Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs

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Triangle Park Project
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2006-05) Wilson, Craig
In the summer of 2005, I was hired by City of Minneapolis Ward 7 Council Member Lisa Goodman as a summer intern. Among the many tasks I was assigned was to coordinate an effort to work with area stakeholders to improve ‘Triangle Park,’ a once forgotten corner of the city ridden with homeless people and drug trafficking now gleaning with newly constructed luxury condos. At the time Council Member Goodman was receiving numerous calls from area residents, many of them recent transplants from the suburbs, complaining of nuisances associated with park and suggesting that she do something about it. Over the course of the summer I pulled together a team of stakeholders including area business, residents, city staff, neighborhood staff, design professionals, and a local NGO that met regularly to define and address the issue. The greatest achievement over the course of the summer was to partner with Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and local residents in a community building event where we replanted wooden planters that were remnants of city beautification efforts for Mikhail Gorbachev’s historic visit to Minneapolis in 1990. Although we made progress toward bringing attention to the park, the summer passed quickly and our efforts proved to merely provide a band-aide remedy to what was a complex and chronic problem. As I pondered the topic of my capstone thesis on in the fall of 2005, the challenges and opportunities associated with Triangle Park led me to decide to take it up as a thesis project. I developed a thesis question with my advisors Ann Forsyth and Carissa Schively and Triangle Park stakeholders: How can neglected public space be reprogrammed to promote social interaction, community building, public health and a gateway in a major American downtown core? Over the course of the academic year I worked with community stakeholders, design professionals and University of Minnesota faculty to address this question. I intentionally decided to remain community and politically grounded and focused on a project that could actually be implemented with a ‘toolkit’ of deliverables that would provide useful for future implementers – most notably a video documentary created to clearly and effectively articulate project context, community goals and design possibilities. The outcome of this work has been the development of two NGOs and major fundraising efforts to implement various goals addressed in the thesis – namely the creation of an urban dog park and non-profit devoted to the enhancement of Triangle Park. I thank everyone who has participated in this effort for their invaluable contribution toward improving a once neglected corner of the world.
The 38th Street and Chicago Avenue Small Area/Corridor Framework Plan
(Minneapolis City Council, 2007-11-09) Rosell, Antonio
The purpose of this Small Area / Corridor Framework Plan is to support the ongoing improvement and revitalization of the area of 38th Street and Chicago Avenue by proposing specific policies and strategies to guide its evolution. This work was initiated by area residents, business owners, and other community leaders in early 2004. It has since advanced through several phases of refinement under the direct guidance of residents and neighborhood organizations. This work has been supported, financed and adopted by the four neighborhood organizations around 38th Street and Chicago Avenue, and by other business and civic organizations in the area.
Moving from “Broken Windows” to Healthy Neighborhood Policy: Reforming Urban Nuisance Law in Public and Private Sectors
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2008) Seiler, Bryan M.
Speculations on the Limits of Legal Change, Mark Galanter hypothesizes that the legal experience of the parties, which he characterizes as “one shotters” and “repeat players,” plays a fundamental role in their success in the legal system generally. 11 His conclusion about the systemic bias of the legal system is every bit as applicable to the public nuisance laws that pit the resources of powerful state actors against unorganized and often economically disadvantaged defendants. This Note proposes statutory reforms at the state and local level to eliminate the undesirable legal and social consequences of current uses of public nuisance statutes. In addition, this Note sets forth an accompanying private attorney general prosecution structure to reintroduce market mechanisms and prevent abuse by overeager neighbors. Part I introduces the common law origins of nuisance law, the evolution of the doctrine in cities during the Progressive Era, and the usage of nuisance law in the modern urban renewal context. Part II argues that the current use of public nuisance law by cities as a civil injunctive remedy is unsound in both its assumptions and methodology; violative of modern takings jurisprudence; contrary to economic efficiency; ineffective as an urban renewal strategy; and unable to safeguard the vulnerable populations it claims to protect.
