Author: Dan Kunitz

Nativity Lutheran Church’s series on Sustainability and Equity: We Are All In This Together

• November 13, 9:00am use the lower door
• Sustainability and Equity in City Plans and Community Projects, 9 – 10 AM, Sunday, November 13
  Presentations by Alexis Pennie, Redeemer Center for Life, Minneapolis, and Kristin Seaman, former St. Anthony Village Sustainability Coordinator
  What can cities do to incorporate sustainability and equity into the community for environmental benefits that serve all people? Kristin Seaman will talk about St. Anthony Village’s comprehensive plan, now under development. Alexis Pennie will talk about community projects in North Minneapolis to enhance biking and walking options to improve community health, safety and equity. Join the dialog and ask your questions about projects and plans that affect your everyday life.
   
  This is the second of a three-part series on sustainability and equity hosted by Nativity Lutheran Church. Location: Fellowship Hall, Nativity Lutheran Church, 3312 Silver Lake Road, St. Anthony, MN

January 7th Sustainability Forum featuring Michael Conley (with Alan Ware)

• Conley Family Foundation, U of M OLLI instructor, late-life sustainability convert
• other potential SEF topics
  • biomimicry (invite transition towns)
  • bring in Mark Casey on storm water
  • future ideas: streaming, smaller group discussions

Staying connected to city

• invite Brianne or Mark Casey about
• check in with Kristin Seaman about involving city
• Heights Next is a pseudo transition towns group working on comp planning
  • trying to connect to city planning
  • creating an event for public input on comp plan
• perhaps create a sustainability commission (official city role)
• CFS give endorsements
• how do we memorialize Kristin’s input in official report
• year-end review with Mark Casey (a discussion)
• can we review neighboring city comp plans before SAV’s is finalized

Engaging new and current members

• Message for each city quarterly newsletter
• Next Door
• get meetings on city calendar
• put meeting on city message board along Silver Lake Road
• Partner with village people, SAV action committee, other Facebook groups

2017 meeting schedule

• 2nd Tuesdays 7-8:15 am
• Perkins? City Hall? Library?
• volunteer for breakfast items
• Saturday meetings in 2017:
  • Year end review on January 28th 10-noon
  • At VillageFest in August

Successes

• walkabout!
• electric car show
• solar sub-group
• bike/walk for sidewalk in Stinson
• invitation to comp plan
• Village Fest outreach
• pollinator pathway

What’s next–ideas to focus on in 2017?

• when will sust fair be?
• Join/create green drink group or some other informal social networking
• electric charging station (petition? Electric utility)
  • include in comp plan
• can we be involved in next year’s Kristin selection? GreenCorps
• equity
• CURA partnership
• urban farming in city property
• push for a SAV sustainability director
• Getting involved in schools
  • grants for greening the school (so you don’t need to go on a field trip)
  • involve parents
  • citizen guest speakers in class

1. Introductions
2. April 11 Comprehensive Plan Community Visioning meeting (Planner is Breanne Rothstein). For Monday, we want to list goals.
   1. Send motto: Transform City of St. Anthony Village into an award-winning leader in sustainability.
   2. Capture the opportunity
   3. Reminder: “Our mission is to be a progressive and livable community, a walkable village, which is sustainable, safe and secure.”
   4. 2013 Sustainability Plan
      1. Transportation
      2. Utilities
         1. Energy Use
         2. Recycling and Waste Reduction
         3. Composting
      3. Natural Resources
         1. Surface Water Management
         2. Landscaping
         3. Local Foods
      4. Housing
      5. Neighborhood Development
      6. Public Awareness
   5. Ideas for SAV 2040 Comprehensive Plan Visioning Session (A regular city position to usher grants, sustainability projects, etc.–perhaps a volunteer coordinator, even with Lauderdale and Falcon Heights). Use our time till the June meeting to expand upon this.
      1. Electricity
         1. Achieve GreenStep Cities Step 4 and 5.
         2. [PW comment: SAV should reduce electricity use by X%, and] Encourage and facilitate SAV non-municipal electricity consumers to reduce consumption by 10%. ((needs work))
         3. The City shall consume electricity meeting MN RES standards of which, at least 10% shall be generated (solar or wind) within city limits.
         4. Encourage and facilitate SAV non-municipal electricity consumers to achieve sustainable energy goals
            1. Eliminate regulatory and financial barriers to installing renewable energy systems
            2. Develop city outreach events and educational materials

