A bill introduced Wednesday at the legislature would give funding requested by the University of Minnesota to repair infrastructure on structures on campus, like the Washington Avenue Bridge, Eddy Hall and the Food Science and Nutrition Building.

The Higher Education Asset Preservation and Replacement Bill (HEAPR) provides funding to the University to maintain and improve the current infrastructure and buildings on four of its campuses: Twin Cities, Crookston, Morris and Duluth. Rochester’s buildings are leased from an independent real estate company that maintains those buildings. 

For this legislative session, the University Board of Regents requested $500 million to fund more than 150 projects across the University’s four campuses. Those projects include fire alarms, elevator repairs, air conditioning and improving accessibility. 

Sen. Ann Rest (DFL-New Hope), author of the HEAPR bill, said the bill is imperative to ensure the University runs successfully. 

“It is really what makes the university run and is the reason the U of M is the number one of the premier economic engines of our state,” Rest said. 

Sen. Sandy Pappas (DFL-St. Paul) said in a statement the University is the heart of innovation in Minnesota and is the leader in fields from physics and education to agriculture and engineering. 

“The students and faculty at the U deserve classrooms, research labs and campus infrastructure that reflect the excellence of their work, but the state has fallen behind in our duty to maintain those assets,” Pappas said. “I’m pleased that my colleague, Senator Ann Rest, is carrying a bill to remedy the situation.”

Vice President of University Services Alice Roberts-Davis also said it is very unlikely the University will receive all of the $500 million request. The amount will likely fall somewhere between the $103 million Gov. Tim Walz (DFL) recommended the state and the University’s request. Roberts-Davis used to serve in Walz’s cabinet before joining the University over the summer.

“The Twin Cities will get the vast majority of the bill. We’ll probably get about 70 percent of whatever allocation we get from the state government,” Roberts-Davis said. “Some will go to the research and outreach centers, some will go to Duluth, Crookston and Morris.”

Roberts-Davis said the University does facility assessments on each of the buildings and infrastructures on the four campuses regularly. There they will look at the heating, cooling, plumbing, electrical, mechanical and more of the building to determine the condition it is in and how it should be prioritized. 

To estimate how much money each project and each campus will need, Roberts-Davis said the University uses a formula based on the number of buildings in need of repair and the condition and age of those buildings. 

“That’s how we decide whether or not the building needs an upgrade or whether it’s a good condition, a fair condition, poor condition,” Roberts-Davis said. 

With the funding it receives, the University will prioritize the Washington Avenue Bridge, Eddy Hall and the Food Science and Nutrition Building in St. Paul. 

Raising the height of its railings and replacing the enclosure would be the goal of funding for the Washington Avenue Bridge, according to Roberts. 

Eddy Hall has sat empty for nearly a decade but, with the appropriate funding, could be used for the College of Education and Human Development, according to Roberts. She added that the Food Science and Nutrition Building has abundant corporate partnerships but is dated and needs modernization. 

“We’re just trying to be good stewards of all of the assets that the state has already invested in,” Roberts-Davis said. “These are buildings that the state owns and that we should prioritize ensuring that they are maintained for the next 100 years.”

Rest said it is important to take care of the University because it is one of the main centers for research and drives a huge percentage of the state’s economy. Rest added that HEAPR is a tool to repair University buildings, not create new ones.

“It’s cheaper for us to fix what we have than to demolish and rebuild them,” Rest said. “I think that exhibits a degree of stewardship for what we’re responsible for on behalf of the people of Minnesota. I think we’ve carried out that mission.”

Rest added that in the last five years, 90% of the project expenditures have gone back to Minnesota companies, including the University. In 2023, 94% of the funds appropriated through that bonding bill were already spent or promised to projects. 

“The projects are here and they’re going forward,” Rest said. “That shows another degree of careful stewardship. Don’t ask for money you’re not going to spend.”

Rest said that although the University requested $500 million, that amount is not guaranteed, especially considering the decreasing budget surplus remaining from the last legislative session. Rest said last year, the University requested $200 million and received $43 million from the HEAPR bill. 

“We had bipartisan cooperation and ingenuity and willingness to get the deal,” Rest said. “I am optimistic that we will get that again.”

Rest said the HEAPR bill is a sterling proposal because it is thoughtful, well planned and recognizes the needs of all University campuses, not just one. 

“When you got a good product, it’s easy to sell, and I think the University is a good product,” Rest said. 

Roberts-Davis said funding infrastructure is also about attracting talented students to the University by maintaining the tools and buildings we need to be successful. 

“When we have dated facilities and laboratories that have not been updated or research facilities that are not as good as others, people have choices,” Roberts-Davis said. “We want to make sure that if they come from a state of the art, K-12 institution, that they look at the university as a step forward and not a step backward.”

Correction: A previous version of this story misrepresented the University’s process for assessing its facilities. The University conducts this process without an outside source. Additionally, the photo caption included the incorrect location of the summer bonding tour. Sen. Sandy Pappas visited the Crookston campus. Finally, this piece misidentified the fifth system campus. It is located in Morris, Minnesota.

Following Minnesota’s flurry of gun violence prevention laws passed last session, many gun safety advocates agree more legislation is needed, though the debate on gun violence causes and solutions continues. 

Second Amendment and gun control activists both lobbied legislators, but gun control activists won out as the legislature passed universal background checks and extreme risk protection orders. 

However, gun control activists did not get all they asked for; legislation requiring proper storage of firearms in cars and homes and mandating reporting of stolen and missing firearms fell short. Both bills will be reintroduced this session.

The faces behind the picket signs

Founded after the Sandy Hook school shooting, Moms Demand Action is a nationwide organization pushing for “common-sense gun laws.” Leah Kondes, a volunteer with the Minnesota chapter of Moms Demand Action, said she wanted to act before a loved one gets hurt, when asked about why she got involved with gun violence protection.

