Urban Agriculture Activity Plan Released for Public Comment

Via a November 7 e-newsletter from the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board:

Urban Agriculture Activity Plan Released for Public Comment

Draft Available through December 21, 2013

A draft of the MPRB Urban Agriculture activity plan is available for public review and comment between November 6, 2013 and December 21, 2013. The Park Board encourages residents and park users to provide feedback on the draft document, and has made available a brief online survey and comment form to easily gather public opinion.

After reviewing the draft plan, you may respond to a survey or provide general comments online.  Print copies of the draft plan are available in recreation centers.

Please refer to the MPRB project webpage for updated information.

All comments received are public record and will be considered for incorporation into the final plan for Board consideration and adoption in early 2014.

The draft plan was developed through an extensive community engagement process and contains recommendations related to policy, facility, program, and service improvements to better support urban agriculture activities within the park system.

The development of the Urban Agriculture activity plan is supported by the Board of Commissioners and directly linked to the goals of the MPRB Comprehensive Plan.

Izzy's November 9 Grand Opening Celebration

The retail shop has been open since July 29th, but this Grand Opening is in celebration of moving the ice cream making kitchen to Minneapolis. Stop by for treats and tours.

Kids Hour: Noon-2pm  Activities, cider, caramel apples and fun!

Architectural Tour: Want to know more about the building design and functions? Join owner Jeff Sommers and architect David Salmela for a talk and tour 12:30-1:30 (TICKETS* ON SALE HERE)

Tasting Tour: Join owner Jeff Sommers and enjoy a tasting of some of his favorite flavors with ice cream in Izzy’s new kitchen 3pm- 4pm (TICKETS* ON SALE HERE)

Kitchen viewing and ingredient tasting. 4 to 7 p.m. – Get an inside glimpse of the ice cream kitchen and have the opportunity to taste locally sourced ingredients before and after they are made into ice cream. Local ingredients include cardamom toast from Wuollet Bakery, milk from family-run dairy Sassy Cow Creamery and key lime pie from Birchwood Café. Tastes of Jeff’s signature cold-press iced coffee, made with Peace Coffee Yeti blend and brown-butter sweet cream, also will be served.

Owner’s Tour: 7:30pm-8:30pm – Get a behind-the-scenes tour of the new facility and a talk with owner Jeff Sommers about what they're doing at Izzy’s. (TICKETS* ON SALE HERE)

*Tickets include ice cream cup or cone, too!

Today - VOTE!

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Twin Cities Horror Festival Runs thru November 9 at Southern Theater

Halloween may already be a distant memory, but the gore goes on until November 9 at The Southern Theater.

This is the second year for the Twin Cities Horror Festival, which features seven accomplished local performance groups exploring the theme of horror through theater, music, dance, and storytelling. The 40+ performance run also includes a Recycle-Your-Costume Dance Party Friday Nov. 8th at 10pm.

Mark Your Calendar for the Nov 14 Water Works Community Meeting at Nicollet Island Pavilion

Discover and discuss Water Works emerging concepts.

The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board will be hosting a community meeting about the Central Mississippi Riverfront, where SCAPE and Rogers Partners from the Water Works Design Team will be featured guests. 

The meeting is scheduled for Thursday, November 14, 6:00pm - 8:00pm, at the Nicollet Island Pavilion.
 
The Design Team has been working on the design framework and concept scenarios for Water Works since their last visit in September, and they will share their work at this meeting.

Attend the meeting to engage in the conversation about Water Works and the Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park, discover emerging concepts developed following the last community input meeting, and learn about next steps.

This Weekend: ART ATTACK 2013!

Northrup King Building, 1500 Jackson St. NE, Minneapolis

Friday, Nov. 1st        5:00 - 10:00 PM
Saturday, Nov. 2nd   Noon - 8:00 PM
Sunday, Nov. 3rd      Noon - 5:00 PM
 
Visit the Northrup King Building for an exciting weekend of visual art, live music, ballet performances, art demonstrations and food trucks for your convenience. If you're new to the Northrup King Building or simply haven't been here for awhile, put on your walking shoes and visit over 250 artists working out of 150 separate studios.

For more information and a schedule of music, performances and demonstrations, go to www.northrupkingbuilding.com/artattack.

Temporary 3-Day Closure of Historic Main Street

Via an October 31 e-newsletter from the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board:

Temporary 3-Day Closure of Historic Main Street

Repairs are underway along historic Main Street, between Hennepin Avenue and SE 3rd Avenue. Beginning Tuesday, November 5 this section of Main Street will be closed to vehicular and bicycle traffic to allow for street repairs to be made. Main St. will reopen the morning of Friday, November 8. Businesses and pedestrian walks will remain open while repairs are made. Follow this link for a map that indicates the area of the closure and detour routes. Signs will be posted.