New Town Centers Excelsior and Grand, St. Louis Park and Heart of the City, Burnsville: Adapting New Urbanist Principles to Meet Suburban Realities
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2008-04-28) Schweser, Gregory
The creation of new town centers based on New Urbanist principles has increased in the United States throughout the past decade as suburban areas seek to revitalize themselves and create a sense of place. While New Urbanism offers design principles intended to counter the trends of urban sprawl, in suburbia the practice must often conform to the realities of existing incongruous patterns of development, political, and market forces. Two suburban new town center developments within the Twin Cities, Excelsior and Grand in St. Louis Park and Heart of the City in Burnsville are nearing completion and exemplify ways in which New Urbanist principles have been adapted to conform to the suburban context. As additional suburbs in the Twin Cities seek to implement new town center plans they should carefully analyze New Urbanist principles in the context of their own existing suburban fabric. Strict adherence to New Urbanist principles may not be advisable if such principles threaten the viability of a project. However a balance must be attained in order to achieve economic success while also providing the benefits to the urban fabric that is exemplified in New Urbanist goals. Analysis of Excelsior and Grand and Heart of the City may be useful to understand how this balance may be achieved. Excelsior and Grand and Heart of the City will be critiqued here based on relevant New Urbanist principles of The Neighborhood, The District, and The Corridor and The Block, The Street, and The Building. Deviations from these principles will be examined based upon existing demographic, market, and land use factors that apply to each specific case.
Audit Tool for the Central Corridor Pedestrian Environment (2008)
(2008-05-13) Tolkan, Josh
This report surveys research into characteristics of good pedestrian environments. Much has been written bemoaning that streets are designed for cars and not for pedestrians. However, the goal of the research discussed here is to understand what makes a good pedestrian environment.
Emphasizing the "Public" in Public Affairs Implementing a bottom-up, blog-centric new media strategy at an institution of public policy
(2008-05-29) Lampa, Graham
In the Spring of 2007, the University of Minnesota's Office of Service and Continuous Improvement (OSCI) approved a grant from its Service and Process Improvement Fund (SPIF) for a grassroots initiative entitled “Emphasizing the "Public" in Public Affairs” (see Appendix A). The aim of the proposal was to use an already existing university resource called “UThink” to build weblogs for the various research centers at the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs to enable the centers to better publicize their own research and events and to serve as easily accessible public affairs resources for each center's particular policy field, policy makers, the blogosphere, the mainstream media, and elite or otherwise highly engaged publics. At $12,125, the grant was the smallest approved by OSCI for the 2007-2008 academic year, and was funded primarily due to the substantial benefit/cost ratio it promised to achieve. Further, the committee which approved the project included the following affirmation of its merits: “Reviewers supported this project because it will further develop the Humphrey Institute as an exceptional organization. It will be a model for other departments to follow and it will demonstrate what is possible through UThink with a systematic and coordinated plan” (OSCI, 2007). Most blogs hosted by the UThink system are deployed in an ad-hoc fashion as personal opinion blogs, collaborative research blogs, or as online complements to offline, traditional courses taught at the University. The Humphrey blogging project, by contrast, is an organized institution-wide effort that seeks to integrate blogs and blogging practices into the core of the organization's academic research and outreach efforts.
Minimizing Methylmercury Exposure in the Hmong Community from Sport-Caught Fish Consumption in Minnesota
(Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2008-06) Endreson, Daniel
Due to increasing levels of mercury emissions throughout the world, there is an increased threat to the human population from methylmercury, a biomethylated derivative of mercury. Methylmercury is a dangerous neurotoxin that can have adverse effects on the central nervous system and behavioral centers of the brain. Humans can become exposed to methylmercury through consumption of contaminated fish from polluted waters. Many states, including Minnesota, use fish consumption advisories to warn the public of methylmercury exposure, but these advisories may not always reach at-risk segments of the population. The Hmong community in the Twin Cities consumes a high quantity of sport-caught fish for a variety of reasons, including a desire to maintain cultural identity, recreation, or economic necessity, even though fish consumption advisories warn against such actions. Four alternatives were considered to provide better protection to the Hmong community from methylmercury exposure – (1) continue the use of fish consumption advisories as developed by the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), (2) alter the current program by reallocating advisory education efforts from state agencies to local governmental units and organizations, (3) impose a ban on the consumption of all fish from methylmercury-impaired waters in the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan area, and (4) establish more Asian-specific food shelves in the Twin Cities area to provide food alternatives to sport-caught fish. Each of these alternatives were evaluated using six criteria – safety effectiveness, program awareness, social and cultural acceptability, administrative operability, program cost, and health benefit. This report concludes that efforts taken by the MDH in educating Hmong anglers have the promise of being effective in reducing methylmercury exposure from fish consumption. However, based on theories of risk perception and communication, more needs to be done at both the state and local level to effectively target this specific subpopulation in Minnesota.
