been fine supporting other people against the endorsement.”
But she is in NO WAY interested in becoming a Green, Prince — a former DFL city party chair — wants you to know.
There were some other interesting lurkers, as well. Former Ruminator bookseller David Unowsky was standing among Dickinson’s supporters. Coleman campaign manager Kris Fredson was on hand to watch the proceedings, as was Progressive Minnesota’s executive director, Ben Goldfarb. That organization is expected to screen mayoral candidates next week and usually serves as a political foil to the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, which already has endorsed Randy Kelly.
And way, way back, practically on the other side of the street, was Como Park High School teacher Roy Magnuson, a Progressive Minnesota board member and Ortega campaign operative, looking generally noncommittal and politely declining to offer his counsel about Dickinson’s entrance into the race.

It’s like 2003 all over again
One of the Dickinson supporters NOT lurking at Tuesday’s announcement was Cristy DeLaCruz, the campaign manager for Lee Helgen’s wild and woolly ride to the 5th Ward seat on the same council that Dickinson ran for.
DeLaCruz has signed on as volunteer coordinator for the Green activist’s mayoral campaign. “You wouldn’t believe the number of people that have called already,” she said.
There has been some speculation that her move last year to the 3rd Ward might be a tip to her own city council ambitions, but a question about her prospects elicited what sounded just short of a guffaw from the free-lance consultant on Tuesday. “I prefer to be behind the scenes,” she said.

In case you missed it
Here are Elizabeth Dickinson’s prepared remarks from this morning, as supplied by her campaign.

Good morning and thanks to all of you for coming today.
My name is Elizabeth Dickinson and today I am announcing my candidacy for Mayor of St. Paul. I want to be a leader for all the people of St. Paul.
As my Latino friends say it: Quiero ser la alcadesa para el pueblo.
And as a Hmong friend of mine translates it: [Phonetic] KOO SAH OOH-AHH THU TIE-YAH DOE TOO-AHH HI NENG
What does this mean?
It means I will honor the universal Green principles of grassroots democracy and non-violence by bringing my deeply collaborative nature to the mayor’s office, promoting both vision and cooperation between the city council, the neighborhoods, and small and large businesses. Of paramount importance is restoring the balance in government by inviting the neighborhoods back into the decision-making processes, particularly around issues of development, creating more affordable housing, and maintaining and expanding green spaces in the city.
It also means having an “open door” policy at the mayor’s office where individual voices are listened to respectfully. It even means bringing back a spirit of kindness to all and the politics of joy back to the city during difficult budget times.
Another value I want to bring back to the city is environmental wisdom and justice. As many of you know, I was instrumental in Clean Energy Now, which successfully pressured Xcel Energy to make the cleanest choice available by transforming two of its dirtiest coal burning utilities to natural gas, saving $1.2 billion in health care costs.
And while we must acknowledge our successes, we simply must do better with energy conservation efforts and promoting renewable energy, not just for St. Paul, or for the U.S., but for the people of our world and the planet itself. Investments in energy efficiency yield two to ten times as many jobs per dollar invested, as do investments in fossil fuels and nuclear power. I’m going to repeat that: Investments in energy efficiency yield two to ten times as many jobs per dollar invested as do investments in fossil fuels and nuclear power.
That’s beside the fact that when we cut down on energy use through simple behavioral changes and simple fixes, it saves money, prevents the pollution that changes the climate, gives our kids asthma, and makes our water unfishable, undrinkable and unswimmable. St. Paul can be a green leader not just through developing a sustainability plan, although that’s important, but through exercising its collective political will through franchise agreement negotiations to make our utilities more accountable through investments in renewable energy. And if they won’t do it, than we need to look at setting up our green municipal utility with a better commitment to service, conservation, and renewable energy.
And I want to take a moment to acknowledge the SEE Program (School Energy Efficiency program) in our schools whose goal is to reduce energy consumption by up to 25 percent. The St. Paul Public School System will exceed savings of $100,000 this year. If we were to conserve at a 25 percent level of the $7 million energy budget in the St. Paul Schools, it would mean savings of one and three-quarter million dollars. You can bet that could pay for an awful lot more teachers.
This type of conservation program should be implemented all over St. Paul. We should also offer low interest loans to homeowners to be able to install solar hot water heaters as they do in Minneapolis. For heaven’s sakes, my parents installed solar hot water panels in the mid-seventies during the Carter administration. We need to be further ahead! St. Paul has more sunshine than Jacksonville, Florida, and Houston, Texas.
I am also working with Fresh Force, the student service learning group and the Department of Commerce to see if we can get an anemometer or wind measuring device near one of our schools to see if we have wind speeds sufficient to make a wind turbine economically feasible. Again, we must be aggressive in becoming energy independent.
I would also like to speak about economic and social justice. I fully support the current union-led coalition striving to tie our city¹s investment in companies to the need for a living wage. It’s just common sense that if the city gives hard-earned taxpayer dollars to assist companies with development that we should expect something in return that allows our citizens to live with dignity. If we value work the way we say we do, then that work must allow our citizens to afford the basics — food, decent affordable housing, and health care.
We must also support small businesses. I am a member of MIBA, the Metropolitan Independent Business Alliance that promotes the interests of small, locally owned businesses. I am very proud of the way the Green Party has engaged in this effort. Small businesses account for over 75 percent of the new jobs in this country. We must explore ways to adjust the tax structure so that small businesses are not taxed at the same level as multinational corporations. We need to look at giving tax breaks for landlords that promise to give rental breaks to new small businesses, and explore size caps for big box development.
Obviously there are other issues dear to the hearts of St. Paulites, including education. I fully support excellent educational opportunities for ALL in St. Paul. Education is the pillar of our democracy and our economy and the main avenue for becoming a productive citizen and moving ahead in life. I will work with the school board, teachers, and students to ensure good communication and to try to involve business in a more substantive way to improve our educational options. I will also be ready at a moment’s notice to appear at the Capitol to lobby for school funding.
There are obviously more issues than I have time to address today, including the need to maintain core services like police, fire, and medical services, the need to improve our mass transportation options, and the ever present worries around health care. But before I open up to questions, I would like to acknowledge all of you here today here to support me.
This is going to be an energetic, focused campaign, and I am going to need all of your support, including financial, intellectual, emotional and spiritual help. You have called upon me to provide a progressive voice and I have answered the call. Thank-you for your faith in me and I will do all I can to carry and articulate our collective dreams for a cleaner and kinder St. Paul. Let’s all move ahead together.

St. Paul on the radio
Minneapolis-based community radio KFAI is coming across the river, news director Ann Alquist said on Tuesday.
“We’re mobilizing the troops to cover St. Paul,” Alquist said on Tuesday, as she was prowling around the Green Party mayoral announcement on the West Side. “We’re going to start off with ward tours. We’re going to hit the streets with the residents.” She said St. Paul will have its own news editor, Kate Hannaher, although she’ll be a volunteer, like much of the station’s staff.
Alquist, who covered the contentious 5th Ward council race in 2003, said that about 70 percent of the station’s support and listeners comes from the West Metro. But she said St. Paul news gets a welcome reception even in Minneapolis. “Every single time I cover St. Paul, people call and thank me. I even get responses from Minneapolis,” Alquist said.
The “St. Paul Monday” show will premiere at 6 p.m. July 11 at 106.7 FM in St. Paul and 90.3 in Minneapolis, “although sometimes you can get the 90.3 signal better in St. Paul,” Alquist said. “I don’t know why that is.”

Boy, howdy!
Bob Fletcher is a dad, again.
The three-term county sheriff, former St. Paul city council member, mayoral contender and inveterate politico is the father of a son born Saturday night to Kris, his wife and the daughter of the late 5th Ward Council Member Jim Reiter.
The Scoop is still waiting for the vitals on the boy, but Undersheriff Dave Methusalem broke the happy news to the County Board this morning when he apologized for the sheriff’s absence during discussion of a budget amendment.
“He’s home,” Methusalem told the board. Sheriff department staffers outside the meeting reported that Kris and her son are also home, and doing fine, thank you. The Scoop will post more details as soon as we ferret them out.

Arena of Dreams?

It was standing room only at this morning’s official opening of the Mexican Consulate on East Seventh Street. The Mexican ambassador to the United States, Carlos de Icaza, said he was fulfulling Mexican President Vicente Fox’s promise to open a diplomatic outpost “aqui,” in St. Paul.
It was a long time coming, and welcomed by all in attendance, but the event didn’t go off without an acknowlegement of several other less-diplomatic hang-ups.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty didn’t attend and sent Lt. Gov. Carol Molnau in his place, because he was waiting to see if DFL Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson was going to take Pawlenty up on his offer to step outside and settle their budget differences at Camp Ripley.
One-time Pawlenty rival and now U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman was on hand, and thanked the Mexican government for their decision to open the consulate.
“One of my favorite movies is ‘Field of Dreams,’ the ballfield in Iowa, and it is the line that we remember so well, “If you build it, they will come,” Coleman said. To which someone, at the front of the room interjected with a jab at the Xcel Energy Center, dark for last year’s NHL lockout.
“We built it, here,” Coleman said. “And they’re going to play hockey again in September, too, by the way.”

City to accept free skeeter repellant

Here's an odd item on next Wednesday's City Council agenda: "Resolution 05-565 — Authorizing the acceptance of a donation from Parks Programs L.L.C. of 50,000 sample packets of Deep Woods OFF insect repellant for use by City Parks and Recreation employees."
Parks director Bob Bierscheid said his department is willing to accept such product placements if they benefit the city. In this case, he said, the free samples will be handed out this summer to people attending events at various city parks. Bierscheid says there's a public good in having patrons avoid insect bites.
"The bottom line is that there has to be some value to the city of St. Paul for us to do something like this," he said.
Bierscheid said Parks Programs is a marketing entity working on behalf of the OFF! brand, which is manufactured by SC Johnson, a Racine, Wis.- based company.

Chamber lets its purple hair down

The St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce doesn't exactly evoke images of mohawks, nose rings and black lipstick. But members of the east metro business group will get a chance to go punk this fall. Of course, being the chamber, this would be cutting loose in high style.

An item on chamber President Larry Dowell's weekly online newsletter explains:

"Your Chamber's suite is available to lease for the Green Day concert at Xcel Energy Center on September 16, investment is $1500 and includes 16 tickets."

The chamber newsletter (dare we say blog?) is available at www.saintpaulchamber.com/news/friday_facts.asp.

Andy Dawkins: Undead?

The Watchdog, a Minneapolis-based tabloid dedicated to skewering public officials, journalists and other ne’er do wells, has finally put its May/June issue on line.

And it’s a corker.

The cover features a pale and fanged Andy Dawkins hovering menacingly over what appears to be the corpse of a 68-year-old St. Paul woman with what looks like a city “Notice to Vacate” serving as her epitaph. “Count Dawkins Out For Blood” is the issue’s lead story.

The article recounts, one-sidedly and fairly comically, an alleged elaborate conspiracy by Dawkins and the city, meant to force a purportedly innocent and well-meaning senior citizen from her home and straight to the grave. Another article recounts the aftermath of a “drug bus” (sic) at rental property the publisher owns on Cook Street and a meeting of bar owners “in scenic North Minneapolis, amidst flying used contraceptives, intermittent gun-fire and smashed 40 ounce Mickey’s Malt Liquor bottles.”

The Watchdog is published by Minneapolis landlord Jim Swartwood and is dedicated to “advocating on behalf of property owners, the small business owner and exposing improprieties at City Hall. We are dedicated to preserving the lost art of photojournalism.”

The emphasis is clearly on the “art” at the Watchdog. The cover photo alone is worth a visit to the Web site. Check it out at www.minneapolis-watchdog.com.

Reiter Redux?

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher has been back in the news a bit lately, which prompted the Scoop to start scouring around his old stamping grounds in the 5th Ward. Fletcher won the ward as a mayoral candidate in 1989, and it was the scene of a dramatic — albeit tragic — election race he helped run in 2003.

You might recall that election as a bit of a sleeper race until the sudden death of City Council member Jim Reiter, who had been suffering from a heart ailment and been in and out of the hospital for many of the final weeks of the campaign. Although he came in second in the primary, he had come from behind to win the general election before and had been considered tough to beat.

His daughter, Kris, filed to succeed Reiter shortly after he died, touching off a free-for-all between challenger Lee Helgen, Reiter’s daughter and three other candidates. Reiter’s residency was a particularly sore spot: At the time, she owned a home in the suburbs, which her campaign manager — Bob Fletcher — lived in, and she listed another suburban home, which Fletcher owned, as her official residence. They’ve since married and are expecting a child.

Now, the Scoop has learned that her brother may be taking a cue from his father and sister. Realtor Jim Reiter Jr. has told Pioneer Press reporter Gita Sitaramiah that he might consider a pre-emptive real estate transaction and move back to St. Paul to enter politics. He’s already been elected president — of the St. Paul Area Association of Realtors.

The Reiter kids grew up in St. Paul, and if James Jr. returned to the 5th Ward for a run, it would be the third Helgen-Reiter matchup in four years, a battle that’s destined to qualify for “legendary” status.

Reiter didn’t return a call from the Scoop about his plans, but he and his family haven’t exactly been politically reticent of late. The late council member’s widow and another daughter were on hand in downtown St. Paul when the St. Paul Police Federation announced its endorsement of Mayor Randy Kelly. James Jr. and his mom, Darlene, also maxed out their campaign contributions to Randy Kelly with $500 each in January.

Keep an eye on the properties around Gervais Lake in Little Canada.

1989 redux?

Word that former Police Chief Bill Finney is thinking about taking on Sheriff Bob Fletcher raises an interesting question:

Has he beaten him before?

They’ve never run head to head in an election, but they have crossed paths on a 1989 St. Paul ballot when Finney ran for the school board and Fletcher ran for mayor. Finney was the top vote getter in the September primary, when Fletcher was running against then-council president Jim Scheibel. Finney had 14,161 votes, and Flecther had 9,604. And although Finney came in second to Becky Montgomery in the general election, Finney’s 29,640 citywide votes beat Fletcher’s mayoral total of 27,850 that year.

Those are different races, of course, so you can’t compare them directly.

But there is a lingering question. Finney wasn’t exactly a bystander in the Scheibel administration: He was named to the transition team only days after the election and appointed police chief by Scheibel three years later. Maybe he’d been some help for Scheibel at the polls.

Let’s take a look at the general election results:

Fletcher’s worst ward that year was the 1st Ward, where he was beaten almost 2 to 1. By comparison, it was Finney’s best ward. He got nearly one in every four school board votes in that ward. It was the strongest showing in any ward by any school board candidate that November — even better than top vote getter Becky Montgomery.

In an interview Friday, the winner of that mayoral race says Finney “definitely helped” that year, although he said it was hard to gauge exactly how and by how much. They marched in the Rondo Days parade together, and Finney door-knocked with Scheibel in the 1st Ward.

But the ballot listing the two of them drew the best 1st Ward turnout in any recent local election.

Scheibel also recalls Finney door-knocking with him in the 7th Ward, where Finney lived and where Scheibel pulled off something of an upset. That’s been one of the most conservative parts of town for years but was taken by one of the most liberal candidates in the post-George Latimer era.

Still, the Finney connection isn’t all there is to the story: There were plenty of other factors on the ballot that year.

Kiki Sonnen, the 4th Ward city council member who had served as Fletcher’s aide when he represented that same area on the council, was also on that ballot. She succeeded Fletcher, but she didn’t boost her old boss’ s prospects much, getting defeated by Paula Maccabee in the general election. Fletcher lost his old ward by more than 1,600 votes in the mayoral election, his third-worst showing in the city.

That election also had the legendary 1st Ward battle between Bill Wilson (the incumbent and first African-American on the council) and Roy Garza, who would have been the first Hispanic on the council. Theirs was a squeaker eventually decided by a mere two votes after much back and forth over the results. The closeness of the race may have been another factor in the 1st Ward turnout in 1989.

And it wasn’t just a golden era for 1st Ward, either. The 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th wards all have steadily declined in turnout since that first election after Latimer retired.

And in the end, the 2,297 votes Fletcher lost by in the 1st Ward really didn’t make much difference. Fletcher was beaten by more than 8,200 votes that year and still would have mustered only a 47 percent result if he’d traded 1st Ward results with Scheibel. Finney’s second-best ward was the 5th Ward, which Fletcher won.

In the end, Fletcher said at the time, it would have taken “a small miracle” to beat the DFL party that Latimer left as his legacy.

Waiting for Veto

City Council President Kathy Lantry doesn't think a council resolution ordering an audit of the city's contracting practices has much chance of surviving.

After Wednesday's 4-3 vote approving the measure, Lantry said flat out she expects Mayor Randy Kelly to veto the resolution. Lantry also said she doesn't hold out much hope that one of the three council members who opposed the resolution would change their minds and support a veto override. (The council would need five votes to put a resolution into effect over Kelly's objection.)

"No one is going to flip," Lantry said. Council members voting against the resolution were Dan Bostrom, Pat Harris and Debbie Montgomery.

The measure directs the council research staff to begin the process of hiring an outside firm to study whether the city and real-estate developers have complied with ordinances and laws designed to ensure equal access to contracts for minority- and women-owned businesses.

Kelly's aides have said the mayor opposes an audit, preferring instead to focus on making forward-looking changes. The mayor's office has not said yet whether Kelly will sign or veto the council's resolution. If Kelly does nothing, the resolution takes effect five business days after his office receives the measure from the council.

A veto before next Wednesday's council meeting could put two rival items on the agenda. One would be a possible override vote. The other would be a resolution that Montgomery introduced Wednesday. Her measure backs Kelly's pledge to conduct a "disparity study" that would assess the number of minority- and women-owned firms in various industries in the Twin Cities area, allowing the city to set realistic contracting goals for itself and real-estate developers. Montgomery's resolution also would create a standing committee of business and community groups to monitor contracting progress.

Viva Kelly!

The news today that Mayor Randy Kelly and school superintendent Pat Harvey had chosen a pair of books by Latina authors should come as no surprise to political watchers

"A Place Where the Sea Remembers" by Edina resident Sandra Benitez will be the choice for adult participants in the St. Paul Reads program. "Esperanza Rising" by Pam Muñoz Ryan will be the youth reader book.

Far be it from the Scoop to ascribe political motives to the selection, but both books – involving tales from Mexico – fit quite nicely with the Kelly re-election effort.

