‘Commentary’ Archives
Raise Your Voice: Days of May
By PETER MOLENAAR Peter Molenaar The word from Senator Jeff Hayden”™s Capital Update, May issue: “Senate Republicans are staunch in their position that programs providing giveaways for corporations and the wealthy”¦ should be continued. But every dollar spent on the wealthy”¦ is a dollar taken from students, healthcare programs, and crumbling highways.” Speaking of May, May 1 was a workers”™ holiday for almost everyone on the planet but us. However, some local events did honor the spirit. Prominently, there was the May 1st Coalition for Immigrant Workers”™ Rights, which mobilized forces to our state”™s capital, and there was the UNITE HERE union labor rally in Minneapolis. In the build-up period, the May 1st Coalition threw down a splendid fundraising banquet at the Walker United Methodist Church. When asked to speak, I made the following points: 1.) Every school child should come to appreciate the [...]
The Rand Report: Special service districts on Lake St. create inefficiences
By Rand Retterath According to an Information Brief from Research Department of the Minnesota House of Representatives “One way for a city to provide an increased level of service or infrastructure to its commercial or industrial areas is to create ”˜special service districts.”' Special service districts (SSDs) are established at the request of the persons who will pay for the increased level of service. Since the early 1980s, individual cities have been authorized to set up these districts. Since 1996, cities have had general law authority to create SSDs. “A special service district is ”˜a defined area within the city where special services are rendered and the costs of the special services are paid from revenues collected from service charges imposed within that area.”' An SSD may be established anywhere in a city but only business property (i.e., commercial, industrial, utility, or land zoned for commercial or industrial use) will [...]
Letter to community: Arsenic levels map confusing
The April 2019 Alley page 3 shows a map with a confusing description: “Childhood elevated blood lead, arsenic & asthma per 10,000 people.”  It should be clarified to show that the arsenic levels were in soil, not blood. Soil with greater than 95 ppm (or mg/kg) was removed in an extensive project by 2008.   For more information about arsenic, see https://www.mda.state.mn.us/chemicals/spills/incidentresponse/superfund/southmplsressoil My neighbor”'s yard in Seward was removed and replaced with new soil because of arsenic. I agree that children in Phillips bear excess burdens of a contaminated environment. Lead remains a major issue because of lead paint and poor removal practices that allowed lead to go into the soil. Jim Haefemeyer
