►
Description
At the September Conversations with Kim event, Bloomington Chamber President Kim Hansen sat down with the eight candidates for Bloomington Mayor and City Council to discuss their priorities and visions for the City of Bloomington.
A
You
this
is
a
forum
that
is
put
on
by
the
chamber
of
commerce,
and
we
represent
the
Bloomington
business
community
and
we
there
are
going
to
be
other
great
forums
that
are
being
put
on.
I
know
that
rotary
is
hosting
one
in
October
as
well
as
coming
up
here
in
September,
the
League
of
Women
Voters
are
doing
a
great
job,
putting
together
a
forum
that
will
be
in
the
evening.
That
will
be
open
to
other
questions.
So
with
that,
why
don't
we
go
ahead
and
Robert?
B
Them
Thank
You
Kim.
Thank
you,
everyone
for
being
here
this
morning.
Thank
you
to
all
the
candidates.
Then
we
really
appreciate
your
attendance
I
would
like
each
candidate
to
introduce
themselves.
Let's
start
with
Tim
on
the
far
end
and
work
all
the
way
down
make
an
opening
statement.
Please
remember
you
have
a
minute
just
state
what
office
you're
running
for
and
and
talk
about
yourself
from
it.
So
let's
go
ahead
and
start
and
remember
everybody,
please
be
polite
good.
C
I've
been
on
the
chamber
board
for
the
past
eight
years,
I
chaired
the
Bloomington
annual
the
chamber
annual
gala,
which
is
the
largest
fundraiser
for
their
chamber
for
five
years
and
each
year
that
I've
played
in
the
chamber
golf
tournament
I,
somehow
managed
to
finish
dead
last
each
year.
That
I
played
I'm
really
proud
to
be
part
of
an
organization
that
not
only
does
its
mission
of
supporting
and
doing
well
by
business
in
Bloomington.
C
But
it's
such
an
active
and
a
great
participant
in
the
greater
community
of
Bloomington
IN
partners,
so
well
with
the
Bloomington
city
government,
on
issues
like
transportation
issues
and
on
different
programming,
like
the
the
State
of
the
City
address
and
a
number
of
business
matters,
safety
matters
and
other
things.
Those
partnerships
make
us
all
stronger
and
when
I'm
mayor
we're
going
to
continue
to
do
that
and
look
forward
to
to
being
your
mayor.
So
thanks
much
for
being
here
on
this
rainy
morning,
thanks
much
all.
D
D
B
E
Everyone,
my
name,
is
Jenna
Carter
and
I'm
running
for
the
Bloomington
City
Council
at-large
seat.
I
just
want
to
start
by
thanking
the
chamber,
Thank
You
Kim,
Robert
Anna,
for
all
of
the
work
you
did
to
put
this
on
because
together
and
give
us
this
opportunity.
Thank
you
all
for
being
here
today.
So
I
live
in
Bloomington
with
my
husband
Mike
and
our
two
kids
I
grew
up.
A
military,
brat
I
went
to
Iowa
State
for
my
undergraduate
degree,
and
then
I
came
up
to
the
University
of
Minnesota
and
got
my
master's
degree.
E
So
for
over
ten
years
now,
the
majority
of
those
working
at
Blue
Cross
over
in
Eagan
I,
have
been
working
with
communities
and
leaders
across
our
state
to
really
ensure
that
we
have
welcoming
vibrant
prosperous
communities
where
everybody
has
the
opportunity
to
prosper
and
thrive
and
live
healthy
and
well
as
a
Bloomington
resident
I
serve
on
the
board
of
directors
for
veep,
one
of
our
local
nonprofits
I've
been
involved
with
some
housing
coalition.
Work
I
volunteer
in
our
schools
and
I
just
want
to
say
that
I'm
really
excited
to
be
here
today.
E
F
Good
morning
my
name
is
Brian
Clemens,
most
people
call
me.
Clem
I
grew
up
in
Bloomington
over
44
years,
strong
on
the
east
side,
although
apparently
there's
no
East
in
West
Bloomington
anymore,
I'll
tell
you.
I
grew
up
in
the
east
side.
I'm
running
for
City
Council
at
large
I
have
a
family
that
lives
in
Bloomington
and
wife,
and
two
kids
I've
been
a
fireman
for
over
19
years
here
in
the
community.
So
community
service
is
important
to
me.
F
I'm
also,
a
small
business
owner
with
in
Bloomington
I
owned
a
number
of
rental
properties
for
single-family
homes.
I
do
some
development
and
building
homes
I'm
working
on
development
projects
with
the
city
right
now
to
to
renovate
some
downtrodden
areas
of
our
fine
city
and
small
business
has
been
part
of
my
life.
My
whole
life,
my
father
owned
a
small
grocery
store
growing
up
that
he
brought
me
down
to
and
taught
me
how
to
run
so.
That
I
would
know
the
difference
between
working
for
someone
else
and
working
for
myself.
F
G
Go
ahead,
thank
you.
I'm
councilmember,
Dwayne
Loman
in
the
first
district
and
I
am
happy
to
be
here
this
morning
to
continue
our
conversation.
Why
I
was
born
and
raised
here
in
Bloomington,
my
wife
was
not
she's
from
a
small
town
in
Ellsworth
Wisconsin,
and
so
it
doesn't
matter
whether
you
were
born
here
or
whether
or
not
you're.
You've
made
this
your
home.
G
Certainly
one
of
the
priorities
and
things
that
I
would
like
to
work
forward
towards
is
cultivating
a
community
of
choice,
really
in
Bloomington
my
entire
experience
of
growing
up
here
and
going
to
Kennedy
high
school
and
being
a
part
of
their
entrepreneurial
program
that
they
had
there.
It's
been
about
a
community
that
is
welcoming
to
all
whether
that
be
business
or
that
be
residents
and
also
I've,
really
enjoyed
my
partnership
over
the
last
six
years
on
council,
particularly
working
with
sustainability
in
the
chamber.
H
H
We
have
two
kids,
one
is
a
freshman
in
Mankato,
State
University
right
now,
and
the
other
is
a
senior
at
Kennedy
High
School,
my
wife
and
I.
Both
graduated
from
Kennedy
and
after
high
school
I
attended,
Hennepin
tech
I
do
not
have
a
business
degree,
but
I
do
have
a
business
that
is
successful
in
many
different
degrees.
I,
look
forward
to
this
forum
and
I
hope.
A
lot
of
good
information
is
shared.
Thank
you
all.
I
Right
thanks
Sean.
First,
thank
you
to
the
chamber
for
hosting
this
event.
Thank
you
to
my
fellow
candidates
for
all
being
here
to
have
these
conversations
and
thank
you
for
attending
this
morning
on
a
rainy
day
very
much
appreciate
the
opportunity
to
talk
with
you.
My
name
is
Sean
Nelson
I'm,
the
district
2
councilmember
have
served
for
two
years
and
it's
been
a
real
honor
to
serve
the
community.
I've
lived
here
for
20
years,
my
wife
and
I,
and
our
two
daughters,
my
wife's
and
my
daughter,
Stacia
and
Emma
really
have
loved
living
here.
I
It's
a
great
community.
We
enjoy
the
parks.
The
schools
have
been
excellent,
all
of
the
organizations
that
we've
been
able
to
be
engaged,
and
it
really
it's
just
a
great
place
to
raise
a
family.
I
am
a
small
business
owner
I
own
two
companies
in
a
ward,
winning
residential
design,
build
remodeling
company
and
a
skylight
and
installation
repair
company
I
have
a
business
degree
from
Valparaiso
University
and
MBA
from
the
University
of
st.
I
J
My
name
is
Susan
Woodruff
and
I
am
running
for
District
two
and
I.
Thank
you
all
for
showing
up
this
morning,
I've
lived
in
Bloomington
all
my
life.
Both
my
parents
were
small,
we're
business
owners.
Here.
My
mother
owned
the
Bloomington
roller
rink
at
94,
12
lyndale,
which
is
where
now
and
my
dad
owned
Millhouse
steel
products.
That
was
actually
right
where
we
are
sitting
right
now.
I
love
this
city
and
Bloomington
is
a
big
city
with
a
small-town
feel
I
want
to
maintain
that
nature
of
this
community
I
have
been
I.
J
Have
a
keen
interest
in
supporting
you.
The
owners
and
operators
of
small
and
large
businesses
in
this
community
I
have
been
I
respect
you
for
the
work
you
do
in
the
taxes
that
you
pay.
You
maintain
our
vibrancy
I
would
look.
I
would
look
forward
to
working
with
you
as
a
city
council
representative,
all.
A
You
I
just
want
to
mention.
Thank
you
all
for
not
sweating
profusely
during
these
opening
statements,
because
it
feels
like
you
are
under
interrogation.