The Quiet City: The Hidden Strength and Economic Development Potential of the Minneapolis Music Industry
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2008-06-19) Hagar, Aaron
The popular music scene in Minneapolis is a robust but underappreciated portion of a thriving arts economy. The city may not have the musical history and influence of Nashville, New York, or Los Angeles, but in many respects it compares surprisingly well to cities considered to be musical hotbeds. While city policy may have difficulty directly growing any artistic industry, calling attention to the local music industry and carefully crafted policy may foster organic artistic and industry growth and recognition.
Bioenergy Incentive Options for Minnesota Farmers: A Policy Perspective
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2008-09-11) Gangeness, Bjorn
Programs that support farmers interested in growing perennial bioenergy crops do not currently exist in Minnesota. Perennial bioenergy production faces many hurdles technologically and market‐wise but the current social climate seems to be leading toward more concerted development in the direction of renewable energy. Cost‐sharing and Annual Rental Payment programs exist in various forms supporting other environmental objectives and they are used in this paper to project their applicability to bioenergy development specifically. Carbon markets are also discussed as a potential source of support. After considering the analysis, it seems that a functional market for selling energy crops must exist before any real change can occur, but an establishment cost‐share program would go the furthest in helping farmers get started in farming these types of crops. Getting an early start in helping farmers adopt these practices may position Minnesota in a favorable position in an impending carbon‐constrained economy.
The Impact of South Africa’s Language-in-Education Policy on the Educational Attainment of Black South African Students
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2008-09-18) Curry, Rasheeda
Building a Culture of Inclusion: Developing an Innovative Workforce in the Public Sector
(Hubert H Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2008-12-11) Belanger, Tanya; Moua, Lily
Charged to develop recommendations for the MN Department of Human Services (DHS), Health Care Administration's (HCA) workforce planning, diversity and cultural competency priorities; a diagnostic assessment of organizational culture and recommendations outlining a long-term diversity and cultural competency plan was completed by University of Minnesota's Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs graduate students, Lily Moua and Tanya Belanger
Iron Range Housing Market Analysis
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2009-01-06) Demma, Jay
The Greater Minnesota Housing Fund and the Range Readiness Initiative Housing Team (RRI Housing Team) hired Jay Demma to create an analytical tool, or model, that projects the need for housing in the Iron Range region based on proposed and pending economic development. Due to the rapidly evolving nature of economic development in the Iron Range, the housing model is designed to be dynamic and can respond to change in the marketplace as new jobs and housing are created. By quantifying local housing needs and opportunities, the results of the model will help the Range Readiness Initiative to: 1) identify housing production capacity and need for added capacity; 2) inform planning opportunities by housing type; 3) identify opportunities geographically; 4) help attract resources for plan implementation; and 5) support further planning, and local and regional collaboration.
Evaluating the Impacts of Artspace Project's Developments: A Roadmap For Moving Forward
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2009-01-08) Gadwa, Anne
How would a researcher go about assessing the impacts of an artist space on resident artists and arts organizations as well as the surrounding neighborhood? This was the very real question Artspace Projects, Inc, commissioned me to address through this paper. The paper’s findings are directly relevant to Artspace, but will also be of interest to academics studying the impacts of arts and culture, other artist space developers and advocates, and Artspace’s stakeholders, including funders and municipalities. The term artist space covers residential, studio, administrative and programming space for individual artists and arts organizations and includes everything from a theatre to a live-work artist loft. Artspace has developed a range of artist spaces but specializes in redeveloping large vacant buildings whose prior uses include industrial sites, schools, hotels and auto dealerships into mixed-use, artist live-work spaces. Artspace seeks to measure and document the social, economic and physical impacts of its developments on resident artists and arts organizations and the surrounding neighborhoods. These impacts can include everything from artists gaining opportunities to share equipment, to new businesses opening up in the neighborhood, to reductions in crime rates.