“I didn’t need to wait for Moms Demand Action to invite me to a city council meeting. Anyone can go to city council,” Kondes said. “That is a lesson that I learned late in life. And so now we’d love to pay it forward to your generation.”

Kondes had her first daughter in 1999 when the Columbine school shooting occurred. Seeing the mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, 20 years later motivated Kondes to action.

“This has been my kid’s whole life,” Kondes said. “And it’s getting worse. It’s not getting better.”

Moms Demand Action also has a Students Demand Action chapter at the University of Minnesota, which registered as a student group in spring 2024. 

Timberlyn Mazeikis was a sophomore at Michigan State University when a man opened fire on campus, killing three of her classmates. Following the shooting, Mazeikas joined Michigan’s chapter of Students Demand Action, before transferring to the University of Minnesota. 

“Students Demand Action at Michigan State was a really big part of my healing from that traumatic event,” Mazeikis said. 

Since her transfer in fall 2023, Mazeikis has worked to organize a chapter of Students Demand Action for the University.

“Being a part of a student organization [on] campus is a great way to get involved at the University and meet other people who are passionate about this,” Mazeikis said. “Even if you have not been directly a survivor of gun violence, you most likely know somebody or it’s been right on campus.”

Apart from being a survivor of gun violence herself, Protect Minnesota Executive Director Maggiy Emery said she has grown up in an era of gun violence. Emery said Minnesota has been a middle-of-the-road state when it comes to gun violence prevention. 

“We’re doing some things right, but we still have a lot of improvements to make,” Emery said. “I think there’s so much more that we can bring.”

The policies being considered

Nick Majerus, a member of the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, gained an interest in gun safety after teaching adolescent boys how to properly use guns at a scout camp for two summers. Majerus said without the Democratic trifecta in Minnesota, the caucus would push for a stand-your-ground law.

“Those priorities would be like codifying the castle doctrine and constitutional carry and stand-your-ground,” Majerus said. “We believe [those] are just common sense expansions to Minnesotans’ constitutional rights.”

Emery said besides safe storage and reporting lost and stolen firearms, reversing firearm preemption law could also make communities safer around the metro area. Minnesota’s current firearm preemption law gives authority to the state to regulate firearm laws. Reversing it would give local governments the power to regulate firearm laws. 

“I think it will go a long way towards making our community safer, giving cities their own options around that,” Emery said. 

Majerus said his caucus opposes reversing Minnesota’s preemptive firearm laws. According to Majerus, without preemptive firearm laws, lawfully carrying a gun in one municipality could be illegal in the one next door. 

“In our opinion, it’s like a pretty big conflict with the fact that like a carry permit is a statewide permit,” Majerus said.

Another bill moving through the Minnesota state House would eliminate the mandatory minimum sentencing of five years for illegally possessing firearms. Majerus said this bill, among others, fails to meaningfully address gun violence. 

“If you want to talk about ways to meaningfully address gun violence, I don’t think preemption is it,” Majerus said. “And I don’t think that reducing the penalty for gun criminals is either.”

Considering mental health with gun violence prevention 

The Violence Prevention Project is a research project located at Hamline University that is dedicated to reducing gun violence. Emery said the project found the majority of people who commit mass shootings are also suicidal. 

“If we can address suicidality before it erupts into an extreme crisis, we can help prevent those mass shootings as well,” Emery said. 

Emery said loneliness and mental health are key factors in combating gun violence. In Minnesota, 73% of gun violence is from suicide and 24% from homicides. Kondes added the safe and secure storage bill creates a needed barrier for people experiencing a mental health crisis. 

“Just having that firearm locked and loaded, all those things just make it more difficult for someone in a time of crisis to follow through on them,” Kondes said. 

The Minnesota Legislature is also considering raising the penalties against straw purchases of firearms from a gross misdemeanor to a felony. A straw purchase is when someone buys a firearm for someone else who would not pass a background check due to past charges or prohibitions. 

Ashley Dyrdahl, the girlfriend of Shannon Godden, who shot three first responders in Burnsville, was indicted for allegedly straw purchasing firearms for Gooden. Majerus said the caucus remains neutral on straw purchases, but he would agree with the penalties being increased. 

Mazeikis said mental health and gun violence prevention are separate issues that often overlap, making it necessary to address both. Mazeikis added mental health resources are often neglected by the government, despite their positive effect on gun safety. 

“I don’t feel that we can address our gun violence epidemic in our country by just addressing mental health,” Mazeikis said. “I 100% believe that we should have the resources for people who are going through this struggle and this mental health crisis, we also should be limiting their access to a firearm.”

Kondes also said discussions around mental health and gun control are often positioned as an either-or approach. Kondes added that if communities can stop thinking about this issue as binary, we can make more progress toward safety. 

“It has been positioned as an either-or, right? It’s not the gun. It’s mental health,” Kondes said. “I think the rebuttal to that as well is, guess what? There are people with mental health challenges in other countries, and they are not dying by guns at the rate that Americans are.”

Majerus said laws like the recently passed Red Flag law, which gives courts the power to remove guns from people who pose a risk to themself or others, fall short of addressing concerns of those in mental health crises obtaining firearms. 

“In that bill, there is no provision for providing these people support,” Majerus said. “From our perspective, there’s no real way to address that person in crisis except for removing those firearms.”

Besides advocating for gun safety through laws, Mazeikis said communities need gun prevention programs to learn about gun-related issues. 

In 2022, 569 Minnesotans died from gun violence with 407 of those deaths being from suicide. Emery said all those deaths were preventable and there are things everyone can do to change that number. 

“Gun violence isn’t like any other kind of public health emergency that we’re facing because all of those deaths are preventable,” Emery said. “There are things that we can do as individuals, communities and lawmakers to prevent those deaths.”