With
these
lights,
we
apologize
if
the
optics
are
a
little
strange,
we've
tried
to
adjust
them,
and
we
just
can't
so
thank
you
for
just
going
with
it.
Y'all
look
great
by
the
way
so
yeah
all
right,
Roberts
gonna,
kick
us
off
with
some
questions
and.
A
B
J
We
certainly
need
to
look
at
housing
and
and
what
we're
going
to
do
to
help
our
seniors,
who
either
a
want
to
stay
in
their
homes
or
B,
want
to
get
into
a
you
know,
affordable
our
apartment
living
so
to
speak.
I
would
be
very
interested
in
supporting
single-family
homes
with
owners
who
want
to
have
roommates
so
to
speak,
to
allow
them
to
stay
in
their
homes
and
give
other
people
a
place
to
live.
So
I
would
like
to
say
we
obviously
have
to
do
a
lot
of
development.
I
Question
yeah.
Thank
you,
I'd
like
to
talk
a
little
bit
about
what
we
were
able
to
accomplish
in
the
last
couple
years,
particularly
with
the
opportunity
housing
ordinance
by
bringing
together
those
that
are
cost
burdened
looking
for
housing
that
they
are
struggling
to,
afford
advocacy
groups,
community
leaders
and
importantly,
the
business
community
developers
and
builders.
I
We
put
together
an
ordinance
that
I
truly
believe
will
lead
to
more
housing
that
families
can
afford,
as
well
as
market
rate
housing
and
so
I'm
very
proud
of
that
accomplishment,
and
it
wouldn't
have
happened
without
being
able
to
work
with
the
business
community
to
make
sure
the
ordinance
will
actually
work.
We've
also
developed
a
plan
for
the
Gateway
district,
which
is
kind
of
the
heart
of
our
city
and
East
Bloomington
there
for
redevelopment
of
many
of
those
commercial
nodes
for
lyndale.
I
B
H
I
believe
the
city
could
really
use
a
lot
more
senior
housing.
The
population
is
aging
quite
a
bit
now
and
they're
going
to
need
places
to
transition
when
they're
unable
to
maintain
their
homes
anymore,
more,
affordable
housing
would
be
a
high
priority.
Also
and
trying
to
attract
more
manufacturing.
Businesses
into
the
city
would
be
a
wonderful
thing
to
have
by
lowering
some
regulations
and
giving
some
tax
incentives,
because
I
believe
manufacturing
jobs
tend
to
pay
higher
paying
wages.
So
it
helps
people
afford
the
homes
located
in
Bloomington.
G
Well,
I
wish
I
had
more
than
a
minute
to
talk
about
all
of
the
development
that
we've
got
going
on
in
the
city
certainly
counts.
Councilmember
Nelson
mentioned
that
the
Gateway
project,
which
is
something
we've
really
been
focusing
on
trying
to
move
forward.
We
revitalizing
our
neighborhood
commercial
areas
along
with
the
housing
that's
out
there.
We've
got
a
number
of
housing
projects
out
there
for
apartment
buildings,
especially
in
the
senior
area
which
al
had
had
brought
up.
G
We've
got
the
water
park,
and
so
many
other
amenities
are
out
there,
but
the
thing
we
really
need
to
be
thinking
about
as
we
look
to
the
future
is
all
of
our
aging
infrastructure.
That's
a
critical
part
of
that
development
piece,
it's
not
as
exciting,
but
we've
got
to
make
sure
that
we're
attending
to
that,
and
we
are
looking
into
that
and
trying
to
make
sure
that
we
can
can
move
forward
some
of
our
parks
that
are
aging
some
of
the
water
infrastructure.
G
J
F
Yeah
I,
you
know
I
I,
look
at
the
the
transportation
in
the
city
and
I
think
that
transportation
needs
work.
The
infrastructure
is
is
not
conducive
to
adding
more
density
right
now,
I
I
do
personally
participate
in
trying
to
create
more
affordable
housing
within
the
city,
working
on
development
projects,
both
residential
mid
level
and
high
level
density
residential
projects.
So
you
know
finding
places
in
Bloomington
that
are
rundown.
F
That
could
be
something
great
is
a
great
idea
to
me,
taking
amenities
that
we
currently
have
like
Valley,
View
Park
and
taking
those
out
to
put
up
a
25
foot
concrete
building
I'm,
not
for
so
respecting
the
amenities
we
have,
while
looking
at
busy
corridor
is
looking
at
major,
thorough
ways
and
looking
for
redevelopment
opportunities
too.
If
we
need
to
bring
density,
bring
it
along
the
main,
throw
weighs
494,
35
W,
look
at
those
and
then
from
there.
E
So
my
background
is
in
public
health
and
healthcare
and
I
see
those
two
things
directly
linked
to
economic
development
and
so
very
related
to
some
of
my
top
priorities
as
I'm
running
one
of
those
being
reinvestment
and
redevelopment
in
our
neighborhood
business
corridors.
So
you
know
I
think
that
the
city
has
done
a
really
good
job
working
with
the
business
community.
E
You
know
what
are
we
doing
really
well
in
Bloomington,
but
then
also
what
are
some
barriers
that
may
be
in
place
that
are
preventing
small
businesses
and
developers
from
coming
to
Bloomington
and
maybe
choosing
other
cities
and
so
and
as
we
are
redeveloping
in
our
neighborhoods
and
in
our
business
areas.
You
know
I
would
like
to
see
a
really
strong
focus
on
transit
oriented
development,
so
people
can
access
jobs
and
healthcare
and
food
and
then
also
on
making
sure
that
we
have
mixed
income,
housing
and
affordable
housing
options
for
our
workforce.
D
Right
thanks,
I
am
also
a
proponent
of
helping
develop
some
of
our
aging
infrastructure.
There's
a
lot
of
empty
storefronts
in
Bloomington.
There's
a
lot
of
aging
office,
office
parks
and
office,
buildings
in
Bloomington
and
I
think
to
attract
new
businesses
into
our
city.
We
need
to
focus
on
what
already
exists
here.
Sometimes
new
development
is
not
the
best
way
to
go,
especially
when,
when
city
taxpayer
dollars
can
sometimes
be
a
part
of
subsidizing
that
you
can
start
to
get
into
a
financial
hole,
that's
that's
not
really
ideal.
D
Also
I
think
development
should
come
in
in
terms
of
partnerships.
We
need
to
develop
educational
partnerships
so
that,
as
more
businesses,
you
know
come
into
Bloomington
we're
creating
programs
and
partnerships
that
train
people
up,
create
partnerships
with
businesses
that
work
to
provide
more
internships
and
apprenticeships,
so
that,
as
we
build
our
business
community,
we
can
get
more
people
into
into
high-paying
jobs.
All.
C
Right,
thank
you.
Tim
I've,
been
saying
for
a
couple
of
months
now
that
one
of
my
key
priorities
as
mayor
will
be
to
be
to
kickstart,
our
neighborhoods,
to
revitalize
our
neighborhood
commercial
nodes
and
to
spur
development
along
our
major
streets
in
Bloomington.
We've
done
a
number
of
things
over
the
past
few
years
on
the
Bloomington
City
Council
to
do
just
that.
C
We
have
had,
for
the
past
couple
of
years,
our
home
improvement
loans
and
our
curb-appeal
loans,
which
provide
low-interest
loans
to
homeowners,
to
to
reinvest
in
their
homes
and
and
to
improve
the
look
and
the
feel
of
their
home,
which
is
outstanding.
We
recently
approved
a
gateway
development
direct
which
includes
much
of
the
east
side,
but
it
does
push
a
little
bit
into
the
west
side
of
Bloomington
in
an
effort
to
revitalize
areas
in
in
that
part
of
the
community,
and
we
directed
staff
not
too
long
ago
to
apply
for
a
HUD
grant.
C
That
will
be
a
a
revolving
loan
fund
to
help
fund
improvements
in
that
area
and,
finally,
our
building
along
our
major
streets.
We
have
plenty
of
opportunities.
We've
established
also
a
Lyndale
Avenue
redevelopment
zone,
which
we
expect
to
try
and
redevelop
and
revitalize
the
for
the
properties
and
the
empty
land
on
Linda
Avenue
as
well.
Thank.
A
Right
there
are
a
few
seats
over
here.
We've
got
some
folks
that
are
standing
or
in
the
hallway.
If
you'd
like
to
grab
a
seat,
you
can
certainly
do
so.
I've
got
a
question
for
the
mayoral
candidates
and
why
don't
we
switch
the
order
since
since
Tim
just
finished
Ryan?
If
you
could
take
this
first
transportation
is
a
top
concern.
I've
heard
it
mentioned
already
on
the
panel,
especially
for
our
Bloomington
businesses,
wanting
to
make
sure
that
we
get
commerce
moving
goods
and
services
and
customers
to
them.
