Monitor In A Minute

By JANE MCCLURE

Griggs St. park is focus

Apr. 28 saw a flurry of activity on proposed park land on Griggs St. south of University Ave. Minnesota Environmental Fund led an effort to bring together Gordon Parks High School students, senior citizens, HealthPartners staff, Skyline residents and Community Action Partnership-Ramsey Washington staff, in addition to other nonprofit employees. This action complements the City’s and the Trust for Public Land’s efforts to engage the community in planning the future park at that location. The group picked up litter, toured the area and discussed park ideas.

“Students and nearby residents came to us for help creating a park, and now they are sharing their dreams about this future park,” said Jenna Fletcher, program director at the Trust for Public Land. “We are grateful that Minnesota Environmental Fund is both bringing us together for this event and supporting our work creating parks for people. Getting to know each other through community events like this builds a caring community for years to come.”

Students at nearby Gordon Parks School identified the need for a park on Griggs, and are actively shaping its future. Students are excited about the park and have worked for years to make it a reality.

Paul Creager, Parks High Curriculum and Media Arts Coordinator, said, “Over the years promoting the park concept, Gordon Parks High School students have worked with Skyline Towers, the Lex-Ham community and other neighbors on cleanup efforts near the future park space. However, this event will be the biggest cleanup ever and a great way to meet more neighbors around the vibrant energy of the future park space.”

Park improvements

Two area parks are going to see changes this construction season.

May Park’s play area improvements are finally moving ahead. A design process has resulted in bids being let and a contractor chosen. Construction gets underway this spring and will end in late July. Playground improvements and seating with artistic elements are in the plans.

May Park is bounded by Clayland Place, Clayland St., Tatum Place, and W. Chelton Ave. It was funded by the city’s Long-Range Capital Improvement Budget Committee in the last funding cycle, after having previous funding reallocated. The park is less than one acre in size.

Long-awaited work on Dickerman Park could start this summer, bringing another park space along the Green Line. The park is on the north side of University Ave., between Fairview Ave. and Aldine St. Bids for the park will be sought this month, to continue park development. Park plans were developed a few years ago by a community task force.

Sustainable St. Paul awards

Several area residents and business were honored at the 2017 Sustainable St. Paul Awards Apr.19. The City Council and Mayor presented the awards just before Earth Day.

The Transforming Central Committee, which has spearheaded efforts to improve the Central High School grounds, was given the Water Quality and Conservation Institution Award. This was for work done to build rain gardens and handle water runoff outside of the school at Marshall Ave. and Lexington Pkwy.

Hamline Church United Methodist, 1514 Englewood Ave., won the Local Food Production–Community Award for its Hamline SPROUT Garden. The garden produces food for the Hamline Midway Elders and the Keystone Mobile Food Shelf. Children, parents, and Hamline University interns volunteer to tend the garden.

The St. Paul Port Authority was honored for Green Building Design–New Construction for the Saints Business Center, built on the former Midway Stadium site, 1771 Energy Park Dr. The building, which is being leased to commercial tenants, won a LEED Silver designation for energy conservation.

Tech Dump, 698 Prior Ave. N., was honored with the Waste Reduction and Recycling Award, for the nonprofit’s work to reduce electronic waste.

Bang Brewing, 2320 Capp Rd., was given the Water Quality and Conservation–Business Award.

Trash talks are underway

St. Paul’s move toward an organized residential trash collection system is rolling ahead but on two different tracks. The St. Paul City Council voted 6-0 in April to pursue a dual track process in the move to organized trash collection. Talks will also continue with the city’s 15 licensed residential trash haulers, as they have since August 2016. City staff indicated they would like to see a fourth proposal.

But the council also appointed an organized collection options committee that can pursue requests for proposals for trash hauling in the city’s residential neighborhoods. The committee will consist of Council President Russ Stark, Ward Six Council Member Dan Bostrom, Deputy Mayor Kristin Beckman and Department of Public Works Director Kathy Lantry.

Under the current timeline, it’s hoped that some sort of proposal can be brought forward this summer. Organized collection would most likely start in 2018.

St. Paul currently has open collection, in which property owners hire their own trash haulers. That has drawn complaints about multiple haulers traveling on a single street or alley, and complaints about people who don’t hire haulers and illegally dump their trash. Organized collection would mean assigning a hauler or haulers to one area. But that idea has also met resistance from garbage haulers and from homeowners wanting the ability to choose who picks up their trash.

The issue has resulted in a growing number of calls and emails from those who oppose and support organized collection. Council members said the action doesn’t mean that the city won’t ultimately be served by a hauler consortium. But the haulers have submitted three proposals, all of which have been rejected by city staff.

An agreement has been reached on many issues, but the two sides still cannot agree on pricing, the legal entity the city would contract with, and labor peace issues. The city would like to contract with one legal entity and not all 15 haulers so that there is one point of contact.

First Choice St. Paul issued a statement after the vote: “Instead of doing what is beneficial to residents and local businesses, the City has decided to go ahead with a full-scale City takeover of well-run private businesses. The decision to take over an entire industry within the City will put people out of work, companies out of business, and leave St. Paul residents frustrated.”