Sen. Erin Murphy (DFL-St. Paul) took over as Senate majority leader on Feb. 27 following former leader Kari Dziedzic’s (DFL-Minneapolis) departure from leadership days before the start of the 2024 legislative session.

Dziedzic led the Democratic trifecta in the Senate last session, helping her party pass numerous bills on gun control, abortion and marijuana legalization despite undergoing major surgery and treatment for ovarian cancer. Hopes for a return to normal were dashed as she announced was stepping down from party leadership due to the return of her cancer. 

“Unfortunately, in the last week, I learned that my cancer has returned, and I am facing some serious challenges,” Dziedzic said in a statement. “As we prepare for the next session, I decided it is in the best interest of the caucus for me to step down as majority leader after our caucus has selected a new leader.”

Before her Senate service, Murphy served for 12 years in the Minnesota House and ran for governor in 2018. In the Senate, Murphy chairs the Rules and Administration Committee and also serves on the Higher Education and Finance committees. 

“I am grateful for the opportunity, but this is a transition none of us wanted,” Murphy said. “The timing of making the transition right at the start of the session has really called all of us to step into the space of leading for Minnesotans, which has been really impressive and not surprising at all when I think about the people who work here and the people I serve with.”

Murphy grew up in Wisconsin and earned her bachelor’s degree in nursing at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in 1984 before attending St. Catherine University in 2005 for a master’s degree in organizational leadership. According to Murphy, the care and listening skills required to be an effective nurse prepared her for the dedication and sympathy to be a senator. 

“I learned a lot about what people hoped for, what made them angry and it was the preparation I needed to really represent the interests of the people,” Murphy said. “That remains a source for me of both inspiration and power.” 

Murphy added a major catalyst for her transition from a nurse to a senator was taking care of her mom, Kathleen, who was diagnosed with small-cell lung cancer in 2004. According to Murphy, watching the healthcare system deny her mother care motivated her to run for the Minnesota House and fix the system. 

“It gave me a lot of purpose,” Murphy said. “We’ve made a lot of headway and there’s more to do on the question of healthcare for people who are sick and dying.” 

Murphy added being Senate majority leader is not about control. She said the path forward is to look at what Minnesotans support and how to best advocate for them. 

“Much of the work that we do, if we’re successful, begins with Minnesotans who will signal to us in their actions that they are urging, pushing, nudging, hoping that we take action on a certain issue,” Murphy said. 

Kathryn Pearson, a political science professor at the University of Minnesota, said Dziedzic was great at keeping Democratic unity within a one-vote majority Senate in 2022. According to Pearson, Murphy’s biggest challenge could be uniting DFL’s progressive and more moderate members with a slim, one-vote majority. 

“The legislative accomplishments of the last year in such a narrowly divided Senate were sort of a testament to many things, including leader Dziedzic’s leadership,” Pearson said. 

As the legislative session kicks off, the looming Nov. 7 elections will be in the back of mind for Murphy and Democrats.

According to Murphy, Dziedzic’s leadership passed a massive amount of new legislation last session, namely those involving childcare, affordable housing, healthcare, education, and reproductive rights and care. Murphy said the DFL can repeat last year’s success if their policies support Minnesotans.

“There’s so much that we did in the last session, how that works together is through the policy that not only supports Minnesotans, but it is what we’ve heard from Minnesotans,” Murphy said. 

Murphy said Dzeidzic showed Minnesota that when politicians work together, they can make real progress, though it takes each one of them to do that. There is bipartisan support and action but it is not visible unless you pay close attention, according to Murphy. 

“Sen. Dziedzic was an instrument and showed us when we came into this term with a one-seat majority that we could move a big agenda and we did,” Murphy said. “I want to follow that. I’ll follow her in her steps.”

University public affairs professor Larry Jacobs said Murphy tends to be more progressive than most Democrats, including Dziedzic. Jacobs also said the biggest challenge for Murphy will be bringing moderates and Democrats together alongside her progressive views. 

“She’s been at the Capitol for many years,” Jacobs said. “This is the most significant leadership position she’s had. Will she rise to the challenge?”

Jacobs added Dziedzic had a strong relationship with Majority House Speaker Melissa Hortman (DFL-Brooklyn Park) in the last session, which allowed for much communication when passing legislation. Jacobs questioned whether this would continue. 

“Can Erin Murphy work through the middle? Or is she going to be viewing her position as a way to advance the progressive agenda?” Jacobs said. “Will there be that level of trust and kind of working partnership between Hortman and the new Senate leader?”

Murphy said her previous 12 years in the Minnesota House allowed her and Hortman to build a strong relationship and partnership alongside Murphy’s newfound leadership. Murphy added that during her first meeting with Hortman and Gov. Tim Walz (DFL), Hortman made her feel welcomed and capable of the job ahead. 

“I said something about being a new person at the table and she said, ‘Well, you might be new at this table but you’re not new, so let’s get to work,’” Murphy said. 

Challengers for Minnesota’s 5th Congressional District seat currently held by Rep. Ilhan Omar (DFL) explain their campaigns for this election year. 

Candidates answered questions about law enforcement, affordable housing and how they plan to combat drug addiction. Candidates also discussed how they will prioritize students’ concerns as they pave their way to D.C. 

The Democratic-Farmer-Labor party will hold a caucus on Feb. 27 where constituents can meet and hear about candidates’ plans and goals for Congress. The candidates will run for the party endorsement in the primaries on Aug. 13, 2024, before the general election on Nov. 5, 2024. 

Omar did not respond to the Minnesota Daily’s requests for an interview. 