D
I
think
one
of
the
one
of
the
major
things
that
that
can
be
done
is
you
know,
opening
up
our
roads,
there's
been
a
big
there's
been
a
big
movement
as
far
as
you
know,
creating
large
bike
lanes
and
things
that
take
away
from
our
roadways.
I,
don't
think
the
answer
is
is
is
congesting
traffic
in
our
neighborhoods.
D
We
need
to
make
sure
that
number
one
businesses
are
able
to
conduct
business
and
get
their
goods
and
services
in
and
out,
but
that
also
employees
have
have
good
and
easy
access
to
affordable
transportation
to
get
to
and
from
work.
So
I
think
that's
that's
a
high
priority
for
businesses
and
as
mayor
I
would
ask
for
the
voice
of
the
people
to
give
input
as
far
as
what
they
feel
is
important
to
them.
As
far
as
transportation
and
employment
goals.
J
A
C
B
J
I
I
You
know
we
need
to
address
the
mental
health
crisis
within
our
community,
we're
working
with
our
Police
Department
or
our
public
health
department
to
find
resources
to
be
able
to
help
those
people
in
need
those
children
in
our
schools
that
are
in
need,
but
there
are
areas
that
we
need
to
do
less
of
I.
Think
regulations
are
an
area
that
we've
looked
at.
We
we
did
it
with
housing
to
talk
about
the
opportunity,
housing,
ordinance
and
one
of
the
reasons
I
believe
that'll
be
successful.
I
Is
we
were
able
to
reduce
and
relax
some
regulations
to
make
it
easier
to
build
projects
in
our
community?
We're
looking
at
the
same
thing
in
the
restaurant
food
truck
Tap
Room's,
there's
a
ballot
question
on
this
fall's
election
regarding
liquor
or
charter
amendment
regarding
liquor,
so
we
could
allow
more
opportunities
for
Tap,
Room's
and
things
of
that
nature.
So
it
really
depends
on
the
issue.
We
need
to
be
thoughtful
and,
as
we
look
at
all
of
these
issues,.
E
So
I
also
agree
I
think
we
can
do
less
and
I
think
we
can
do
more
when,
as
I
mentioned
in
my
last
answer,
you
know,
I
do
think
that
we
have
probably
some
barriers
in
place
for
small
businesses
and
and
corporations
in
Bloomington,
so
really
doing
an
analysis
and
make
sure
that
we
can
be.
You
know
more
business
friendly
and
then,
in
terms
of
doing
more.
You
know
one
of
the
big
reasons
that
I
decided
to
run
for
Bloomington
City
Council
is
because
we
have
increasing
rates
of
student
homelessness
in
Bloomington
I
thought.
F
You
know
growing
up
here,
I
know
quite
a
few
small
business
owners
in
town,
medium
sized
business
owners
in
town
and
large
business
owners
in
town
and
all
of
them
have
struggled
at
times
with
the
city
in
regards
to
taking
on
new
properties
as
potential
headquarters
as
potential
places
to
work.
You
know,
the
big
push
that
I'd
have
is
is
for
the
city
to
do
what
they've
done
for
the
opportunity
housing
with
businesses.
F
On
the
other
side,
you
know,
I
I
have
to
say
that
I
think
that
that
the
city
with
the
opportunity,
housing,
ordinance
I'm,
trying
to
take
advantage
of
that
right
now
to
create
two
new
developments
within
town
and
the
work
that
they've
done
has
been
awesome
for
developers
in
the
residential
space.
It
just
needs
to
translate
over
to
businesses
as
well.
Oh.
G
G
One
of
the
things
that
we've
got
to
do,
and
we
have
been
doing
is
we've
been
partnering
not
only
with
the
private
sector,
but
also
with
with
other
other
government
entities
that
are
that
are
doing
things,
and
we
need
to
continue
to
look
forward
to
trying
to
do
that.
One
of
the
things
that
I
saw
in
that
the
recent
Bloomington
briefing
was
that
you
know
the
Bloomington
is
open
to
business.
G
We've
got
a
program
that
allows
for
those
folks
who
are
interested
in
being
entrepreneurs
in
the
city
that
they
can
get
a
learn:
how
to
do
cash
flow
analysis,
loan,
packaging
and
and
and
micro
financing.
We
need
to
be
able
to
partner
with
those
folks
that
want
to
be
able
to
maybe
fill
out
our
our
storefronts.
So
government
cannot
be
the
answer
to
everything.
We've
got
to
be
able
to
work
and
move
forward
in
a
partnership
manner.
I.
H
Would
agree
with
Sean
and
Jana
saying
that
government
should
do
less
and
more
in
some
instances,
they
should
stick
to
the
stuff
that
they're
good
at
like
keeping
take
taking
care
of
the
infrastructure,
keeping
our
roads
and
and
streets
well
taken
care
of
funding,
the
police
and
the
fire,
which
is
all
stuff
they
do
very
well.
But
lessening
regulations
on
businesses
to
to
expand
and
open
up
in
the
city
would
be
a
much
better
thing
to
do
than
to
keep
putting
more
and
more
regulations
on
businesses
and
holding
them
back.
B
C
I'd,
look
at
it
in
this
way.
Any
any
services
that
a
city
provides
is
basically
a
reflection
of
the
the
goals
and
the
priorities
and
the
the
capacity
of
the
community
that
they
belong
in
that
they
are
part
of,
and
here
in
Bloomington
our
City
Council.
We
have
set
six
strategic
priorities
that
we've
been
working
toward
over
the
past
five
years
or
so,
and
what
the
services
the
city
provides,
reflects
those
priorities,
whether
it's
sustainability
or
renewing
community
amenities
or
parks
and
trails
or
that
type
of
thing.
And
so
yes,
we
should
be
doing
more.
C
Yes,
we
should
be
doing
less.
Actually,
my
council
colleagues
can
tell
you
that
my
my
reputation
on
the
council
is
I'm.
The
stop
doing.
Guy
I
think
every
good
organization
should
have
a
stop
doing
list.
What
should
we
no
longer
do
for
whatever
reason
and
have
been
pushing
that
for
the
past
eight
years?
And
it's
been
an
interesting
discussion,
because
it
makes
you
think
a
little
bit
more
about
the
services
provided
and
how
it
reflects
and
how
it
fulfills
the
needs.
The
wants
the
strategic
priorities
of
a
community
I.
D
Do
agree
that
the
city
should
continue
doing
things
that
help
to
serve
the
community
and
that
make
things
easier
for
people.
Bloomington
does
a
really
good
job
at
offering
social
services
and
public
health
and
things
that
that
make
people's
lives
better.
But
I've
just
heard
some
horror
stories
and
talking
to
small
business
owners
as
far
as
them,
not
even
recommending
that
other
small
business
owners
come
in
and
open
their
doors
in
Bloomington.
There
there's
countless
examples
of
people
getting
75%
of
the
way
through
opening
a
business
just
to
be.
D
You
know,
hit
with
code
and
regulations
from
the
city
that
add
hundreds
of
thousands
of
dollars
and
our
potential
and
in
some
cases,
real
barriers
to
them
actually
opening
their
doors.
So
I
think
the
the
city
needs
to
continue
doing
the
things
that
they're
good
at
to
serve
the
community
and
do
less
as
far
as
making
things
hard
for
people
and
for
small
businesses.
All.
A
H
Would
not
support
the
city
getting
involved
in
making
an
artificial
minimum
wage
I
think
wages
should
be
driven
by
the
market,
and
if
a
city
is
just
going
to
put
a
minimum
wage
on
its
people,
then
it
causes
other
businesses
to
move
out
of
the
city.
If
the
state
was
gonna,
do
it
then
I
guess
we'd
have
to
go
along
with
it,
but
I
like
wages
to
be
market
driven
Duane.
A
G
You
I
think
that,
in
terms
of
minimum
wage,
it's
interesting
we
talk
about
$15
I,
remember
about
twenty
years
ago,
I
was
making
$15
an
hour.
You
know
working
working
actually
for
the
city.
At
that
point
time.
In
other
places,
we've
got
to
look
at
the
reality
of
the
situation
that
we're
in
and
as
I've
always
said
to
this
group,
you
know
which
I'm
a
member
of
is
that
we
got
to
have
a
conversation
about
this.
G
We
cannot
and
I've
even
opened
this
up
to
folks
at
the
Mall
of
America
and
I
open
it
up
to
you.
We
need
to
have
a
conversation
about
where
we're
gonna
go
in
terms
of
solving
inequities
that
we
have
in
our
society.
This
is
a
great
case
of
where
you
know.
If
we
want
to
have
our
residents
that
can
be
able
to
live
in
our
community,
we
need
to
be
able
to
be
sure
that
they
can
afford
to
be
able
to
pay
for
the
housing
it's
got
to
be
affordable.