That’s because St. Paul’s East Side isn’t just Randy Kelly’s home turf. It’s also home to one of the fastest-growing Hispanic communities in the state. The Mexican consulate, lured to East Seventh Street with the help of the mayor’s good offices, is scheduled to open later this summer.

In addition, Kelly staffers said earlier this year that the mayor’s re-election will involve greater focus on St. Paul’s 2nd Ward, the traditional home of the city’s Latino population.

And while parts of the West Side have some of lowest voter turnout in the city, Kelly clearly sees some opportunity there. As mayor, he’s already christened a street named after Cesar Chavez, started a new sister city relationship with Manzanillo, Mexico, and appointed a Latino city attorney in Manuel Cervantes. Kelly was key in bringing Mexican President Vicente Fox to St. Paul’s East Side to visit the Academia Cesar Chavez charter school.

The book selection also comes at a cultural crossroads for the mayor and the City Council.

Last night, they approved a proposal for an independent look at how the city measures up to the diversity goals it set in the late 1990s. The city’s own data haven’t been greatly encouraging, a recent Pioneer Press analysis found. Kelly has threatened to veto the audit, which will likely kill the effort, since the council doesn’t look like it has a fifth vote to override Kelly.

The Scoop would like to assure you that this is all merely coincidence.

Correction

Scoop listed the wrong name of a community newspaper in a post Tuesday about the ongoing flap over the Jeremiah Program project on Concordia Avenue. The correct name of the paper is Midway Como Monitor. Thanks to Jane McClure at the Villager for pointing out the error. (McClure's e-mail noting the mistake arrived at 12:02 a.m. Thursday. When queried what she was doing reading Scoop at such an hour, McClure replied: "The neighborhood press never sleeps." So now we know.

Jeremiah jab

Hard feelings still persist in the 1st Ward over last week's City Council vote on the Jeremiah Program's planned apartment complex for single mothers.

Council Member Debbie Montgomery, the 1st Ward representative, opposed a zoning change that will allow the project to move forward on Concordia Avenue near Milton Street. She had hoped colleague Jay Benanav was going to vote her way, but he wound up casting the deciding vote Wednesday in favor of the project. Montgomery was upset at what she viewed as the council majority imposing an unwanted zoning change on her ward.

Now she's tweaking Benanav for what appears to her to be a severe bout of inconsistency. Montgomery posted a quote from Benanav on a glass partition between the 1st Ward offices and a common council hallway. The quote is from the Midway Monitor, a neighborhood newspaper, about the possible relocation of a bus layover facility in Benanav's ward:

"My concerns are for the Ward 4 residents," he says. "Redevelopment should not be done at the expense of the community."

East Side, West Side, all around the town

Is it the best of times or the worst of times?

Hard to know during a mayoral election year, but you can be sure about one thing: This year will be a tale of two cities when it comes to the mayor’s race.

Take a look at the 2001 mayoral results first.

East of Edgerton Street, Randy Kelly won by a whopping 3,686 votes four years ago. West of Edgerton, he lost by 3,283 votes. Either one of these numbers are the kind of margins that can swing an entire election, to give you some perspective on the geographic gap between Kelly and Benanav.

It’s harder to map out a Coleman/Kelly race. Although Highland Park and Macalester- Groveland put up the biggest share of money and votes for an election, the 2nd Ward (which includes downtown, West Seventh Street, the West Side and the Summit Hill area) could be a “hot spot” this year, to borrow the mayor’s terminology. Kelly staffers say they expect to be more competitive there this time around. But it’s also Coleman’s home turf, the ward he represented on the city council.

The mayor is going to be defending his turf fiercely, for his part. He’s scheduled an East Side fundraiser at Governor’s restaurant on Arcade Street next Monday, hosted by not just two Controneos, but two Hitchcocks, as well. That’s some serious name dropping in that 55106 ZIP code. “Please join us in supporting St. Paul’s first East Side mayor,” says an invite the Scoop recently acquired.

An accompanying letter reads:

“Over the course of our Capital City’s 150 year history, we have had many bright stars come from St. Paul’s East Side. Be it Justices of the Supreme Court, world renowned athletes and coaches, successful entrepreneurs, or bold political leaders, the people of the East Side truly shine. However, over the course of our City’s great history, we have only elected one East Side mayor: Randy Kelly.

“Today we are writing you to let you know just how critically important it has been to have a Mayor representing St. Paul who calls the East Side his home.”

Campaign junkies

Send us your pamplets, your invites, your direct mail yearning to be free!
For the record, the Scoop LOVES junk mail. Fundraiser invitations. Campaign literature. Reports of calls from pollsters. Lawn sign sightings. Call us gluttons for punishment, but we just CAN’T get enough of that campaign rhetoric. Ever.

So if you see something interesting, no matter how trivial, drop us a line, won’t you? We can be reached online at scoop@pioneerpress.com, via fax at 651-292-1897 or by mail to Tim Nelson or Bob Ingrassia at 345 Cedar St., St. Paul, MN 55101.

You can take next Friday off

At least one of the rumored mayoral campaigns looks like it won’t be setting forth, as some supporters were hoping.
Backers had been shopping his entry around in the back of the room at Mayor Randy Kelly’s State of the City address earlier this spring and lining up backers for a run against the first-term incumbent.
Downtown St. Paul art gallery owner and architectural illustrator Bill Hosko said Friday that there won’t be a kickoff announcement for his second mayoral run on June 10.
Despite what supporters call plenty of pledges to back the would-be mayor and would-be council member (he ran for the 2nd Ward seat in 2003), Hosko says that he’s got other irons in the fire these days and has decided not to run.
His most recent project is Sweet William and Tea, a tea shop next to Hosko Gallery in the Endicott Arcade, at 142 E. Fifth St.
“I just opened it four days ago,” Hosko said. “If it had been four months ago, things might have been different.”
Hosko has had mixed success at the polls. On Sept. 11, 2001, he finished eighth in the mayoral primary, just behind perennial candidate Sharon Anderson. He beat her pretty handily in 2003, though, coming in just out of the limelight, behind fouth-place finisher and now 2nd Ward legislative aide Donna Swanson. Christine Nelson won that primary, followed by Dave Thune (who went on to win) and Green Party contender Elizabeth Dickinson.
(BEGIN OPTIONAL TRIM)
Hosko probably had them all beat in one aspect (OK, not Sharon Anderson on this one, either): his biography. There are two full pages of his personal tales on his Web site at www.billhosko.com, detailing his many adventures and his home in Montana. (State records do show he’s a St. Paul resident, by the way). He also stood out from the pack in the 2001 mayoral campaign with a note on his literature noting that he was gay “because I would rather you hear those words now rather than later from someone else.”
(END OPTIONAL TRIM)
Hosko has made his mark in St. Paul in other ways, as well. He’s painted several of the “Peanuts” statues that have decorated downtown in recent years and pushed to spruce up the District Cooling water tower near the interchange of interstates 35E and 94.

Welcome, Bob Hume!

The Chris Coleman campaign has added a new communications director. Everybody welcome Bob Hume to the show!

Hume, who grew up in Cottage Grove and Woodbury, went to Hamline University, majored in political science and graduated in 2003. “Then I went to Washington to look for a job.”

Job isn’t really the word for what he found. Hume signed on with the ill-fated re-election campaign of U.S. Sen. Tom Dashcle, of South Dakota, who lost the race of the year — aside from the presidential contest — to Republican John Thune.

Hume punched in at Coleman campaign headquarters this week and is already getting a feel for the place, he says. Not that he won’t find it somewhat familiar.

“I’ve crossed paths with some of these folks before,” Hume says of the Kelly campaign.

True enough.

Take a look at the Political Money Line site, at www.fecinfo.com, and you’ll see that Minnesota put a fair amount of money into that Thune race. (Contributors from the Gopher State chipped in about $193,000, according to the site.)

More interesting, though, are those who ponied up: A quick check shows the names of Otto Bonestroo, Douglas Coleman, John Grundhofer, Carl Drake, David Frauenshuh, Karen Hubbard, Stanley Hubbard, Esther Kellogg, John Kinkead, Robert Klas, Doug McMillan, W. McNerny, Glen Nelson, Ford Nicholson, Todd Nicholson, Tuan Pham, David Powell, and Doug Seaton all have appeared on both Thune’s contributor lists and Randy Kelly’s.

The Scoop only had time to run through the list quickly, but you get the point. It looks like about 7 percent of the Thune contributors from Minnesota have chipped in on the Kelly campaign, too, at some point along the line.

For the record, Minnesota gave money to the Daschle campaign, too — some $206,000. There were some interesting crossovers there: John Cowles III, the Pohlad family, lobbyist Ron Jerich, Vance Opperman, St. Paul attorney Bill Tilton — all Kelly contributors in the past — pitched in for Daschle.

But alas, the 105 contributors Coleman has on the official record don’t seem to include anybody who sent aid to the South Dakota battle.

The Scoop formally apologizes to Jason Anderson

The Scoop would like to acknowlege a grievous error on our part, regarding last weekend’s Melaleuca Freedom Celebration 10K. That tall trotter in the green Randy Kelly T-shirt was NOT the Jason Anderson of the city’s marketing department. He was the Jason Anderson of the Randy Kelly campaign.

(We’d love to look up his race time, but organizers STILL haven’t posted results from Monday’s contest)

At any rate, it seems Anderson has left the city’s employment and devoted his days to the re-election of his former boss, according to mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl, who got his own start as a driver for the first Kelly campaign. Unbeknownst to the Scoop, Anderson officially had joined another former city marketing guy — now Norm Coleman’s chief of staff, Erich Mische — in the 2005 mayoral race. Kelly has credited Mische in the past with the role of an “adviser” to his political effort.

Anderson’s move was greeted with some clucking in city council offices, where his mom, Nancy, used to work, and where there hasn’t been enough distinction between marketing the city of St. Paul and marketing Randy Kelly for some officials’ tastes.

Tough call for the council

Several City Council members said last night’s decision on the fate of the Jeremiah Program's proposed apartment complex for single mothers in the Summit-University neighborhood was among the toughest choices they have had to make as elected officials.
A request for a zoning change enabling the project to move forward passed 4-3, with Jay Benanav, Pat Harris, Lee Helgen and Kathy Lantry voting in the majority. Debbie Montgomery, whose 1st Ward includes Summit-University, led a failed effort to defeat the zoning change. Dave Thune and Dan Bostrom voted with her.
The vote put the council majority in the uncomfortable position of thwarting the desires of a colleague who represented the neighborhood affected. An informal tradition dictates that on zoning matters, council members generally defer to the wishes of the home council member.
Montgomery said she had nothing against the Jeremiah Program, a Minneapolis-based organization that runs supportive housing for low-income moms. But she said the vacant lot at 932 Concordia Ave. was not appropriate for high-density apartment zoning.
Like others in the neighborhood, Montgomery has expressed desires for senior-oriented housing on the site. She had hopes that Ed McDaniel, a former Minnesota Vikings player, could acquire the land.
Benanav cast what appeared to have been the deciding vote. He had expressed mixed feelings about the project in recent weeks. Montgomery had hoped Benanav would go her way, a wish he acknowledged last night when he said he knew people believe he had "flip-flopped" on the issue.
The Jeremiah Program's proposal sparked impassioned pleas from both sides. There were two items before the council, the zoning change and an appeal of the Planning Commission's approval of a conditional-use permit for transitional housing.
After the zoning vote, there were cheers from the side of the chambers where Jeremiah backers had gathered. Some of the single mothers living at Jeremiah's Minneapolis apartment complex jumped up and waved their arms. On the other side of the room, a few opponents booed. Katie McWatt, a longtime St. Paul civil rights activist, shouted across the chambers for the Jeremiah supporters to move to Summit-University if they really cared about the neighborhood.
Lantry, the council president, tried to soothe tensions, essentially asking everyone to play nice and try to move forward in a positive way. Most of the opponents then left the council chambers, even though the council had yet to take up the permit issue. Montgomery vacated her seat, too, having been informed by the city attorney's office that her prior public statements on the issue had rendered her biased. (The council sits as a quasi-judicial body on zoning matters, forcing them to act in some ways like judges.)
Even Nathaniel Khaliq, president of the St. Paul NAACP, walked out. His group was among those that had appealed the Planning Commission's permit decision. He didn't even stick around for the vote on his appeal, saying the writing was on the wall. Khaliq left with attorney Joel Franklin. The two said a decision on whether to take the issue to Ramsey County District Court would be made soon.
The Jeremiah Program is proposing a three-story, 38-unit building, but the new zoning would allow a five-story building at higher densities. Bostrom warned his council colleagues that the neighborhood could get stuck with a parcel of high-density apartment zoning if the group's project falls through.
Mayor Randy Kelly could in theory veto the zoning change, but would have to wait until the council passes an ordinance memorializing its action Wednesday. The council would need five votes to override a veto.
Thune, who voted against the zoning change but then backed the housing permit, said today he would vote to override any mayoral veto. He said it was time to "move forward" and called the zoning change "veto proof."
Mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl said today that Kelly would not veto the zoning change.

Honoring a St. Paul Cop
One day in early May, Sgt. Steve Frazer walked into what he thought was going to be a routine staff meeting at police headquarters. Then Mayor Randy Kelly showed up, surprising Frazer with the news that the officer was the 2005 recipient of the city's Karl Neid Award.
Frazer, a homicide unit supervisor, had a bit more time to prepare for Wednesday's official awards ceremony in the City Council chambers. With his wife, Jacqueline, and their three children looking on, Frazer accepted the award for his work in the community. He's coached East Side youngsters in T-ball, football and soccer.
Frazer kept his remarks brief. "I'm truly humbled to be part of this club," he said. "It doesn't seem like you should get an award for something that's truly, truly a joy to do."
The officer wrapped up his speech with a quote from Theodore Roosevelt: “It is no use to preach to (children) if you do not act decently yourself."
The award was established in 1993 in honor of Neid, a city employee and council member who died of a heart attack in 1992 four months after being elected to the council. The award is given for exemplary public service and contributions to improving the quality of life in St. Paul.

Campaign Notes

Signs, signs, everywhere a sign
The official political flower of summer started sprouting around St. Paul on Thursday night: lawn signs for the mayoral and school board races started going up in yards around the city.
The DFL started passing out its signs at the Labor Center, at 411 Main, and this “Chris Coleman for St. Paul” sign on Marshall Avenue was up by 8:30 p.m. The Kelly campaign is launching its sign campaign at 10 a.m. Saturday at the campaign headquarters at Bandana Square.
Jeanne Schnitzen, the lawn sign coordinator for the Dickinson campaign, just told the Scoop that she’s got signs ready to go and will also start putting them up this weekend.
School board candidates John Brodrick, Elona Street-Stewart and Tom Goldstein have some large “DFL endorsed” co-op signs going up, listing all of their names.
All three candidates have online sign request forms. Check them out at chriscolemanformayor.com, elizabethdickinson.org, or randykelly.com.

On the Net
The Coleman campaign also put up the second iteration of its Web site on Thursday, a much-needed refresher that has some upcoming events, photos and campaign information.
It’s an improvement over the last version, but still isn’t quite up to speed with the Kelly site, which has a fairly regularly updated, albeit rather formal, “mayor’s blog,” among other things.
The mayor’s campaign is also sending out a weekly “Campaign Countdown,” a truly droll e-mail communiqué that has, if nothing else, as much political minutiae as even the Scoop can stand.
From this week’s ‘Intern’s Corner’ feature: “They really seem to appreciate his message of bi-partisanship and working together to get things done for our community,” intern Logan Martin says of the people he meets while literature dropping (“ ‘lit dropping’ for short,” he says) for Hizzoner.
That Logan. There’s a guy with a future in politics if there ever was one.

See the Guy to Whome the Scoop Owes it All
Al Gore, erstwhile vice president, largest vote getter in the 2000 presidential election and a founder of the Internet, is going to be in town on Tuesday at the Science Museum of Minnesota, for a “one of a kind multimedia presentation on global climate change.”
The reception starts at 5:30 p.m. and the show an hour later. It’s free, but you’re supposed to RSVP at 651-221-9444.
No word on whether Gore will be doing any politicking in town, but the event is sponsored by the Gegax Family Foundation (that’s Tires Plus founder and Paul Wellstone supporter Tom Gegax, whose son T. Trent, used to work with the Scoop at the Minnesota Daily back in the day. Trent was the “Newsweek Guy” in the 2000 ‘Journeys With George’ campaign documentary as well as uber-Democrat and Minnesota Wild minority owner Vance Opperman.
A tip of the hat to Andrew “Scourge of the Ruling Class” Hine for shooting us the notice on the Gore visit.

Opening up a second front?

2005-07-06T12:10:00.000-07:00

Progressive Minnesota Executive Director Ben Goldfarb said this week that his organization is getting "extremely positive results" from its door-to-door effort to boost a proposed living wage ordinance in Macalester-Groveland and Highland Park, Council Member Pat Harris' turf.

It's also some of the most fertile political ground in the city. More than 21 percent of the votes in the last municipal election were cast in the 3rd Ward in 2003, and it's likely to be a key battleground again this year.

Coincidence?

Ten years ago, you might recall, there was another living wage initiative making its way through the city, spearheaded by the Minnesota Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now, better known as ACORN.

That complicated initiative -- the wording nearly filled one side of the ballot, according to descriptions of the election -- went down to defeat at the polls, by a nearly 2-to-1 margin. It was opposed by the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce and Mayor Norm Coleman. The living wage effort also coincided with council elections.

But the referendum (either a blow for justice or "economic terrorism," depending on whom you asked) didn't seem to move the political needle very much. Six of the seven council incumbents returned that fall, and Dan Bostrom joined the council from the 6th Ward to become a staunch Coleman ally.

Still, the effort did have on interesting side-effect: Erich Mische, then a Coleman staffer and currently a Kelly adviser, took a three-week leave of absence from City Hall to fight the initiative, the Pioneer Press said at the time. That was certainly a distraction for that administration.

And Goldfarb also said that PM was getting stacks of postcards for council members in Minneapolis, where it's planning to launch a similar effort. You can bet the St. Paul petitions that canvassers were carrying around will come in right handy for voter ID after the PM endorsement later this month.

It's Baby Time!

You know how deaths always seem to come in streaks, like those of Mother Teresa and Princess Diana? Well, births are coming in bunches, too, in St. Paul political circles these days.

