Unraveling the Mysteries of DEDA DPPA’s ``Unraveling the Mysteries of DEDA'' Panelists include Former Mayor John Fedo, Ken Hogg, and Greg Gilbert. Saturday, October 12, 11 a.m. Fireside Room, behind Bennett’s Restaurant. Former Mayor John Fedo to Join in DPPA Forum The Duluth Economic Development Authority (DEDA) is Duluth’s official economic development engine. DEDA was created in 1989 amidst controversy, during the Fedo administration. Yvonne Prettner-Solon and Cynthia Albright - City Councilors of that era - walked out of a City Council meeting to protest what they said was the Council surrendering too much power to an appointed body. Since then, DEDA has used its special powers of spending and taxation to attempt to create economic development for Duluth, putting its punch behind such projects as the Bayfront Festival Park, Aquarium, Holiday Center, Phoenix building, Cirrus, and Technology Village. Until a few years ago, DEDA made even multi-million-dollar financial decisions without review by an elected body. Then, efforts to more directly control DEDA gained momentum. In 1998, the City Council voted to give a majority of seats on DEDA to City Councilors (the rest are appointed by the mayor). And in 1999, City Councilor Greg Gilbert authored an ordinance requiring that the City Council review and approve all expenditures over $25,000. Of that vote, Gilbert says, ``The approval of that ordinance was one of the most significant actions taken by the Council over the last five years to improve accountability of public expenditures. It has permitted the public to become aware of DEDA transactions, and it has improved the transparency of those transactions. All of this has been healthy for our city.'' Current DEDA President Ken Hogg concurs: ``The 1999 resolution… has been an excellent tool to ensure public review and DEDA accountability for large commitments of public funds controlled by DEDA. It has been successful in opening up the public process to a substantial degree, though I would argue that the community could profit from an even more open process.'' What is DEDA’s true mission? And has DEDA been successful in fulfilling it? Is DEDA ``the Enron of Duluth,'' as some have dubbed it? Or is it the responsible and effective economic tool others have lauded? Come to the DPPA-sponsored forum ``Unraveling the Mysteries of DEDA'' at 11 a.m. on Saturday, October 12, where you can ask questions of the panelists, who will discuss the history, role, strengths, and weaknesses of DEDA. Panelists will include former Mayor John Fedo, current DEDA President and City Councilor Ken Hogg, and City Councilor Greg Gilbert. This forum is free and open to the public. So, what’s wrong with the Wal-Mart process in Duluth? By Jan Karon For months, there has been talk of a Wal-Mart being built on the North Shore. The talk comes from City Hall - from the auditor, the Planning Department, and the mayor. A brief story appears in the local paper. Talk also comes from Realtors in the area. Who cares? We ought to! A Wal-Mart Super-Store on the North Shore would precipitate tremendous change in our community. This is clear from what has happened following the construction of a Wal-Mart in Hibbing, as well as from the effects felt by the intrusion of Wal-Marts in cities around the country. As members of the community, it is our responsibility and our right to know about any contact our city administration has with Wal-Mart. The only news made public so far, however, is that the mayor would prefer a Wal-Mart on Garfield Avenue rather than up the shore. Local businesses - particularly those in Lakeside and Lester Park - would likely suffer economically if a Wal-Mart were built on the North Shore. In the face of Wal-Mart’s well-documented behavior as an unreasonable competitor, undoubtedly some small businesses would close. Most of these businesses are locally owned and run by families who depend upon our community for their livelihood, and it would be a mark of responsible planning for the city to keep those business owners informed of this potential development. There is no evidence, however, that such a courtesy is being extended to our local business people. When Wal-Mart enters a community, many jobs are lost to lower-paying jobs that offer only high-cost health care coverage or no health coverage at all. And it’s been shown that for every two jobs Wal-Mart creates, three jobs are lost. Wal-Mart would have a devastating effect on the aesthetic future of the North Shore The rugged beauty of the North Shore is beloved by those of us fortunate enough to live here and treasured by our region’s many visitors. A Wal-Mart development, however, would likely change the face of the North Shore forever. From a purely practical standpoint, traffic on already densely used stretches of road - including London Road and the Scenic Highway - could increase dramatically, with higher costs to city and county taxpayers for road maintenance, lighting, traffic control, and police