G
I
One
of
the
things
we
looked
at
at
a
recent
council
meeting
was
the
loss
of
naturally
occurring,
affordable
housing,
and
what
we
saw
was
that
the
increase
in
cost
for
housing
has
far
outpaced
the
increase
in
wages
within
our
community
and
so
I
think
that
we
have
both
sides
to
look
at.
We
have
that
cost
basis
which
were
trying
to
address
transportation
issues
to
get
people
to
jobs,
and
things
like
that
I
think.
I
That's
an
area
where
particularly
local
government
can
play
a
very
important
role,
but
I
do
think
to
be
perfectly
honest
that
we're
going
to
have
a
conversation
as
a
community
about
$15
our
minimum
wage,
as
well
as
other
wage
and
benefits,
and
that
conversation
needs
to
include
the
business
community.
We
absolutely
need
your
voice
heard
on
that,
how
it
will
impact
you
and
things
like
that,
so
that
we
can
make
good
decisions
as
we
go
forward,
because
I
do
believe.
This
conversation
is
coming
up
in
the
next
couple
of
years.
Great.
A
J
Think
the
$15
an
hour
wage
limit
would
should
be
addressed
at
the
state
level.
The
it's
been
argued
that
people
that
have
to
pay
$15
an
hour
would
maybe
have
less
employees
because
they
couldn't
afford
to
pay
more,
but
I
also
think
that
it
should
take
a
natural.
It
will
take
a
natural
evolution,
especially
as
we
aging
baby
boomers,
who
only
had
one
or
two
children,
there's
less
people
to
fill
the
job
market,
and
so
that
will
drive
the
wages
up.
Naturally,
Susan.
D
D
I'm
not
for
raising
the
the
minimum
wage
to
$15.
It's
been
proven
in
other
communities
and
economies
that
that
it
doesn't
work
and
it's
a
band-aid
to
a
greater
symptom
right
now,
with
unemployment,
so
low
I,
don't
think
it's
a
necessary
thing
to
to
occur.
You
know
the
the
directly
relative
relationship
is
between
unemployment
and
minimum
wage
when
you
rage
them
in
raise
minimum
wage.
You
raise
unemployment,
it's
an
economic
fact,
so
I
think
in
in.
D
In
addition,
we
should
we
should
train
people
up
and
give
them
the
job
skills
necessary
to
make
their
maximum
wage
help
them
and
help
the
city
support
programs
like
deca
who
supports
you,
know
high
school
students
in
getting
out
there
and
getting
real
world
experience
and
jobs.
Let's
set
up
partnerships
with
local
businesses
so
that
those
that
aren't
college
bound
and
want
to
get
trade
skills
can
have
apprenticeships
at
local
businesses
to
get
those
skills
and
so
that
they
don't
have
to
worry
about
making
minimum
wage
they
can
make
their
maximum
wage.
Thank.
C
Clearly,
there's
momentum
for
progress
on
this
issue.
Governor
Wallace
has
said
he
would
sign
a
$15
minimum
wage
state
bill,
Minneapolis,
st.
Paul,
the
airport,
they've
all
moved
to
$15
minimum
wage
I.
Think
Target
and
Amazon
are
now
paying
$15
minimum
wage
which
puts
pressure
on
businesses,
whatever
governments
do
that
puts
pressure
on
other
businesses
to
be
able
to
pay
that
same
wage
as
well.
I
think
it's
it's
it's
an
oversimplification
just
to
simply
ask
yes
or
no
on
$15
minimum
wage.
As
everyone
has
said,
this
has
to
be
a
Bloomington
conversation.
C
We
can't
simply
plug
and
play
whatever
they've
done
in
Minneapolis
or
st.
Paul.
Bloomington
is
a
different
economy.
We
have
a
different
workforce.
We
have
a
different
industry,
we
need
to
watch,
we
need
to
listen.
We
need
to
learn
more.
I
know
that
the
Federal
Reserve
and
the
University
of
Minnesota
are
both
doing
studies
right
now
on
this
issue,
I'd
like
to
see
that
information
before
I
move
forward
but
I
think
we're
moving
in
this
direction
and
I
think
as
bit.
C
F
Time
since
1968,
with
inflation
being
factored
in,
the
minimum
wage
in
comparison
to
the
cost
of
society
has
been
going
down
and
that's
coming
from
your
national
governments.
Own
studies,
the
other
part
about
this
is
almost
50%
of
the
people
in
minimum
wage
are
black
and
brown,
and
over
75%
are
women.
So
when
we're
talking
about
the
inequities
within
our
society,
it's
not
just
about
pay
and
being
able
to
afford
things.
It's
about
who's,
getting
paid.
F
What
and
and
why
they're
getting
paid
that
part
of
his
education
I
believe
in
trying
to
help
people
get
an
education
to
move
forward.
Absolutely
I,
don't
think
we
can
go
to
a
$15
minimum
wage
overnight.
If
we
do,
it
has
to
be
staged.
There's
a
lot
of
questions
about
it.
It's
not
as
easy
as
yes
or
no,
but
we
do
need
to
look
at
the
inequities
within
our
society
and
and
decide
just
because
I'm,
a
white
male
that
grew
up
in
Bloomington.
Why
should
I
get
more
than
everyone
else?
E
Great
thank
you.
So
you
know,
in
my
perspective,
when
I
think
about
the
business
community
as
it
relates
to
the
minimum
wage
conversation.
I
can
only
imagine
how
hard
it
would
be
if
you're,
a
company
that
owns
businesses
in
multiple
cities
and
just
operationally
trying
to
figure
this
out
so
I
do
think
that
we're
that
momentum
is
going
towards
minimum
wage
$15
minimum
wage,
but
I
would
like
it
first
to
be
a
dryer.
E
I
would
like
to
see
it
address
at
the
state
level
so
that
there
is
consistency
across
our
metro
area
which,
in
my
mind,
would
make
it
easier
for
businesses.
However,
with
that
said,
you
know
if
the
$15
minimum
wage
conversation
you
know
did
come
to
Bloomington,
which
I
anticipate
it
will
I
would
be
supportive
of
having
those
conversations
you
know
like
was
mentioned
before
people
are
really
struggling
right.
Now,
increasing
rates
of
student
homelessness.
We
have
we're
seeing
more
people
visiting
food
shelves,
you
know
people
are
hurting
and
I,
don't
think
it's
just
about
wages.
E
But
again
this
goes
back
to
my
point
of
creating
a
Community
Coalition
here
in
Bloomington.
That
includes
our
business
leaders
and
all
of
our
stakeholders
includes
the
including
residents,
including
those
most
impacted
by
low
wages
figuring
out.
What
are
the
variety
of
strategies
that
we
can
deploy
to?
Make
sure
that
people
are
who
are
working
here
can
live
here
and
who
are
living
here?
Can
stay
here
all
right,
you're.
B
A
B
G
That
we've
already
started
that
conversation,
the
mayoral
candidate
bus
he
talked
about.
It
are
six
strategic
priorities
that
we've
got
out
there.
Each
of
those
are
what
we
need
to
be
moving
forward
and
having
those
conversations-
and
we
have
had
those
conversations
almost
every
year
with
the
chamber-
we've
had
those
discussions
in
terms
of
a
dialogue
in
terms
of
what
the
city
is
doing
and
how
we
can
partner
to
kind
of
move
forward,
whether
that
be
around
the
affordable
housing
process,
where
we
utilized
with
our
new
ordinance
on
affordable
housing.
G
We
made
sure
we
that
that
would
move
forward
and
all
the
other
projects
that
we
are
working
towards.
So
that
means
working
on
our
amenities
that
we've
got
out
there,
making
sure
we
are
not
only
environmentally
sustainable
but
also
fiscally
sustainable.
As
we
move
forward
I
could
I.
Could
you
know
recite
all
six
of
those
particular
priorities,
but
that's
really
where
we
need
to
be
in
order
for
us
to
be
a
city
of
choice,
all.
H
The
number
one
step
would
be
to
try
to
bring
in
the
small
business
community
in
to
dealing
with
the
City
Council,
so
many
of
them
feel
disconnected
from
the
council.
They
feel
like
they're
not
listening
to
their
needs
and
wants
of
the
regulations
that
have
been
put
up
on
them.
So
I
think
if
we
could
bring
the
city
and
the
small
business
owners
together
that
it
would
greatly
benefit
increasing
business
in
the
city.
B
J
What
what
can
we
do
to
attract
businesses?
I
guess,
perhaps
on-the-job
training
partnership
with
Bloomington,
where
they
could
offer
programs
for
education?
On-The-Job
training
may
be
lowering
educational
requirements
to
get
a
specific
job
where
they
could
finish
their
education,
while
working
or
using
that
experience
towards
their
requirements.