The Eleven Distinctions
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2009-01-22) Lindsley, Bryan
This paper discusses eleven distinctions that develop ideas about how society can ensure that every individual is given the capacity to reach her highest potential. The distinctions show us that the mother‐child (and/or caretaker‐child) relationship and early environments not only overwhelmingly shape each person’s development, but also serve as a model for human development in all stages of life; that humans control their environments; that the nature of work is changing and the only successful response is continual learning; that systems designed to share knowledge with and collect knowledge from all participants build trust and accomplish goals. Problems with current learning systems, how value is derived in the modern economy, and implementation of Learning and Working Communities are also discussed.
The Eleven Distinctions
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2009-01-22) Lindsley, Bryan
This paper discusses eleven distinctions that develop ideas about how society can ensure that every individual is given the capacity to reach her highest potential. The distinctions show us that the mother‐child (and/or caretaker‐child) relationship and early environments not only overwhelmingly shape each person’s development, but also serve as a model for human development in all stages of life; that humans control their environments; that the nature of work is changing and the only successful response is continual learning; that systems designed to share knowledge with and collect knowledge from all participants build trust and accomplish goals. Problems with current learning systems, how value is derived in the modern economy, and implementation of Learning and Working Communities are also discussed.
Critical Analysis of the Rise of Islamic Militancy
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2009-01-27) Dukuly, Mohammed
The global emergence of several Islamic militant groups and their ability to forge close ties to one another is posing a major security threat to global peace. The followers or anyone who indeed submit to the will of Allah (God) as required by Islam are known as Muslims, and the demographic information on this religion shows there are 1.2 billion Muslims. It is the second largest religion in the world with four countries in Asia mostly populated with its teachings and practices. Indonesia is inhabited with one hundred and sixty million (160 m), Pakistan with one hundred and forty million (140 m), Bangladesh and India with one hundred twenty to one hundred thirty millions (120-130 m) each . Given the size and scope of Islam and its obvious turbulence among many Muslims, the following questions come into focus: What is the meaning of militancy? And what is Islam? This chapter will review some literature written on the rise of Islamic militancy.
Financing Transit Oriented Development: Barriers in Four Geographic Contexts
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2009-01-27) Carlson, Charles
Transit Oriented Development (TOD) is a major topic in the connection between land use and transportation. Much study of TOD measures transportation objectives such as increased transit mode share or vehicle trip reduction, or land use planning objectives such as effective revitalization or increased property value. An emerging field of research focuses on direct and indirect barriers to TOD development finance. While many have identified a number of constraints and potential solutions to barriers, this paper recognizes the barriers and appropriate solutions vary by geographic context. In addition to an overview of development finance for mixed use development, this paper identifies barriers and strategies to secure TOD finance in four unique geographies.