Sarah Gad

Before Sarah Gad was a defense attorney and graduate from the University of Chicago, she was addicted to drugs due to opioids prescribed to her after a car accident. Now she leads a Minneapolis-based law firm, Gad & Gad Law Offices, and plans to use her knowledge from medical school, law school and her life as a recovering addict to help advocate for others. 

Tim Peterson

Tim Peterson grew up near the Franklin Avenue Bridge in south Minneapolis and served 15 years in the United States Air Force and the Minnesota Army National Guard. He plans to bring his lived experience growing up in the 3rd Precinct to Congress and advocate for police reform. 

Don Samuels 

Born and raised in Jamaica, Don Samuels has lived in the Selby-Dale neighborhood in St. Paul and in North Minneapolis with his wife, Sondra Hollinger. There, their family witnessed gun violence which motivated Samuels to organize vigils, serve on the city council and later join the Minneapolis Public School Board. 

The Minnesota Daily: Why are you running? 

Sarah Gad: “I wanted to run for Congress because as an attorney, I don’t think many people realize just how constrained you are to just the laws. I’ve been on the receiving end of our criminal justice system and sort of the injustices and the criminalization of addiction. I remember when I was going through it, I was just like, ‘This is insane. Like, how can we call ourselves the land of the free when we throw people in cages for … what are, like, diseases or things beyond their control?’ I think that somebody just having the medical knowledge that I have and just, like, the personal experience on the other side of the law, I really feel like a lot of change can be made. I want to make a difference. I love Minnesota, I love my community and they’re just really a void right now for better advocacy. I’m just hoping to provide that.”

Tim Peterson: “I grew up in the 3rd Precinct watching my friends be brutalized more times than I’d like to remember. I was small and weak but I’m big and strong now. I got a hell of a voice to bring into D.C. so we can get some justice, but most importantly lead by example for the state, for the country, the police reform, by not only getting large federal bonuses for police officers that share core values and lived experience in our communities, not just here, but across the country. But also to hold the police accountable and have a nationwide platform where folks can report police brutality claims and get a set of subjects and get them resolved in 90 days.”

Don Samuels: “These are very divisive times. We have great needs and challenges at the same time. So what the divisiveness does is nothing gets done. Well, not enough gets done and so I believe we have a style of leadership now in the 5th District that tends to be divisive, to be idealistic and uncompromising and that is perpetuating that lack of progress. I’m going into Congress not to make a point, not to be idealistic, but to negotiate, to have strong relationships, to be outcomes-oriented and not to make a point but to make a difference.”

Daily: What plans do you have to help the University of Minnesota students’ concerns? 

Gad: “I think that just expanding access to mental health services is very important. There’s a very, very high rate of depression and anxiety among University of Minnesota students, even relative to the rest of the country. I’m not sure if that’s because of the weather or seasonal affect disorder or what, but mental health really has to be addressed on campus. It’s something that I know that a lot of students struggle with to be kind of open and forthcoming with it. So just making sure that the resources are accessible and within arm’s reach when they need it. It’s one thing to make an appointment in the future to see a mental health provider but to actually treat somebody who’s having a mental health crisis is so important.”

Peterson: “A big part of why I’m running for Congress is the youth and giving them opportunities. I would say my plan is to have college free for two years for most folks. I’d have to look up the specifics but, say, $80,000 adjusted income for your family or less, you get free college. And it would be trade school, college and any other thing that would produce a job where if the training or education has an 80 percent or higher placement, you’d be able to get this for free.”

Samuels: “I had the last of my kids just graduated from Ohio State this past year and is now at the London School of Economics and I have a young man that I mentored through high school that is now at the University of Minnesota. So I’m still in the education business in terms of kids. I know that your food programs were shut down because you didn’t have enough labor for that. I know that young people are concerned about student loans and the cost of education which continues to grow. I’m gonna work on those issues in Congress to make sure that we have a forgiveness program that is income-based and that can be alleviated through certain kinds of service jobs and to make sure that universities are made whole when they provide those kinds of scholarships and so on for people who need it most.” 

Daily: How will you support LGBTQ+ students and their concerns?

Gad: “I’m not going to pretend to have all the answers and know what’s best for everybody, but I’m always willing to listen and make sure that I’m advocating for the constituency and the most productive way possible. I don’t really have any policy initiatives specifically right now to specifically LGBTQ students. I’m always open and willing to hear anybody who needs help and provide the best advocacy that I can.”

Peterson: “I’m a big believer in personal freedom. People can do what they want and love who they want. And any reasonable group of people that want to get together and make sure that those folks are protected, I’m happy to listen and learn. I’m a member of the Minnesota Pride Rotary Club and we often have LGBTQ and trans speakers come in and it’s a very nuanced thing.”

Samuels: “Absolutely, enthusiastically and proactively because one of my kids is non-binary, they kind of came to a full understanding of themselves in college. We had to help to guide them through and ourselves through that process of acceptance and celebration. I know the bathroom issues, we talk about that and the fears, the discomforts and all of that. I feel so grateful that we had that experience so I can have a firsthand approach to the issue of inclusion when I get into Congress.”

Daily: How do you plan to address concerns with law enforcement and lack of accountability? 

Gad: “I have a very hard time believing that everybody who sits in Congress is not fully aware of the racial underpinnings of the war on drugs. We talked about George Floyd and Breonna Taylor, Black Lives Matter and all the protests and all. They’re fully aware of the racial underpinnings. They haven’t done anything to go back and try to dismantle a set of laws that was literally designed to criminalize people for being Black. It just shocks me to my core. When I hear people in Congress talking about the criminal justice system and criminal justice reform, you cannot separate criminal justice reform from drug policy reform. That’s a huge part of my candidacy. It’s advocating for an exit strategy to the war on drugs because the war on drugs is literally the biggest failure. Like the biggest policy failure of all time and the effects are so devastating. It’s one of the primary reasons why I decided to run and why I really decided to stay.”

