Some people are terrible tenants
Just exempting new buildings from rent control is not going to solve our housing problem. An even bigger issue is the message that the Tenant Protections ordinance is sending to landlords.
As a longtime, small landlord, I will NEVER invest in another rental building in St Paul as long as the City continues with this one-sided attitude to prevent landlords from properly screening bad actors from rental aplicants, and making it difficult to evict tenants who violate rules or don’t pay their rent on time.
There are some people, because of their irresponsible behavior and/or criminal activities, who are terrible tenants. We need to have a serious discussion on how to house these people. Just forcing landlords to accept them as tenants will never work. It will just cause all landlords to flee the city and make the housing problem much worse.
Mike Schumann, St. Paul
Don’t be too bossy about housing. Give cities an incentive to figure it out
I am encouraged that legislative action on removing the majority of local housing zoning is likely dead for a second time. Not out of spite, I submit the language smacks of “big brother” knows best.
As a member of a local city planning commission, I can vouch that cities spend considerable time and talent maximizing their positive impact while following their 2040 Comprehensive Plan. In addition, cities plan for commercial and industrial growth plus open spaces for parks and trails. City discussions are ongoing on how to put new residents into homes and apartments. Planning commissions and city councils are well aware of their unique needs for growth. It is not forgotten that market forces on the cost of construction materials and labor plus interest rates weigh heavily on the prospective buyer.
Also, for the metro area, the Met Council recently posted their 2050 Comp Plan, which provides both guidance and limitations for what cities in the seven-county metro area can do. Add to this another layer of “governmental guidance” concerning lot sizes, parking spaces, multi-unit structures, and you likely induce unintended consequences. Not to be forgotten are the pre-existing infrastructure plans for the cities’ capacity to handle current and future sewage and water availability.
As it is likely the Legislature will come back for a third rendition of their ideas, I submit there is a better idea.
Allow the cities to use their staff for planning and couple it to a state subsidy. Don’t mandate, but incentivize the cities to create new housing opportunities to address the issue of affordable housing. Encourage solutions with an increase in “local government aid” or some similar method. A legislative fix of “one size fits all” suppresses innovation. Rather, encourage it with a revenue stimulus which rewards creative city planning.
Joe Polunc, Waconia
Instead of ‘this tree might die,’ let’s say, ‘this tree might live’
I live in the East Como neighborhood of St. Paul. My neighborhood is the subject of a City of St. Paul “improvement” project that includes placement of curb and gutter, sewer and water main pipelines, and sidewalks. Early on, the city assured concerned residents they would save as many trees “as possible.”
Clearly the meaning of “as possible” was not understood the same way by both parties. In two weeks in March the city marked, then quickly removed, dozens of beautiful, mature trees, shocking me and many neighbors. Many were in areas that already had sidewalks and curbs. Whole blocks lost their canopies. There was no opportunity to question the reasoning behind the decisions. The general explanation was that even where there are existing curbs and sidewalks the street work will necessitate a trench that would destroy a percentage of the trees’ root systems.
The city has an extremely conservative system for assessing trees and determining their “risk.” Mature urban trees must be viewed as the assets, the treasures, that they are, not as liabilities and barriers to “improvement.” Every possible action should be taken to first avoid, then mitigate damage to trees when completing “improvement” projects (let me tell you that my new, barren landscape seems anything but improved).
Mature tree canopies are the heartbeat and lungs of a livable neighborhood, taking many decades to establish. They provide shade, reduce energy costs, provide groundwater filtration and wildlife habitat, increase property values. Bottom line: they increase quality of life, and this is not being adequately included in the city’s rigid, conservative formula for tree removal. After all measures are taken to avoid and mitigate damage, we should monitor. Let’s change our view from “this tree might die” to “this tree might live”. Monitor the effects of the project over time; even a tree that is damaged and “might” die, can be a canopy and a home for many years to come. Give trees a chance.
Jessie Ebertz, St. Paul
Who knows better how to spend your money?
Who knows better how to spend your money: you, or Gov. Walz? Gov. Walz believes he does.
If we overpay our Federal taxes, we receive a refund. But in 2023, the State of Minnesota collected an $18 billion surplus. That equals more than $3,100 per resident! Was this money put aside so that taxes could be lower in future years? No. Instead Gov. Walz and the then-DFL-controlled Legislature spent: ALL of it. Walz raised state spending and now is looking for ways to raise taxes still further.
We are not tax cows with an endless supply of milk for you to dispose of as you wish. Please recognize your hubris: decrease spending and taxes. We know how we would like to spend, or save, the money we’ve earned.
Michael Bird, St. Anthony
Remember our fallen firefighters
Another St. Paul building with a sad history relating to the Saint Paul Fire Department is closing. Like the Saint Paul Athletic Club, which closed last year, where three St. Paul firefighters (District Chief Frank Minogue, Captain Thomas Kell, and firefighter Russell Hunt) were killed.
Now the WestRock paper recycling plant, 2250 Wabash Avenue, is closing. In 1907, it opened as Waldorf Paper Products. On June 9, 1949, there was a massive fire engulfing the building. Once the fire was knocked down, three St. Paul firefighters entered the building to examine the damage. Fire Chief Edward Novak, Assistant Chief Frank McMahon and District Chief Harold Barck entered and were killed when an avalanche of concrete blocks and water-soaked bales of paper buried all three.
May we always remember those firefighters who protect us and our city daily. They should always be remembered for their sacrifices.
William J. Langevin, St. Paul. The writer is retired from the St. Paul Fire Department.
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