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Sunday, September 26, 2021

Wandering thoughts triggered by a Minnesota Green Party email - not one of the host of "send us money" things, but actually worthwhile.

 Here is text from the email [links as in the original] -

The treatment of the Haitian immigrants at the Texas border is racist. The Chair of the Minnesota Green Party Trahern Crews sat down with members of the Haitian Green Party to discuss Joe Biden's racist immigration policies and the crisis in Haiti. Interview with the Green Party of Haiti

Early voting has started in the Twin Cities we encourage you to vote early for Green Party endorsed candidates Cam Gordon and Kati Medford. We also encourage you to vote for the Black Caucus of the Green Party of Minnesota endorsed candidate Jennifer Mc Pherson. Here are the ballot initiatives that we support:

 Rent Control In Saint Paul 

 Rent Control In Minneapolis

 Changing The Police

Green Party city council member Cam Gordon has worked hard on the Aquifer energy storage project and it has secured the much-needed funding for the project: Energy Project

Contact your congressperson and tell them to pass HR40 now!

Pass HR40

Pass HR40

Upcoming Events:

[...]

The ballot question positions are progressive, especially the policing reform measure. Rent control, landlords say it does not work, tenants like it - want it.

The "Energy Project" is interesting, an alternate link, and it links over to here; which is planner speak about a PPP approach,(Public Private Partnership) which planner speak (in short) means publicly subsidized privately profiting development , usually done as - defined area - master planned - proof is in the pudding.

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Ramsey in Anoka County had its PPP thing, Ramsey Town Center, which after splatting badly in a 2006 real estate market downturn was rechristened "THE COR" which is a stupid term, but planner-loved "rebranding." 

"THE COR" rebranding was done by an administrative person since moved on to better things after resume building, coordinating with a very expensive (and subjectively viewed as ineffective) consultant since severed from the trough after a change of mayor and council personnel. It was a down market and they were pushing on a rope, but that's a saga for another time. REBRANDING = Same stuff, new name, long term - one major on-site developer in Ramsey's instance.  Viewed at Crabgrass as a bad-idea money sink, but liked by some other Ramsey residents.

Field of Dreams? Yeah. Pump and dump? Perhaps. Impressions are subjective when a pump and dump situation exists; be it actual or potential. Motives are personal and circumstantial evidence can be interpreted many ways.

It was a "never should forget" situation, a lesson every university planning student should learn before being turned loose on a community -- Ramsey Town Center's genesis and early times, where interested readers can get a flavor, here and here. Also, here. Sometimes the windshield. Sometimes the bug. Sometimes the Liousville Slugger. Sometimes the ball. Bottom line, sometimes planning is dross, not gold.

This is Ramsey history some new town residents might not know. It relates back to the time before two of the best Council members Ramsey ever had, died - Margaret Connolly and Terry Hendriksen, both serving together over a few years. (Before Matt Look was ever elected to anything. Before NorthStar Commuter Rail was built with its astounding ridership. Before franchise fees were ginned up to pay for town road maintenance. During earlier years of Matt's sign-printing business.)

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But that is a digression from the PPP thing linked to from the Green Party's email.

Things do not always go brown with time. Hope and money, sometimes a bad combo. Sometimes a success. A slogan:

 

PLANNERS SHOULD BE HUMBLE.  AND SKEPTICAL OF LANDOWNER, DEVELOPER, OR CONSULTANT SELF-INTERESTED PUFFERY. THROWING COLD WATER ON "HOT IDEAS" OFTEN IS THE HARDEST PART OF THE JOB, WHILE ESSENTIAL. ALWAYS ACKNOWLEDGE - GO ALONG TO GET ALONG IS WRONG, BUT SO EASY A COMPROMISE.