Peterson: “The Minneapolis community has had a memorandum of understanding with the Minneapolis police force for the multiple versions of it … I want to bring that to a federal level and that’s making sure that we have a 90-day investigation. Having folks who are not working for the police force to take these claims and bring them on. But also a federal website where you can track these and see where the status is and see where our community’s progress is on these. I think that’s a really important conversation. They can bring their challenges to a place that isn’t the police and get some accountability. I think that’s important to me, to build a relationship with the police.”

Samuels: “I’m going to Washington to make sure that I contribute to legislation that governs police behavior and also to make sure that we have enough police officers. I just heard from the chief this morning at a meeting that the police department is down 40 percent at a time when crime is highest of years. That combination is deadly. I’m going to Washington to make sure that the resources to augment the higher group police officers and legislation to guide their behavior.”

Daily: How will you combat widespread drug misuse, especially fentanyl-related misuse? 

Gad: “I really think that it’s not only my personal experience having lived through addiction, but also having three years of medical education. Addiction, it’s a disease. It is chronic. First, it’s genetic, it is chronic, it is progressive and it is fatal if it is left untreated. We really have to just cut back on the criminalization of addiction because what ends up happening is if you throw somebody in a cage for having an addiction, their disease doesn’t go away. I am really going to be pushing for an exit strategy to the war on drugs because that is truly the only way we’re really going to get a handle on this crisis.”

Peterson: “There’s a lot of people that have a clean criminal record and they’ll go get their concealed carry permit, which allows them to purchase firearms. So they’re going and purchasing these firearms and selling them to drug dealers to fuel their habits. This is like a uniquely specific laser-focused thing to help and it’s not just here, it’s all over the country. I’ve adopted my niece and nephew because my father and sister had issues with drugs and I’ve seen where all that goes. I have a great obligation to help the tired, the poor, the weak and the distressed folks who have been dealing with a drug addiction.” 

Samuels: “We must begin to treat drug addiction the same way that we treat alcohol addiction in the United States. This means treating drug addiction as an illness that requires medical treatment [as] opposed to incarceration and law enforcement solutions, including building facilities where individuals can get the care they need. Given the universal nature of drug addiction, I also believe education should be required in schools as a preventive measure. I also believe temporary treatment like Narcan should be universally available in an effort to prevent so many needless deaths in Minnesota and around the country. Finally, I believe more efforts should be made to criminalize the manufacturing and original sourcing of illegal drugs, while nonviolent offenders in the drug trade should have their criminal sentences revisited. Local and federal leaders must also partner with international governments to curtail the import of illegal drugs if we are serious about making a dent in the use of fentanyl in Minnesota and throughout the United States,” said in an email statement to the Daily. 

Daily: What will you do to create more opportunities for affordable housing? 

Gad: “I’ll be advocating for federal initiatives to reduce rent and mortgage burdens, like expanding housing choice or the section aid voucher program. This program is something that aids millions of people, millions of struggling citizens, including single mothers and students. I’m definitely going to be championing policies that are going to extend access to affordable housing, but also lifting people out of poverty and helping students and new graduates be able to access not just affordable housing, but be able to purchase homes and actually reap the benefits of their very costly education.”

Peterson: “Nobody wants to see folks that are struggling, particularly single moms and people with disabilities, all these things, who lose their housing. It’s like a cascade level of terrible things for our community. My stuff would be more to prevent people from losing housing if they are on fixed incomes or low incomes. It would give people a buffer of two, three years so they don’t lose their housing. If this bad stuff happens, people get sick, people get hurt, people get injured, you shouldn’t be homeless.”

Samuels: “That is a problem especially after the 2008 housing crisis. A lot of people were forced out of their homes by the balloon payments of scam loans. Then in this crisis, the inflation and so on, people are now paying more than 30 percent of their income for housing routinely. Then we have tent cities which the federal government deliberately got out of affordable housing and the shelter business in an attempt to put it on communities. It’s not working, communities are now too diverse. Everybody’s a stranger, even your next-door neighbor. We need the federal government to come in again and fund the shelter programs and also support more building of more affordable housing so that nobody’s paying more than 30 percent of their income.”

This interview has been edited for clarity, grammar and length.

The University of Minnesota reported in a SAFE-U alert a robbery and kidnapping occurred at 1 a.m. Sunday in the Superblock area. 

UMPD reported just after noon an individual was followed from Sally’s Saloon on Washington Avenue to Superblock and was forced into a small sedan by three males. The victim was robbed at gunpoint and then dropped off between Superblock and I-94/Cretin Ave/Vandalia exit in St. Paul, according to the alert. The suspects were wearing all black and remained unidentified. 

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Clarification: An earlier headline in this story said the individual was a University student. That detail is unknown as of Monday morning.

After two years without a liquor store in Dinkytown, Top Ten Liquors recently opened for business in the neighborhood.  

Top Ten sits at the corner of Fifth Street and 15th Avenue in the heart of Dinkytown. Inside the  warehouse-style store, shelves held a variety of drinks to offer customers, from Fireball to Rosé, to Pink Whitney and different kinds of THC seltzers and boxed wines. 

Top Ten Liquor’s assistant manager Kylon Winbush said being in such a good location and having reasonable prices means they can effectively cater to local students. 

“In a safe manner, we want to provide for the college campus and be here for the community,” Winbush said.

Winbush stressed the importance of having a liquor store in Dinkytown, especially considering the neighborhood had been missing one since 2021. According to Winbush, Top Ten’s main goal is growing and learning with the community to better serve their customers, such as offering discounts on different products.  

University of Minnesota student and Dinkytown resident Julia Waller said before Top Ten’s opening, finding alcohol in the neighborhood was difficult.  