The birth of legislative aide Jennifer Dunn's new son and Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher's boy, Robert James ("He looks like his grandfather, but with more hair," the sheriff said of late Council Member Jim Reiter) looks like its going to coincide pretty closely with a new baby for Song Lo Fawcett, one of the figures at the center of the Hmong Funeral Home flap in City Hall.

She's a Metropolitan Council member and the sister of former mayoral aide Sia Lo, who was forced out of his post while the FBI probes alleged influence peddling. The Scoop saw her making her way through Town Square the other day, and it looks like that baby will be here any day now. Reports say it will be her third.

Where's Paul Snook?

An e-mail to the city's economic development director Paul Snook brought an interesting reply to the Scoop this week.

The former EDD for the city of Shakopee got a big introduction at the business edition of Mayor Randy Kelly's StreetBeat meeting at Ideal Printing in December. Snook was going to be the go-to-guy for business in the city. But he seems to have gotten the hook.

"Paul Snook is no longer with the City of St. Paul," says an auto reply sent from his city e-mail address, at paul.snook@ci.stpaul.mn.us.

We had heard he might be on his way out, but mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl was EXTREMELY circumspect about the departure when the Scoop asked him about it. "We won't have anything to say for three weeks," Kuhl told the Scoop recently.

Alas, we've been unable to track Mr. Snook down to get his side of the story. If you're out there, Paul, drop us a line at scoop@pioneerpress.com.

The Scoop at Home

2005-07-01T11:19:00.000-07:00

The Scoop, his wife and two children were paid a visit last evening by none other than a Progressive Minnesota canvasser, out working the neighborhood on the Living Wage issue.

It was only about 74 hours after the launch of the campaign in Rice Park on Monday, and Joshua -- he didn't offer his last name -- looked like he already had 10 or so signatures by supper time on the clipboard he was carrying around Macalester-Groveland last night.

Pity the canvasser who visits the Scoop at home and finds himself or herself invited to step inside and be grilled by the entire family about what he or she is doing, only to discover it's all for naught because the Scoop's day job pretty much precludes signing on to ANYTHING.

We were, nonetheless, able to extract some interesting information from the canvasser.

The Scoop's spouse asked him for some written information, which elicited a dated PM handout that included a notice for the "upcoming" Bowling for Victory event, which the Pioneer Press covered in March. (Note to Ben Goldfarb: Time to get that new issue of the newsletter out.)

Joshua also informed us that he and his colleagues were working the 3rd Ward, in hopes that Council Member Pat Harris might be amenable to signing on to the effort after 5th Ward Council Member Lee Helgen puts the matter before the body in August.

He also said that they'd be over working the East Side, around Lake Phalen, apparently in hopes of putting some pressure on 6th Ward Council Member Dan Bostrom.

It's interesting geography, if nothing else. It looks from where the Scoop lives like Living Wage supporters may think the council's four-member liberal bloc is already in the bank, and it's time to get a head start on a fifth vote for a veto override.

Polling the Polls

2005-06-29T15:18:00.000-07:00

The Scoop has it on pretty good authority that the Kelly and Coleman mayoral camps -- or at least their allies -- are poised to begin the Great Polling Derby of 2005.

We want you to know that we at the Pioneer Press have such respect for the Do Not Call List that we won't even think of calling people at random across St. Paul to see if they've been called by some pollster prying into their feelings about the mayoral race.

But that doesn't stop YOU from giving us a jingle.

Please. Please. For the LOVE OF ALL THAT IS GOOD IN THE WORLD, take that opportunity to push the "record" button on your answering machine when you pick up the phone and find a political pollster on the other end. Take notes. Mental ones even.

And when you hang up, get right back on to the phone to the Scoop. Give us a call at 651-292-1159 or e-mail us at scoop@pioneerpress.com. Play back those poll questions for us. Relate to us the many inquiries they had for you. Vent your outrage at the political conclusions they're trying to get you to draw.

Whatever.

This is your chance to fight back! Drag those anonymous speed-dialing busybodies out of the boiler rooms they're hiding in and into the bright daylight of Democracy, Truth and the American Way!

The living wage issue rises again

2005-06-29T11:30:00.000-07:00

A coalition of labor unions, liberal groups and religious organizations resurrected the controversial living wage issue Tuesday afternoon with a press event and rally at Rice Park, kicking off what promises to be an interesting political drama this summer and fall.

The effort already has touched off some second-guessing among insiders at City Hall, particularly over how the campaign was launched. Tuesday's rally, hosted by a group calling itself Saint Paul Living Wage Yes! Campaign, made it clear that dyed-in-the-wool progressives are leading the charge for a tougher living wage policy.

Having progressives in the driver's seat is a risky move that could potentially hamper the effort to win City Council and mayoral approval of a new living wage ordinance. The coalition already stepped on the toes of some of its most likely backers.

Council President Kathy Lantry agreed last week to speak at the rally but said she didn't learn until Tuesday that the coalition was already putting forward a specific proposal. (The group wants companies that get city handouts to pay wages that would put a worker at 130 percent of the federal poverty level. The city's current guideline calls for wages at 110 percent of the poverty line.)

Lantry spoke at the event, but didn't endorse any specific plan, instead urging the coalition members to put forward facts and arguments that could win over enough council members (five) to override any veto from Mayor Randy Kelly.

The coalition also received a lukewarm reception from Council Member Dave Thune, who would have been expected to embrace the cause immediately, considering he has long championed the living wage issue. Thune, who sponsored the policy the council adopted in 1997, has spoken in recent months about giving the policy more teeth by putting it in ordinance form, as opposed to its current status as a guideline. Thune even said in late April that he planned to draft an ordinance.

But at the request of the liberal grassroots group Progressive Minnesota, he agreed to hold off. After the coalition announced plans for its rally, Thune said he supported revisiting the living wage issue but did not offer support for the coalition's proposal. He did not attend the rally.

Council Member Lee Helgen, one of the most liberal council members, has now taken the lead and plans to introduce a measure in August.

The result is that the living wage drive now is taking on a familiar "Progressives vs. Randy Kelly" cast. The issue also could become a wedge in this year's mayor's race. Former Council Member Chris Coleman, the DFL-endorsed mayoral candidate, and Green Party activist Elizabeth Dickinson, who announced her candidacy Tuesday morning, attended the Rice Park rally.

Moderates who support revisiting the living wage issue see a possible lost opportunity to win consensus on a topic that created a huge divide is the mid-1990s. They note that Kelly created an opening at his April 26 State of the City address, where he laid out an initiative to tackle poverty and chronic homelessness. In his speech, Kelly said: "We must focus on high wage, living wage jobs."

Whether Kelly now has been pushed into a defensive corner on the issue may not be known for some time. This week, he issued the following statement: "I am open to discuss proposals that may lead to action for projects receiving funding from the City of Saint Paul. However, this is the first I have heard of this particular ordinance and will need to take some time to analyze the proposal to make sure that both employees and employers win."

Helgen said he hopes the living wage issue will be part of the council's economic development policy discussion, set for July 27. A draft ordinance would follow within a few weeks, he said.

It's not easy being Green

2005-06-28T16:41:00.000-07:00

Some observations from this morning's announcement that Green Party activist Elizabeth Dickinson is running for St. Paul mayor:

Lurkers

First, as is usually the case, the people standing around watching were as interesting as the person doing the talking up on Prospect Boulevard. On hand for the announcement was freshly shorn Dean Zimmermann, the Minneapolis City Council member who rode the bus and his bike over from the Big City.

Even more interesting though, were staunch DFLers, including Gail Daneker, Molly Wilbur-Cohen and Jane Prince, who all joined the crowd standing around Dickinson. Prince, legislative aide to 4th Ward Council Member Jay Benanav -- who endorsed Chris Coleman rival Rafael Ortega -- actually introduced Dickinson, calling her "my family's great new candidate for mayor."

Jane Prince standing by her candidate at Tuesday's announcement

Clearly, the hand-holding and bridge building at the April 30 DFL convention left a few people at the wayside.

Said Prince later: "I'm still a DFLer. And I'm a good DFLer, but what we have this year is two guys for whom DFL purity hasn't been an issue. These are two guys that have been fine supporting other people against the endorsement."

But she is in NO WAY interested in becoming a Green, Prince -- a former DFL city party chair -- wants you to know.

There were some other interesting lurkers, as well. Former Ruminator bookseller David Unowsky was standing among Dickinson's supporters. Coleman campaign manager Kris Fredson was on hand to watch the proceedings, as was Progressive Minnesota's executive director, Ben Goldfarb. That organization is expected to screen mayoral candidates next week and usually serves as a political foil to the St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce, which already has endorsed Randy Kelly.

And way, way back, practically on the other side of the street, was Como Park High School teacher Roy Magnuson, a Progressive Minnesota board member and Ortega campaign operative, looking generally noncommittal and politely declining to offer his counsel about Dickinson's entrance into the race.

It's like 2003 all over again

One of the Dickinson supporters NOT lurking at Tuesday's announcement was Cristy DeLaCruz, the campaign manager for Lee Helgen's wild and woolly ride to the 5th Ward seat on the same council that Dickinson ran for.

DeLaCruz has signed on as volunteer coordinator for the Green activist's mayoral campaign. "You wouldn't believe the number of people that have called already," she said.

There has been some speculation that her move last year to the 3rd Ward might be a tip to her own city council ambitions, but a question about her prospects elicited what sounded just short of a guffaw from the free-lance consultant on Tuesday. "I prefer to be behind the scenes," she said.

In case you missed it

Here are Elizabeth Dickinson's prepared remarks from this morning, as supplied by her campaign:

Good morning and thanks to all of you for coming today.

My name is Elizabeth Dickinson and today I am announcing my candidacy for Mayor of St. Paul. I want to be a leader for all the people of St. Paul.

As my Latino friends say it: Quiero ser la alcadesa para el pueblo.

And as a Hmong friend of mine translates it: [Phonetic] KOO SAH OOH-AHH THU TIE-YAH DOE TOO-AHH HI NENG.

What does this mean?

It means I will honor the universal Green principles of grassroots democracy and non-violence by bringing my deeply collaborative nature to the mayor's office, promoting both vision and cooperation between the city council, the neighborhoods, and small and large businesses. Of paramount importance is restoring the balance in government by inviting the neighborhoods back into the decision-making processes, particularly around issues of development, creating more affordable housing, and maintaining and expanding green spaces in the city.

It also means having an "open door" policy at the mayor's office where individual voices are listened to respectfully. It even means bringing back a spirit of kindness to all and the politics of joy back to the city during difficult budget times.

Another value I want to bring back to the city is environmental wisdom and justice. As many of you know, I was instrumental in Clean Energy Now, which successfully pressured Xcel Energy to make the cleanest choice available by transforming two of its dirtiest coal burning utilities to natural gas, saving $1.2 billion in health care costs.

And while we must acknowledge our successes, we simply must do better with energy conservation efforts and promoting renewable energy, not just for St. Paul, or for the U.S., but for the people of our world and the planet itself. Investments in energy efficiency yield two to ten times as many jobs per dollar invested, as do investments in fossil fuels and nuclear power. I'm going to repeat that: Investments in energy efficiency yield two to ten times as many jobs per dollar invested as do investments in fossil fuels and nuclear power.

That's beside the fact that when we cut down on energy use through simple behavioral changes and simple fixes, it saves money, prevents the pollution that changes the climate, gives our kids asthma, and makes our water unfishable, undrinkable and unswimmable. St. Paul can be a green leader not just through developing a sustainability plan, although that's important, but through exercising its collective political will through franchise agreement negotiations to make our utilities more accountable through investments in renewable energy. And if they won't do it, than we need to look at setting up our green municipal utility with a better commitment to service, conservation, and renewable energy.

And I want to take a moment to acknowledge the SEE Program (School Energy Efficiency program) in our schools whose goal is to reduce energy consumption by up to 25 percent. The St. Paul Public School System will exceed savings of $100,000 this year. If we were to conserve at a 25 percent level of the $7 million energy budget in the St. Paul Schools, it would mean savings of one and three-quarter million dollars. You can bet that could pay for an awful lot more teachers.

This type of conservation program should be implemented all over St. Paul. We should also offer low interest loans to homeowners to be able to install solar hot water heaters as they do in Minneapolis. For heaven's sakes, my parents installed solar hot water panels in the mid-seventies during the Carter administration. We need to be further ahead! St. Paul has more sunshine than Jacksonville, Florida, and Houston, Texas.

I am also working with Fresh Force, the student service learning group, and the Department of Commerce to see if we can get an anemometer or wind measuring device near one of our schools to see if we have wind speeds sufficient to make a wind turbine economically feasible. Again, we must be aggressive in becoming energy independent.

I would also like to speak about economic and social justice. I fully support the current union-led coalition striving to tie our city's investment in companies to the need for a living wage. It's just common sense that if the city gives hard-earned taxpayer dollars to assist companies with development that we should expect something in return that allows our citizens to live with dignity. If we value work the way we say we do, then that work must allow our citizens to afford the basics -- food, decent affordable housing, and health care.

We must also support small businesses. I am a member of MIBA, the Metropolitan Independent Business Alliance that promotes the interests of small, locally owned businesses. I am very proud of the way the Green Party has engaged in this effort. Small businesses account for over 75 percent of the new jobs in this country. We must explore ways to adjust the tax structure so that small businesses are not taxed at the same level as multinational corporations. We need to look at giving tax breaks for landlords that promise to give rental breaks to new small businesses, and explore size caps for big box development.

Obviously there are other issues dear to the hearts of St. Paulites, including education. I fully support excellent educational opportunities for ALL in St. Paul. Education is the pillar of our democracy and our economy and the main avenue for becoming a productive citizen and moving ahead in life. I will work with the school board, teachers, and students to ensure good communication and to try to involve business in a more substantive way to improve our educational options. I will also be ready at a moment's notice to appear at the Capitol to lobby for school funding.

There are obviously more issues than I have time to address today, including the need to maintain core services like police, fire, and medical services, the need to improve our mass transportation options, and the ever-present worries around health care. But before I open up to questions, I would like to acknowledge all of you here today here to support me.

This is going to be an energetic, focused campaign, and I am going to need all of your support, including financial, intellectual, emotional and spiritual help. You have called upon me to provide a progressive voice and I have answered the call. Thank you for your faith in me and I will do all I can to carry and articulate our collective dreams for a cleaner and kinder St. Paul. Let's all move ahead together.

St. Paul on the radio

Minneapolis-based community radio KFAI is coming across the river, news director Ann Alquist said on Tuesday.

"We're mobilizing the troops to cover St. Paul," Alquist said on Tuesday, as she was prowling around the Green Party mayoral announcement on the West Side. "We're going to start off with ward tours. We're going to hit the streets with the residents."

She said St. Paul will have its own news editor, Kate Hannaher, although she'll be a volunteer, like much of the station's staff.

Alquist, who covered the contentious 5th Ward council race in 2003, said that about 70 percent of the station's support and listeners comes from the West Metro. But she said St. Paul news gets a welcome reception even in Minneapolis.

"Every single time I cover St. Paul, people call and thank me. I even get responses from Minneapolis," Alquist said.

The "St. Paul Monday" show will premiere at 6 p.m. July 11 at 106.7 FM in St. Paul and 90.3 in Minneapolis, "although sometimes you can get the 90.3 signal better in St. Paul," Alquist said. "I don’t know why that is."

Boy, howdy!

2005-06-28T09:09:00.000-07:00

Bob Fletcher is a dad, again.

The three-term county sheriff, former St. Paul city council member, mayoral contender and inveterate politico is the father of a son born Saturday night to Kris, his wife and the daughter of the late 5th Ward Council Member Jim Reiter.

The Scoop is still waiting for the vitals on the boy, but Undersheriff Dave Methusalem broke the happy news to the County Board this morning when he apologized for the sheriff's absence during discussion of a budget amendment.

"He's home," Methusalem told the board. Sheriff department staffers outside the meeting reported that Kris and her son are also home, and doing fine, thank you. The Scoop will post more details as soon as we ferret them out.

Arena of Dreams?

2005-06-27T11:40:00.000-07:00

It was standing room only at this morning's official opening of the Mexican Consulate on East Seventh Street. The Mexican ambassador to the United States, Carlos de Icaza, said he was fulfulling Mexican President Vicente Fox's promise to open a diplomatic outpost "aqui," in St. Paul.

It was a long time coming, and welcomed by all in attendance, but the event didn't go off without an acknowlegement of several other less-diplomatic hang-ups.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty didn't attend and sent Lt. Gov. Carol Molnau in his place, because he was waiting to see if DFL Senate Majority Leader Dean Johnson was going to take Pawlenty up on his offer to step outside and settle their budget differences at Camp Ripley.

One-time Pawlenty rival and now U.S. Sen. Norm Coleman was on hand and thanked the Mexican government for their decision to open the consulate.

"One of my favorite movies is 'Field of Dreams,' the ballfield in Iowa, and it is the line that we remember so well, 'If you build it, they will come,'" Coleman said.

To which someone, at the front of the room interjected with a jab at the Xcel Energy Center, dark for last year's NHL lockout.

"We built it, here," Coleman said. "And they're going to play hockey again in September, too, by the way."

It's a Boy!

2005-06-24T08:16:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Jennifer Dunn (the legislative aide to City Council Member Lee Helgen) and her husband, Sean Dunn, on the birth of their son. Jude Michael Dunn was born Thursday at St. Joseph's Hospital. Jude weighs 8 pounds, 3 ounces and is 21.5 inches long. He is the couple's first child.
"He has blonde hair and blue eyes and has Jen's nose and mouth, and everyone says he looks like his mother," Sean stated in an announcement from Helgen's office.
Both Jennifer and baby are reported to be doing well. Jennifer was known around City Hall even before Helgen hired her in November 2003, having previously served as a researcher for the council.

Update: Divided Council Acts on Contracting Issue

2005-06-22T15:54:00.000-07:00

City Council Member Dave Thune's compromise with Mayor Randy Kelly on the touchy minority contracting issue passed today, but not without some consternation on the council and in the audience.

With a 4-2 vote, the council passed a measure that directs the city to conduct two studies: an audit of its past contracting practices and a "disparity study" that compares the amount of business the city does with minority firms to an updated tally of how many such firms operate in the Twin Cities area.

A council-appointed task force called in April for a thorough audit, saying such an analysis would help determine why the percentage of contract dollars going to minority- and women-owned firms has fallen in recent years.