I
Think
we
actually
have
a
fairly
good
model
of
how
to
do
this
and
based
on
what
we've
been
doing
the
last
couple
years,
the
way
that
we
approach
the
opportunity,
housing
ordinance
to
listen
to
the
needs
of
our
community
and
then
reach
out
to
builders
and
developers
to
find
out
what
we
could
do
to
actually
meet
that
need
in
the
marketplace.
I
do
like
Clem's
idea
of
looking
at
how
we
could
apply
that
to
more
commercial
development
and
properties,
we're
doing
it
right
now
with
restaurants,
food
trucks,
Tap
Room's,
and
things
like
that.
I
We're
engaging
with
the
the
businesses
in
those
spaces
to
figure
out
how
we
can
change
those
regulations
to
make
it
less
burdensome
for
them.
I!
Think
we
take
that
model.
We
go
look
at
our
hospitality
industry.
We
look
at
manufacturing.
We
look
at
retail,
particularly
in
some
of
our
smaller
commercial
nodes
and
figure
out
how
we
can
help
small
businesses
how
we
can
help
those
ones
that
are
there
and
really
get
that
real-world
experience.
E
I,
do
think
you
know
when
we
can
take
a
really
holistic
view
of
our
community
when
we
think
about
the
business
community
as
part
of
the
solution
as
a
partner
in
thinking
through
how
to
improve
transit,
how
to
improve
housing,
how
to
make
sure
that
we
are
meeting
those
the
needs
of
those
who
are
most.
You
know
vulnerable
in
our
community.
I.
Think
that
we're
better
that
way
we
work
better
together.
E
B
A
F
Start
the
counter
yet
right,
there's
a
fireman
at
my
station
who
drives
truck
for
a
living.
He
does
deliveries
and
he's
gone
from
five
deliveries
a
day
down
to
four
cutting
his
income
by
20%
cuz.
He
can't
get
across
town,
so
transportation
has
to
be
a
huge
part
of
what
we
do
to
help
make
this
community
more
accessible,
I
I,
don't
mind
bike
lanes,
but
I
notice
on
the
west
side
of
town.
The
bike
lanes
are
off
the
street
and
the
east
side
of
town
around
the
streets.
F
So
maybe
we
need
to
look
at
some
equality
across
Bloomington
for
that
particular
thing.
But
most
of
all
that
we
talked
about
the
opportunity
housing
ordinance.
There
has
to
be
something
like
that
for
businesses,
there's
parts
of
Bloomington
that
are
literally
dying
and
unless
we
encourage
businesses
to
come
in,
you
know
the
malls
done
such
amazing
things
for
this
town
and
some
people
love
it.
Some
people
hate
or
whatever
I
tell
you
what
it
brought
a
lot
of
business
here
and
a
lot
of
revenue
and
it's
paying
for
a
lot
of
things.
F
A
You
all
for
very
passionate
views
on
the
business
community.
We
do
appreciate
that
quite
a
bit,
so
this
is
for
the
mayoral
candidates,
Tim
and
Ryan,
and
I
want
to
recognize
that
Pleet
police
chief
Potts
is
here
in
our
audience.
He
happens
to
be
out
in
the
hallway
right
now.
Thank
you
so
much
for
being
here.
Jeff!
Thank
you
so
much
for
being
here
and
all
that
you
do.
This
question
is
relating
to
gentlemen.
What
are
your
principles
for
public
safety
in
Bloomington.
C
Public
safety,
I
think,
first
of
all,
I
think
the
Bloomington
Police
Department
is
an
outstanding
Department
I
think
they
do
fantastic
job.
They
represent
the
community
very
well
and
serve
the
city
of
Bloomington
and
have
for
years,
and
that
comes
from
the
leadership
of
chief
Potts,
but
also
the
culture
within
within
the
department.
My
principles
are
I
think
reflect
what
the
the
department
is
is
currently
underway
with
right
now
it's
community
engagement,
it's
working
with
people
and
and
being
part
of
the
community
and
not
being
an
overarching
enforcement
agency,
but
rather
working
with
the
community.
C
I,
don't
know
if
you've
been
to
coffee
with
a
cop
or
or
taco
with
a
cop
or
I
went
to
White
Castle
with
a
cop
and
recently
a
lot
of
good
things.
A
lot
of
good
community
outreach
and
engagement,
which
then
leads
to
people
calling
the
police
looking
for
assistance
for
a
variety
of
different
things,
and
because
of
that
because
of
those
engagement
strategies
because
of
the
great
work
that
they
have
done.
C
D
I'm
in
agreement,
I
think
I,
think
pub.
The
public
safety
aspect
of
the
city
is
very
strong.
I
would
agree
with
Tim
that
that
engagement
between
and
and
bridging
the
gap
between,
the
community
and
law
enforcement
and
fire
and
EMTs
everybody
that
keeps
us
safe
and
healthy
and
first
responders
is,
is
crucial.
I
always
think
that
that
gap
can
can
close
and
get
it
gets.
Smaller
I
know
a
lot
of
people
and
I'm
friends
with
a
lot
of
people
who
are
on
the
police
force
and
the
fire
department
and
and
I
think.
D
One
thing
that
we
can
do
to
support
them
is
just
help
them
with
infrastructure.
I
mean
our
fire
stations
are
falling
apart.
We
need
to
support
them
structurally.
We
need
to
invest
money
in
the
blocking
and
tackling
of
our
city,
and
that
includes
our
our
facilities
for
Public,
Safety,
so
I
think
continuing
to
bridge
the
gap
and
then
offering
more
support
as
far
as
facilities
and
equipment
for
them
is
essential.
All.
A
Right,
thank
you
all
so
much
I'd
like
to
take
this
moment
to
give
a
round
of
applause,
Brent
pavÃa,
who
was
doing
a
fine
job
who
is
managing
our
our
time?
Thank
you.
So
much,
and
this
is
Shawn
broom.
He
is
our
public
affairs
director
with
the
Minneapolis
Chamber
of
Commerce
and
he's
here
to
help
us
direct
audience
questions
so
we're
gonna
open
it
up
who's.
Who
would
like
to
start.
K
C
G
H
I
Would
also
support
a
ballot
question
regarding
ranked
choice,
voting
and
allow
the
people
of
Bloomington
to
choose
on
that
issue.
I
do
think
it
has
merits
and
I
think
that
we
need
to
do
more
with
education
on
the
issue
as
well
as
Anse,
a
kind
of
having
more
of
that
conversation
about
what
are
the
pros
and
cons
of
it,
so
that
our
residents
can
make
an
informed
decision
on
whether
or
not
it
meets
their
needs.
L
L
D
I
think
that
should
be
up
to
to
the
business
at
hand.
I
mean
every
business
is
different.
Every
industry
is
different.
Large
companies
are
different
than
than
small
companies,
and
you
know
me
personally:
in
my
businesses,
I
have
a
safe
and
sick
policy.
I
allow
my
employees
to
take
time
off
work
as
needed
if
they,
if
they
need
to
help
their
kids
or
if
they
have
other
things
going
on
family
emergencies
or
whatever
it
is,
or
if
they're
sick.
D
E
I
agree:
I
support,
paid,
sick
and
save
time,
but
I
would
like
for
it
to
be
a
conversation
in
our
community
with
our
business
community
with
residents
and
again
with
people
who
are
being
most
impacted
by
this.
There
are
several
stories:
I've
heard
several
stories
from
pastors
from
residents
themselves,
where
they
were
evicted
from
their
apartment
because
they
had
sick
kids.
They
missed
a
couple
days
at
work.
E
F
G
That
looks
like
we're
going
down
the
line
again
here
so
Marine.
Thank
you
for
the
question,
I
think
it's
a
good
question
and
I'm
not
gonna
change.
My
response
that
I
gave
several
years
ago
when
you
asked
that
before
and
basically
the
the
the
discussion
we've
got
to
have
here
is
it's
got
to
be
a
conversation.
You
know
we
we
look
at
folks
who
are
in
these
circumstances,
who
need
to
utilize
these
things
and
I
thing.
I.
G
Think
about
is
my
parents
both
owned
a
restaurant-
and
you
know
you
got
folks-
are
going
to
work
that
are
cooking
and
they're.
You
know
and
they're,
sick
and
they're.
You
know
they're
getting
a
general
population
sick,
so
we
definitely
absolutely
have
to
have
a
conversation
about
this
and
that's
something
I've
always
been
open
to,
and
we
cannot
do
a
cookie
cutter
approach.
That's
why
I
think
we
do
need
to
look
at
this
at
the
local
level.
We've
got
a
different
demographic
outbreak
here
from
from
a
marketplace
like
we
did
with
the
opportunity.
G
Housing
ordinance
I
think
that
our
relationship
that
we
have
with
the
business
community
is
unique,
and
we
need
to
continue
to
have
that
conversation
so
again,
I
want
to
encourage
us
to
have
that
conversation.
