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Minneapolis
looks for new model of Community Participation. 
The
N'hoods work for future funding and NRP continuance.
Framework for the Future
The
city has laid out a proposal for the future of neighborhood
participation in a document called Framework
for the Future. Is
this an improvement to citizen involvement, or an
attempt to dismantle
NRP?
Background: For
18 years, the Minneapolis Neighborhood Revitalization
Program has been one of the most successful, and
award-winning, citizen participation programs in
the country. Unfortunately, the legislation that created
NRP and the provided an independant funding source
are scheduled to end in 2009. With it would go
all 68 neighborhood organizations along with
local-level advocacy and the neighborhood-chosen
improvement projects like low-interest
home improvement loans, police and crime reduction
funding, environmental improvements, and much more.
The
NRP program and the City's neighborhood organizations
are up against a City Council and Mayor who, in spite
of lip-service to the contrary, have long wanted
to end this model of citizen empowerment and fold
any remains into the City's communications department.
Highlights
of the draft Framework:
1) replace the
NRP central office with a new community engagement
division under the City
Coordinator
(budget: $1 million);
2) replace the NRP Policy Board
with a Governing Board that advises, but does not
control the budget or select its own
director; 
3) provide $2 million annually in administrative
funding to neighborhood groups as part of the annual
city budget process (less
than $30,000 per neighborhood group);
4) set up a
Neighborhood Investment Fund (NIF) for neighborhood
programs (with budget and source of funds
not identified);
5) provide part of those funds to
neighborhoods through an allocation process, and
the rest through a competitive micro-grant process.
Short
Counterpoint: Compared to the original legislated NRP budget of
$20 million per year, $3 million will not go far.
And, there is no firm commitment to fund the NIF,
so no guarantee of additional money. Thirty thousand
dollars per year will not keep a neighborhood office
open. While it may pay for a few
newsletters, insurance, and bookkeeping, etc., it
won’t pay for
rent, staff, equipment, or other basic office expenses.
Nor will it pay for websites, community events, volunteer
support, or any programs
such as housing loans, environmental programs, safety
initiatives, economic development, and so on.
Even
with some token funding in the NIF, neighborhood
programs would have to align with city priorities,
not necessarily the neighborhood’s
priorities. For example, if a neighborhood wants
to offer home improvement loans, and the city’s priority du jour
is first-time homebuyer assistance, which program
do you think the City will
fund? Also consider that the City's
budget is redrawn every year, and cuts could be
made by the Mayor and Council at their sole discretion.
It's
not about money: In
it's current form, the NRP program doesn't compete
against, or use any of the City's general funds
(police, fire, public works, administration, etc.).
And even if fully funded into the future using taxpayer
dollars, the program would cost the City less than
7/10ths of 1% of the City's $1.6 Billion budget.
To offset that cost, NRP has already leveraged multi-million
dollars of home and business improvements, brought
many old and new partners together to benefit the
city, has provided countless programs and projects
city-wide that would not otherwise be available through
services provided by the City of Minneapolis.
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Originally
posted 12/16/2006
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