Kelly opposed the audit. The mayor and his aides said a disparity study, which would enable the city to set new contracting goals, would be more practical. The mayor's office also expressed concerns that an audit could give ammunition to a St. Paul real-estate company owner who sued the city in December, alleging unfair treatment in the awarding of development projects.

The resolution also calls for the creation of a standing committee of community representatives to review the audit and the disparity study and make recommendations to the council on the contracting issue.

Thune called the resolution a compromise that moves the city closer toward addressing concerns that minority business owners don't get a fair crack at city contracts and real-estate development deals. Thune's measure clarified a resolution that passed 4-3 on June 8. The earlier resolution took effect without Kelly's signature.

Council President Kathy Lantry and Council Member Lee Helgen supported the first resolution, but voted against the second measure, which passed 4-2. Lantry said the resolution should have given the contracting task force a bigger role. She and Helgen objected to language that gives Kelly the power to appoint members of the new committee.

"I like the idea of a committee, but I think it's disrespectful not to include people who have been working on this for 18 months," Lantry said.

Several task force members who attended the council meeting were upset that Thune teamed with Kelly. By backing the compromise, Thune essentially switched sides, voting with the three council members who had opposed the first resolution.

"This totally leaves (the task force) out," said Clifton Boyd, Jr., owner of B&L Electric Supply in St. Paul and president of the National Association of Minority Contractors of the Upper Midwest. "We're the ones who pushed for the audit in the first place."

Mayoral Candidates Spar Over Contracting Issue

2005-06-22T10:24:00.000-07:00

The City Council takes up the minority contracting issue again today, as Mayor Randy Kelly and his mayoral opponent Chris Coleman trade barbs over the matter. Council Member Dave Thune plans to introduce a compromise resolution that will supplement a measure the council passed June 8. Mayor Randy Kelly declined to sign the first resolution, which calls for an audit of the city's handling of contracting policies and programs. Under city rules, the measure takes effect without the mayor's signature (a "pocket approval," if you will, as opposed to a pocket veto). The supplemental resolution will support Kelly's plan to conduct a disparity study, which will compare the percentage of city contracts going to female- and minority-owned businesses with how many of those type of firms operate in the Twin Cities.

Here's an exchange between the two mayoral campaigns over the issue. (Scoop should point out that the "recent reports" cited in the Coleman press release are stories from the Pioneer Press, which crunched complicated data provided by the city and put it into an understandable format.)

Press release from the Coleman camp:
Saint Paul Mayor Randy Kelly's refusal to sign a city council resolution calling for an audit of the city's hiring practices is further evidence of Mayor Kelly's lack of leadership in supporting minority- and women-owned businesses, mayoral Candidate Chris Coleman said today.

"The mayor's refusal to sign this resolution is beyond reason," Coleman said. "If we are to create an open business environment for all contractors, we must provide equal access to minority- and women- owned businesses. Saint Paul deserves a mayor that will stand in support of what is best for our city, not someone who plays political games with people's livelihoods."

According to recent reports, the percentage of city contracts awarded to minority firms has dropped dramatically during the Kelly administration, from 8% in 2002 to %1.1 in 2004.

"The Mayor continues to say he is committed to fixing these problems, but when the time comes for action, he is nowhere to be found," Coleman said.

The resolution, passed by the city council on June 8th, calls for an audit of the city's contract bidding process, specifically its fairness to women- and minority- owned contractors. The study was called for by a city council appointed task force. On Saturday, the Mayor announced a "compromise" in which both an audit and a separate disparity study would be carried out. Coleman, a former city council member, said funding concurrent studies would be counterproductive, and serve only as a smokescreen for the administration’s failed record on the issue.

"We don't need another disparity study to tell us these businesses exist," Coleman said. "We know they exist; they are the ones asking the city for a fair shake. Providing equal opportunity to these businesses is where we should focus our attention. The mayor's insistence on a disparity study is nothing more than an attempt to cover up an inexcusable record on providing a level playing field for these businesses."

- Bob Hume, Communications Director, Chris Coleman for Mayor
Response from the Kelly campaign:

The Mayor and the Council took a hard look at this issue and, knowing how important it was, sat down and worked out a compromise that everyone could agree on. They didn't take sides or throw political stones at one another. That's leadership. That's maturity. And that's what the people have come to expect from Mayor Randy Kelly.

Chris Coleman has yet to put forward a new idea in this campaign. Attacks and negativity isn't leadership. The Mayor and the City Council worked together to deliver results - and they did.

- Vince Muzik, Communications Director, Kelly for Mayor

Stay tuned to Scoop for an update today on the council's action.

The Lightning Round

2005-06-21T11:12:00.000-07:00

Monday afternoon's storm prompted Mayor Randy Kelly to bail out of a mini-golf tournament at the Science Museum of Minnesota. Kelly had been set to tee off at about 4 p.m. for the Downtown Mini-Golf Tournament, hosted by the CapitolRiver Council in the museum's Big Back Yard. Organizers promised the event would go forward rain or shine, but Kelly's spokesman, Carl Kuhl, said the mayor didn't like the idea of handling a putter on a wet course with the possibility of lightning still looming. Chris Coleman, Kelly's rival in this year's mayoral race, kept his tee time. He even brought his wife, Connie, and their two children. Scoop notes that Coleman's round started after 5 p.m. By then, the storm had clearly passed. Full disclosure: The Pioneer Press sponsored a hole at the tournament and gave away insulated water bottle sleeves to participants. Scoop and a Pioneer Press colleague played (poorly) in the tournament.

City to accept free skeeter repellant

2005-06-17T11:22:00.000-07:00

Here's an odd item on next Wednesday's City Council agenda: "Resolution 05-565 -- Authorizing the acceptance of a donation from Parks Programs L.L.C. of 50,000 sample packets of Deep Woods OFF insect repellant for use by City Parks and Recreation employees."
Parks director Bob Bierscheid said his department is willing to accept such product placements if they benefit the city. In this case, he said, the free samples will be handed out this summer to people attending events at various city parks. Bierscheid says there's a public good in having patrons avoid insect bites.
"The bottom line is that there has to be some value to the city of St. Paul for us to do something like this," he said.
Bierscheid said Parks Programs is a marketing entity working on behalf of the OFF! brand, which is manufactured by SC Johnson, a Racine, Wis.-based company.

Chamber lets its purple hair down

2005-06-17T09:22:00.000-07:00

The St. Paul Area Chamber of Commerce doesn't exactly evoke images of mohawks, nose rings and black lipstick. But members of the east metro business group will get a chance to go punk this fall. Of course, being the chamber, this would be cutting loose in high style.

An item on chamber President Larry Dowell's weekly online newsletter explains:

"Your Chamber's suite is available to lease for the Green Day concert at Xcel Energy Center on September 16, investment is $1500 and includes 16 tickets."

The chamber newsletter (dare we say blog?) is available at www.saintpaulchamber.com/news/friday_facts.asp.

Andy Dawkins: Undead?

2005-06-15T11:15:00.000-07:00

The Watchdog, a Minneapolis-based tabloid dedicated to skewering public officials, journalists and other ne'er-do-wells, has finally put its May/June issue online.

And it's a corker.

The cover features a pale and fanged Andy Dawkins hovering menacingly over what appears to be the corpse of a 68-year-old St. Paul woman with what looks like a city "Notice to Vacate" serving as her epitaph. "Count Dawkins Out For Blood" is the issue's lead story.

The article recounts, one-sidedly and fairly comically, an alleged elaborate conspiracy by Dawkins and the city, meant to force a purportedly innocent and well-meaning senior citizen from her home and straight to the grave. Another article recounts the aftermath of a "drug bus" (sic) at rental property the publisher owns on Cook Street and a meeting of bar owners "in scenic North Minneapolis, amidst flying used contraceptives, intermittent gun-fire and smashed 40 ounce Mickey's Malt Liquor bottles."

The Watchdog is published by Minneapolis landlord Jim Swartwood and is dedicated to "advocating on behalf of property owners, the small business owner and exposing improprieties at City Hall. We are dedicated to preserving the lost art of photojournalism."

The emphasis is clearly on the "art" at the Watchdog. The cover photo alone is worth a visit to the Web site. Check it out at www.minneapolis-watchdog.com.

Reiter redux?

2005-06-13T15:10:00.000-07:00

Ramsey County Sheriff Bob Fletcher has been back in the news a bit lately, which prompted the Scoop to start scouring around his old stamping grounds in the 5th Ward. Fletcher won the ward as a mayoral candidate in 1989, and it was the scene of a dramatic election race he helped run in 2003.

You might recall that election as a bit of a sleeper race until the unexpected death of City Council Member Jim Reiter, who had been suffering from a heart ailment and been in and out of the hospital for many of the final weeks of the campaign. Although he came in second in the primary, he had come from behind to win the general election before and had been considered tough to beat.

His daughter, Kris, filed to succeed Reiter shortly after he died, touching off a free-for-all between challenger Lee Helgen, Reiter's daughter and three other candidates. Reiter's residency was a particularly sore spot: At the time, she owned a home in the suburbs, which her campaign manager -- Bob Fletcher -- lived in, and she listed another suburban home, which Fletcher owned, as her official residence. They've since married and are expecting a child.

Now, the Scoop has learned that her brother may be taking a cue from his father and sister. Realtor Jim Reiter Jr. has told Pioneer Press reporter Gita Sitaramiah that he might consider a pre-emptive real estate transaction and move back to St. Paul to enter politics. He's already been elected president -- of the St. Paul Area Association of Realtors.

The Reiter kids grew up in St. Paul, and if James Jr. returned to the 5th Ward for a run, it would be the third Helgen-Reiter matchup in four years, a battle that's destined to qualify for "legendary" status.

Reiter didn't return a call from the Scoop about his plans, but he and his family haven't exactly been politically reticent of late. The late council member's widow and another daughter were on hand in downtown St. Paul when the St. Paul Police Federation announced its endorsement of Mayor Randy Kelly. James Jr. and his mom, Darlene, also maxed out their campaign contributions to Randy Kelly with $500 each in January.

Keep an eye on the properties around Gervais Lake in Little Canada.

1989 redux?

2005-06-13T11:25:00.000-07:00

Word that former Police Chief Bill Finney is thinking about taking on Sheriff Bob Fletcher raises an interesting question:

Has he beaten him before?

They've never run head to head in an election, but they have crossed paths on a 1989 St. Paul ballot when Finney ran for the school board and Fletcher ran for mayor. Finney was the top vote getter in the September primary, when Fletcher was running against then-council president Jim Scheibel. Finney had 14,161 votes, and Fletcher had 9,604. And although Finney came in second to Becky Montgomery in the general election, Finney's 29,640 citywide votes beat Fletcher's mayoral total of 27,850 that year.

Those are different races, of course, so you can't compare them directly.

But there is a lingering question. Finney wasn't exactly a bystander in the Scheibel administration: He was named to the transition team only days after the election and appointed police chief by Scheibel three years later. Maybe he'd been some help for Scheibel at the polls.

Let's take a look at the general election results:

Fletcher's worst ward that year was the 1st Ward, where he was beaten almost 2 to 1. By comparison, it was Finney's best ward. He got nearly one in every four school board votes in that ward. It was the strongest showing in any ward by any school board candidate that November -- even better than top vote getter Becky Montgomery.

In an interview Friday, the winner of that mayoral race says Finney "definitely helped" that year, although he said it was hard to gauge exactly how and by how much. They marched in the Rondo Days parade together, and Finney door-knocked with Scheibel in the 1st Ward.

But the ballot listing the two of them drew the best 1st Ward turnout in any recent local election.

Scheibel also recalls Finney door-knocking with him in the 7th Ward, where Finney lived and where Scheibel pulled off something of an upset. That's been one of the most conservative parts of town for years but was taken by one of the most liberal candidates in the post-George Latimer era.

Still, the Finney connection isn't all there is to the story: There were plenty of other factors on the ballot that year.

Kiki Sonnen, the 4th Ward city council member who had served as Fletcher's aide when he represented that same area on the council, was also on that ballot. She succeeded Fletcher, but she didn't boost her old boss's prospects much, losing to Paula Maccabee in the general election. Fletcher lost his old ward by more than 1,600 votes in the mayoral election, his third-worst showing in the city.

That election also had the legendary 1st Ward battle between Bill Wilson (the incumbent and first African-American on the council) and Roy Garza, who would have been the first Hispanic on the council. Theirs was a squeaker eventually decided by a mere two votes after much back and forth over the results. The closeness of the race may have been another factor in the 1st Ward turnout in 1989.

And it wasn't just a golden era for 1st Ward, either. The 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th wards all have steadily declined in turnout since that first election after Latimer retired.

And in the end, the 2,297 votes Fletcher lost by in the 1st Ward really didn't make much difference. Fletcher was beaten by more than 8,200 votes that year and still would have mustered only a 47 percent result if he'd traded 1st Ward results with Scheibel. Finney's second-best ward was the 5th Ward, which Fletcher won.

In the end, Fletcher said at the time, it would have taken "a small miracle" to beat the DFL party that Latimer left as his legacy.

2005-06-09T15:10:00.000-07:00

Waiting for veto

City Council President Kathy Lantry doesn't think a council resolution ordering an audit of the city's contracting practices has much chance of surviving.

After Wednesday's 4-3 vote approving the measure, Lantry said flat out she expects Mayor Randy Kelly to veto the resolution. Lantry also said she doesn't hold out much hope that one of the three council members who opposed the resolution would change their minds and support a veto override. (The council would need five votes to put a resolution into effect over Kelly's objection.)

"No one is going to flip," Lantry said. Council members voting against the resolution were Dan Bostrom, Pat Harris and Debbie Montgomery.

The measure directs the council research staff to begin the process of hiring an outside firm to study whether the city and real-estate developers have complied with ordinances and laws designed to ensure equal access to contracts for minority- and women-owned businesses.

Kelly's aides have said the mayor opposes an audit, preferring instead to focus on making forward-looking changes. The mayor's office has not said yet whether Kelly will sign or veto the council's resolution. If Kelly does nothing, the resolution takes effect five business days after his office receives the measure from the council.

A veto before next Wednesday's council meeting could put two rival items on the agenda. One would be a possible override vote. The other would be a resolution that Montgomery introduced Wednesday. Her measure backs Kelly's pledge to conduct a "disparity study" that would assess the number of minority- and women-owned firms in various industries in the Twin Cities area, allowing the city to set realistic contracting goals for itself and real-estate developers. Montgomery's resolution also would create a standing committee of business and community groups to monitor contracting progress.

Viva Kelly!

The news today that Mayor Randy Kelly and school superintendent Pat Harvey had chosen a pair of books by Latina authors should come as no surprise to political watchers.

"A Place Where the Sea Remembers" by Edina resident Sandra Benitez will be the choice for adult participants in the "St. Paul Reads" program. "Esperanza Rising" by Pam Munoz Ryan will be the youth reader book.

Far be it from the Scoop to ascribe political motives to the selection, but both books -- involving tales from Mexico -- fit quite nicely with the Kelly re-election effort.

That's because St. Paul's East Side is more than just Randy Kelly's home turf. It's also home to one of the fastest-growing Hispanic communities in the state. The Mexican consulate, lured to East Seventh Street with the help of the mayor's good offices, is scheduled to open later this summer.

In addition, Kelly staffers said earlier this year that the mayor's re-election will involve greater focus on St. Paul's 2nd Ward, the traditional home of the city's Latino population.

And while parts of the West Side have some of lowest voter turnout levels in the city, Kelly clearly sees some opportunity there. As mayor, he's already christened a street for Cesar Chavez, started a new sister city relationship with Manzanillo, Mexico, and appointed a Latino city attorney in Manuel Cervantes. Kelly was key in bringing Mexican President Vicente Fox to St. Paul's East Side to visit the Academia Cesar Chavez charter school.

The book selection also comes at a cultural crossroads for the mayor and the City Council.

Last night, they approved a proposal for an independent look at how the city measures up to the diversity goals it set in the late 1990s. The city's own data haven't been greatly encouraging, a recent Pioneer Press analysis found. Kelly has threatened to veto the audit, which likely will kill the effort, since the council doesn't look like it has a fifth vote to override Kelly.

The Scoop would like to assure you that this is all merely coincidence.

Correction

Scoop listed the wrong name of a community newspaper in a post Tuesday about the ongoing flap over the Jeremiah Program project on Concordia Avenue. The correct name of the paper is Midway Como Monitor. Thanks to Jane McClure at the Villager for pointing out the error. (McClure's e-mail noting the mistake arrived at 12:02 a.m. Thursday. When queried what she was doing reading Scoop at such an hour, McClure replied: "The neighborhood press never sleeps." So now we know.

2005-06-07T11:51:00.000-07:00

Jeremiah jab

Hard feelings still persist in the 1st Ward over last week's City Council vote on the Jeremiah Program's planned apartment complex for single mothers.

Council Member Debbie Montgomery, the 1st Ward representative, opposed a zoning change that will allow the project to move forward on Concordia Avenue near Milton Street. She had hoped colleague Jay Benanav was going to vote her way, but he wound up casting the deciding vote Wednesday in favor of the project. Montgomery was upset at what she viewed as the council majority imposing an unwanted zoning change on her ward.

Now she's tweaking Benanav for what appears to her to be a severe bout of inconsistency. Montgomery posted a quote from Benanav on a glass partition between the 1st Ward offices and a common council hallway. The quote is from the Midway Monitor, a neighborhood newspaper, about the possible relocation of a bus layover facility in Benanav's ward:

"My concerns are for the Ward 4 residents," he says. "Redevelopment should not be done at the expense of the community."

East Side, West Side, all around the town

Is it the best of times or the worst of times?

Hard to know during a mayoral election year, but you can be sure about one thing: This year will be a tale of two cities when it comes to the mayor's race.

Take a look at the 2001 mayoral results first.

East of Edgerton Street, Randy Kelly won by a whopping 3,686 votes four years ago. West of Edgerton, he lost by 3,283 votes. Either one of these numbers are the kind of margins that can swing an entire election, to give you some perspective on the geographic gap between Kelly and Benanav.

It's harder to map out a Coleman-Kelly race. Although Highland Park and Macalester- Groveland put up the biggest share of money and votes for an election, the 2nd Ward (which includes downtown, West Seventh Street, the West Side and the Summit Hill area) could be a "hot spot" this year, to borrow the mayor's terminology. Kelly staffers say they expect to be more competitive there this time around. But it's also Coleman's home turf, the ward he represented on the city council.