Well,
we
can
come
up
with
some
unique
strategies
that
I
think
that
would
make
sense,
but
we
cannot
simply
just
turn
away
from
it
and
not
decide
to
do
anything
we
need.
We
need
that.
We
need
to
dive
into
this.
We
need
to
make
a
decision
around
this
I.
H
Think
you
should
be
left
up
to
each
individual
company.
I
mean
large
companies,
corporations
use
things
like
that
to
attract
employees,
and
that's
one
of
the
reasons
people
would
go
to
work
for
them
me
as
a
small
business
owner.
I
always
give
my
employees
off
all
the
time
they
need,
maybe
to
my
detriment
sometimes,
but
when
you
only
have
two
employees,
you
can't
really
be
forced
to
do
it,
because
sometimes
the
budget
just
doesn't
have
the
money
there
do
it.
So
I
think
it
should
be
left
up
to
each
individual
business.
I
I
do
agree
that
the
marketplace
addresses
some
of
these
issues,
where
you
can
compete
for
talent
based
on
that
flexibility,
and
so
it's
it's
a
very
difficult
situation
for
families.
It's
a
difficult
situation,
particularly
for
small
business
owners
and
I.
Think
as
a
community
working
together,
we
can
find
some
reasonable
solutions.
We
can
find
some
reasonable
middle
ground
on
this.
J
Well,
it's
the
last
person
I'm
forced
to
repeat,
but
most
everybody
else
said,
but
I
think
that
there's
certainly
small
businesses
out
there.
That
cannot
afford
to
pay
sick
leave.
So
I
mean
there
may
possibly
run
them
out
and
not
run
them
out
of
business,
but
make
it
difficult
for
them
to
Ford
and
I.
Think
that
large
business
has
a
moral
obligation
to
offer
that
those
opportunities
and
and
and
make
sure
that
whoever
is
applying
for
the
job
knows
what
they're
in
for,
if
they
accept
it,.
M
I'm
LuAnn
Lind
Remax
results
real
estate.
So,
of
course,
my
questions
going
to
have
to
do
with
home
ownership.
I
would
like
your
definition,
and
this
goes
to
whoever
several
of
you
mentioned:
affordable
housing.
So
how
do
you
see
proposing
having
a
lot
of
affordable
housing
in
Bloomington
and
still
not
affecting
the
value
of
our
higher-end
homes?.
B
J
I'm,
a
I'm,
a
big
proponent
of
home
values,
I
mean
most
of
us
here
are
homeowners.
We
don't
want
to
do
anything
to
make
our
value
home
values.
Go
down,
I'm,
going
to
suggest
once
again
that
when
we
add
more
housing
to
the
community
that
we
make
it
in
very
small
pieces
so
that
it
doesn't
affect
our
neighbors
I.
I
Think
to
directly
answer
the
question
is
we
have
to
be
thoughtful
about
where
new
housing
is
developed
and
built
within
the
city.
I
also
would
like
to
point
out
kind
of
the
flip
side
of
that
is.
The
properties
that
are
increasing
in
value
the
fastest
within
our
community
are
those
that
are
affordable,
the
ones
that
are
250,000
dollars
on
a
homeownership
purchase
basis
and
less
are
increasing
the
fastest.
Nearly
you'll
double-digit
rates
in
comparison,
some
of
those
more
expensive
houses
which
is
making
it
difficult
on
the
affordability
side.
A
H
A
G
Well,
thank
you
for
the
question.
You
know
I
used
to
work
for
Habitat
for
Humanity,
it's
a
trick.
Bag
I
mean
it
really
is
because
it
runs
counter
to
what
we're
trying
to
do
from
the
city,
and
our
city
manager
talked
about
the
idea.
We're
gonna
protect
the
value
of
your
property
so
and
you
want
to
be
able
to
have
those
property
values
increase
now.
G
On
the
other
hand,
you
know
we've
got
those
folks
who
we
need
to
be
able
to
work
in
our
community,
so
you
want
to
make
sure
you're,
providing
those
you
know
would
be
able
to
work
at
the
mall
work
on
our
hospitality
industry,
which
you
know
those
two
things
that
themselves
bring
on
over
17%
of
our
income.
So
what
we've
got
to
do
is
we've
got
to
continue
to
do
some
of
the
innovative
things
we've
done
around,
protecting
our
our
our
newer
properties
naturally
occurring
affordable
housing,
but
we're
also
I,
believe
and
I
know.
G
Councilmember,
Nelson
and
I
have
talked
about
this.
We've
got
to
look
around
the
idea
of
having
ownership
model
as
well,
so
those
property
values
continue
to
increase
and
there's
so
much
more
that
we
could
talk
about
this
and
when
we
could
certainly
talk
offline.
But
we
definitely
have
to
make
sure
we're
protecting
value
and
making
sure
we're
providing
affordability.
F
Current
project
I'm
working
on
is
considered
to
have
some
affordable
units
for
single-family
homes
for
ownership
and
the
maximum
level
price,
for
that
is
three
hundred
and
twenty
eight
thousand
two
hundred
dollars
that's
higher
than
what
the
average
house
value
in
Bloomington
is
so
creating
an
affordable
housing
destined
that
doesn't
sit
necessarily
mean
creating
cheap
housing.
Also,
there's
a
difference
between
single-family
homes
in
multi-family,
residential,
knowing
where
you
place
the
multi-family
residential.
F
How
that
could
impact
the
neighboring
community
is
absolutely
necessary
in
doing
Studies
on
that,
but
they're,
not
necessarily
exclusive
or
inclusive,
or
you
know,
they're,
not
necessarily
matched
one-to-one
with
each
other.
There
is
the
ability
to
create
affordable
housing
that
is
actually
worth
more
than
the
housing.
That's
in
the
that
it's
being
built
in,
and
so
it's
just
based
on
income.
It
doesn't
mean
that
everybody
is
on
a
section
8
program.
It
doesn't
mean
that
everybody
is
extremely
poor.
We're
talking
about
people
who
make
sixty
to
eighty
percent
of
what
the
average
is.
E
So
I
do
think
that
we
use
the
term
affordable
housing
pretty
broadly
and
loosely
almost
and
from
my
perspective,
you
know
we
have
to
make
sure
affordable
housing
means
that
we
have
housing
options
for
people
across
the
income
spectrum.
You
know
people
should
be
able
to
afford
their
housing,
I
think
paying
30
percent
of
their
income
rate,
but
we
have
people
who
are
spending
80
percent
of
their
income
on
a
tupid
two-bedroom
apartment
in
Bloomington.
So
it's
not
really.
It's
not
I.
E
Think
people
here
affordable
housing,
and
this
is
where
I've
heard
concerns
in
the
community
and
they
think
about
large
large,
low-income
housing
complexes.
And
that's
not
what
we're
talking
about
when
we're
talking
about
affordable
housing
in
Bloomington.
It
really
is
meeting
people
where
they're
at
you
know
when
you
think
about
area
median
income.
Like
my
opponent
here
said
you
know
it's
people
who
are
at
you
know:
80%
60%,
50%
of
area,
median
income.
D
Again,
thanks
for
the
question
I've
owned
a
home
in
Bloomington
in
the
last
decade
and
I
sold
it
a
year
and
a
half
ago
and
now
I,
rent,
so
I've
kind
of
been
able
to
see
both
sides
of
this
equation.
I
believe
that
the
the
home
values
in
Bloomington
continue
to
go
up,
which
is
a
sign
of
a
good
economy
here
in
a
good
real
estate,
market
and
I,
don't
think
you
know
adding
more
affordable.
D
Housing
really
has
that
that
large
of
an
impact
on
home
values,
in
my
perspective
on
the
rental
market,
I
think
it's
a
different
story.
I
think
as
we
are
constructing
new,
affordable
housing
and
high
density
or
even
allocating
affordable
housing
in
new
construction.
The
people
that
pay
for
that
difference
are
the
current
tenants.
D
C
C
We've
got
about
a
dozen
residential
high
density,
residential
apartment
buildings
being
in
the
pipeline
across
the
city.
It's
gonna
be
I,
think
there
there
are
1,400
or
1,700
total
units
and
415
of
those
units
will
be
affordable.
That's
across
the
city.
We
have
city
sponsored
things,
HRA
sponsored
projects
underway
right
now,
at
Penn
and
American
and
South
of
France
and
old
shakopee,
its
dispersed
across
the
city
and
the
most
exciting
thing.
C
We
let
the
RFP
just
last
week
for
a
development
of
city-owned
parcels
on
Lyndale
Avenue
just
across
from
Toro,
and
asking
look
at
looking
for
development
possibilities
that
not
only
fit
into
the
neighborhood
but
act
as
a
gateway
to
the
city.
