Tangletown Neighborhood Association
BOARD MEETING MINUTES – Monday, October 19, 2015 (Annual Meeting) – 7:00 p.m., Fuller Park
Board members present: Steve Bieringer, Sandra Bartsias, Andrew Buss, Ryan Fisher, Lauren Anderson, Joy
Gottschalk, Dick Fiala
Board members absent: Eric David, Virgil Petrie, Dan Williams, Andrea Siegel, Laura Silver, Karen Costello
Also present: Adam Lilla (owner of Elevation Chiropractic & Wellness); Tjody deVaal; Tom Balcom, Barb
Balcom, Mike Gilbertson (Tangletown residents)
Called to order: 7:04pm
Newsletter Update
Tjody gave an update on the fall newsletter, which was mailed today through Ideal Printers. It should hopefully hit
residential and business mailboxes later this week assuming there are no delays with our bulk mail permit. Mary
Jane brought up the status of newsletter distribution to businesses. Tjody will double check whether businesses in
the neighborhood currently receive the newsletter through the mail. Joy offered that the Sustainability Committee
will be delivering Community Solar event flyers and could take notes on which businesses currently accept
community informational pieces.
Halloween Walking Tour
Tjody requested a budget of $35 for glowsticks and hot cider for the Halloween Walking Tour, which will take place
on Halloween (Saturday, October 31 st ). A motion to approve this budget was made, seconded, and approved by the
full board. Fuller Park isn’t offering a community Halloween party this year so the tour was moved to October 31 st
and the route will include trick-or- treating.
Community Solar Workshop
Joy gave an overview of the Community Solar Garden forum coming up on November 12 th , 2015 at Mayflower
Church (106 E Diamond Lake Road). The event is being held in partnership with the Hale-Page- Diamond Lake
Community Association (HPDL), Field Regina Northrop Neighborhood Group (FRNNG), Windom Community
Council, and Lynnhurst Neighborhood. Residents in Tangletown and HPDL will receive an event postcard in the
mail and the Sustainability Committee is looking for volunteers to help distribute flyers around the neighborhood.
Panelists for the event include Trevor Drake from CERTs (Clean Energy Resource Teams) and Jamie Long from
Linden Hills Power & Light (LHPL). LHPL recently organized a community solar garden, which will be installed
on roof of the Linden Hills Co-op. Joy posted on Nextdoor looking for a volunteer to video and upload the
workshop so it will be accessible to other Mpls residents and neighborhoods. TNA will also have a survey available
at the event and online to gauge residents’ interest in local or remote community solar projects.
Maintenance along Stevens Ave
Mike Gilbertson addressed the board regarding the lack of maintenance of the grass and planted areas along the
sound wall across from Stevens Ave. Initially MNDOT mowed the grass adjacent to the soundwall multiple times
during the growing season but has since decreased to only twice a year. Neighbors on the block of Stevens Ave
between 49 th and 50 th Streets did some maintenance this past summer and there’s interest in organizing for future
seasons. Across the freeway, neighbors on 2 nd Ave have organized to buy a mower, store it, install perennials, and
share maintenance duties. Tangletown neighbors on Stevens Ave would like to organize similar efforts and would
appreciate guidance from TNA. Ideally, the group would coordinate with MNDOT’s twice a year mowing schedule
and support neighbors who want to plant perennials across from their homes. Ryan provided some history: when the
soundwalls went up some neighborhoods were interested in managing the maintenance along the structures but it
proved challenging to organize. Resident Tim Price organized the 2 nd Ave improvements and recommended that
TNA establish a Greening Committee to create a plan, work with public officials and recruit volunteers to help with
the maintenance. This group could form as a subcommittee of Sustainability or as its own committee and address
other public spaces throughout the neighborhood including the Gladstone Ave triangle and Washburn Water Tower.
NCR October Learning Lab
Neighborhood and Community Relations is holding a learning lab on Thursday, October 29 th from 6-7:30pm at All
My Relations Gallery (1414 East Franklin Avenue) to discuss strategies to increase neighborhood involvement
among American Indian and African American residents. Interested board members can attend.
Minnehaha Trail Improvements Project
Tom Balcom addressed the board about the Lyndale bridge over Minnehaha Creek. The bridge’s arch was
originally designed to be wide enough to accommodate bicycle and walking traffic in both directions. After the
bridge construction, the MPRB was reluctant to install a shared trail that would accommodate bicycles in addition to
pedestrians and held a public meeting this past June. Residents in attendance were adamant that bike paths on this
stretch were critical to usability and important points of connection to other bicycling infrastructure within the city.
In response to this feedback, the MPRB will hold a follow-up public meeting this Thursday, October 22 nd at 6pm at
Lynnhurst Recreation Center to discuss shared-use trails – interested board members should plan to attend this
meeting.
Officer Reports:
Secretary – A motion to approve the September 2015 minutes was made, seconded and approved.
Treasurer – Balance in the TNA is $18,171.88 and the balance of the NCR account is $10,946.00.
Neighborhood Priorities Status
Board Development (Karen, Andrew, Dick) – no update
Fuller Park (Steve, Virgil) – no update
School Relationships (Sandra, Mary Jane) – Sandra spoke with Joelle from Mpls Community Ed about partnering
with TNA on community events and classes. Community Ed often holds holiday events for Halloween, winter
holidays, etc. Sandra also wrote an article for the fall newsletter highlighting Community Ed.
Sustainability/Green Team (Lauren, Joy) – The Sustainability Team’s update was covered under Community Solar
Workshop. Organics projects will pick up in the winter as the roll-out for collection services in Tangletown draws
nearer.
Utility Box Wraps (Dan, Andrea) – no update
Website/Communications (Eric, Dylan, Ryan, Laura) – no update
Other Business –
Supporting Local Businesses
In Bryn Mawr, the neighborhood offers local business punch cards. Residents complete the punch cards by visiting
different neighborhood businesses. Once the card is full, residents can pick up a prize, get a free cup of coffee, etc.
The board discussed promoting local Tangletown businesses in a similar manner to the Bryn Mawr program,
potentially through a mailed postcard with spaces for residents to visit businesses. Ryan recommended contacting
the Southwest Business Association about partnering on an initiative. Steve is going to follow up.
Washburn Water Tower
Barb Balcom discussed issues with the plantings around the Washburn Water Tower. Some of the shrubs and trees
are overgrown and could potentially damage the structure. There’s a gap in maintenance between the MPRB and
Public Works. This project could be wrapped into a TNA committee or sub-committee devoted to public spaces that
need plantings installed and maintained.
Partner and Other Announcements
Councilmember Quincy is not able to attend tonight’s meeting but stopped by before the meeting. Joy is working
with his office on the upcoming Community Solar Forum.
The board discussed planning for the holiday party, potentially in place of the board’s regular meeting on December
21 st .
46 th Street Reconstruction – Ryan has represented TNA at the 46 th Street reconstruction meetings. The project will
stretch from Lyndale to Cedar Ave. The City and Hennepin County have hosted two planning meetings for
neighborhood partners and have an upcoming public open house this Wednesday, October 21st from 6-8pm at Field
School. The City and County have collected traffic counts and accident data for this stretch and determined that
accidents are three times more likely on 46 th Street between Nicollet and 35-W. Project coordinators will have a few
proposed solutions for attendees’ consideration and feedback on Wednesday night.
Adjourned: 8:37pm
Minutes submitted by Lauren Anderson, substitute for Dan Williams, TNA Secretary