The mayor is going to be defending his turf fiercely, for his part. He's scheduled an East Side fundraiser at Governor's restaurant on Arcade Street next Monday, hosted by not just two Controneos, but two Hitchcocks, as well. That's some serious name dropping in that 55106 ZIP code. "Please join us in supporting St. Paul's first East Side mayor," says an invite the Scoop recently acquired.

An accompanying letter reads:

"Over the course of our Capital City's 150 year history, we have had many bright stars come from St. Paul's East Side. Be it Justices of the Supreme Court, world renowned athletes and coaches, successful entrepreneurs, or bold political leaders, the people of the East Side truly shine. However, over the course of our City's great history, we have only elected one East Side mayor: Randy Kelly.

"Today we are writing you to let you know just how critically important it has been to have a Mayor representing St. Paul who calls the East Side his home."

Campaign junkies

Send us your pamphlets, your invites, your direct mail yearning to be free!

For the record, the Scoop LOVES junk mail. Fundraiser invitations. Campaign literature. Reports of calls from pollsters. Lawn sign sightings. Call us gluttons for punishment, but we just CAN'T get enough of that campaign rhetoric. Ever.

So if you see something interesting, no matter how trivial, drop us a line, won't you? We can be reached online at scoop@pioneerpress.com, via fax at 651-292-1897 or by mail to Tim Nelson or Bob Ingrassia at the St. Paul Pioneer Press, 345 Cedar St., St. Paul, MN 55101.

On second thought, no

2005-06-03T14:25:00.000-07:00

At least one of the rumored mayoral campaigns looks like it won't be setting forth, as some supporters were hoping.

Backers had been shopping his entry around in the back of the room at Mayor Randy Kelly's State of the City address earlier this spring and lining up backers for a run against the first-term incumbent.

Downtown St. Paul art gallery owner and architectural illustrator Bill Hosko said Friday that there won't be a kickoff announcement for his second mayoral run on June 10.

Despite what supporters call plenty of pledges to back the would-be mayor and would-be council member (he ran for the 2nd Ward seat in 2003), Hosko says that he's got other irons in the fire these days and has decided not to run.

His most recent project is Sweet William and Tea, a tea shop next to Hosko Gallery in the Endicott Arcade, at 142 E. Fifth St.

"I just opened it four days ago," Hosko said. "If it had been four months ago, things might have been different."

Hosko has had mixed success at the polls. On Sept. 11, 2001, he finished eighth in the mayoral primary, just behind perennial candidate Sharon Anderson. He beat her pretty handily in 2003, though, coming in just out of the limelight, behind fouth-place finisher and now 2nd Ward legislative aide Donna Swanson. Christine Nelson won that primary, followed by Dave Thune (who went on to win) and Green Party contender Elizabeth Dickinson.

Hosko probably had them all beat in one aspect (OK, not Sharon Anderson on this one, either): his biography. There are two full pages of his personal tales on his Web site at www.billhosko.com, detailing his many adventures and his home in Montana. (State records do show he's a St. Paul resident, by the way).

He also stood out from the pack in the 2001 mayoral campaign with a note on his literature noting that he was gay "because I would rather you hear those words now rather than later from someone else."

Hosko has made his mark in St. Paul in other ways, as well. He's painted several of the "Peanuts" statues that have decorated downtown in recent years and pushed to spruce up the District Cooling water tower near the interchange of interstates 35E and 94.

2005-06-03T11:01:00.000-07:00

Welcome, Bob Hume!

The Chris Coleman campaign has added a new communications director. Everybody welcome Bob Hume to the show!

Hume, who grew up in Cottage Grove and Woodbury, went to Hamline University, majored in political science and graduated in 2003. "Then I went to Washington to look for a job."

Job isn't really the word for what he found. Hume signed on with the ill-fated re-election campaign of U.S. Sen. Tom Dashcle of South Dakota,who lost the race of the year -- aside from the presidential contest -- to Republican John Thune.

Hume punched in at Coleman campaign headquarters this week and is already getting a feel for the place, he says. Not that he won't find it somewhat familiar.

"I've crossed paths with some of these folks before," Hume says of the Kelly campaign.

True enough.

Take a look at the Political Money Line site, at www.fecinfo.com, and you'll see that Minnesota put a fair amount of money into that Thune race. (Contributors from the Gopher State chipped in about $193,000, according to the site.)

More interesting, though, are those who ponied up: A quick check shows the names of Otto Bonestroo, Douglas Coleman, John Grundhofer, Carl Drake, David Frauenshuh, Karen Hubbard, Stanley Hubbard, Esther Kellogg, John Kinkead, Robert Klas, Doug McMillan, W. McNerny, Glen Nelson, Ford Nicholson, Todd Nicholson, Tuan Pham, David Powell and Doug Seaton all have appeared on both Thune's contributor lists and Randy Kelly's.

The Scoop only had time to run through the list quickly, but you get the point. It looks like about 7 percent of the Thune contributors from Minnesota have chipped in on the Kelly campaign, too, at some point along the line.

For the record, Minnesota gave money to the Daschle campaign, too -- some $206,000. There were some interesting crossovers there: John Cowles III, the Pohlad family, lobbyist Ron Jerich, Vance Opperman, St. Paul attorney Bill Tilton -- all Kelly contributors in the past -- pitched in for Daschle.

But alas, the 105 contributors Coleman has on the official record don't seem to include anybody who sent aid to the South Dakota battle.

The Scoop formally apologizes to Jason Anderson

The Scoop would like to acknowlege a grievous error on our part, regarding last weekend's Melaleuca Freedom Celebration 10K. That tall trotter in the green Randy Kelly T-shirt was NOT the Jason Anderson of the city's marketing department. He was the Jason Anderson of the Randy Kelly campaign.

(We'd love to look up his race time, but organizers STILL haven't posted results from Monday's contest.)

At any rate, it seems Anderson has left the city's employment and devoted his days to the re-election of his former boss, according to mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl, who got his own start as a driver for the first Kelly campaign. Unbeknownst to the Scoop, Anderson officially had joined another former city marketing guy -- now Norm Coleman's chief of staff, Erich Mische -- in the 2005 mayoral race. Kelly has credited Mische in the past with the role of an "adviser" to his political effort.

Anderson's move was greeted with some clucking in city council offices, where his mom, Nancy, used to work, and where there hasn't been enough distinction between marketing the city of St. Paul and marketing Randy Kelly for some officials' tastes.

Tough call for the council

2005-06-02T11:10:00.000-07:00

Several City Council members said last night's decision on the fate of the Jeremiah Program's proposed apartment complex for single mothers in the Summit-University neighborhood was among the toughest choices they have had to make as elected officials.

A request for a zoning change enabling the project to move forward passed 4-3, with Jay Benanav, Pat Harris, Lee Helgen and Kathy Lantry voting in the majority. Debbie Montgomery, whose 1st Ward includes Summit-University, led a failed effort to defeat the zoning change. Dave Thune and Dan Bostrom voted with her.

The vote put the council majority in the uncomfortable position of thwarting the desires of a colleague who represented the neighborhood affected. An informal tradition dictates that on zoning matters, council members generally defer to the wishes of the home council member.

Montgomery said she had nothing against the Jeremiah Program, a Minneapolis-based organization that runs supportive housing for low-income moms. But she said the vacant lot at 932 Concordia Ave. was not appropriate for high-density apartment zoning.

Like others in the neighborhood, Montgomery has expressed desires for senior-oriented housing on the site. She had hopes that Ed McDaniel, a former Minnesota Vikings player, could acquire the land.

Benanav cast what appeared to have been the deciding vote. He had expressed mixed feelings about the project in recent weeks. Montgomery had hoped Benanav would go her way, a wish he acknowledged last night when he said he knew people believe he had "flip-flopped" on the issue.

The Jeremiah Program's proposal sparked impassioned pleas from both sides. There were two items before the council, the zoning change and an appeal of the Planning Commission's approval of a conditional-use permit for transitional housing.

After the zoning vote, there were cheers from the side of the chambers where Jeremiah backers had gathered. Some of the single mothers living at Jeremiah's Minneapolis apartment complex jumped up and waved their arms. On the other side of the room, a few opponents booed.

Katie McWatt, a longtime St. Paul civil rights activist, shouted across the chambers for the Jeremiah supporters to move to Summit-University if they really cared about the neighborhood.

Lantry, the council president, tried to soothe tensions, essentially asking everyone to play nice and try to move forward in a positive way. Most of the opponents then left the council chambers, even though the council had yet to take up the permit issue.

Montgomery vacated her seat, too, having been informed by the city attorney's office that her prior public statements on the issue had rendered her biased. (The council sits as a quasi-judicial body on zoning matters, forcing them to act in some ways like judges.)

Even Nathaniel Khaliq, president of the St. Paul NAACP, walked out. His group was among those that had appealed the Planning Commission's permit decision. He didn't even stick around for the vote on his appeal, saying the writing was on the wall. Khaliq left with attorney Joel Franklin. The two said a decision on whether to take the issue to Ramsey County District Court would be made soon.

The Jeremiah Program is proposing a three-story, 38-unit building, but the new zoning would allow a five-story building at higher densities. Bostrom warned his council colleagues that the neighborhood could get stuck with a parcel of high-density apartment zoning if the group's project falls through.

Mayor Randy Kelly could in theory veto the zoning change, but would have to wait until the council passes an ordinance memorializing its action Wednesday. The council would need five votes to override a veto.

Thune, who voted against the zoning change but then backed the housing permit, said today he would vote to override any mayoral veto. He said it was time to "move forward" and called the zoning change "veto proof."

Mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl said today that Kelly would not veto the zoning change.

Honoring a St. Paul cop

2005-06-01T15:30:00.000-07:00

One day in early May, Sgt. Steve Frazer walked into what he thought was going to be a routine staff meeting at police headquarters. Then, Mayor Randy Kelly showed up, surprising Frazer with the news that the officer was the 2005 recipient of the city's Karl Neid Award.

Frazer, a homicide unit supervisor, had a bit more time to prepare for Wednesday's official awards ceremony in the City Council chambers.

With his wife, Jacqueline, and their three children looking on, Frazer accepted the award for his work in the community. He's coached East Side youngsters in T-ball, football and soccer.

Frazer kept his remarks brief. "I'm truly humbled to be part of this club," he said. "It doesn't seem like you should get an award for something that's truly, truly a joy to do."

The officer wrapped up his speech with a quote from Theodore Roosevelt: "It is no use to preach to (children) if you do not act decently yourself."

The award was established in 1993 in honor of Neid, a city employee and council member who died of a heart attack in 1992 four months after being elected to the council. The award is given for exemplary public service and contributions to improving the quality of life in St. Paul.

A few notes from City Hall

2005-05-31T17:00:00.000-07:00

Sia Lo has left the building
A green refuse container rolled out what looked to be the remnants of Sia Lo's presence in the mayor's office today. The onetime senior aide was forced out after being implicated in an investigation of alleged influence peddling in the mayor's office.

The state attorney general's office has been in hot pursuit of the Vang Pao Foundaion, a central player in the development of a Hmong funeral home on St. Paul's West Side. But as yet there is no indication at all that an FBI probe at City Hall has turned up anything in connection with that project, said to be at the center of the allegations.

Nonetheless, Lo walked the plank earlier this spring and gave today as the day of his official resignation. He was paid about $22,500 while on administrative leave waiting for a resolution in the case that seems no closer than when it broke in February.

Mayor to get taken for a ride

Randy Kelly is going to be out at Como Town, the new amusement center outside the gates of the Como Zoo. It replaces the fondly remembered but often well-worn O'Neil Amusement Co. rides. (The Scoop's dear grandmother may have put him on one of the last spins on a kiddie motorcycle ride that featured fully inflated tires, maybe back in 1971 or so.)

But the mayor will be out at the corner of Midway Parkway and Kaufman Drive at 9:15 a.m. Wednesday to officially open the new generation of rides and treats offered by Lancer Hospitality.

The opening comes only months weeks after workers put the finishing touches on the new Visitors Center complex at the Zoo, and the city began this last legislative session lobbying for the bonding money to spruce up the animal portion of the zoo, as well.

It was Kelly by a landslide!

The official opening of the summer campaign season came this week, and by gosh, the two mayoral contenders were represented at the Melaleuca Freedom Celebration 10k race on Memorial Day morning.

The mayor was there in person to start the race -- albeit somewhat haltingly, because the airhorn the organizers gave him didn't seem to work -- and the campaigns put runners out on the road with T-shirts touting the rival politicos. The Kelly campaign had at least six runners wearing the mayor's signature green, including adviser Nancy Haas and her husband, Bill Dinkel. City marketing guy Jason Anderson also ran the race in the boss's colors, and there were three others -- a couple of them pretty fast -- trotting for Kelly.

Alas, the Coleman campaign only seemed to have mustered a single representative, who looked to be a free-lancer, trying to make up in speed what he lacked in company.

Running mate Finney?

2005-05-25T15:50:00.000-07:00

The appointment of former Police Chief Bill Finney to the St. Paul school board raised an interesting specter on Monday, particularly after his cryptic comments to the Star Tribune's Jim Walsh.

Finney told the paper he was just "aiming to serve as he could," which didn't rule out a run for the seat in November. The chief ran for -- and won -- a board seat in 1989 and was more specific with the Pioneer Press' Doug Belden: He wouldn't be on the ballot, Finney said.

But it wouldn't be a shocker if he changed his mind.

Consider this: The DFL endorsement of Elona Street-Stewart, John Brodrick and Tom Goldstein could mark the first time in decades that an African-American candidate isn't on the ballot as a serious contender for the St. Paul school board.

And that could be important, for reasons that have nothing to do with the school board.

Take the struggle over minority contracting scheduled for the City Council meeting today. The council is pushing hard for a measure that will highlight the issue of minority business participation in the public sector, despite the threat of a veto by Mayor Randy Kelly.

And since it's an election year, there are clearly some political overtones to the move: Vetoing a veritable racial "mea culpa" by the city might hurt Kelly at the polls by making suspect the mayor's commitment to diversity, which he's been working on virtually since coming in to office.

(Kelly led the effort in 2002 to rename Constitution Avenue, in front of the Capitol, in honor of the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, obliging former colleagues at the Legislature to change their official addresses. He's also started a minority business recruitment and retention effort in Planning and Economic Development, among other things.)

Having Finney on the ballot could be another political sleight of hand: The former chief is practically an African-American celebrity in St. Paul and could boost turnout in the heavily minority 1st Ward, where Kelly lost by 1,287 votes in 2001. That ward is truly Finney's hometown and has a lot of political potential: It has the poorest turnout of any ward in the city.

With Finney backing former City Council Member Chris Coleman against Kelly, well, the political thinking might be that those 1st Ward folks would be inclined to draw the line between the ballot arrows for Coleman, as long as they're stopping by the polling place.

That wouldn't be the only down-ballot strategy in this fall's election, either.

When Kelly announced in February that he was running for re-election, he said he would back two ballot measures.

One was an excess-levy referendum, which the school board hasn't been wild about, and which Finney is in a better position than ever to block. The other was a public safety referendum to pay for police and fire department services.

There was even the possibility of a third measure for a while, when rumors of turning the Radisson Riverfront into a casino were floating around, raising the prospect that the state might require a referendum for a city hosting a gambling expansion.

The latter two measures, especially, would likely bring out pro-public safety and pro-gambling revenue conservative voters, which often don’t have much skin in the St. Paul mayoral game.

In 2001, for instance, they got the choice between liberal DFLer Jay Benanav and moderate DFLer Randy Kelly. Before Norm Coleman was elected in 1997, it had been 1960 since a Republican won the corner office at City Hall.

And remember, Kelly debuted these ballot pitches at his re-election announcement, one of the high points of his public political activity so far this year.

Only one of the measures -- the police and fire referendum -- seems viable at this point, although it could be a struggle to get it on the ballot.

The city council is likely to hold Kelly's budgetary feet to the fire and ask outright for a property tax increase, rather than agree to put it up for a vote in November and give Kelly the opportunity to stand shoulder to shoulder with St. Paul's finest, pleading their case during his own mayoral campaign.

But, as Norm Coleman proved with his Twin Stadium referendum in 1999 (a city council election year, as it happened) there's more than one way to get on the ballot. A referendum needs only 8 percent of the total votes in the most recent mayoral election, according to the city charter. (See for yourself at www.ci.stpaul.mn.us/code/ch008.html.) That would mean signatures from about 4,740 registered voters.

Police Federation President Dave Titus, when he announced last month that his union was backing the mayor, said his members hadn't been asked yet to launch a petition drive. But he said they'd be happy to do it.

So even if Finney doesn't join the scrum on November's ballot, keep your eye out for other action on the political sidelines in this mayor's race.

Timely visit

2005-05-24T13:38:00.000-07:00

Pioneer Press reporter Jim Ragsdale has been running a great series on "The War That Changed St. Paul," stories about the people that fought America's proxy war -- mostly against the North Vietnamese -- in Laos in the 1960s and 1970s.

The Hmong, backed by the CIA and covert military aid, also fought Communist insurgents in their native Laos, until the United States pulled out of Southeast Asia and Laos fell to the Communists in 1975. Thousands of Hmong fled, many to the United States.

As it happens, representatives of that very revolution are in town today, visiting none other than the St. Paul Regional Water Services headquarters in Maplewood.

An 18-member official Laotian delegation is in Minnesota this week to see for themselves where their former Lao and Hmong neighbors resettled after the war. The Lao minister of commerce is leading the delegation, joined by the Lao ambassador to the United States and the vice president of the Lao tourism authority.

But don't be booking your flights to Vientiane just yet.

The Lao delegation has been touring Southeast Asian businesses around town, lunching at 3M headquarters and touring the Science Museum of Minnesota. But the city's drinking water is a bigger draw.

"They're considered a 'least developed' country," said Steve Riedel, international trade representative with the Minnesota Trade Office. "They're curious about how we deliver clean water. This is something they asked for."

The shadow candidate

2005-05-23T13:50:00.000-07:00

There's been quite a bit of speculation lately about this year's mayoral field and whether it's now complete. The frontrunners so far include first-term incumbent Randy Kelly and former City Council Member Chris Coleman.

Coleman earned the DFL endorsement last month, ending the campaign of the other significant contender, Ramsey County Commissioner Rafael Ortega. He agreed to abide by the party endorsement at the April 30 city convention.