Advanced Acquisition of Right-of-Way: Best Practices and Corridor Case Studies
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2009-01-28) Aultman, Sara
There is mounting pressure on state transportation agencies to expand road capacity to keep up with demand. The most expensive part of many transportation projects, especially roadway expansions, can be acquiring the rights-of-way (Williams and Frey, 2004). From 1988 to 2008, the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/DOT) spent nearly $800 million acquiring rights-of-way (ROW). When and how Mn/DOT acquires ROWs to expand roadways is an issue with important financial and non-financial ramifications. One approach for acquiring ROW is a process called advanced acquisition. Advanced acquisition is acquiring land prior to project design approval, which is the traditional trigger for ROW acquisition (Mn/DOT, 2008). Recently, Barnes and Watters (2005) conducted a study that questioned the wisdom of advanced acquisition. The study examined the primary financial benefits of advanced acquisition, specifically lower ROW costs. They concluded that the growth rate of property values is not high enough to support advanced acquisition as a general strategy. They placed this in context by showing that the interest rate on a medium-term bond is greater than the average appreciation rate of real estate. The significance of this is that state transportation agencies would receive a better return on their money by investing in bonds than buying property early (Barnes and Watters, 2005). Barnes and Watters highlighted the need for a more detailed analysis that would go beyond evaluating county-wide appreciation rates. They suggested examining property adjacent to transportation corridors since these properties are more likely to be intensely developed. The goal of this report is to evaluate Mn/DOT’s current advanced acquisition practices and investigate the appreciation rate of parcels adjacent to transportation corridors. This report will address three major issues related to advanced acquisition. First, we assessed current advanced acquisition practices at Mn/DOT by surveying Mn/DOT district offices. Second, we conducted a survey of cities state-wide about the use of preservation tools to acquire ROW and strategies to improve the ROW process. Third, we investigated the claim that parcels adjacent to transportation corridors appreciate at a significantly different rate than the average parcel. We accomplished this by collecting property assessment data and calculating the appreciation rate for parcels adjacent to three corridors and comparing this to the appreciation rate of randomly selected parcels in the same county. We then used statistical analysis to evaluate which property characteristics are helpful in predicting properties that appreciate over 25% per year. Lastly, the findings from the two surveys and three corridors case studies were integrated into two recommendations.
An Examination Of What Causes Pollution and Resource Depletion
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2009-01-30) Walter, David E.
What is it that drives humans to pollute and deplete resources to the extent they do? Extensive pollution and resource depletion are problems unique to humans. Besides specific health and survivability issues resulting from pollution and resource depletion, populations have crashed to the point of extirpation in the past, in part due to societal stress induced by anthropogenic resource depletion. While no other population has achieved the degree of technological complexity that exists today, the underlying, fundamental needs of all societies are the same: clean resources, available in the quantities needed to allow survival. When those resources are at risk, the population is threatened. Proactively addressing this threat is a fundamental policy issue. Instead of seeking specific solutions to individual issues of pollution and resource depletion, this paper aims for a broad view, to understand the underlying forces that drive these two problems. With this understanding would come the insight to design policy to proactively mitigate or ideally stop pollution and resource depletion, and hopefully avoid societal trauma.
Environmental Fatal Flaw Analysis for the Flat Hill I Wind Resource Area
(Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs, 2009-02-23) Flannery, Sean
A Confidential Wind Developer (the “Developer”), is planning to develop a windpark in Clay County in Minnesota. The proposed Flat Hill I Wind Resource Area (WRA) is located approximately 12 miles east of the City of Moorhead. The project is in the initial development stage and many details of the project design have not yet been determined. The proposed Flat Hill I WRA is located on private land in in west-central Minnesota, east of the City of Moorhead in Clay County (Figure 1 and Figure 2). Access to the Flat Hill I WRA is off State Route 9. Numerous farmstead residences occur scattered through the study area. The nearest town to the study area is Glyndon, Minnesota, located approximately five mile southwest of the Flat Hill I WRA. The topography of the study area is level to gently rolling and consists of a large lake plain from Glacial Lake Agassiz. The eastern portion of the Flat Hill I WRA includes Agassiz Beach Ridges topography with noted elevation increases. Elevations range from approximately 910 to 1,117 feet above mean sea level. Much of the study area is undeveloped and consists of agricultural areas. The Flat Hill I WRA borders the Buffalo River State Park, southwest of the intersection of Minnesota Highway 10 and Highway 9 South. Current plans for the project include the installation of 133, 1.5 MW GE turbines within the WRA. The proposed Flat Hill I windpark will generate a maximum of 200 MW of total power. The Flat Hill I WRA is within an irregularly-shaped area approximately nine miles by six miles, with a two mile by six mile transmission corridor that extends to the south. Infrastructure to be installed in conjunction with proposed turbine arrays includes access roads and underground and overhead electrical lines. Locations for any other structures such as substations, switchyard and an operations and maintenance center have not been identified. Tetra Tech conducted a desktop study and preliminary field reconnaissance to identify key biological, cultural, and land use issues associated with building and operating the proposed facility. Results of background research and a preliminary field visit are summarized in this report. Additional investigations that may help to address the potential effects of the project are presented for consideration.

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