“It’s convenient,” Waller said. “I live, like, three blocks away, so I can just walk down here.” 

University students and first-time Top Ten shoppers Maeve Erin and Emma Reid said their first impressions were positive. Both Erin and Reid said Top Ten’s lower prices compared to other more expensive stores makes Top Ten a go-to place for liquor. 

“We would usually go off-campus somewhere because all the other ones on-campus are way too expensive,” Reid said. 

Former owner of Dinkytown Wine & Spirits Irv Hershkovitz said Top Ten is in a great area because University students living in Dinkytown will not have to go elsewhere for alcohol.

Hershkovitz’s business was a staple on campus for 30 years until its closing in Jan. 2021. Hershkovitz added he helped Top Ten liquors sign a lease with CA Ventures, a real estate investment management company. 

“They will do well down there,” Hershkovitz said. “Students had to go somewhere much farther away for two-and-a-half years after we closed.”

“They wanted me to stay in the new building, which I didn’t want to,” Hershkovitz said. “I obviously wanted to retire.”

The most significant issue for local liquor stores is fake IDs, which have become more prevalent in recent years, according to Hershkovitz. Dinkytown Wine & Spirits trained employees to spot fake IDs along with ID scanners, both of which Top Ten has, Hershkovitz said. 

“Once you get that reputation, everyone [underage] hears that and knows: don’t go there,” Hershkovitz said, referring to checking IDs.

Hershkovitz was a great business and community partner, according to President of the Dinkytown Business Alliance and Dinkytown Raising Cane’s owner Kent Kramp. Kramp said he hopes Top Ten will continue the trend Hershkovitz started by connecting with students near campus and being involved in the community. 

Kramp stressed the importance of having new businesses in the area not only to fill vacant spaces, but to provide desired services in the community and maintain good business practices like checking IDs and inventory control. 

“It’s a local corporation that should do a really good job there and make sure that [the business] lasts,” Kramp said. “I have a lot of faith that they’re going to be really good partners in the community.”

The Minneapolis City Council approved a new community safety commissioner on Thursday following recent complaints against Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) leadership.

Toddrick Barnette was the former chief judge for Hennepin County’s Fourth Judicial District and will now serve a four-year term overseeing the city’s police, fire and emergency response departments. Barnette will replace Cedric Alexander, who retired from the position on Sept. 1 after being hired last August. 

Abigail Cerra worked as a public defender and served on the city’s Police Conduct Oversight Commission for two years before resigning in 2022. Cerra said she supports Barnette in the new role after previously working with him in the courtroom during his time as a judge.

“What makes him unique is that he also has a certain emotional intelligence,” Cerra said. “He handled his courtroom very well.” 

Barnette’s confirmation comes after city officials hired an outside law firm on Aug. 24 to investigate three recent complaints against MPD Chief Brian O’Hara.

The complaints include allegations of disrespectful and inappropriate behavior toward an Edina Police Department officer, using force on someone during an arrest in Jan. 2022 and failing to report it and lying about not knowing the background of newly hired officer Tyler Timberlake, who was seen on body camera video using excessive force during an arrest. 

Both O’Hara and Barnette have the opportunity to help reform MPD and there is reason to be cautiously optimistic, Cerra said. However, the complaints against O’Hara are important because of his leadership position, and anyone submitting complaints that are found to be false could be arrested. The city is still investigating the complaints.

“No one can even have optimized versions of [complaints],” Cerra said. “All of a sudden, boom, one is against the chief and it’s on the front page of the paper.” 

President of the Marcy-Holmes Neighborhood Association Vic Thorstenson said he believes it will be up to city leaders to proactively reform policing in Minneapolis internally.

“The city is under two new mandates, one for the state and once in the federal government, on police reform that really gives the mayor and the chief an opportunity to use that forcefully,” Thorstenson said. “If they don’t, they’re dropping a ball.”

The city agreed to negotiate two consent decrees to reform its policing after both the Justice Department and the Minnesota Department of Human Rights found MPD to have engaged in a history of discriminatory and illegal policing. Consent decrees are court-enforceable agreements, and the Justice Department has recommended 28 remedial measures to reform MPD. 

Although he said public safety has improved in Marcy-Holmes over the last two years, Thorstenson added much of MPD’s future reform hinges on the city’s ability to use recommendations for reform in its negotiations with police unions. 

Burhan Israfael, a youth organizer in Cedar-Riverside, said there needs to be a policing reform that adequately serves the people and holds police accountable. 

“It has to be a top-down remodeling,” Israfael said. “Our money, our tax dollars are literally going into paying for that type of protection and we’re not receiving it.” 

Israfael added the idea of having more diverse police that reflect the community does not necessarily create better community relations with the police. Israfel stressed an institutional change within MPD and not only picking out bad apples. 

“You can put in more Somali police officers, or Asian or any other ethnicity and it’s not going to change the institution of policing,” Israfael said. “None of that works.” 

After a judge struck down Minneapolis’ plan to transform housing in the city, residents are looking for new ways to create affordable housing. 

The Minneapolis 2040 plan is an urban planning guide to regulate the city officials, landlords, developers and organizations responsible for creating or changing the city’s infrastructure. The 2040 plan’s goals include creating affordable housing, climate change resilience and living-wage jobs. 

Hennepin County Judge Joseph Klein struck down the 2040 plan and agreed with environmental groups that claimed the plan’s environmental effects had not been adequately analyzed. The 2040 plan does not include any environmental data or explanations of the possible impacts on the city. 

The lawsuit claimed the city violated the Minnesota Environmental Rights Act (MERA) which guarantees the right to challenge decisions and activities that could harm the state’s environmental resources.

Rebecca Arons, executive director of Smart Growth, one of the environmental organizations that sued the city, said the lawsuit is not meant to block affordable housing or stop urban density but to create more policy awareness around environmental concerns. 