So
there
are
many
ways
to
do
this,
but
we
have
to
look
at
dispersing
it
as
reasonably
and
responsibly
as
possible.
All.
A
O
N
Trouble
hearing,
my
name
is
Jim
Highland,
I'm,
a
new
resident
to
Bloomington
and
I'm
on
the
east
side
and
I
travel
in
day
or
night
Allendale,
but
Portland
and
Nicollet
quite
a
bit
in
the
last
two
months.
Getting
my
house
ready
to
move
in
and
the
bike
lanes
I'd
like
to
address
the
question
maybe
to
the
mayor
candidates.
N
C
I
think
what
you're
specifically
addressing
is
taking
the
four
lane
roads
two
lanes
in
each
direction,
putting
them
on
the
road
diet.
So
it's
one
lane
in
each
direction
with
the
center
turn
lane
and
I've
told
people
my
perspective
on
this.
Those
bike
lanes
are
about
fifth
in
the
priority
list.
When
that
is
done
in
terms
of
in
terms
of
putting
the
road
on
a
road
diet,
what
it
does
more
than
anything
it
does,
it
makes
it
safer.
It
gives
a
dedicated
left-turn
lane.
C
We
see
that
there
are
statistics
that
show
the
number
of
rear
end
accidents
is
on
four
lane.
Roads
of
people
stopped
in
traffic
in
a
lane
of
traffic,
hoping
to
make
a
left
turn,
so
it
makes
it
safer.
The
other
big
big
big
thing
is
that
it
slows
people
down
I'm
out
door,
knocking
and
the
thing
that
I
hear
across
the
city
is
that
people
drive
too
fast
in
Bloomington
to
reduce
it
to
one
lane
in
each
direction.
C
It
slows
people
down
and
maybe
only
two
or
three
or
five
miles
an
hour
that
makes
a
huge
difference.
The
bike
lanes
on
the
side,
yeah,
they're
usable
I,
think
you
don't
five
feet
for
a
bike
lane.
That's
probably
not
even
big
enough
on
a
busy
street
like
that.
Those
Road
diets
are
for
safety
and
the
slow
traffic
down.
D
I
agree
with
some
of
those
points,
however.
I
have
seen
in
busy
times
of
the
day
with
commuter
traffic.
When
you
slow
people
down
it's
it's
driving
nature
that
people
get
more
aggressive
with
driving
and
I've
seen
personally.
Accidents
occur
as
as
people
are
trying
to
avoid
bikers
in
the
bike
lane
and
getting
aggressive,
because
they're
they're
being
congested
in
in
the
traffic
to
Clem's
point
earlier.
There's
a
disconnect
between
where
these
bike
lanes
exist
within
our
community
and
I
think
there's
probably
a
better
location
for
some
of
these
ones
that
are
taking
up.
O
C
Jump
in
first
for
you
dimed,
because
I
kind
of
figured
that
was
gonna,
be
a
question
and
as
well.
You
know
I
brought
that
up
at
a
study
meeting.
What
was
it
a
month
two
months
ago
that
I
would
like
our
study
meetings
are
our
worthwhile
other
great
discussions,
but
to
sit
with
our
backs
to
the
the
public
you're
right
in
a
small
inaccessible
room.
It
doesn't
feel
like
it's,
it's
it's
a
viable
or
a
good
or
a
meeting
conducive
to
the
community
being
part
of
it.
C
So
I
brought
that
up
at
a
study
meeting
a
couple
of
months
ago
that
I
want
to
move
down
to
the
council
chambers.
Maybe
not
televised
them
live,
but
certainly
tape
them
and
have
them
available
and
and
just
trying
to
open
up
the
open
up
the
process
a
little
bit
more.
So
people
can
you
can
see
the
sausage
being
made.
It's
not
pretty.
Don
I
can
tell
you
that
for
certain,
but
it's
you
know
if
you
want
to
see
if
we
can
certainly
show
it
to
you
does.
J
F
P
I'm
Margaret
Swanson
I'm
two
years
in
Bloomington
and
I
have
a
question
for
you.
Many
of
you
have
talked
about
cutting
back
on
regulations
that
they
have
forbid
small
businesses.
But
if
my
concern
is
how
do
you
decide
which
regulations
if
a
drycleaner
wants
to
move
in
and
wants
to
use
the
most
polluting
chemicals
that
run
into
nine
Mile
Creek
or
into
the
river
and
says?
Well,
we
can't
use
other
chemicals
because
it
would
be
too
expensive.
How
do
you
make
that
decision?
P
F
Hop
in
I
can
say
that
I
don't
want
to
see
people
don't
like
chemicals
into
the
lake
or
whatever.
It
is.
That's
not
it
it's
for
me.
The
experience
that
that
my
friends
have
had
has
been
I
want
to
buy
a
place
or
move
into
a
place
within
Bloomington
to
run
my
business
and
as
I
go
into
that
building.
There's
structural
things.
There's
environmental
health!
There's
all
these
other
things,
which
can
be
something
as
simple
as
hey.
F
You
need
to
replace
that
that
plumbing
on
that
sink
that
you're
not
going
to
use
when
you
go
into
as
a
business
owner
and
want
to
take
over
a
property,
that's
been
either
empty
or
not
used
or
run
down
because
it
was
built
60
years
ago
or
whatever
it
may
be.
There
can
be
hundreds
of
thousands
of
dollars.
Difference
urban
land
work,
spot
a
place
on
90th
and
Portland
between
Portland
and
Nicollet
$245,000.
They
were
asked
to
spend
over
$600,000
to
make
that
an
office
building
to
meet
city
regulations.
F
H
G
Can
I
respond
to
that?
What
I
want
to
say
is
I
think
the
I
think
the
the
asker
is
hit
it
right
on
the
oversimplification
here.
You
know:
we've
got
a
right
size,
our
regulations.
We've
got
to
be
sure
that
whatever
we're
doing
makes
sense
for
the
entire
interest
of
the
entire
community,
I
think
that's
oftentimes.
What
what
we've
done
on
council
when
you
get
there,
and
you
start
looking
at
these
things-
and
you
know
you
bring
this
this-
this
kind
of
oh
I,
don't
want
to
say
a
simple
view.
G
We
want
our
businesses
to
be
able
to
be
competitive
in
our
in
our
community.
There
would
be
nothing
that
we
would
want
to
do
more
to
create
those
hurdles,
and
so
we've
got
to
make
sure
that
we
are
creating
the
right
environment
and
marketplace
and
and
and
our
and
our
folks
do
agree.
86%
of
folks
in
that
first
district
think
that
our
markets
are
open.
That.
E
It's
a
system
that
we're
working
within
it's
not
just
the
city,
it's
the
county,
it's
the
state,
federal
and
all
of
those
jurisdictions
have
different
rules,
and-
and
so
thank
you
for
that
point,
though
I
mean
it
is
it's
hard
to
get
up
here
and
have
a
response
in
one
minute
right
without
and
we
can't
really
get
into
the
weeds
in
these
conversations.
So
it's
a
good
point.
I
would.
B
D
Just
want
to
add
that
that
to
the
oversimplification
point
there
can't
be
a
blanket
thrown
over
this
whole
conversation,
but
there
there
is
a
lot
of,
in
my
opinion,
needless
overreach,
that
occurs.
For
instance,
I
can't
move
the
building
the
sign
of
my
building
four
feet
without
getting
city
approval
for
paying
a
fee
to
get
a
permit,
I'm
all
for
approval,
but
I'm,
not
all
for
the
small
fees
that
come
along
with
countless
items
that
are
pretty
nitpicky.
In
my
opinion,
for
small
businesses.
I
You
let
me
just
give
you
a
real
world
example
of
how
we've
kind
of
worked
on
that
and
before
I.
Do
that
this
stuff
tells,
with
the
question
before
in
terms
of
transparency
and
being
able
to
watch
this
you'd
kind
of
see
how
we
work
through
many
of
these
issues,
but
in
housing.
We
have
in
that
new
ordinance,
I
think
13
different
items
that
we've
granted
flexibility
to
builders
and
developers
on
reduced
regulations.
An
example
of
that
would
be
parking.
I
However,
within
the
ordinance
we
said
you
have
to
be
in
proximity
to
transit,
because
we
know
that
if
they
have
access
to
transit,
we
can
have
less
parking
demand,
so
we
didn't
just
say
anywhere
everywhere
within
our
community
and
try
to
push
that
parking
out
into
neighborhood
streets
and
things
like
that.
So
that's
a
real-world
issue
where
it's
not
simple.
I
It's
complicated
and
our
staff
does
an
excellent
job
of
helping
us
review
that
information,
bringing
things
forth
and
and
really
vetting
those,
and
that
was
where
the
process
working
with
the
Builder
developer
community
working
with
advocates,
really
worked
very
well.