But there is another candidate lurking in the weeds.

A source told the Scoop last month that an "electable" candidate would get in the race May 10. That date has come and gone, but now the backer says the candidate may announce June 10. The backer declined to identify the candidate but did say, "We have a pretty strong group and our finance committee in place."

DFLers at the city convention didn't think the Greens would put up a mayoral candidate this year. Elizabeth Dickinson earned a respectable, but third place, finish in 2003 in the 2nd Ward city council primary.

Today, Dickinson, the co-chair of the St. Paul Green Party, issued a statement: "We are disappointed that when offered a choice between a moderate politician and a proven progressive politician that the DFL chose pragmatism over principle. The Green Party and other like-minded progressives are aware of the lack of enthusiasm engendered by current mayoral choices and continue to weigh their options in the mayor's race."

There was some speculation that former DFL state auditor Judi Dutcher, who now heads the Minnesota Community Foundation in downtown St. Paul, might attempt -- a la Hillary Clinton -- to move to the city for a shot at the corner office in City Hall.

Voter registration lists her in Minnetonka, by the way. For the record: Dutcher laughed out loud -- for quite some time -- at the suggestion she might take on Randy Kelly.

Another name floating around is former U.S. Sen. Dave Durenburger, who lives on Summit Avenue and works at the National Institute of Health Policy at the University of St. Thomas.

Durenberger said he wouldn't even consider the race. "You can put that on my tombstone," he joked on Monday.

The Scoop, as always, invites your speculation, at scoop@pioneerpress.com.

2005-05-20T11:07:00.000-07:00

Aw, heck, let's go play in St. Paul
The meltdown of the DFL in Minneapolis last weekend -- a nearly all-day convention failed to endorse either Mayor R.T. Rybak or Hennpein County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin -- has some party loyalists in St. Paul watching the state chair race this weekend with renewed interest.

Betty Folliard, Brian Melendez and Josh Syrjamaki are vying to succeed party chair Mike Erlandson at the DFL business meeting in St. Cloud on Saturday.

And it isn't so much who wins as what they might do afterward that might matter.

Remember, Minneapolis didn't endorse, which means the party apparatus will officially be watching from the bleachers during the Rybak-McLaughlin race. Granted, the political black hole of the U.S.Senate race next year may prevent even a penny from escaping its gravitational pull, and the Minneapolis battle won't likely be cheap either.

But if the new party chair wants to wade into the electoral waters promptly, or feels the need for a tune-up for 2006, why, we've got ourselves a little contest right over here in St. Paul.

And it's not so little, after all. McLaughlin pal and former Ramsey County Commissioner Susan Haigh -- who has contemplated St. Paul's corner office a couple of times herself -- once called the mayor's post the second most powerful elected official in the state, after the governor.

Granted, the likes of Randy Kelly or Jim Scheibel can't strip the bark off of Kofi Annan on CNN, like our former mayor and now junior U.S. Senator. But in terms of raw political muscle, it's hard to argue with the phalanx of troops that St. Paul's strong-mayor system puts at Hizzoner's disposal. The bully pulpit may stand a little taller in Minneapolis, but the mayor just doesn't have the whip hand over there.

And, and there was that endorsement of the Republican presidential candidate by the Democratic incumbent over here in August. You might recall that. It was in all the papers.

The Gang of Two?
The often sharply divided St. Paul City Council took an interesting turn this week, during a vote on a resolution to combine the city's 911 call center with similar operations that serve the city's suburbs.

The controversial measure was approved 5-2, with 4th Ward Council Member Jay Benanav, as usual, in the opposition. But this time he was joined by 1st Ward Council Member Debbie Montgomery, a former St. Paul police officer.

There's long been a concern on the St. Paul force that they might eventually be merged into the Ramsey County Sheriff's Department the "comm center" merger hasn't entirely allayed those fears.

More interestingly, though, is that Wednesday's vote was the first time Montgomery has voted against the Kelly administration on a major policy matter. She and 6th Ward Council Member Dan Bostrom -- another former St. Paul police officer -- are usually pretty much sure votes for the Kelly administration on the council, joined occasionally by 3rd Ward Council Member Pat Harris against the "Gang of Four," as the majority is known.

Montgomery was the key vote on the smoking bans, for instance. The one that made Kelly's vetoes stick.

"I am not satisfied that this is going to be a feasible operation," she said of the 911 center merger at the Wednesday meeting. "I understand the money part of it. I also understand the life safety part of that, but at this time, I can’t support this."

Two whopper capital projects, the Jimmy Lee Recreation Center and the Salvation Army's proposed Joan Kroc community center, are hovering over Montgomery's neck of the woods, so it's unlikely that the Montgomery-Kelly honeymoon is over.

But maybe it won't be what it used to be either.

A devilish marketing challenge?

2005-05-19T10:09:00.000-07:00

Wow. It's not every day that one of St. Paul's 11 sister cities grabs the national spotlight for a few moments. But there it was on primetime network TV Wednesday night.
Tiberias, Israel -- population 37,000, situated on the eastern coast of the Sea of Galilee -- was revealed as the birthplace of the Antichrist in the climax of the NBC biblical suspense miniseries "Revelations," which wrapped up its six-part run and set the stage for a possible weekly series.
However, it's not exactly the kind of news known to endear civic boosters. No one is expecting Tiberias boosters to launch any quick "Hometown of the Antichrist" promotions or start any street-corner statue campaigns around town.
Asked for any promotional advice he'd offer the civic leaders of Tiberias, mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl admitted being at a loss for words.
Tiberias joined St. Paul's lengthy list of sister cities in 1996, when then Mayor Norm Coleman visited the area and established the ties, Kuhl said.
One of the program's major cooperative efforts has involved Partnership 2000, an economic networking and mentoring initiative begun by the Israeli government.
Activity between the two cities, however, has slowed in recent years, Kuhl said, noting that the last real activity occurred in about 2001.
St. Paul's sister city program, which is celebrating its 50th year, has another sister city in Israel (Hadera, population 75,000) as well as two in Mexico (Culiacan and Manzanillo). The others are: Changsha, China; Ciudad Romero, El Salvador; Lawaaikamp, South Africa; Modena, Italy; Nagasaki, Japan; Neuss, Germany; and Novosibirsk, Russia.
To learn more about the program, visit www.ci.stpaul.mn.us/sistercities/.

A testy case?

2005-05-18T08:14:00.000-07:00

The story in the Pioneer Press this morning about potential immunity being offered to the civilian "witness" to the shooting death of Sgt. Gerald Vick hints at some of the politics that may be coming in to play in the case.
"I want to be part of what I hope will be justice," Ramsey County Attorney Susan Gaertner told courts reporter Shannon Prather, in explanation for her unusual decision to personally prosecute the case.
What Gaertner didn't mention is that she's up for re-election next year and has had an opponent out stumping hard against her already. Attorney Cory Tennison has been a regular at caucuses and other political gatherings this spring. The Scoop talked to Gaertner herself at the 4th Ward precinct caucuses -- quite some distance from her White Bear Lake home, the Scoop noted.
Still, it wasn't Tennison that had Gaertner's hackles up most recently. It was St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly's suggestion, one day after the incident, that the Vick shooting was a "horrible statement about the failure of our system." There was no reason, he said, for men like Antonio Kelly and Harry Evans to be out on the street with handguns, given their extensive arrest records.
Them's apparently fightin' words for a county attorney.
"I have extensively reviewed the records of both suspects, in particular the man we charged today with first-degree murder . . . ," Gaertner told Prather last week. "There is nothing in their arrest or conviction records that would have justified them being behind bars on the day of the murder. I refuse to engage in politics relative to this heinous crime."
Gaertner, by the way, is married to public relations and political guru John Wodele, who earlier this month joined a "tri-partisan" endorsement event at Randy Kelly's re-election headquarters in Bandana Square. And as if those two elections weren't enough for the former Jesse Ventura frontman to be enmeshed in, he's consulting for Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate, Kelly Doran, as well.

2005-05-17T09:07:00.000-07:00

The permanent Legislature?
You might recall the train wreck of last year's legislative session. Or more like the train that never came. Pretty much the only thing lawmakers got done was opening a hunting season for mourning doves. At least they got the bonding bill done, a year late, this spring.
But lest you think things are back on track at the Capitol, one of the Pawlenty administration's insiders told the Ramsey County Board this morning that he expects the Legislature once again won't get its work done by the deadline next week.
Metropolitan Council Chair Peter Bell told commissioners that he expects lawmakers to be back for a special session.
But transit riders would be wise not to hold out much hope that the bus system won't get more expensive and won't be pruned this year, Bell told the county board. For one thing, the system is the biggest single fuel purchaser in the state, Bell said, and diesel fuel isn't getting any cheaper. Revenues are going up by only 1 percent, and costs are going up at 10 times that rate.
"I think we're going to need a fare increase, no matter what," Bell said. "I think some of the restructuring should happen no matter what. Other parts of the restructuring cause me heartburn. The changes to Metro Mobility causes me heartburn. Our No. 1 priority is to restore the cuts there, and I think we can do it."

Ode to the River

2005-05-13T13:50:00.000-07:00

Scoop was asked to find and post the lyrics to the Mississippi River song featured at Thursday night's Millard Fillmore Dinner. Scoop hereby obliges. (The song title refers to the miles of riverfront in St. Paul, including shorelines on both sides of the Mississippi.)

Lyrics and music: Drew Jansen
Arrangement: Raymond Berg
Band: The Fillmore Singers (Vocalists: James Brown, Lisa Pallen, and Aimee Fischer)

Twenty Six Miles

Opening verse:

Twenty six miles of inspiration, twenty six miles of work and play,

Bringing communities together, calling your people home to stay.

River that feeds the soul and body, river that heals and reconciles --

Lifeblood of my city -- these twenty six miles.

From Itasca, running free past firs and pines,

Toward Saint Paul, the mighty Mississippi flows.

Through the town, the river twists and intertwines,

Full of summer's rains and winter's melted snows.

And my city plays a most important part;

It's the gateway to the upper river's course.

Steady currents energize my city's heart,

Every pulse is stirred and quickened by the force.

Twenty six miles of inspiration, twenty six miles of work and play,

Bringing communities together, calling your people home to stay.

River that feeds the soul and body, river that heals and reconciles --

Lifeblood of my city -- these twenty six miles.

Twenty six miles of rolling river, twenty six miles that curl and bend,

Show me the way along my journey, welcome me back at journey's end.

River that feeds the soul and body, river that heals and reconciles --

Lifeblood of my city -- these twenty six miles.

Lifeblood of my city -- these twenty six miles.

Closing verse:

On the riverbanks, my city grows and thrives;

Brand-new dwelling places spring up on the shore.

Verdant parks and paths revitalize our lives,

Overhead, the hawks and eagles dive and soar.

On a liquid trail, the boats and barges glide,

Keeping company with kayak and canoe.

Fairs and festivals adorn the riverside;

People marvel at the ever-changing view.

Twenty six miles of inspiration, twenty six of work and play,

Bringing communities together, calling your people home to stay.

River that feeds the soul and body, river that heals and reconciles --

Lifeblood of my city -- these twenty six miles.

From Itasca, running free past firs and pines,

Toward Saint Paul, the mighty Mississippi flows.

Through the town, the river twists and intertwines,

Full of summer's rains and winter's melted snows.

And my city plays a most important part;

It's the gateway to the upper river's course.

Steady currents energize my city's heart,

Every pulse is stirred and quickened by the force.

Twenty six miles of inspiration, twenty six miles of work and play,

Bringing communities together, calling your people home to stay.

River that feeds the soul and body, river that heals and reconciles --

Lifeblood of my city -- these twenty six miles.

Lifeblood of my city -- these twenty six miles.

Twenty six miles of inspiration, twenty six miles of work and play,

Bringing communities together, calling your people home to stay.

River that feeds the soul and body, river that heals and reconciles --

Lifeblood of my city -- these twenty six miles.

Lifeblood of my city -- these twenty six miles.

Millard Fillmore Has Left the Building

2005-05-13T08:40:00.000-07:00

Don Shelby wore a hearty smile -- and a prominently pin-striped suit -- as emcee of Thursday night's annual Millard Fillmore Dinner. He jumped back into the host role with gusto after missing last year's event due to two minor strokes. Toward the end of the program, Shelby and Patrick Seeb, CEO of the St. Paul Riverfront Corp., engaged in the type of good-natured ribbing you might see during an awards show on TV. Seeb dissed Shelby's suit: "As my daughter might say, 'That suit is so last year, Dad.'" Shelby gave back by making note of Seeb's pink shirt and tie. Seeb got a bit defensive, asking the audience, "It's OK if men wear pink, right?"

The event, which filled the St. Paul RiverCentre's Grand Ballroom, gave civic boosters and river lovers a chance to celebrate riverfront redevelopment in St. Paul. The dinner is named for the 13th U.S. president, who led the Grand Excursion up the Mississippi to St. Paul in 1854.

Speeches by Mayor Randy Kelly and Seeb were heavy on platitudes about creating a river corridor that seamlessly combines commerce, housing, recreation and natural areas into a regional, even national, attraction. But the speeches glossed over some of the ongoing discussions and disputes about the intensity of riverfront development in St. Paul, including Jerry Trooien's proposed $1.5 billion "Bridges of St. Paul" project on the West Side Flats.

The program wrapped up by 9 p.m., which regular attendees said was thankfully on the early side. Freebies for each attendee included a pack of river-themed "St. Paul Trading Cards" and a kazoo from last summer's Grand Excursion event.

Lock Up the Kids -- Here Come the City Clerks!

2005-05-12T09:29:00.000-07:00

Watch out: A horde of municipal clerks from around the United States and beyond will descend on St. Paul this month. The International Institute of Municipal Clerks is expecting about 1,200 attendees for an annual conference, which runs from May 22 through May 26 at the St. Paul RiverCentre. Shari Moore, St. Paul's acting city clerk, is heading up a committee that's organizing wild and crazy stuff for the clerks to do after each day's official business concludes. There'll be dancing each night at the Radisson Riverfront and trips to the Mall of America. Moore's committee also has organized a river boat tour of the Mississippi River. The conference will be the product of years of planning. St. Paul first bid on the conference in 1999, at the suggestion of then-City Clerk Fred Owusu. Norm Coleman, then the mayor, even went to San Antonio to make a pitch to a site-selection board. St. Paul's effort paid off in 2000, when the organization chose St. Paul for the 2005 event. Convention officials estimate the conference will generate $1.3 million in economic activity.

Party Time on Selby Avenue

2005-05-11T09:44:00.000-07:00

They'll be dancing in the street a week from Saturday on Selby Avenue. The Selby Area Business Association launches a new event May 21 to showcase the variety of restaurants and shops that line the avenue between the Cathedral of St. Paul and Dale Street. The free "Patio and Dance Party" will feature a main stage in the parking lot at 531 Selby Ave., next to Zander Cafe. DJs will play hourly sets of various genres, beginning with Latin dance tunes at noon and continuing with ballroom, country and western, disco and other types until 9 p.m. If you don't know how to dance, instructors from the Arthur Murray studio at 534 Selby Ave. will teach you for free at the top of each hour. If you need to lower some inhibitions before dancing in public, beer and wine will be available for sale. There's speculation at City Hall about whether Council Member Debbie Montgomery, who represents the area, will show up for the 4 p.m. disco set.

City Council Week Ahead: Taking Up Minority Contracting

2005-05-09T11:21:00.000-07:00

In a week that will be marked by sadness over Friday's shooting death of Sgt. Gerald Vick, the City Council tackles a fairly light agenda. But there is one hot-button issue on tap Wednesday: minority contracting. A council resolution calls for a "community driven examination" of whether the city gives minority- and female-owned firms a fair crack at city contracts and real-estate development deals. A council-appointed task force called last month for such a study, but aides to Mayor Randy Kelly have resisted the idea. The mayor's office already has committed to conducting a new "disparity study" that officials say would gauge whether minority firms are under-represented in city contracts. The task force and the council resolution, however, are pressing for a more thorough look at whether the city has followed various contracting ordinances and laws. Delving into the past is a touchy subject, in part because a St. Paul business owner sued the city last year, accusing city officials of purposely discriminating against minority firms. A city-sponsored study could wind up as fodder for the lawsuit, which is pending in federal court. The contracting task force aims to raise money from foundations to pay for the broader study. The council resolution states the council "will consider" matching the privately raised funds. The resolution's backers would need to muster five votes to insulate the measure from a mayoral veto.

In a coincidence, the council agenda includes an item declaring next week "Police Week 2005" in St. Paul. The agenda was put together before Friday's shooting.

Aggressive reporter irks city

2005-05-06T14:08:00.000-07:00

Reporters and editors were in a bit of a scramble this morning, trying to locate people who knew more details about the shooting of Sgt. Gerald Vick in St. Paul.

The 15-year veteran of the St. Paul force was gunned down when he and his partner were working an undercover prostitution detail and happened upon what they thought to be some would-be muggers outside an East 7th Street bar. Vick died on the way to the hospital shortly after the 2:20 a.m. shooting.

But apparently one news crew decided to cut straight to the chase. While KSTP news staffers were trying to find St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly, one of their reporters, Brad Sattin, drove out to Vick's home in Afton and knocked on the door, shortly before the 9 a.m. press briefing. "We told them they weren't getting anything unless they got that guy off the front step," said one city official.

"We appreciate those of you that have restrained your impulse to go out and seek them out," Harrington later said of the Vick family. "We would ask that you continue to act with restraint."

LIEP Leaps Across the Street

2005-05-06T14:06:00.000-07:00

The city's Office of License, Inspections and Environmental Protection, which everyone calls LIEP, completed its move this week from the Lowry Building to the Commerce Building. There were a lot of temporarily lost contractors wandering from one building to another. Even employees had a tough time remembering where to go. The LIEP counter now is on the second floor of the Commerce Building, 8 E. 4th St., just east of City Hall.

LIEP's old space on the 3rd floor will become housing as part of Rich Pakonen's project to turn the Lowry into condos.

The city will pay $585,000 in rent during a three-year lease at the Commerce, which is owned by a partnership that includes Sherman Rutzick. City officials said the new rent will be about $270,000 cheaper over the three years than the Lowry lease.