protection. Taxpayers have the right to be involved in any decision to allow or encourage this sort of burden on our local infrastructure. These decisions must not be made behind closed doors. To be responsible and accountable, elected officials must provide an open, ongoing dialogue on the status of a Wal-Mart development. The days are long gone when communities could do their city planning independently of each other. Today, planning must happen on a regional level, to consider the broad effects across great areas that such a development as a Wal-Mart can have. We must cooperate with surrounding cities and townships. Why has there been no economic impact statement provided for this project? Why has Neighborhood Planning District 9 not been included in the talk? Why has the City Council not been informed? Why has City Hall not been more forthcoming? These are the kinds of questions that DPPA members must keep asking the city about the way it does business. If we do, perhaps one day open and accountable city government will be the norm in Duluth. Jan Karon is a member of the DPPA Board of Directors. The ``Face to Face'' Series DPPA Interviews Duluth’s City Councilors Have you ever wondered what effect being a City Councilor has on one’s personal life? Or about some of our Councilors’ future political aspirations? Here’s your chance to find out. Beginning on October 15th, PACT-TV (Ch 7 on cable) will air a series of interviews with Duluth City Councilors, hosted and funded by DPPA. The interviews run about one-half hour each and were filmed and produced by Glenn Maxham. (Copies are also available through the Public Library.) All nine Councilors were invited to participate in this series. Those who chose to do so are Jim Stauber, Donny Ness, Greg Gilbert, Ken Hogg, Russ Stewart, Neill Atkins, and Russ Stover. Here are the play times and dates for the series: ``Face-to-Face'' series, PACT-TV Channel 7 (Cable) Tuesday, October 15     4:00 pm Ken Hogg     4:30 pm Russ Stewart Wednesday, October 16     6:30 pm Donny Ness     10:30 pm Ken Hogg     11:00 pm Neill Atkins Thursday, October 17     6:30 pm Greg Gilbert     8:00 pm Russ Stewart     8:30 pm Jim Stauber     9:30 pm Russ Stover     10:00 pm Greg Gilbert Saturday, October 19     3:30 pm Neill Atkins     4:15 Jim Stauber     5:00 pm Ken Hogg     5:30 Russ Stewart     6:00 pm Russ Stover     6:30pm Greg Gilbert     7:00 pm Donny Ness Tuesday, October 22     4:00 pm Neill Atkins     5:00 pm Russ Stover     8:30 pm Donny Ness If you have questions about air times, contact Amber at PACT-TV at 723-3686 or apeters@cpinternet.com Building Community Through Music DPPA Sponsors World-Renowned Cellist Evan Drachman in Free Performance ``Music is neither a luxury nor a frill - it is a necessity! It is rich. It is imaginative. And it is for everyone.'' Cellist Gregor Piatigorsky (1903-1976) Evan Drachman is no ``stuffed shirt'' about classical music. When he speaks about the music he plays, he leaves his listeners with a sense that the composers and the music are alive to them as never before. On Friday, October 11, Drachman performs at the Sacred Heart Music Center at 7:30 p.m., sponsored in part by the Duluth Public-Policy Alliance. The performance is free. (Drachman will also perform in Duluth on Monday, October 7, at 1:00 p.m. in the Duluth Rainbow Senior Center.) Drachman is the grandson of the great Russian cellist and humanitarian Gregor Piatigorsky, who performed not only in the world’s great concert halls but also in small towns and villages. In honor of his grandfather, Drachman founded the Piatigorsky Foundation, whose goal is to make live classical music a part of everyone’s life. Drachman will also be performing on the Iron Range, Ely, and on the North Shore. ``Music is For Everyone: An Evening with Cellist Evan Drachman'' With pianist Thomas Hoppe Friday, Oct. 11, 7:30 p.m. Sacred Heart Music Center, 201 West 4th Street Free and open to the public DPPA Focuses: Heading the Issues Off at the Pass By Terry Brown DPPA’s Board of Directors recently held a retreat to discuss the future focus of DPPA - and came up with some strategies that we believe will help us all work more effectively toward DPPA’s mission of fostering open government and responsible city planning. As you likely know, there are at any given time a good number of worthwhile and urgent local issues to tackle, with a number of different angles from which they can be approached. The board’s consensus was that rather than focusing primarily on the issues themselves, DPPA should focus on the public policy that leads to the situations we all spend so much time battling. There’s more than one reason for adopting this approach. For me, at least, the primary reason is the hope that some of the conflicts in our community can be avoided - cut off at the source - when we promote better public policy, improved public participation, and more open and accountable government. Not that public policy is any ``silver bullet,'' of course, but it is an angle