So
that
is
how
those
types
of
regulations
we
right-size.
A
B
J
You
for
taking
the
time
out
of
your
morning,
we
need
to
have
a
customer
service
attitude
towards
business.
How
can
we
help
I
hope,
I
have
conveyed
that
I
believe
in
an
open
and
transparent
local
government,
and
that
does
not
play
favorites.
That
creates
and
maintains
a
level
playing
field
for
all
businesses
in
this
community
I'm
sure
we'll
all
work
hour
to
get
to
navigate
our
way
into
the
future.
That
will
surely
have
its
challenges
along
the
way.
J
I
Yeah,
thank
you
very
much.
I
appreciate
the
opportunity
to
have
this
conversation
when
I
ran
two
years
ago,
my
focus
was
on
making
sure
we
paid
attention
to
the
needs
of
our
neighborhoods
city
has
done
an
amazing
job,
a
development
on
the
self
loop
along
494,
but
I
see
older
facilities
like
fire
stations
parks.
Our
basic
infrastructure
within
our
neighborhoods
I
want
to
make
sure
we're
attending
to
that,
and
the
needs
of
that.
I
One
of
the
big
things
that
I
see
is
the
need
to
address
our
aging
commercial
corridors
and
commercial
nodes
and
to
be
able
to
put
together
a
plan
to
work
with
businesses
to
bring
owners
opportunities
to
help
with
those
to
find
and
look
at
these
regulations.
Part
of
the
conversation
we've
been
having
today
to
make
it
easier
for
an
entrepreneur
to
start
up
a
small
business
or
start
a
restaurant
have
been
very
happy
to
have
a
couple
of
restaurants
open
up
near
my
house,
Northstar
tavern
and
Carmine's.
I
H
H
H
When
these
businesses
grow,
we
need
to
be
more
accommodating,
so
they're,
not
losing
other
cities
like
Lakeville
and
Farmington,
and
what
I've
watched
several.
If
my
customers
moved
to.
Thank
you
for
your
time
this
morning
and
if
you
have
any
questions
for
me,
you
can
contact
me
at
Al
for
Bloomington
comm
I.
G
Want
to
thank
the
chamber
and
I
want
to
thank
all
those
who
have
attended
this
morning
to
have
this
conversation
that
we've
had
in
Bloomington.
We
are
trying
to
cultivate
a
community
of
choice,
and
that
is
a
community.
That's
welcome
to
all
that
includes
businesses
as
well.
Those
folks
who
are
struggling
at
the
bottom
of
the
economic
ladder
I've
had
that
opportunity
to
climb
that
ladder
from
a
family
perspective.
G
Now,
certainly,
relatives
of
my
family
have
been
in
the
military,
those
folks,
my
parents,
both
owned
a
small
business
and
I've,
had
conversations
too
with
those
folks
that
are
out
there
that
owned
small
businesses
within
our
community,
and
when
we
look
at
the
surveys
that
are
out
there,
they
paint
a
different
picture.
They
paint
a
picture
of
a
city
that
is
moving
to
its
past
the
boom
times
that
we
used
to
see
in
the
future
and
in
the
past
we
were
will
return
to
in
the
future
where
one
place
was
a
farm.
G
F
Was
poetic
Thank
You
Dwayne?
For
that?
Thank
you,
everyone
for
the
conversation,
and
you
know,
I
think
as
we
look
there's
questions
about
transparency
and
the
feedback
that
I've
gotten
from
most
of
the
community
on
even
some
of
the
existing
projects
is
that
the
transparency
with
the
leadership
in
this
city
has
not
been
what
they
expected
to
be
in
the
engagement.
F
Isn't
there
I
think
that
some
of
that
is
on
the
citizens
to
get
involved,
but
think
a
large
part
of
the
zone
on
the
council
to
make
the
information
available
as
many
different
ways
as
possible
as
we
look
at
business
within
our
community,
whether
it's
small
or
the
largest?
It's
good
for
us,
it's
good
to
have
business
here.
It
has
to
be
businesses
that
give
people
jobs
that
help
them
afford
housing.
That
doesn't
necessarily
mean
twice
what
they're
making
today,
but
we
do
need
to
look
at
it
as
there
is
increasing
inequities
within
our
society.
F
But
most
of
all
just
know
that
there's
a
lot
of
people
from
here
or
new
people
to
here
that
want
to
help
grow
this
community
and
make
it
great
and
the
city's
job
is
to
encourage
those
people
and
to
help
those
people
be
here
and
to
do
those
things
to
make
our
community
better
and
it's
our
job
to
do
that.
Thanks
all.
E
Right
well,
I
want
to
thank
the
chamber,
Kim
Robert
Anna
again
for
organizing
this
opportunity.
Thank
you
all
for
coming
in
the
torrential
rain,
I,
so
I
hope
my
goal
today
and
what
I
hope
you
guys
are
taking
away.
Is
that
I'm
absolutely
committed
to
working
in
partnership
with
our
community
and
when
I
say
our
community
I
mean
our
residents,
our
business
partners,
whether
you're
a
small
business
owner,
a
large
business
owner
to
make
sure
that
we
are
really
looking
at
our
government
government
and
ensuring
that
we
are
meeting
the
needs
of
our
community
members?
E
And
so
you
know
I,
look
forward
to
working
with
you
in
the
future
when
I
get
on
council
I
hope
that
you
know
you
can
always
give
me
a
phone
call
and
I'm
gonna
work
with
you
to
get
your
questions
answered
to
figure
out.
You
know
who
I
need
to
connect
you
with
what
resources
and
again.
Thank
you
all
so
much
for
coming
today
and
thank
you
all
for
hosting
us.
I.
D
Will
echo
the
thanks?
Thank
you
for
the
to
the
chamber
for
hosting
the
event.
Thank
you
for
all
for
all.
Coming
over
the
last
10
years,
I've
been
innovating
and
creating
jobs
and
bringing
revenue
into
this
city,
and
even
though
I
don't
agree
with
all
the
regulations
that
the
city
currently
puts
on
businesses.
My
plan
is
to
still
operate
multiple
businesses
here
in
the
city
of
Bloomington,
I
love.
D
This
city
I've
been
here
my
whole
life
and
as
mayor,
it's
my
goal
to
broaden
our
city's
perspective
as
a
leader
in
the
community
with
fresh
new
ideas
that
will
lead
us
into
the
future
and
not
have
us
remain
in
the
status
quo.
I
think
the
priorities
are
transparency,
financial
responsibility,
inclusivity
and
making
Bloomington
open
for
business.
D
Once
again,
those
are
my
top
priorities,
I'm,
not
about
revolution
and
uprooting
a
system
that
works,
but
I
am
about
evolution
and
getting
us
to
where
we
need
to
be
so
that
we're
set
up
for
success
in
the
future.
So
please
I
would
ask
for
your
vote
in
November
to
be
your
next
mayor
of
Bloomington.
It
would
be
my
honor
to
serve
you.
Thank
you.
C
Well
and
one
final,
thank
you
to
the
chamber
thanks
to
all
for
being
here.
This
went
quickly.
We
didn't
get
to
a
number
of
topics,
including
Workforce
Development,
which
I
can't
believe
we
didn't
talk
about.
I
will
say
a
couple
of
things.
First
of
all,
hearing
the
comments
about
small
businesses
and
the
pressures
they
face
and
the
challenges
they
face.
Message
heard
loud
and
clear.
That
will
absolutely
be
a
priority.
C
C
Addition
to
Sky,
Water,
Technologies
I
know
that
the
the
home
furniture
store
is
coming
up
out
of
the
ground,
are
BECU,
is
expanding,
forklifts
Minnesota
is
expanding,
Donaldson
is
expanding
all
those
companies
folks,
none
of
them,
are
at
a
self-loop
expansion
and
work
is
going
on
across
the
city.
In
the
self-loop,
we've
got
new
hotels
going
in
that's
gonna.
That
will
push
the
number
of
hotel
rooms
in
the
city
of
Bloomington
to
greater
than
10,000,
and,
let's
not
forget,
whirly
ball
that
just
opened
recently
as
well.
C
A
Running
a
candidate
forum
with
eight
candidates
is
complicated,
but
I
want
to
applaud
to
you
all
for
a
wonderful
conversation,
and
hopefully
you
all
gain
some
insight
before
you
go
and
vote
in
November.
Thank
you
again
to
the
Mall
of
America,
our
presenting
sponsor
today,
as
well
as
Xcel
Energy.
They
sponsor
these
forums
every
year
and
we
appreciate
the
work
that
you're
doing
in
the
business
community.
Thank
you
also
to
the
Bloomington
Center
for
the
Arts
and
hosting
us
here
in
the
black
box,
theater
Kevin
Ramage,
our
new
executive
director
with
artistry.