If you haven’t yet heard, Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson is currently under fire for spending $31,000 of taxpayer dollars on a dining set at the same time HUD was proposing massive cuts to public housing and Section 8 programs. Observers have rightly pointed out the hypocrisy of his lavish spending at a time when HUD is proposing to cut critical programs that support and house the lowest income and most vulnerable people across the country due to “insufficient funds.” Continue reading →
Latest CURA Research on Gentrification Confirms Findings by Defend Glendale & Public Housing Coalition
On Friday, February 23 the Center for Urban & Regional Affairs (CURA) announced the findings of their research on gentrification in Minneapolis & St. Paul. They confirmed what everyone in the Twin Cities already knows: gentrification is happening here. Their research showed that neighborhoods in North, Northeast, and Phillips / Elliot Park in Minneapolis, along with the Hamline-Midway, West Side, West 7th, and Frogtown neighborhoods in St. Paul have gentrified. The researchers made a point to emphasize that they used a conservative measure of gentrification, based on data that ended in 2015. It is therefore likely that gentrification is happening in more communities than just those specifically highlighted by this study.
AMI Housing: Deeply Unaffordable for Low-Income Families
Let’s compare what people’s rents would look like in public housing vs. AMI housing: Continue reading →
MPHA Tries to Discredit Residents Opposed to Privatization, Calling Public Ownership “Antiquated”
February 8, 2018 – Two weeks ago, the Defend Glendale & Public Housing Coalition (DG&PHC) sent a letter to Minneapolis City Council members, recommending the Council immediately review the activities of the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority (MPHA). We included documents DG&PHC has obtained through public records requests – including contracts, invoices, and work products – proving that MPHA and its contractors have quietly undertaken extensive privatization planning for Minneapolis public housing over the past year. We called particular attention to MPHA’s request to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the authority to release two properties from legal protections known as Declarations of Trust (DOTs). DOTs are the foundation for public ownership of public housing, and releasing them opens the door to privatization. Continue reading →
MPHA Enlists Rep. Ilhan Omar for Its Privatization Campaign
On September 6, 2017, MPHA’s communications manager Jeff Horwich wrote an email to the McKnight Foundation about a then-upcoming event hosted by Rep. Ilhan Omar called “Coffee and Kulan: Affordable Housing.” He wrote, “It promises to be interesting–our first demonstration of what Rep. Omar’s support can mean as we move forward.”
Then, on September 15, Horwich sent an internal email to further highlight Rep. Omar’s event. He wrote, “It goes without saying why this is a particularly notable event and location. Rep. Omar’s district includes both Glendale and Cedar-Riverside, two areas very important to us. There will certainly be questions from the audience, and it could get interesting. Rep. Omar has expressed her intent to help us move our conversation forward in this potentially most difficult of places, and this will be our first chance to see what her involvement could mean.” Continue reading →
McKnight Foundation Complicit in MPHA’s Lack of Transparency for Privatization Plans
Last week, the McKnight Foundation issued an email to Minneapolis City Council members implying the Defend Glendale & Public Housing Coalition’s (DG&PHC) December 8 public statement included a “mischaracterization” of its $1 million grant to the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority (MPHA). However, McKnight failed to specify for council members which part of our statement allegedly mischaracterized their grant, or explain how it did so.
In fact, our statement contained no mischaracterization, while McKnight’s rhetorical sleight of hand fits in neatly with MPHA’s longstanding pattern of downplaying and obfuscating its now well-documented privatization plans. Continue reading →
MPHA Secretly Hires Corrupt Financial Consultants from CSG to Research Redevelopment Options in Violation of Unanimous 2015 Minneapolis City Council Resolution
The Minneapolis Public Housing Authority (MPHA) has ceased to operate in the public interest and must now be considered a rogue agency, captured by private interests. The Defend Glendale & Public Housing Coalition (DG&PHC) has long been aware of MPHA’s track record of misleading and intimidating residents, but recent revelations shock even the most experienced and jaded observer. Continue reading →
MPHA’s Privatization Team (aka “The Wrecking Crew”) – See Who is Financially Benefiting!
We found out who is financially benefiting from the destruction of public housing in Minneapolis.
Confirmed: MPHA’s privatization team is bankrolled by the McKnight Foundation
In September 2017, the McKnight Foundation, a nationally prominent Minneapolis-based charity, awarded the Minneapolis Public Housing Authority (MPHA) a $1 million grant. MPHA told public housing residents these funds would be used to preserve and repair their homes. Documents newly uncovered by the Defend Glendale & Public Housing Coalition (DG&PHC), however, reveal this was more of MPHA’s typical double-talk. Continue reading →
High-Density Model in Minneapolis is for the Rich/Elite, Not for the Poor or the Vulnerable
The current high density model (a lot of new buildings being built) in Minneapolis is for the rich/elite, not for the poor or vulnerable families. Continue reading →