“We were trying to thread this needle and say we think this plan is great, but we really think it’s important that this density be thoughtfully applied,” Arons said. 

The city argued reverting to the 2030 plan would make the city noncompliant with state law and slow affordable housing endeavors and is currently appealing the ruling. The 2030 plan follows environmental law by using data from the Minnesota Department of Transportation and the Citywide Greenhouse Gas Inventory to explain how their goals are environmentally friendly.

Arons said an environmental study would provide the city with expectations for the kind of impacts the 2040 plan could create and would provide a more thoughtful process instead of a binary choice.

“Smart Growth Minneapolis is not opposed to the 2040 plan,” Arons said. “We are opposed to putting your head in the sand and not using science to make informed decisions.”

The ruling disrupts programs such as the Minneapolis Homes: Financing program, which is dedicated to creating affordable home opportunities and affordable rental housing production, according to city spokesperson Sarah McKenzie.

Additionally, the plan aimed to reduce land consumption per person by concentrating growth to allow dense and walkable mixed-use communities.

256 affordable renting and ownership housing have been developed that would not have been allowed under the 2030 plan or the court order. The court order also stops 55 housing developments from being built and an additional 69 units from receiving building permits, according to the city. 

Southeast Como Improvement Association (SECIA) Board President DeWayne Townsend said he is “annoyed” by the lawsuit because it can delay the affordable housing improvements he wishes to see around Como, especially multi-person housing and sustainable building. 

“I’m heartened to see that the city put in an appeal,” Townsend said. “Hopefully they’ll get this turned over again because it’s just a delay tactic for folks who don’t want things to change.”

Townsend said the 2040 plan is a step in the right direction towards SECIA’s main objectives of affordable housing and sustainability for its community. The 2040 plan could help SECIA achieve some of its long-term goals of density and transportation in Como, according to Townsend. 

Although the 2040 plan and its goal of eliminating single-family housing has been struck down, future housing plans will also impact students who live in shared homes or multi-family housing such as duplexes.

“That’s sort of the dream of the 2040 plan, to increase the density and decrease the dependency on cars,” Townsend said. “Obviously we’re not there yet, but we’re starting to move in that direction.”

University of Minnesota Urban and Regional Planning professor Edward Goetz said the 2040 plan was long overdue to create more options for affordable housing with less land consumption. 

“They went through a pretty extensive process in that respect and so they tried to reflect a lot of views that they heard,” Goetz said. 

Goetz added the city’s approach to creating the 2040 plan effectively incorporated community input after it held 100 meetings to engage with the community over the last two years. 

“In this current era of limited resources and high energy costs, it just makes sense from a public policy standpoint to begin to think about how we can effectively densify our cities that are our metropolitan areas,” Goetz said.

Minnesota’s recreational cannabis law went into effect on Aug. 1, allowing the possession, use and sale of marijuana by anyone 21 years or older. 

After Gov. Tim Walz (DFL) signed the bill into law on May 30, the law allows for up to two pounds of cannabis in homes and up to two ounces in public. The legalization will also allow for the manufacturing, cultivation and distribution of cannabis recreationally via dispensaries. 

However, the state estimates most legal dispensaries and sales will not begin selling until 2025 while legislation for regulations and licenses is created. The legalization does not apply to THC and CBD products or to food and drink in businesses and restaurants.

Manager of the Rec Center in Dinkytown Cleveland Young said nothing huge will change with sales or business come August. Once the licensing and regulations allow for legal sales, Young said he expects his business to thrive. 

“The ultimate goal is to get that flower space to grow it, it’ll be so much different,” Young said. “It’s exciting to see [legalization] happening.”

Young said he does not expect increased sales right away due to the regulation process but expects to apply for a license as early as October, depending on which licenses his business needs. According to Young, the licensing process and timeline is unclear due to the hastiness of the legalization by the state. 

“I wish they would’ve just taken the time to have all the boards together, so we would know exactly what to expect when it comes to licenses,” Young said. “I am happy about it, just not happy about how they did it.”

The law provides 12 different business licenses people can apply for.

University of Minnesota student Tamarra Golden has worked at the Rec Center for two months. Golden said her job requires her to be up-to-date on current laws and regulations concerning cannabis, so the recent legalization has been her main focus.

“My initial thought and feeling is excitement, but at the same time, frustration because dispensaries that are already up and running can’t actually move into the marijuana field right away,” Golden said.

Golden said the wait until 2025 for the regulatory framework to be finalized leaves her with questions and mixed feelings about the legalization and the state’s role in the process. According to Golden, the current sale limitations of CBD and THC products, as well as the 10% tax, she questions the state’s intentions. 

As of July 1, all cannabis products will be taxed at 10% in Minnesota which is in addition to the state’s 6% general sales tax. 

“Being on a college campus, that doesn’t really serve our clientele because college students are over the age of 21, they probably don’t want to break the bank buying THC products,”  Golden said.

Golden added the legalization will positively affect the Rec Center’s business but could also increase competition for marijuana products. According to Golden, she believes prices will change due to the push from the business’ clientele and the possible shift in the public’s view of marijuana.

“I think the main thing that’s going to change is people’s perspective on cannabis,” Golden said. “That’s my goal, that’s my mission. I believe that it is a demonized plant for little to no reason, and I would love to see justice for it.”

The legalization not only promotes economic growth but a deeper sense of community around the University and city, according to Golden. She said the legalization increases the safety and accessibility of marijuana, but could also decrease the possibility of harmful lacings and stains. 

Golden added due to the legalization of marijuana, she expects to see an increase in its popularity on the University’s campus. Consequently, Golden said fake IDs and underage use might become more apparent. 

“Since fake IDs are very common, I feel that it’s going to be very popular among young people,” Golden said. 