Thank you for your patience while these necessary repairs are made.

A complete list of current and upcoming parkway closures is available online.

Contact Information:
Julia Cline, Project Representative, MPRB Planning, jcline@minneapolisparks.org or 612-230-6463.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween to our Mill District neighbors! :)

Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park Master Plan Public Input Opportunities

Via an October 30 e-newsletter from the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board:

Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park Master Plan Public Input Opportunities

The Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board will host a two-day charrette to gather public input for the Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park Master Plan. This is the second charrette of five for the Master Plan and will focus on Historic Main Street and its connections.  A charrette is an intensive creative session intended to generate alternative approaches to a design problem. It is a way to immerse a project team with key stakeholders and the community in a real-time, iterative learning and creative process. Please join us!

Charrette Public Meeting Day 1:

Date – 11/6/13
Time – 8:00am to 10:00am
Location – Aster Café – River Room

Meeting Info: Comment and feedback to define key site program issues, possibilities, and limitations for Historic Main Street.

Charrette Public Meeting Day 2:

Date – 11/7/13
Time – 4:00pm to 5:30pm
Location – Aster Café – River Room

Meeting Info: Review preliminary design framework plan and concepts for Historic Main Street completed during the charrette.

The Park Board encourages the public to stop by the Aster Café’s River Room to share ideas, concerns and priorities with the Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park design team.  Later in November, ideas from this two-day charrette will be presented to the project advisory committees and the second public open house for discussion.

For more information, please go to the MPRB project page.

Thank you! 

CONTACT:   Tyler Pederson, Landscape Architect
Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board
612-230-6418
tpederson@minneapolisparks.org

2013 Nice Ride Season Ends Sunday, November 3rd

According to the Nice Ride Minnesota website, the 2013 Nice Ride season comes to a close at 10:00pm on Sunday, November 3rd.    Check out the Nice Ride Annual Report for 2013, which details their mission, outreach efforts spanning 122 events, 90 led tours and more. 

'Images of Africa' Film Series from The Film Society of Minneapolis St. Paul

Celebrating the state’s growing African communities, The Film Society of Minneapolis St. Paul will present Images of Africa, a film series highlighting the cinema of Africa. Films in the series will illuminate elements of the human experience that exist across all cultural boundaries. Images of Africa will present 30 narrative and documentary films, including titles from the African regions and nations represented locally.

Films will span a diverse range of topics, from African music and dance to soccer, food, war and exile, and the film industry itself. Images of Africawill draw titles from established film production regions like Senegal, Egypt, Morocco, South Africa, and Nigeria’s Nollywood, as well as from countries such as Mali, Kenya, Somalia, Ghana, Rwanda and Liberia among others.

More Info

Week 25 at the 2013 Mill City Farmers Market

October 26 marked the end of the 2013 outdoor Market season.  Thank You to Market Sponsor, Cynthia Froid, for the complimentary apples! Look for your favorite MCFM vendors at the indoor winter Markets - the first one being November 9.

Two lovely Market artists - Annika Kaplan and Annabella Sardelis.  :)

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Tomorrow: Final 'Outdoor' Mill City Farmers Market for the 2013 Season

October 26 is the final Mill City Farmers Market for the 2013 'outdoor' season.  They'll be open 9:00am - 1:00pm, so bundle up and head over to stock up on lots of good stuff!

Don't forget - the 2013-2014 indoor Winter Market dates are:

November 9
November 23
December 14
January 11
February 8
March 8
March 15 (at the Arboretum, Chanhassen)
April 12

These are all Saturdays, all 10:00am-1:00pm.  With the exception of March 15, they'll all be held in the Mill City Museum.

ReelAbilities Film Festival Playing in Minneapolis November 1 - 5

ReelAbilities is a film festival featuring work by and about people with physical and intellectual disabilities.  It will run in Minneapolis November 1 - 5. In our neighborhood, showings will take place at the Guthrie, MacPhail Center for Music, and St. Anthony Main Theater. Click here to view the schedule at each venue.

ReelAbilities Festivals take place nationally, and include award winning films, music, dance, theater, discussions and other engaging programs.

Tomorrow Night: "A Choice of Weapons: A Living Legacy" Exhibit Opening Reception at Mill City Museum

Via an October 23 e-ALERT from the Minnesota Historical Society:

Local High School Students to Showcase Work Alongside Gordon Parks Photography in New Exhibit Opening Thursday 

WHAT: "A Choice of Weapons: A Living Legacy" exhibit will go on display at Mill City Museum Oct. 24, 2013-June 8, 2014 with a companion exhibit at Juxtaposition Arts Oct. 24-Dec. 1, 2013. Both exhibits are free.

