Windom Community

Dave/Steve – Pat Soulak wanted the committee reports from the annual meeting included in the next issue. I’m forwarding the reports to you. Feel free to shorten if you need to:

Communications Committee

Windom Community News
Dave Evans/

The Windom Community News (WCN), a quarterly newsletter published by the Windom Community Council. It is designed and written by volunteers from the Windom community. The newsletter serves as a primary communication link to Windom residents seeking information on residential housing, commercial development, city and community planning/projects, as well as park and school activities and events. Currently, the cost of the newsletter is paid for with money received from CPED and some paid advertising. Dwindling city funding could force our newsletter to rely solely on paid advertising to support its cost of printing. The newsletter is distributed door-to-door by an amazing group of dedicated Windom neighbors.

Skyler Weinand published the newsletters before he moved out of the neighborhood and gave up his post as editor and Chair of the Communications Committee. Thank you Skyler for your contributions. Steve Rawlins stepped up and edited the summer newsletter for us in August. Steve intends to edit one more issue. We are looking for a volunteer to future newsletters.

Web Site

The Windom neighborhood website, http://www.windomcommunity.org, has undergone a complete redesign. The site provides up-to-date information on our Windom neighborhood and provides links to vital government and community program information as well as services beneficial to Windom residents and businesses.

Windom Festival
September 15, 2006
Jessica Evenson, Festival Chair

The Fall Festival held September 15, 2006 and was a wonderful community event attended by over 500 people. The food booth, petting zoo, birdfeeder building booth, live music and henna tattoos were some of the most popular attractions.

Windom Community Center
Jesse Rison, Director

The community center continues to serve the community by offering education and recreation classes all year long. Activities at the community center include: Senior Dining and other senior activities, sports activities for all ages and craft and educational classes on a variety of subjects for everyone. There are a number of outings and special events for the Windom Community that includes an Easter Egg Hunt, Twins Games and field trips to local attractions.

Windom Welcome Wagon
Britta Reitan, Chair

The Welcome Wagon is a way that the Community Council brings the community to new residents and lets them know they are welcome. Information “baskets” will be delivered to all new homeowners.

Business Association
Jacob Berning and Chad Evenson – Co-Chairs

The Windom Business Association is only beginning to organize. We intend to have our first meeting this fall. Over the past year, the Windom Community Council has gathered valuable insight into the needs for a business association from the NRP Phase II survey that was done as well as speaking to individual business owners. The objective of the association, which may still be up for discussion, is to provide a forum for local businesses to engage with their supporting community.

LASR-CC
Mary Ubl
South Lyndale Master Plan

In July 2002 the Windom Community Council adopted the vision statement created by the Lyndale Avenue South Renewal – Creek to Crosstown (LASR-CC) committee. The committee is comprised of representatives from four neighborhoods: Windom, Kenny, Lynnhurst, and Tangletown.

LASR-CC Vision Statement: We envision a Lyndale Avenue South that…
1. blends the area’s natural beauty, existing resources and future development to create attractive well maintained spaces with a distinct sense of place;
2. encourages a neighborhood friendly transportation environment that emphasizes pedestrian activities while accommodating vehicles;
3. fosters neighborhood focused businesses and a development climate that meets the needs of all residents.

Master Plan:
The City Council adopted the master plan early 2006 and the Metropolitan council is scheduled to adopt the plan later this year. Since the adoption of the plan, two development projects (Aqua City and Meeting Room) have been brought forward to the Planning Commission. In both cases, the Commission has stayed within the alignment of the master plan.

Next Steps:
1. LASR-CC is working on establishing a process to review development projects as they come before the neighborhood and Planning Commission. We have reviewed two neighborhoods (Kingfield and Elliot Park) and are formalized a process to be brought forward to the four neighborhood boards.
2. LASR-CC is working with the City’s Planning Department to identify the sites within the South Lyndale that require any rezoning due to the adoption of the master plan.

More Information:
For more information about the LASR-CC committee and the master plan, please contact Mary Ubl at 612-825-5620 or see www.ci.minneapolis.mn.us/planning/south-lyndale.asp.

Thursday , October 11, 2006 7-9PM
Windom Community Center – Welcome to Windom!