The short-term nature of the lease will give the city time to figure out a longer-term solution. Mayor Randy Kelly has pitched the idea of uniting LIEP, Neighborhood Housing and Property Improvement (aka code enforcement) and fire inspections into a single building. Code inspectors currently operate out of a shopping center on White Bear Avenue. Fire inspectors are stranded in the downtown Public Safety Building, which may be torn down as part of Rutzick's latest housing development. The mayor's idea a year ago of constructiong a new building in the Midway didn't sit well with downtown boosters. But Kelly hasn't ruled out the idea of a new city office building, which his aides say is cheaper over the long run than renting.

The Lowdown on the Coleman endorsement

2005-05-02T07:11:00.000-07:00

Here's a ward-by-ward breakdown of the endorsement vote at Arlington on Saturday. We tried to get it in the Sunday paper, but there just wasn't enough room. Too bad. It's probably the most interesting part of the whole process.

	Coleman		Ortega
	Ballot 1	Ballot 2	Ballot 1	Ballot 2
Ward 1	33	34	31	33
Ward 2	34	40	38	35
Ward 3	62	67	36	32
Ward 4	39	40	51	56
Ward 5	25	28	31	28
Ward 6	29	31	18	18
Ward 7	40	41	19	18
Auto deleg.	19	20	16	12

There are a few things the Scoop would like to note here.
1. Despite the drama running up to the convention, it turned out to be pretty much a done deal by the time the speeches started. Coleman was 37 votes from an outright endorsement on the first ballot, while Ortega was 40 delegates from a tie. Although Ortega had a 6-delegate lead going in, it was clear the East Side had simply been quietly biding its time. Coleman took previously uncommitted Ward 6 and Ward 7 nearly 2-to-1 on the first ballot.
Another sign: the biggest single swing, percentage wise, came in the so-called 8th Ward, the "automatic delegate" gathering of elected and party officials in one corner of the room. Although a small group, Coleman did about 16 percent better among them on the second ballot. It was proportionately the biggest move of any group from one ballot to the next and the closest thing he was likely to get to a vote of confidence, short of the endorsement.
2. Ortega's support, on the other hand, looked soft. A nearly 2-to-1 victory at the Ward 5 convention March 22 had already slipped away by the first ballot, and the Ward returned quickly to its usually moderate form. The vote tied there on the 2nd ballot.
3. The biggest swings came in Macalester-Groveland, Highland Park and Ward 2, which opened up an 18 delegate gap for Coleman between the two ballots. Coleman used to represent Ward 2, which includes downtown, W. 7th Street and the West Side, and it was the only ward to actually flip on Saturday, moving from the Ortega to the Coleman column. These areas pretty much follow the contours of Randy Kelly's strongest support in 2001. Ward 2 is also the area that the Benanav campaign considered its Waterloo: turnout there wasn't what they were counting on in 2001.

Adios, Radio Rey

2005-05-02T07:10:00.000-07:00

A few people suspected the jig was up on Saturday when Radio Rey packed up its booth and left after the first ballot. If Ortega was going to put up a fight, the speculation went, the Spanish language radio station would have gotten an inkling and hung around to record the come-from-behind victory for posterity.
But no.

The Ghost of Randy Kelly

2005-05-02T06:54:00.000-07:00

The incumbent may not have been in the running at this weekend's DFL endorsement convention, he was definitely there in spirit.

Two Kelly campaign volunteers were there: Jason Reid, from the city's technology division, and Jason Anderson, city marketing guy and son of former city council staffer Nancy Anderson, were both lurking around the convention, taping the speeches and scooping up literature for opposition research.

Robert Humphrey was also there. A former East Side DFL officer and now a LIEP staffer, he was at Kelly's re-election announcement at Tivoli Too. Humphrey even put his daughter on stage in one of the kid-prop, oversized "Kelly" T-shirts at that gala, if memory serves the Scoop correctly.

There was some suspicion that Kelly supporters might try to influence the convention's outcome -- particularly after a letter to DFLers from the mayor, hinting (by some interpretations) he'd rather run against Ortega.

But there wasn't much sentiment on Saturday to prevent the party from lining up behind Coleman to take on the mayor. Only East Side DFLer Jim Keilkopf was publicly talking about forgoing an endorsement at any point during the day.

Jim Goff, a long-time East Side supporter of the mayor, said he can't forgive Kelly for the Bush endorsement. He went into the convention an uncommitted Ward 2 delegate, since he lives in Railroad Island now. But he was ready to back Coleman. "I'm going to support the endorsed candidate," he said as the voting wore on.

Coleman's Mea Culpa

2005-05-02T06:44:00.000-07:00

It's hard to calculate what about Chris Coleman stuck most in the craw of liberal DFLers over the past five months: running against Betty McCollum in the primary in 2000 or endorsing Randy Kelly in 2001.

Benanav supporters were still saying this winter that they'd rather vote for the incumbent than Coleman, who came out for Kelly a month before the whisker-close general election. Coleman later torpedoed one of the Ward 4 council member's signature efforts, a council resolution against the war in Iraq. This spring, Benanav was the one city council member to back Coleman's rival during the endorsement race.

But the 2000 race must have left the worse taste in the mouths of party faithful, if Coleman's acceptance speech was any indication. After leading the crowd in a chant of "Beat Randy Kelly" in the Arlington High School cafeteria on Saturday, Coleman directed toward the 2000 race one of the most extensive passages of his remarks:

"George Bush was asked at a debate if he'd ever made a mistake in his life, and he said he couldn't come up with any. I could actually come up with a few for him. But I'm not afraid to say I've made mistakes in my life. I've made wrong choices and I have made some bad decisions. And I can't think personally of any worse decision I have made in my life than not supporting the great 4th District Congressional Representative in Betty McCollum. She has truly been a voice for us as a community, and she is going to continue to grow. We have seen how quickly she has emerged as a leader in Congress, and it's going to just keep on going and going. She is truly following the footsteps of Bruce Vento."

And his teeth didn't even look clenched when he said it.

2005-04-29T09:09:00.000-07:00

The other Macalester-Groveland
Sunday's slaying of a man near Selby Avenue and Chatsworth Street, possibly over the chrome wheels on his SUV, is out of character for the neighborhood, St. Paul Police Chief John Harrington suggested this week.

"We're beginning to refer to that area as kind of Mac-Groveland North," Harrington said during a news conference about the slayings. "It has become so unusual for us to have crimes committed of this nature."

Leon Tyrise Brooks, the 27-year-old Brooklyn Park man who was killed, had been attending an illegal after-hours party at a convenience store at 991 Selby Ave., police said.

"The Selby Jazz Festival, coffee shops, florist shops, dress shops, the new development on Selby are all much more typical of the normal, day-to-day life on Selby," Harrington said. "And so this harkens back to the days of the People's Choice (an after-hours club) and the old pop shops 20 years ago, and it really is a shock to the neighborhood."

Ah, People's Choice. The Scoop hasn't heard that name in a long time. The infamous St. Paul bottle club once stood at 921 Selby Ave. It was closed in 1989, when a shooting inside prompted a stampede for the door.

It was also the scene of the shooting of Fred Arnette Jr., better known as "Fast Freddie." One of the owners of People's Choice accused Arnette of selling drugs in front of the club and subsequently shot him, paralyzing Arnette from the waist down. "Fast Freddie" became a Summit-University fixture for years after that, rolling his wheelchair in and out of infamy.

"I think he's still alive," 1st Ward Council Member Debbie Montgomery said on Friday. "But I can't remember the last time I saw him."

2005-04-28T08:52:00.000-07:00

Council aide's online satire irks mayor
Mayor Randy Kelly was none too happy about a satirical State of the City speech written this week by Jane Prince, the legislative aide to City Council Member Jay Benanav. On Tuesday morning, hours before Kelly was to present his annual State of the City address, Prince posted a spoof speech to the St. Paul issues forum, an online discussion group. Kelly responded Wednesday in a letter to Benanav. Prince's post and Kelly's letter follow (the boldface emphases are those of the writers).

Prince's satirical State of the City address:

Ladies, gentlemen and homeless people,

Please join me in welcoming our special guest, Tim Pawlenty, to St. Paul. I sure enjoy working with Tim, Norm and our pal W -- a lot more than those cranky DFLers on the City Council. Have you ever tried to have a civil conversation with Kathy Lantry?

Governor Tim is willing to give me his full support at only a small cost to the Capital City. Sure, there's that little matter of $20 million per year in local government aid, but think of it: I'm the darling of the Minneapolis cops and the Governor's Number One DFL lapdog!

In return for my shameless fawning, the Governor routinely praises me. He once told everyone that he thought I was a visionary for my plan to "do" biotech in the abandoned Dayton's warehouse. Remember when he stood at my side to announce the 750-square-foot lease the city of St. Paul signed with that Swiss biotech firm?

Governor Tim is so proud of my biotech vision, that this year he gave $22 million to Rochester for theirs! I'm sure he's going to help me some more, but I understood that it was Rochester's turn. Meanwhile, he's giving me a transit garage and 200 belching buses to put in my biotech corridor as a sort of placeholder.

And there's even more good news for St. Paul: My friend Tim got us a cool million toward a $30 million floodwall for our downtown airport. He even signed the bill in front of a whole bunch of my friends down there. Who ever said that Republicans don't like dikes?!

Tonight Governor Pawlenty is here to share with you the most exciting news of all: You know how -- if the Twins had picked St. Paul -- this spot where I'm standing would have been home plate? Well guess what? We not going to house the Twins in St. Paul, we're going to house the homeless!

Governor Tim is going to help me put a roof over your heads, while he cuts your health care, child care, job training and Meals on Wheels. Hand-in-hand with Tim, W is gutting the Section 8 housing program, community development block grants, and your right to declare bankruptcy! So effective are my Republican friends in eliminating everything people need, that a whole bunch of new people can become homeless -- just like you!

Who needs health care, when you can bunk in a homeless facility in the middle of an industrial zone, breathing toxic fumes and dodging semi trucks!

And for those of you who need a job to improve your lot in life? Have I got news for you: Today, for the third time, I'm announcing my huge new economic development initiative: JOBS 10,000! I'll give you the details in January, but take my word for it. It's going to be SWELL!

Well, we've taken up enough of Governor Tim's time, so I'll wrap up. Just remember, the New Deal was overrated; the Guv's getting our priorities straight: Guns, Gambling and God! You go, Tim!

Jane Prince

Kelly's letter to Benanav:

Dear Council member Benanav:

It has come to my attention that your office has been involved in behavior that does not live up to the Credo of the City of St. Paul's Administrative Code of Ethics. The circumstances of the violation are indeed troubling to me in that they cross the line of tolerance for the rights of individuals, display hateful sentiments, and utilize city resources to accomplish this.

Your Legislative Assistant's decision to express her political opinion on the news of the day is to be commended. However, her caustic comment in a recent post from her crosses the line. Clever as she may believe herself to be, the following comment is disreputable, unbecoming and intolerable.

"Who ever said that Republicans don't like dikes?!" [StPaul] A playful prediction for RK's State of the City Speech - Jane Prince
Tue, 26 Apr 2005 07:55:50 -0700

Men and women who have sexual orientation that is different from yours and mine should not have to expect derogatory and demeaning references such as this from their public officials, or staff. Republicans, or Democrats, or Independents, should not simply be labeled as hateful simply because we may disagree with their point of view. To suggest that any person, regardless of their political persuasion is automatically inappropriate in their depiction of others is unfortunate, and further evidence to the public that we must do more to not cross the line of public debate and civility.

The public judges its government by the way its public officials and employees conduct themselves in the post of which they are elected or appointed. City officials and employees hold positions of public trust under the scrutiny of public opinion, and their actions must be above suspicion. If these types of activities happen again, know that we will be forced to take appropriate measures.

Sincerely,

Randy C. Kelly
Mayor of St. Paul

City Council Agenda: Barking Dogs, Contracting Questions and City Handouts

2005-04-26T09:48:00.000-07:00

City Council Agenda: Barking Dogs, Contracting Questions and City Handouts
Council members are scheduled to vote Wednesday on changes to the nuisance animal ordinance. The measure would allow animal control officers to cite a pet owner whose animal barks or makes other loud noises for five minutes straight. Under the current ordinance, owners can be cited if a dog barks to the "reasonable annoyance" of another person.

The council also is set to take up the volatile minority contracting issue for the first time since naming a "working group" in December 2003 to study the issue. The committee was initially given a month to come up with a list of recommendations to help the city do a better job getting public contracts into the hands of minority- and women-owned businesses. The effort wound up taking more than a year. The panel is recommending the city set revised contracting goals, require officials to complete anti-racism training and improve its tracking and reporting of contract awards. The committee's report landed on the council's agenda last week, but discussion was delayed to Wednesday.

The Housing and Redevelopment Authority board will consider a series of economic development handouts. Allina is up for a $294,000 "forgivable loan" to bring 196 new jobs (336 workers total) to the Westgate Business Center at 1055 Westgate Drive. The North East Neighborhoods Development Corp. is seeking a $900,000 loan to buy a vacant retail building on White Bear Avenue at East Seventh Street. Rock-Tenn, the recycler in the Midway, is asking for a $100,000 forgivable loan to buy equipment while the company develops plans to restart a moth-balled power plant on its site. And finally, Dominium is asking the city to create a tax-increment financing district and issue housing revenue bonds to help finance a $47 million, 170-unit housing project called Carleton Place Lofts on University Avenue at Carleton Street.

2005-04-25T16:05:00.000-07:00

"State of City" lineup includes heavy hitters
Randy Kelly has an all-star lineup headed for his State of the City address on Tuesday afternoon. The governor and Archbishop Harry Flynn are scheduled to be there, as is Phillip Mangano, executive director of the federal Interagency Council on Homelessness.
The real curiosity, though, isn't about the guest list. It's about the location.
They're going to be speaking at the Dorothy Day Center, the downtown homeless shelter across the street from the Xcel Energy Center.
The site has prompted a fair amount of speculation around City Hall that Kelly might have something up his sleeve regarding the center. There are always reports that "someone" wants it moved, although it isn't clear who.
The consensus on Monday seemed to be that the center was staying put, at least for the time being.
"It's a pretty expensive building," former Mayor Jim Scheibel said. He's currently head of Ramsey Action Programs and is still active on homeless issues. "St. Paul Travelers has a lot of money into it, and I don't think the foundation community would step up for it," if the city wanted to relocate the facility.
Tracy Berglund, an adminstrator with Catholic Charities in Minneapolis, said that there were no major plans in the works for the center, although her organization would like to open a St. Paul branch of its Minneapolis pay-for-stay program. It charges residents a nominal fee and requires participants to make some concrete progress towards finding permanent housing.
"We do have a second floor (at Dorothy Day) now that we don't use to its full capacity," Berglund said.

2005-04-25T11:57:00.000-07:00

Gentlemen, start your engines!
In case you couldn't hear the St. Paul city DFL convention coming, here are a couple of reminders for you:
This year's air war apparently started this morning on WCCO-AM. A Pioneer Press colleague of the Scoop reported hearing a Randy Kelly radio commercial on the Good Neighbor on the way to work this morning. There's apparently more than one.
Here's the ad copy, provided by the Kelly campaign:

Ad No. 1:
MAN: Some politicians talk a good game. Make all kinds of promises.
MOCK FUNNY POLITICIAN VOICES: You betcha. No problem. Consider it done.
MAN: But when it comes time to make the tough decisions. . . .
SOUND EFFECT: AIR OUT OF BALLOON
MAN: They're just full of hot air. Randy Kelly is different. Despite tough economic times and a huge state budget shortfall that helped create a $56 million city budget deficit, he balanced Saint Paul's budget. He increased the number of police, focused on public safety and helped decrease crime by 30 percent. He recruited over a thousand volunteers and secured a million dollars in grants to help teach kids to read and learn computer skills. And Randy Kelly did it all without raising property taxes. When the naysayers said it couldn't be done, Kelly led the fight to build 1,000 new homes for our lowest-income residents . . . and fought to save Saint Paul jobs and helping to relocate Gander Mountain here. Randy Kelly. Our Mayor. Making the tough decisions. Getting the job done.
LEGAL: Paid for by the Kelly for Mayor Committee.

Ad No. 2:
ANNOUNCER: To be the mayor of Saint Paul, it takes courage.
The courage Randy Kelly showed when faced with a budget shortfall of $56 million. He still managed to increase the number of police, cut crime 30 percent and hold the line on property taxes. To be the mayor of Saint Paul, it takes commitment. Randy Kelly knows that Saint Paul families come first. So he refused to raise property taxes and fought to save St. Paul jobs and to relocate Gander Mountain here. To be the mayor of Saint Paul, it takes passion. When Randy Kelly said we could build 5,000 homes in four years, including over 1,000 for our lowest-income residents, people didn’t believe it was possible. But that goal has been exceeded, opening the door for new ways to make Saint Paul even better. To be the mayor of Saint Paul, it takes courage. It takes commitment. It takes passion. To be the mayor of Saint Paul, it takes Randy Kelly.
LEGAL: Paid for by the Kelly for Mayor Committee.

Kelly also has scheduled his State of the City address for tomorrow (5 p.m., Dorothy Day Center, 183 Old Sixth St.) and has invited Phillip F. Mangano, executive director of the Federal Interagency Council on Homelessness, to speak.

The Coleman campaign, meanwhile, has announced another major union endorsement: the local chapter of the United Auto Workers, which represents the workers at the Ford plant in Highland Park.
Here's what the release from the Coleman campaign says:
"As a City Council member, Chris Coleman was always an advocate for the working men and women of Saint Paul. He understands good-paying jobs are the foundation of strong and healthy families and communities. Chris has never wavered in his support for the working people of Saint Paul. As mayor, we can count on Chris to bring people together to support existing business and manufacturing in Saint Paul," said Rob McKenzie, UAW Local 879 president.
All three of the principal contenders for this fal'’s mayoral race screened with the UAW last week.

Second daily post

2005-04-22T17:38:00.000-07:00

Mayoral campaign update: One week to endorsement
Here's a quick update for those of you who can't stand going into the weekend without some mayoral campaign updates.