Director of Health Promotion at the University’s Boynton Health Julie Sanem said the University’s Alcohol and Other Drug Assessment and Prevention committee has been monitoring cannabis legalization for the past year. 

“We’ll continue supporting students who are seeking resources or support related to quitting or reducing their substance use,” Sanem said. 

Sanem said one of the ways Boynton collects information about substance use and its impact at the University is through the College Student Health Survey and through student groups like Undergraduate Student Government and Recovery on Campus (ROC). 

“[It] allows us to kind of adjust our resources and support for students based on what we’re learning,” Sanem said.

The law will also automatically expunge the records of people with low-level marijuana convictions, according to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA). People with felony convictions will also be able to appeal to a review board for expungement or reduced sentences.

Roughly 66,000 Minnesotans will have their records automatically expunged and 230,000 will be eligible for review by the BCA. Although offenses will remain on people’s records until the BCA changes its programming system next fall, future policies will seal records that qualify for expungement and expand offenses eligible for review beginning in Jan. 2025. 

The University continues to follow federal cannabis laws, said Sanem, meaning the use, distribution and growing of cannabis on campus remains prohibited. 

Boynton offers confidential and private counseling services with licensed drug and alcohol counselors and student groups like ROC, which offers more community support to students. 

“Boynton and the University are prepared to support students for really whatever their needs are as they relate to cannabis legalization moving forward,” Sanem said.

Minnesota’s recreational cannabis law went into effect on Aug. 1, allowing the possession, use and sale of marijuana by anyone 21 years or older. 

After Gov. Tim Walz (DFL) signed the bill into law on May 30, the law allows for up to two pounds of cannabis in homes and up to two ounces in public. The legalization will also allow for the manufacturing, cultivation and distribution of cannabis recreationally via dispensaries. 

However, the state estimates most legal dispensaries and sales will not begin selling until 2025 while legislation for regulations and licenses is created. The legalization does not apply to THC and CBD products or to food and drink in businesses and restaurants.

Manager of the Rec Center in Dinkytown Cleveland Young said nothing huge will change with sales or business come August. Once the licensing and regulations allow for legal sales, Young said he expects his business to thrive. 

“The ultimate goal is to get that flower space to grow it, it’ll be so much different,” Young said. “It’s exciting to see [legalization] happening.”

Young said he does not expect increased sales right away due to the regulation process but expects to apply for a license as early as October, depending on which licenses his business needs. According to Young, the licensing process and timeline is unclear due to the hastiness of the legalization by the state. 

“I wish they would’ve just taken the time to have all the boards together, so we would know exactly what to expect when it comes to licenses,” Young said. “I am happy about it, just not happy about how they did it.”

The law provides 12 different business licenses people can apply for.

University of Minnesota student Tamarra Golden has worked at the Rec Center for two months. Golden said her job requires her to be up-to-date on current laws and regulations concerning cannabis, so the recent legalization has been her main focus.

“My initial thought and feeling is excitement, but at the same time, frustration because dispensaries that are already up and running can’t actually move into the marijuana field right away,” Golden said.

Golden said the wait until 2025 for the regulatory framework to be finalized leaves her with questions and mixed feelings about the legalization and the state’s role in the process. According to Golden, the current sale limitations of CBD and THC products, as well as the 10% tax, she questions the state’s intentions. 

As of July 1, all cannabis products will be taxed at 10% in Minnesota which is in addition to the state’s 6% general sales tax. 

“Being on a college campus, that doesn’t really serve our clientele because college students are over the age of 21, they probably don’t want to break the bank buying THC products,”  Golden said.

Golden added the legalization will positively affect the Rec Center’s business but could also increase competition for marijuana products. According to Golden, she believes prices will change due to the push from the business’ clientele and the possible shift in the public’s view of marijuana.

“I think the main thing that’s going to change is people’s perspective on cannabis,” Golden said. “That’s my goal, that’s my mission. I believe that it is a demonized plant for little to no reason, and I would love to see justice for it.”

The legalization not only promotes economic growth but a deeper sense of community around the University and city, according to Golden. She said the legalization increases the safety and accessibility of marijuana, but could also decrease the possibility of harmful lacings and stains. 

Golden added due to the legalization of marijuana, she expects to see an increase in its popularity on the University’s campus. Consequently, Golden said fake IDs and underage use might become more apparent. 

“Since fake IDs are very common, I feel that it’s going to be very popular among young people,” Golden said. 

Director of Health Promotion at the University’s Boynton Health Julie Sanem said the University’s Alcohol and Other Drug Assessment and Prevention committee has been monitoring cannabis legalization for the past year. 

“We’ll continue supporting students who are seeking resources or support related to quitting or reducing their substance use,” Sanem said. 

Sanem said one of the ways Boynton collects information about substance use and its impact at the University is through the College Student Health Survey and through student groups like Undergraduate Student Government and Recovery on Campus (ROC). 

“[It] allows us to kind of adjust our resources and support for students based on what we’re learning,” Sanem said.

The law will also automatically expunge the records of people with low-level marijuana convictions, according to the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA). People with felony convictions will also be able to appeal to a review board for expungement or reduced sentences.

Roughly 66,000 Minnesotans will have their records automatically expunged and 230,000 will be eligible for review by the BCA. Although offenses will remain on people’s records until the BCA changes its programming system next fall, future policies will seal records that qualify for expungement and expand offenses eligible for review beginning in Jan. 2025. 

The University continues to follow federal cannabis laws, said Sanem, meaning the use, distribution and growing of cannabis on campus remains prohibited. 

Boynton offers confidential and private counseling services with licensed drug and alcohol counselors and student groups like ROC, which offers more community support to students. 

“Boynton and the University are prepared to support students for really whatever their needs are as they relate to cannabis legalization moving forward,” Sanem said.