7:00 Call to Order – Welcome & Introductions – Pat Soulak, President

7:05 Special guests/Announcements
Mpls City Council Report – Scott Benson

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Next week, Thursday, October 12, is the Windom Annual Meeting that will start at 6:30 with a pot luck and the meeting will begin at 7pm. Committee chairs need to have a summary of the goals and what your committee accomplished in this past year and what goals you may have for the future (optional). It just needs to be a minimum of 1 paragraph and up to what ever you need. We (Mary P and I) need this by Monday to put into a format for the meeting. If you had committee members that worked with you, please identify them as well.
Thanks for your help on this.
See you at the meeting and have a great weekend.

MAYOR R.T. RYBAK
331 City Hall
350 South Fifth Street
Minneapolis, MN 55415-1300

News Release

October 10, 2006
Contact: Jeremy Hanson
Phone: 612-673-2785
Mobile: 612-919-8261

Mayor Rybak Launches Great City Design Teams
Residents & Design Professionals Recruited to ‘Re-weave’ Minneapolis Neighborhoods

Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Rybak and Tom Hysell, President of the Minneapolis Chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) today announced the creation of the Mayor’s Great City Design Teams and encouraged residents and community groups to join the effort to create new visions for the City of Minneapolis. The Mayor’s Great City Design Teams are made up of architects, landscape architects, urban designers and developers who will work with residents and community groups to develop design visions for opportunity sites in their neighborhoods.
The Mayor’s Great City Design Teams are a key part of Mayor Rybak’s vision to “reweave” Minneapolis into a city of diverse, connected, urban villages where streets are destinations and residents can access unique goods and services nearby.
“The purpose of the Mayor’s Great City Design Teams is to help residents develop community visions for their neighborhood, energize neighbors into action and help more residents understand urban design and development planning,” Mayor Rybak said. “There is a place for everyone’s ideas as we work together to create a vision of Minneapolis as the greatest city of our time.”
Earlier this year, AIA Minneapolis offered to work with Mayor Rybak to create the Great City Design Teams to engage architects and other design professionals in the neighborhoods of Minneapolis. Members of AIA Minneapolis, the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and the Minneapolis Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects (MASLA) will work with communities to create visions for urban design opportunity sites in their neighborhoods.
“We are proud and excited to work with Mayor Rybak on this groundbreaking partnership as a way to celebrate AIA’s 150 anniversary,” Tom Hysell said. “Individually, these projects will develop a creative vision for local sites, but combined together, the resulting visions will show a rewoven city of great neighborhoods, great buildings, and great spaces better linked together.”
Any citizen group or community-based organization in Minneapolis may apply for a Design Team. A selection committee will select up to five projects in an initial round to be completed in early 2007, with a second round planned for later in the year. The Design Teams will assist their community-based partner to define a vision and principles for future community improvements, with exact composition and resources of the Design Teams determined on a case-by-case basis.
Mayor’s Great City Design Team projects can be an individual site, an intersection or several blocks along a corridor. Ideal projects identify a specific gap in the urban fabric and have a community-based partner. Proposed projects should also show community need, public benefit, political and community support, potential for implementation, project timing and consistency with city planning.

Selected projects should also reflect AIA’s 10 Principles of Livable Communities:
1) Design on a Human Scale
2) Provide Choices
3) Encourage Mixed-Uses
4) Preserve Urban Centers
5) Provide Transportation Options
6) Build Vibrant Public Spaces
7) Create Neighborhood Identity
Protect Environmental Resources
9) Conserve Landscape
10) Ensure Design Matters
How to Apply:
Community organizations interested in being considered for a Mayor’s Great City Design Team need to submit a letter of interest by Thursday, November 30th to AIA 150th Mayor’s Great City Design Team, International Market Square, 275 Market Street, Suite 54, Minneapolis, Minnesota 55405. An informational meeting will be held on Thursday, November 2nd from 4:30-5:30pm at the AIA, International Market Square, 275 Market Street, Suite 54. For more information or to discuss an idea before deciding to apply, interested groups can contact Destin Nygard at dnygard@urban-works.com or visit the Mayor’s Great City Design Teams website at www.greatcitydesignteams.org.
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