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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After five years in a partnership called “Cooks | Bellecour,” Grand Avenue culinary shop Cooks of Crocus Hill is separating from chef Gavin Kaysen’s bakery and rebranding back to its longstanding solo name.

Cooks of Crocus Hill plans to maintain its flagship St. Paul location as normal — minus the pastries that had been delivered daily.

In the North Loop of Minneapolis, the retail shop and bakery will close but Cooks will continue to operate a cooking school, and the Edina location will close altogether, both effective May 31.

The kitchen store and cooking school, which marked its 50th anniversary in 2023, had been renamed from Th’rice to Cooks of Crocus Hill when founder Martha Kaemmer moved it to the current Grand Avenue location in 1988.

Current owners Karl Benson and Marie Dwyer have run the business since 2008 and, in a post-Bellecour era, are planning additional programming including culinary travel, a spokesperson said.

“That is partly how we have been able to survive in this business, is constant innovation,” Dwyer told the Pioneer Press in 2023. “We’ve learned so much along the way. Make the same mistake twice? I don’t think so.”

To remain relevant, Benson added in 2023, “we have to change, to stay exactly the same.”

Cooks of Crocus Hill: 877 Grand Ave.; 651-228-1333; cooksofcrocushill.com

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May is mental health awareness month and Ramsey County officials are spending it connecting people with mental health resources through a new outreach vehicle.

The vehicle, which was purchased using a one-time grant through the state, will be out in the community and at events to connect visitors with mental health resources and other county services.

The Ramsey County Mental Health Bus at the Ramsey County Public Works in Arden Hills on Friday, May 9, 2025. (John Autey / Pioneer Press)

“We want to bring awareness, we want to reduce stigma, and we want to increase access. And so we want to first use the vehicle as a tool, not just for Ramsey County, but for mental health services for all,” said Sophia Thompson, Ramsey County’s Social Services director. “The intent is not to just focus on the services that Ramsey County provides, but our valuable partners that we have in the community. We have so many other agencies that are providing mental health services, and we intend to partner with them.”

The main purpose of the vehicle will be providing mental health assessments, connection and resources, Thompson said. Assessments could take anywhere from 30 minutes to two hours, she said, with the focus on what people need in the moment and what clinicians the county can make available.

Assessments

The county is focusing on creating one-stop locations for multiple resources with the vehicle as well as its Clinic 555 — a vehicle which provides sexual and reproductive health resources, as well as a syringe service program, Thompson said. Usage of the vehicle will evolve based on community need and the county’s ability, she said.

“…There’s a plethora of options that come once the assessment is done, but the assessment is that starting place to determine what’s next,” Thompson said.

Through the vehicle, clients also can learn about other county resources, such as housing and financial resources.

“The reality is so many things impact your well being. So us being able to be that bridge to other services, we see that as really a benefit in what we’re trying to do,” said Kenya Walker, Ramsey County’s Social Services deputy director.

Though the plans for the vehicle are still in their early stages, county officials plan to eventually have telehealth appointments available on the vehicle, as well as video resources and other services.

“If you see us and you want to know a little bit more about what we’re doing, come over and talk to us,” said Ramsey County adult support manager Charles Goff. “It’s important for you to know about what we’re doing, and we want to normalize conversations around mental health, we want to be accessible to our community, and we want to educate those in the community about the things that we’re doing at Ramsey County.”

‘Restructure access to mental health services’

Those interested can also request having the vehicle at events or to visit their organization by going to the Ramsey County website.

“What’s really important to me is just that community knows that we are trying to think differently about how we engage with individuals around their well-being,” Walker said. “This is a pathway for us to do that. We are really trying to restructure access to mental health services or services in general.

Currently, county officials are taking the vehicle out into the community once a week, with plans to attend several events.

“It really is about trying to reduce the stigma around accessing support, and so we’re really going to try to meet people where they are,” Walker said.

People can submit name suggestions for the vehicle until May 25. The name will be announced on May 31 during Ramsey County’s Wellness in the Park event at Phalen Recreation Center. Vote at ramseycounty.us/content/name-our-new-mental-health-outreach-vehicle.

To learn more about the vehicle and time and locations it will visit, go to ramseycounty.us/residents/health-medical/clinics-services/mental-health-crisis-services/mental-health-community.

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By PAUL WISEMAN, Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Moody’s Ratings stripped the U.S. government of its top credit rating Friday, citing successive governments’ failure to stop a rising tide of debt.

Moody’s lowered the rating from a gold-standard Aaa to Aa1 but said the United States “retains exceptional credit strengths such as the size, resilience and dynamism of its economy and the role of the U.S. dollar as global reserve currency.”

Moody’s is the last of the three major rating agencies to lower the federal government’s credit. Standard & Poor’s downgraded federal debt in 2011 and Fitch Ratings followed in 2023.

In a statement, Moody’s said: “We expect federal deficits to widen, reaching nearly 9% of (the U.S. economy) by 2035, up from 6.4% in 2024, driven mainly by increased interest payments on debt, rising entitlement spending, and relatively low revenue generation.”

Extending President Donald Trump’s 2017 tax cuts, a priority of the Republican-controlled Congress, Moody’s said, would add $4 trillion over the next decade to the federal primary deficit (which does not include interest payments).

A gridlocked political system has been unable to tackle America’s huge deficits. Republicans reject tax increases, and Democrats are reluctant to cut spending.

On Friday, House Republicans failed to push a big package of tax breaks and spending cuts through the Budget Committee. A small group of hard-right Republican lawmakers, insisting on steeper cuts to Medicaid and President Joe Biden’s green energy tax breaks, joined all Democrats in opposing it.