1. Bike/Walk
   1. Meet legal requirements (ADA, etc.)
   2. Recognize biking and walking as transportation methods.
   3. Break mindsets about crosswalk placement.
   4. Active Living
2. Green Space (11 items)
   1. Changing maintenance plan, as well as plantings for 88 corridor
   2. Chemical use in public spaces
   3. Bee ordinance
   4. Transitioning Trillium Park gardens
   5. Transitioning all parks to incorporate natives
   6. Enhancing natural setting at Salo Park
   7. Negotiating plantings along railroad corridor
   8. Farmers market space and online presence
   9. Funding for design assistance
   10. Connecting aging home owners with interested apartment gardeners
   11. Community gardens (local ordinances to allow, metered water access at potential public sites)
3. Refresh targets on the 2013 sustainability plan–suggest they adopt it.
4. Waste?
   1. Composting
   2. Banning plastic bags and styrofoam to-go containers
1. Water quality updates: Dioxane
   1. Twin Cities Ammunition Plant leaches chemicals and Dioxane was only recently testable
   2. 1ppb is arbitrary max state level
   3. Water restrictions on city
   4. How long has the city known about this before telling everyone?
   5. The city should be more transparent about water quality
   6. How resilient are we? For how long?
2. Rain Barrel Workshop 4/19
   1. Sold out.
3. Salo Park Clean up – 4/23 9:30
   1. Working with Inland, Equinox, and city to get 20 volunteers to clean up. City lending tools and donating garbage bags.
4. Pollinator garden funds have 11 applicants and looking for a bulk design
5. Electronics Recycling drive: Wilshire collected 100 lbs of cell phones. St Charles just finished theirs, Nativity is planning theirs.
6. City Cleanup – May 7.
7. Federal educational mandates are underfunded due to open enrollment students not counting.
   1. This weekend is a key deadline for talking to your legislators
8. Solar update
   1. We discussed the talking points for the visioning session.
   2. Forest lake schools solar installation covers ⅓ of the school building electricity use. Saving money now through third-party financing for 7 years, then they will wholly own the solar benefits. Federal tax credit for solar will help for the next few years.
   3. Can we suggest this to the SANB school board? It will save money right now and more in 7 years if we use the Forest Lake model.
      1. How do we bridge into the school board. ROI is real.

Notes

• Email CFS about the April 11 visioning session, then there will be a half-day workshop in June where we can put our group’s points out. Also link to sustainability plan and visioning thing https://mysidewalk.com/organizations/291895/st-anthony-comprehensive-plan-2040
• Central Park is jointly owned between city and school district
• Can school board be encouraged to include sustainability
  • The city cannot ask them to
  • Troy Urdall (SANB) is the one to talk to about adding solar to schools
  • There is
    • ecology club elementary
    • waste management curriculum
    • rain barrel curriculum
    • Recent recycling grant awarded (including an ecology club at the middle/high)
    • high school science classes related to sustainability (at teacher’s discretion)
• Mary has been working to develop a meeting North Minneapolis, East St. Paul, Columbia Heights, St. Anthony Village, with Keith Ellison on bike/walk issues surrounding transportation civil rights. Addressing transportation equity across gender, religion, age, language, ethnicity.
  • Looking at 4/21.
  • Would aid comprehensive planning on bike/walk

Pollinators Updates

Pollinator Day at Nativity Lutheran Church

• CFS handed out seed packets
• Held seed exchange and had sign-up for another seed exchange in spring

Pollinator pathways

• The city is dedicated to continue improving city plantings
• Folks can still apply for pollinator garden funds (city has $5000 to offer to residents)–fill out the application and send it to kristin.seaman@ci.saint-anthony.mn.us

Walk/Bike Updates

• CFS members were invited to circle problem intersections on an SAV map for the Parks Commission
• Hennepin and Ramsey Counties presented on Active Living could use our help tying bike/walking paths together

Silver Lake Village Neighborhood Association

• Association just started up. Neighborhood borders: Stinson Blvd, Silver Ln, Silver Lake Rd, 37th Ave NE
• Upcoming event: Cleanup of Salo pond area (April 23rd)
• Event supplies: Will approach city and Inland
• Additional Event Volunteers: Ask Inland’s commercial tenants
• City tie-in: Bring in police and fire for community education and show of city support
• Idea: Seek Adopt-a-park status?