First up: Rafael Ortega
With a week before the DFL endorsing convention, the direct mail is going to be flying fast and furious for the next few days. The Ortega campaign is mailing out a letter reiterating City Council Member Jay Benanav's endorsement of Rafael Ortega, set to hit the mailboxes of delegates and alternates, a total of about 850 people.
Most of it's boilerplate, but in the last two sentences, he says: "Are you more comfortable with a candidate who ran against our DFL endorsed Congresswoman McCollum in her first run for the seat, supported Mayor Kelly in 2001 and refused to support my progressive colleague Dave Thune in 2003? Rafael has always supported the DFL and I trust him to work hard to make our progressive values a reality at city hall."
The Loyalty Test has been administered a number of times in public already, including once at the 5th Ward convention, where Ortega pulled out an unexpected win. Moderate DFLer Janice Rettman got 60 percent of the delgates there in 2001, and the late Jim Reiter, a conservative, managed to block an endorsement of Lee Helgen at the 2003 ward convention. But Ortega, the most liberal in this year's field, got nearly twice as many committed delegates there as former City Council Member Chris Coleman in March.

Next: Randy Kelly
The mayor's office sent out pretty much a blizzard of press releases in the past week, on everything from his views on the election of a new pope to where he'd be riding on a recycling truck Friday morning for Earth Day.
But the Kelly machine left off the dead trees and got onto the World Wide Web on Friday afternoon. You can check out hizzoner's Web site at www.randykelly.com. It's the fanciest of the bunch so far, if you're a fan of Flash-type animation. Ironically, the "contribute" button was broken on Friday afternoon. Kelly in January reported more than 10 times as much in his bank account as both of his rivals COMBINED. Maybe he's got enough already.
(If you "WHOIS" the domain, by the way, you'll find none other than Kurt Schultz, a PED staffer and former Kelly staffer at the Capitol. Although the domain is registered to Randy Kelly, that's a Schultz address listed under the "Registrant" entry. Schultz is also the PED staffer who was handling the controversial Hmong funeral home development.)

Finally: Chris Coleman
Word is that we're going to see one of the opening gambits on the independent expenditure front soon. The St. Paul Firefighters union, Local 21 of the International Association of Firefighters, is rumored to be readying a mailing on behalf of its endorsed canddiate, Chris Coleman.
Third-party politicking is nothing new to city races, but this year could be a banner year for the biz.
Not that the Coleman campaign has been slouching on the old-fashioned campaigning. Manager Kris Fredson reports they've made 2,337 phone calls and dropped lit at 1,454 doors in the past two weeks. And we're only talking about 850 delegates and alternates at stake. That would be 2.7 calls and 1.7 lit drops per potential convention attendee, if that's where all the attention went.

2005-04-22T08:36:00.000-07:00

Kelly campaign signs up some notable names
Some notable names are working for the Randy Kelly campaign these days, the Scoop has been noticing of late.
The main spokesperson for the Kelly camp is Vince Muzik, who's what's known as a "shooter" in the biz. His photo credits include Sports Illustrated, The New York Times and Topps trading cards. He's also done quite a bit of work with St. Paul baseball phenom Joe Mauer, by the look of Vince's Web site. Check it out at www.vincentmuzik.com.
Muzik's had a more than 25-year career in the biz, according to his bio: "When he was just 12 years old, Muzik bought his first camera and not long after began working for his hometown newspaper, the Austin (Minn.) Daily Herald. Since he didn't have his driver's license yet, his parents drove him to his assignments."
Just a few days ago, former Pioneer Press writer Virginia Rybin let slip that she's decided to come out of campaign retirement -- sort of -- for the Kelly effort. The former City Hall scribe and East Sider is doing some volunteer communications work for the mayor's re-election effort. She covered his original race for the mayor's office, retiring the day after the 2001 election.
There's also another semi-familiar face working for Kelly these days.
William "Billy" Dinkel is getting to be a fixture at campaign events, arranging posters, banners and the trappings of mayoral appearances. His previous brush with fame happened last year: He sang the national anthem before Kelly's State of the City speech at the Minnesota History Center. It was a fine job, although he did have something of the inside track on the honor: He's married to Kelly's deputy chief of staff, Nancy Haas. He's also the brother of Long Prairie DFLer and Kelly endorser Mary Ellen Otremba.
Which isn't to say Dinkel is playing sides in this year's election. He's also scheduled to sing at the April 30 wedding of Haas' pal, lobbyist Laura Offerdahl, who is marrying 3rd Ward Council Member Pat Harris, a Chris Coleman backer. Rather than by bride or groom, maybe they'll seat guests on "incumbent" and "challenger" sides of the aisle.

2005-04-19T16:14:00.000-07:00

Sia Lo: Movin' on out?
The Scoop's interest was piqued on Tuesday when word reached the Pioneer Press City Hall bureau that a number of empty boxes had accumulated near the office of mayoral adviser Sia Lo, who has been at the center of a federal corruption probe in City Hall.
Sia Lo has been on adminstrative leave since Feb. 16, in the wake of revelations that the FBI had questioned a local real estate developer about allegations that Sia Lo had demanded a quid pro quo to get in on a deal to build a new Hmong funeral home just across the freeway from the St. Paul Downtown Airport.
The boxes suggested something might be in the offing for Sia Lo -- like packing up and moving out his personal effects, perhaps.
But mayoral spokesman Carl Kuhl said that they were merely empty copier paper boxes, placed temporarily near Sia Lo's office. Asked if Sia Lo's employment status had changed Kuhl said only, "Not that I am aware of."

There's gonna be a new Dad in town
Bob Fletcher was in front of the Ramsey County Board on Tuesday, looking for some additional deputies for courthouse security, with some success. Six more deputies are going to be joining the sheriff's office in mid-June, adding to the current 41-member complement.
Fletcher, though, noted after the meeting that he'll be adding to his family complement about a month later. Fletcher and his wife, Kris (nee Reiter) are expecting a boy on July 11, the sheriff noted with some pride this morning.
(Kris Fletcher's mom and sister -- the wife and daughter of late City Council Member Jim Reiter -- recently made an appearance at the St. Paul Police Federation's announcement that the union was endorsing Randy Kelly.)
Fletcher was equally proud to note that his oldest daughter got a scholarship to play hockey at Clarkson College this fall. She'll be heading off for school in New York about a month and a half after Fletcher's son is due.

Third daily post

2005-04-18T13:14:00.000-07:00

Council Goes to the Dogs
There may be some barking during the City Council public hearings Wednesday, when the council takes public testimony about an ordinance that would clarify the defintion of "nuisance animal."
The city currently prohibits anyone from keeping a dog that barks to the "reasonable annoyance" of another person. The revised ordinance would define reasonable annoyance as "the creation of any noise by any animal which can be heard by any person, including the animal control officer or a law enforcement officer, from a location outside of the building or premises where the animal is located and which animal noise occurs repeatedly over at least a five-minute period of time with no more than a one-minute lapse of time between each animal noise during the five-minute period."
The council's public hearings begin at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in the third-floor council chambers, 15 W. Kellogg Blvd. (The nuisance animal ordinance is second on the hearing schedule, so the council should take up the item shortly after 5:30 p.m.)
If the proposed ordinance follows the normal legislative path, the council will vote on the measure April 27.

Second daily post

2005-04-18T11:43:00.000-07:00

I ♥ Minneapolis (not)
You might have thought Mayor Randy Kelly had turned over a new leaf last week when he shook hands and made small talk on the East Side with some of Minneapolis' finest. Minneapolis Police Federation President John Delmonico crossed the river with some of his fellow officers last week to endorse the incumbent mayor and extol Kelly's virtues both as an executive and as a legislator during his tenure in the state Senate.
Kelly thanked them profusely.
This from a mayor who has never been squeamish about the insight his predecessor, George Latimer, had for St. Paul mayors: "Any time the crowd seems to get bored with you, kick Minneapolis in the fanny, and you'll get a round of applause," the former mayor told Pioneer Press book critic Mary Ann Grossmann in 2002.
That was the same year that Kelly outmaneuvered Minneapolis at the Capitol to be front-runner for a new Twins stadium, although indications are that the tables may turn in the end. Hennepin County and the team seem to be having a tete-a-tete that will leave St. Paul out of the running, according to a story last week by staff writer Aron Kahn.
Kelly, though, seems to be taking his victories where he can get them. While he was announcing last week that the Dayton's Bluff library would expand its hours, his staff was circulating a chart comparing public libraries in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
The highlights:
-- St. Paul's public libraries are open a total of 702.5 hours per week, nearly 60 percent more hours of service than libraries west of the river.
-- There were 3,223,183 items checked out of St. Paul libraries in 2004, about 30 percent more than in Minneapolis.
Take that, Sin City!
But alas, St. Paul seems destined to be the city that doesn't get enough respect. The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater's annual ranking of "Literate Cities" still ranked Minneapolis as No. 1 and St. Paul as No. 16 last year. (See the rankings at www.uww.edu/npa/cities/allrank.html.)
And St. Paul didn't even beat its twin in the library rankings. Minneapolis ranked No. 15 last year, while St. Paul came in a lowly No. 31 on the 79-city list. Behind Plano, Texas, no less.

2005-04-18T08:04:00.000-07:00

Elvises, light your fires!
While his fiance, lobbyist Laura Offerdahl, was out in Boston to run the marathon there this morning, word has it that City Council Member Pat Harris had himself quite the bachelor's weekend.
The Scoop isn't privy to all of the details of Harris' celebration of the end of his life as a single guy, but we have confirmed this: He spent at least part of the day on Saturday in an Elvis suit and leapt from a plane over Hutchinson wearing said togs. And there are photos.
That's "Honeymoon in Vegas" style. The 1992 Nicholas Cage movie with the 32 flying Elvises -- the "Utah Chapter."
Harris was circumspect about the rest of his activities. "You're not going to put this in that d--- blog of yours, are you? It was a stag party for God's sake. . . . Have some respect for the tradition of manhood."
He is to be married April 30, the day of the city DFL convention, where his friend and political ally, Chris Coleman, will be battling Ramsey County Commissioner Rafael Ortega for the party endorsement.

2005-04-15T08:37:00.000-07:00

Didn't Norm Coleman used to live around here?

You've seen lawn signs, read direct mail, had candidates at your door and heard radio ads. But the Randy Kelly campaign is bringing a new weapon to the local election battle.
Pure doggerel.
The Kelly campaign's headquarters grand opening is tonight from 6 to 9 p.m., and an invitation going out for the event invites supporters to:

"Drop your taxes in the mail,
Come listen to the Mayor wail
Low taxes in St. Paul we hail,
While sittin' on a hay bail."

Hmmm. Isn't that supposed to be "bale"?
You can give the mayor some grief about proper spelling in person, but be prepared to fork over a $25 as a "suggested donation" while you're there.
The most interesting thing about the evening, though, may not even be visible. It's a former nearby tenant. Kelly HQ is at 1021 E. Bandana Blvd., Suite 225. Norm Coleman's U.S. Senate campaign used to be at Bandana Square, too, according to Kelly spokesman Vince Muzik.
The headquarters of Kelly's rivals have some interesting provenance, as well.
The campaign staff for Ramsey County Commissioner Rafael Ortega is based at 220 S. Robert St., the former offices of CLUES, the Latino social service agency Ortega headed before being elected to the county board.
Campaign headquarters for former City Council Member Chris Coleman, at 2500 W. University Ave., are right next door to the offices of Progressive Minnesota. That organization is headed by Ben Goldfarb, who managed City Council Member Jay Benanav's 2001 mayoral campaign.
And while we're connecting the dots here, we should note that one of Goldfarb's lieutenants, Andrea Mokros, has done some communications work for Chris Coleman this spring. She was also spokeswoman for former Senate Majority Leader John Hottinger, DFL-St. Peter.

Bye, Bye Bob
City Council policy analyst Bob Kessler, who joined the city as a lowly intern for city administrator Frank Marzitelli in July 1973, is retiring. His last day is April 29.
Over the years, he has held many City Hall posts, including: city planner, business development director, citizen services director, and head of the Office of License, Inspections and Environmental Protection (a department he helped create).
Kessler took time off to run for mayor as an independent in 2001. He returned to a post in the finance department before being laid off during a budget crunch in March 2003. Kessler joined the City Council staff in September 2003.
Kessler said he's accepted a post as deputy campaign director for the 2006 gubernatorial campaign of former state Rep. Bud Philbrook, a Maplewood DFLer.

April 14, 2005

2005-04-14T10:43:00.000-07:00

Welcome to City Hall Scoop, a new Pioneer Press blog focused on city and county government in St. Paul. Reporters Tim Nelson and Robert Ingrassia will use this space to expand daily local government coverage they provide for the Pioneer Press. Look for short takes on news of the day, feature tidbits on politicians and other City Hall personalities and advance notice of events. Check back early and often for City Hall news you won't see anywhere else.

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Where are They Now? (Part I)

Last week's announcement that Hennepin County Attorney Amy Klobuchar has a whole bunch of money piled up to run for the U.S. Senate had some interesting twists.
It marked the return to the public eye, albeit indirectly, of Laura Mortenson, former spokeswoman for St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly. She's one of Klobuchar's constituents and left the mayor's office shortly after Kelly endorsed President George Bush last year.
Mortenson was handing some of the media duties for Klobuchar last week, helping with distribution of press releases.
She is, notably, the third Kelly staffer to go to work for Klobuchar recently. Former Kelly adviser and state legislator Howard Orenstein joined the Hennepin County attorney's office in July last year. Former Kelly staffer and spokesman Justin Buoen has been squiring the county attorney around St. Paul's precinct caucuses and ward conventions.
Buoen, like Mortenson and Orenstein, left the mayor's office about the time that Kelly endorsed President Bush last summer.
They could be the start of a counter trend: City Hall has previously been a layover for staffers for Sen. Norm Coleman. Former St. Paul Marketing Director Erich Mische is now Coleman's chief of staff, onetime RiverCentre Authority Director Bill Huepenbecker left the city to work for Coleman and current Planning and Economic Development Director Susan Kimberly left a PED position to work for Coleman, then returned to head the deparment when Martha Fuller left.
Mortenson's replacement, Carl Kuhl, is also a onetime Coleman staffer.

Turning the Tables
Former Mayor Jim Scheibel returned one day this month to his old corner office on City Hall's third floor -- not as a dignitary, but as an ink-stained wretch looking to interview the mayor. Scheibel, microphone and tape recorder in hand, questioned Mayor Randy Kelly while reporting an article for the magazine Minnesota Law & Politics.
The article will be part of a series in which officials and professionals interview one of their peers. Scheibel said the interview was not confrontational, focusing on the trials and tribulations of being mayor. But Scheibel said he did'nt shy away from tough questions, including some about Kelly's controversial decision last year to cross party lines to endorse President Bush.
Look for Scheibel's interview with Kelly to appear in the magazine's July issue.

Boozing on the Taxpayers' Tab
Wednesday's City Council agenda included the following item: "Authorizing Police Department Police Academy staff to purchase alcoholic beverages to be used for training and educating police officers on the skills required to detect and interdict motorists who are driving under the influence of alcohol."
Off-duty officers and community volunteers will imbibe the taxpayer-financed drinks to give police trainees a chance to practice field sobriety testing techniques, said Officer Paul Schnell, a department spokesman. The trainees will subject the volunteer drunks to the standardized series of drills (like walking the line).
So what'll ya have? That's up to the volunteers, Schnell said. "It's whatever they want to drink," he said. "It could be beer, wine or booze."

Chris Coleman Sends His Regrets
Mayoral hopeful Chris Coleman and City Council Member Pat Harris are buddies from way back. There's no way Coleman would miss his friend's upcoming wedding -- unless, of course, there was something more important going on.
As it happens, Coleman will be busy April 30, the day Harris is marrying Laura Offerdahl, a League of Minnesota Cities lobbyist. Coleman will be scratching and clawing for support at the St. Paul Democratic-Farmer-Labor convention, which begins that Saturday morning at Arlington High School.
Coleman, a former council member vying for the DFL endorsement with Ramsey County Commissioner Rafael Ortega, already knows he won't make the 2:30 p.m. ceremony at Assumption Church. Its a tossup, though, whether the convention wraps up in time for him to make the 5 p.m. reception at Harriet Island.
"The over/under isn't whether I'm going to show up for the wedding," Coleman joked at a recent ward convention. "It's whether I'll be there before the reception is over."

Kelly: Airport isn't payback
St. Paul Mayor Randy Kelly and Gov. Tim Pawlenty welcomed a host of glad recipients of the Legislature's largess on Thursday at the Regent Aviation hangar at Holman Field. Pawlenty was there for a ceremonial signing of the 2005 bonding bill, which includes money for planning of the Central Corridor transit line, and the last chunk of Phalen Corridor funding, as well as money to develop a new park area on the St. Paul riverbank near the St. Paul-Minneapolis city limits, among other things. But the real win for Kelly was the $1 million in state bonding for a project that will eventually ring the airport with a dike. That, along with $1 million from 3M and $5 million from the Metropolitan Airports Commission, will start work on a sub-surface drainage system that will keep the downtown airport running, even during a flood. The airport project has been bitterly opposed by the City Council. Speculation has also had it that the money is payback for Kelly’s endorsment of George Bush last summer. "Absolutely not," Kelly said, when asked about a quid pro quo before the ceremony began.

The Neumeister File
Where have you gone, Mr. Neumeister?
After staying away far too long, Rich Neumeister finally stopped by the City Hall pressroom this week. He was wearing his Teamsters Local 120 hat. Scoop should have known: Neumeister had been at the Capitol, lobbying state lawmakers on privacy issues. He's tracking legislation that would give police the power to take DNA samples from anyone arrested on a felony charge. He's also working to limit the ability of retailers to retrieve customers' personal information by swiping their driver's licenses through an electronic reader.
On the St. Paul front, Neumeister still is pressing library officials to spend more money on the St. Paul Collection, a repository of documents, maps, yearbooks and other treasures from the city's past. He's also concerned about a lack of public input about a city proposal to shift sales tax proceeds (STAR funds) from neighborhood projects into a land-buying program.

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Tim Nelson grew up in Coon Rapids and graduated from Gustavus Adolphus College. He joined the Pioneer Press in 1992 and has covered a variety of beats, including police, outdoor recreation and City Hall. Nelson lives in St. Paul's Macalester-Groveland neighborhood with his wife and two children. He can be reached at tnelson@pioneerpress.com or 651-292-1159.

Robert Ingrassia is a native of Anoka and a University of Minnesota graduate. He joined the Pioneer Press as a City Hall reporter in 2003 after stints at the Dallas Morning News and the New York Daily News. Ingrassia lives in St. Paul's Summit-University neighborhood with his wife and daughter. He can be reached at ringrassia@pioneerpress.com or 651-292-1892.