WHEN: Opening reception and panel discussion, Thursday Oct. 24, 6 to 9 p.m. (7 p.m. panel discussion)

WHERE: Mill City Museum, 704 S. Second St., Minneapolis

COST: Free. RSVP to oneread@minneapolismn.gov or 612-673-2509. 

ABOUT THE EXHIBIT: The exhibit features approximately 30 photographs created by local high school students alongside images by Gordon Parks, on loan from The Gordon Parks Foundation. Using Park's autobiography "A Choice of Weapons" as inspiration, the students created images portraying people in their communities with dignity and pride. "A Choice of Weapons" is this year’s One Minneapolis One Read selection.

"A Choice of Weapons: A Living Legacy" is made possible by the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund through the vote of Minnesotans on Nov. 4, 2008. Administered by the Minnesota Historical Society.

Rental Property Owner Workshops from the Minneapolis Police Dept.

One of our Mill District neighbors recently obtained a Rental Property Owner Workshop Certificate from the Minneapolis Police Department and wanted to share the information for the benefit of others who own rental property.

The Minneapolis Police Department provides ten or more Rental Property Owner Workshops for rental property owners and managers each year.  Attending the workshop provides attendees with valuable information, resources and opportunities to network with other property owners.

If you own or manager rental property and haven't yet attended one of these workshops, or enrolled in Action Alert lists, contact Luther Krueger, Crime Prevention Analyst.  He can also provide you with a list of owners who have rentals on the same blocks as your rental properties. 

You can reach him at:

Luther Krueger, Crime Prevention Analyst
Minneapolis Police Dept., Property Information Center
350 S. 5th Street, Room 100 City Hall, Minneapolis MN 55415
612-673-5371, Luther.Krueger@MinneapolisMN.gov

Week 24 at the 2013 Mill City Farmers Market

Shoppers looking for the perfect Halloween pumpkin, decorative gourds or yummy squash for baking had the pick of the crop at the October 19 Market.

Public Comment Opportunities for Proposed 2014 Minneapoli​s Park Board Budget

Excerpts from an October 17 e-newsletter from the Minneapolis Park & Recreation Board:

Proposed 2014 Minneapolis Park Board Budget Continues Focus on Fiscal Responsibility, Service Delivery and Maintaining Park System.
 
The Superintendent's Recommended 2014 Budget for the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) focuses on maintaining park services and facilities, strategically addressing financial and operational challenges, improving organizational efficiency and service delivery, and addressing threats to the urban tree canopy.

The proposed budget and budget related documents are available for viewing at www.minneapolisparks.org/budget or by calling 612-230-6400. The public may comment on the proposed budget during the following times:
 
Nov. 6, Public Comment Session– Administration and Finance Committee meeting, MPRB Headquarters, 2117 West River Road, Minneapolis. The Committee meeting will follow the Board's regular meeting at 5 pm.
 
Nov. 20, Public Comment Session– Regular Board meeting, MPRB Headquarters, 2117 West River Road, Minneapolis, at 5 pm
 
Dec. 11, Public Hearing – City of Minneapolis public hearing on 2014 tax levy and 2014 Budget, City Hall, Council Chambers Room 317, 350 South 5th Street, Minneapolis, at 6:05 pm

Click here for full announcement and details.

This Weekend at the Guthrie Theater - Telling: Minnesota

This weekend the Guthrie Theater will present The Telling Project's production of Telling: Minnesota in association with the Guthrie Theater's production of An Iliad.
                                                  
The Saturday, October 19, performance at 10:00amis being made available for active military service people, veterans and their families, and the public. The performance will be followed by a reception for attendees in the Pohlad Lobby.
 
The Sunday, October 20, performance at 1:00pm is for the general public as well as active military service people, veterans and their families. This performance will be followed by a short discussion.
 
Detailing military service from Vietnam through to the present, six Minnesota veterans will step onstage at the Guthrie Theater's Dowling Studio to give their first-hand accounts of their lives and the military. Telling: Minnesota is an original play written from interviews with the performers themselves, interwoven into three continuous acts.
 
The performances are free, but tickets are required. Tickets may be reserved by phone at 612.377.2224 or toll-free at 1.877.44STAGE or in person at the Guthrie's Box Office.
 
This piece is recommended for adult audiences, as it contains mature content and themes.

Restaurant Week Fall 2013: October 20-25

Time to start planning for the upcoming October 20 - 25 Restaurant Week. It's a week's worth of fabulous food at unbeatable prices from some of the best restaurants in the Twin Cities. Participating restaurants will present specially priced meals (lunch, dinner, or both) that showcase their culinary offerings in the local dining scenes.

In our neighborhood and near by, visit the following restaurants:

Sanctuary, Sea Change, Red Stag Supperclub, and Haute Dish.