Model Energy Remodel in SAV

• Retrofitting standard home to make it energy and water efficient
  • Began with a U of M class assessment
• Event dates are not yet set, will allow the public to review the project and at least one other home with solar panels installed
• Kristin will provide a handout of building envelope and mechanicals tips (related to the house upgrades)

Solar Sub-group Update

• Solar Power Hour in Roseville
  • Event overview–reiterated solar best practices:
    1. Make efficiency updates to reduce needed solar system size
    2. Install solar panels
• Perhaps CFS should encourage a city ordinance for Solar Ready roofs on homes like California? (protrusions on North-facing parts of roof, etc.)

Electronics Recycling

• LEGO leagues group from December went on to win state competition
• Their key takeaway is instead of mining virgin materials, reclaim precious materials from unused/old/broken electronics given their speed of replacement
• Wilshire Park, St. Charles, and Nativity students have implemented cell phone collection
• Tech Dump will be part of the SAV city cleanup in May

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Questions and Comments

1. Why do they aerate Silver Lake?
   1. To improve water quality? Kristin will check
2. Why is one pond low in Salo park?
   1. We don’t know
3. Look for an SAV Community Service gardening course–taught by a CFS member!
4. Tips for encouraging an associate to replace lawn with native plantings?
   1. Committee has worked with Metro Blooms, try Rich Harrison
5. Ways to improve Salo Park?
   1. Inland has a good opportunity to develop park/pond area with the city
   2. Is it possible to develop it into a better green space?
   3. It’s probably time to create a sub-group for Salo Park
   4. People would be more willing to volunteer if they knew the city was supportive
6. Community Garden interest renewed?
   1. Yes, but only if land is available
   2. Member suggested looking on Silver Ln
7. April 11: Parks Commission Visioning Session
   1. Bring up Salo Park – Inland
8. June __: SAV Comprehensive Plan meeting
   1. City’s major points will each be covered
   2. CFS should propose priorities for the Comprehensive Plan
   3. US Green Building Council will be present
9. Can we build a list of, say, 10 priorities for the city?
   1. Solar! (Paul, Dan, Kristin)
   2. Green space! (Lona) – aesthetics, native plantings, rain gardens
   3. Bike/walk! (Mary, Kara, Becky)
   4. Add water stewards group? (Idelle) – water quality?
10. How do we find out who in CFS is interested in what?
    1. Send an email to the full group to vote on our favorite topics
    2. Create a half-sheet with these priorities to bring to community meetings
11. Met Council will be looking for equity discussion in SAV comp plan
    1. title 6, ADA, age discrimination act, health impacts
    2. CFS could create a sub-group for transportation more broadly
    3. Keith Ellison’s team will bring in community members (District 5) on an evening or a weekend
    4. Contact Mary to be alerted to this meeting
12. For April 9 CFS meeting:
    1. breakout sessions for each of the subgroups to use to develop top talking points.
13. For May 14 CFS meeting:
    1. finalize/focus list
14. North side of Stinson, there was a building torn down near Prestemon Park. Why?
    1. Will be built into dental office
    2. developer has agreed to connect Stinson to the park
15. Encourage building managers to provide shopping carts to residents near grocery stores (equity)
16. Issues to bring up with legislators
    1. Reestablishment of the Citizens Review Board of the PCA
    2. Gathering stances on the PolyMet mine
17. Reminder about Emerald Ash Borer: the state has made funds available to cities
    1. For homeowners: visit arrest the pest or 1-888-545-6684
18. SAV will become a Tree City USA in 2016
    1. Nat’l arbor day foundation backed
    2. $2/capita city spending on trees
    3. part of the comprehensive plan
19. When planning commission, parks commission, city council have openings, we should share within CFS
    1. For CFS Calendar: Add a reminder every every September to check for openings on the planning and parks commission

Items to communicate to our list

1. Create a form (with an ‘other’ option) for the subgroups
2. Bring a comprehensive list to June meeting
3. EAB Arrest the pest: http://www.mda.state.mn.us/arrestthepest (1-888-545-6684)