Star Tribune
Deadline passes for Hennepin County jail to reduce inmate population
A deadline has passed for Hennepin County jail to significantly reduce its inmate population as in response to a state-issued mandate, but it remained more than 120 people over the order’s required population as of Thursday.
“As of right now, we are working to comply with the order and we continue to do everything we can do move people to other facilities,” Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office spokeswoman Megan Larson said in an email.
The Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) sent the order on Oct. 31 sent , informing the Sheriff’s Office that it must reduce the number of inmates from roughly 850 to 600 by noon on Thursday (Nov. 14). As of Thursday morning, Hennepin County had a slightly larger number of inmates in its system than last week, with roughly 880, but 155 of those inmates have been moved to other counties’ facilities, Larson said. That means 723 inmates are still physically lodged in the jail.
The mandate detailed a variety of violations, saying the jail doesn’t have enough staff on duty and that it isn’t checking on inmates as often as it should. Seven inmates have died in the jail since September 2022, and the DOC found that the Hennepin County Adult Detention Center had violated the state’s rule for regular well-being checks in each of those deaths, according to the state’s order.
Since the order the Sheriff’s Office has worked on getting more agreements with other counties to receive some of Hennepin County’s inmates, Larson said. The county has also worked to move inmates for months before the order, and currently has agreements with five counties and is working on getting a dozen, more according to Larson. “This takes time,” she said.
Sheriff Dawanna Witt previously said the short amount of time made it impossible to meet the deadline. In a Nov. 8 statement, Witt said that parts of the order “contradict both Minnesota law and the DOC’s own standards and training materials.”
“We have raised these concerns repeatedly with the DOC and have offered to meet, but they have not responded to these offers,” Witt said in her statement.
Spokespeople for the DOC did not immediately return calls and emails on Thursday seeking comment on the missed deadline, and whether there would be any punitive action taken by the state.
Metro Transit fares will be lowered and simplified after the new year after a series of changes were approved by the Metropolitan Council on Wednesday.
The changes, which take effect Jan. 1, include:
Additionally, at some point in 2025, people who qualify for the Transit Assistance Program, an income-based program, will pay $1 fares for up to two years before re-applying is necessary.
Metro Transit said in a news release the price changes are expected to draw an additional 926,000 rides in 2025, which will offset some of the costs associated with lower fares.
Through September this year, ridership has increased 8% compared to last year.
“Making transit easier to use is key to growing ridership, and we believe simplifying fares will help do just that,” Metro Transit General Manager Lesley Kandaras said. “These changes also support our belief that cost should not be a barrier for those who want or need access to our services.”
Star Tribune
Vandals uproot 60 new trees on St. Paul riverfront tossing many in the Mississippi River
Sixty newly-planted trees along St. Paul’s riverfront were uprooted Wednesday night, and most were tossed into the water, in an act of vandalism costing tens of thousands of dollars.
“I’m incredibly sad. It’s hard to fathom,” said Karen Zumach, the director of community forestry for St. Paul-based non-profit Tree Trust, which contracted with the city to plant the trees with the help of high school students in October. “I like to think that trees are the least controversial thing we deal with these days.”
The trees were planted over two days along Shepard Road, in the area of Upper Landing Park and the Sam Morgan Regional Trail.
Photos taken by city staff Thursday showed a long row of piles of upturned dirt circling around holes in the ground where the trees once stood. All but 14 of them were tossed into the Mississippi River, rendering them unsalvageable, Zumach said.
The St. Paul Parks and Recreation Department estimated the damage comes to $40,000.
The St. Paul Police Department confirmed Thursday it received a report of the vandalism and an investigation is ongoing. The city parks department said in a statement the vandalism is believed to have occurred overnight.
The 14 trees that did not end up in the river have been reinstalled, Zumach said. The process to replace the others has yet to be determined, but the planting season has already passed.
About 25 high school students helped plant 250 trees while school was out during the annual MEA conference for state educators in October, Zumach said.
The Minneapolis City Council was unable to override Mayor Jacob Frey’s recent veto of an ordinance that would give some organizations first dibs on buying certain rental housing units in an effort to preserve affordable housing.
Under the proposal, if the owner of certain rental units wants to sell, they would have to give certain “qualified organizations” the first shot at buying their property, with exceptions for sales to renters or family members, for example.
Frey wrote in his veto letter that “now is not the time to make it harder to invest in our city’s housing stock.” He said while he agrees with the goal of preserving affordable housing, he doesn’t believe the ordinance will accomplish that in the current housing market.
“I appreciate the intention behind this ordinance, and in a different housing market when investment was more free-flowing, I may have a different perspective,” he wrote.
Supporters said the proposal would keep thousands of units of affordable housing available and prevent large investment firms from gobbling them up — and potentially hiking rents to reap profits.
The council voted 7-5 to override Frey, but needed nine votes.
Council Member Jeremiah Ellison, who co-authored the ordinance, argued when it was before the council on Oct. 31 that it would help small, local developers buy property that’s now being bought up by national investment firms or hedge funds.
Council Member Linea Palmisano said she was torn on the ordinance when it was before the council, saying the city has an affordable housing crisis, but that she was concerned about unintended consequences, such as whether first-time home buyers wouldn’t be able to compete. She voted for it then, but voted against an override on Thursday.
