EPIC
Community Meeting Minutes
February 10, 2022, 6:30 – 7:30
East Phillips Park Cultural &
Community Center, 2307 17th Ave S.
EPIC web address: eastphillips.org
Email: sarah@eastphillips.org
Office: 2433 Bloomington Ave., Minneapolis, MN
55404
Phone:
(612)
354-6802
Board Roster: Laura Dale, Mary Gonsior, Cassandra Holmes, David Ingold, Shontal Lajeunesse, Steve Sandberg, Earl Simms, Karen Townsend, Nikolas Winter-Simat
Board Members Present: Steve Sandberg, David Ingold, Nikolas Winter-Simat, Cassandra Holmes, Shontal Lajeunesse, Karen Townsend
Board Members Not Present: Laura Dale, Earl Simms, Mary Gonsior
Members: Brad and Carol Pass, Sonya Ewert, Jamal
Guests: Kelsey Fogt, Cody Olson, Jason Staebell, Lisa Austin, Aaron Tag
6:30 Welcome
●
Vision
and Mission
●
Intros
●
Agenda
Approval, NWS, StS, Approved
Minutes Approval, NWS, StS, Approved
●
Group
Agreements
○
Respect each other; aim for kindness
○
Respect each other's time; aim for
brevity
○
Respect the agenda; aim for unity
○
Own your words, actions, and reactions;
aim for peace
●
How
to become a member
○
Chat
Sarah or email sarah@eastphillips.org with your email address and physical address (to verify you
live in East Phillips)
○
All
members are allowed to vote on EPIC decisions and motions
●
Announcements
o
EPIC’s
Annual Meeting is Saturday, March 26
from 10am to 11am online and at East Phillips Park
▪
Join
us to hear what EPIC has been up to over the last year, learn about EPIC’s
financial position and participate in the board’s election!
▪
Call
for nominations to join the EPIC board of directors! Go to eastphillips.org to
learn more about board member responsibilities and expectations and to fill out
the quick nomination form
●
Nomination
forms are due March 1st
●
Can
also be nominated on the floor of the Annual Meeting
o
Next
Board Meeting will be: Saturday, March 5 from
10am-11am online (link to join is at eastphillips.org)
▪
Board
Meetings are open to the public
o
Next
Community Meeting will be: Thursday,
March 10 from 6:30-7:30 online (link to join is at eastphillips.org) and at
East Phillips Park
o EPIC has a housing program! 0% interest! Fix up your home or
buy a new home in East Phillips – Check your email for the brochure or go to:
mncee.org/east-phillips: Programs for East Phillips Residents | Center
for Energy and Environment (mncee.org)
o
If
you smell a foul odor around Smith foundry or Bituminous Roadways call 311 to
report
▪
Write
down your incident number
o
Join
your neighbors in cleaning up trash on your block for 20 minutes every Saturday
anytime between 9am and 11am!
o
Are
you a Native Artist? Apply for this Lift Program for Early Career Support for
Native Artists
that includes $10,000; professional development; communications and marketing
support; and more
o
Take
EPIC’s survey to share how you would like your neighborhood organization
to approach safety.
o
The
EPIC board reviewed
and approved year-end
financial reports
o
The EPIC board reviewed and approved quarterly
financial reports
6:40 Feature Presentation//Community Discussion
topic: New public space opportunity at Hi Lake: Stephanie Devitt and Jason
Staebell
●
Project
between Hennepin County, MNDOT, Metro Transit, City of Minneapolis
●
Priorities
of project (informed by public engagement from 2016-2019)
○
Safety
○
Support
climate friendly transportation
○
More
connected space
●
Construction
begins in 2024
○
Simplify
vehicle crossings
○
Reduce
number of pedestrian crossings
○
Increase
public space (70 feet wide on Northside and 50 feet wide on Southside)
●
One
of the busiest transit areas in the metro
●
Designing
the space under the bridge
○
Guidelines
for using space under bridges
○
Public
priorities and values reflected
○
Community
partner committed to the space for any non transportation use
●
Some
ideas they have heard or seen in other cities:
○
Recreation
space (skate park, basketball court)
○
Mobility
hub
○
Pop
up shops
○
Public
art
●
Input
from East Phillips neighbors on what we’d like to see under the bridge:
○
Idea
to connect to bici Xicas
○
Connect
Light Rail station to rest of community
○
Idea
to have a youth pedi cab service
○
Connected
bike route is important
○
Neighbor
likes idea of basketball court
○
Neighbor
shared that she avoids biking under large bridges - darker etc.
■
Would
like something bright, welcoming, better acoustics
○
How
to encourage ownership of the space
■
Idea
to have room for businesses - good food
●
Food
trucks
■
Idea
to hold events there
■
Neighbor
has had history of public art being destroyed
○
Needs
to be multi layered - different things happening (can’t just do art)
■
Work
seasonally in Minnesota
■
Warming
houses that are used for a Farmer’s Market
○
Public
art Lighting pictures; safety
○
Neighbor
wants to avoid criminalizing unhoused neighbors for using the space
○
Work
with the acoustics
○
Artwork
(George Floyd art), lighting for safety
○
Idea
to close the street for events i.e. Open Streets
○
Space
to share resources - space where people can pop up
○
Something
installed in the space
■
I.e.
space to store tables, chairs
○
Neighbor
shared that in the past they wanted to put Hiawatha under ground but ground
water was too polluted
○
Public
instruments
●
Questions:
○
How
connected to Greenway?
●
Next
steps:
○
Process
of listening now
○
Advisory
Committee will look at feedback
○
Bring
ideas they have heard back to community
○
Finalize
design
7:45 Adjourn