not being pursued by any other group. And that’s a second reason: The public-policy consideration shouldn’t be neglected. A third reason is simple pragmatism. Everyone’s spread pretty thin these days, and it’s better to complete a couple of projects properly than it is to try to juggle a bunch of endeavors. Enacting this focus has necessitated proposing changes in the DPPA Bylaws. (See ``Here Are Those Proposed Bylaws Changes....'') Some of the changes reflect a need to be nonpartisan - even apolitical - to work effectively on public-policy issues. Some of the other proposed changes in thKUWS radio host Patty McNulty will act as moderator. e Bylaws simply tighten DPPA’s focus on public policy. This new focus and these suggested Bylaws tweaks are the board’s best shot at defining how we think DPPA can be most effective in improving our community for everyone.  We hope you agree. Terry Brown is the Treasurer of the Duluth Public-Policy Alliance Here Are Those Proposed Bylaws Changes.... Members will vote on these proposed changes in the coming months. ==================== ARTICLE II - PURPOSE The purpose of Duluth Public-Policy Alliance shall be: 2.   To Promote the kind of sound urban policy that represents the needs and desires of the whole community  (REPLACES OLD #2) 2.To gather diverse community groups together to bring the power of many voices to crucial issues.             (DELETE) 3.To foster and promote a plan for responsible and creative city planning, one that brings sustainable and environmentally responsible land use to the city.              (DELETE)     4.To support the election of responsive representatives to public bodies to further the above.   (DELETE) ============================= ARTICLE VI - OFFICERS Section 1. Elected Officers.       The elected officers of the Organization shall be a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary, a Treasurer, and such other officers as the Board shall designate.      (Separates the old Secretary/Treasurer position into two separate positions) Are You Getting the ``Juice'' on DPPA-Talk? If you are a member of DPPA, have email, and are not yet part of DPPA’s online group DPPA-Talk, you might like to join. Just email DuluthPPA@yahoo.com, and ask to be added to DPPA-Talk to participate in this stimulating, entertaining, and sometimes challenging discussion. To clarify the question of who should be on DPPA-Talk and how one gets on it as well as to streamline the sometimes time-consuming management of the list, the board voted earlier in the year to make DPPA membership a requirement for DPPA-Talk. DPPA-Alert offers an alternative, carrying action alerts only. You need not be a DPPA member to be on DPPA-Alert. The Next DPPA Project: City Councilor and Mayoral Report Cards You’ve heard of The Golden Fleece Award, the Nero Award, the Mr. Smith Goes to Washington Award - all given to lawmakers. Now, the Duluth Public-Policy Alliance will join the movement by issuing yearly ``report cards'' to City Councilors and the mayor. These yearly reviews will grade the elected officials on such criteria as attendance at Council meetings, attitude toward the public, and willingness to explain their votes. (No positions on particular issues will be graded.) Watch this winter for more details. Spirit Mountain - A DPPA Public-Policy Project Few controversies in Duluth’s history can rival Spirit Mountain for poor public policy. For that reason, DPPA has continued to support the effort to bring greater public input to this issue. If you’re interested in getting involved, here are a couple of ideas for you: Contribute financially by mailing your check to the Spirit Mountain Legal Defense Fund, c/o Nancy Nelson, 1001 North 10th Ave. E. Duluth, MN 55805. Send this letter to the National Park Service: To: Mr. Bob Anderson, Grants Program Leader National Park Service 1709 Jackson Omaha, Nebraska 68102 Mr. Anderson, I respectfully ask you to enter this letter into your considerations pertaining to the proposed golf course in Duluth, MN, on public lands at the Spirit Mountain Recreation Area. I understand that the final recommendation on the project rests with you. I support the preservation of the area in its current state, with a potential future use as an educational, scientific, and natural area. I support the position of the American Indian Tribes who have formally identified the area as sacred and significant to multiple tribes in MN, WI, MI, ND, SD, and Canada. I oppose a privately owned golf course on public land. I oppose the land swap proposed to repay the LAWCON violations. I support due and legal process in all stages of these considerations. If, in your examination of this project, you find at any stage that the public or the Indian people were not appropriately considered, that you do so at this time. Thank you for your time and effort on this project. Name: _______________________________ Signature: ___________________ Address:_____________________________ Email: ____________ Phone: __________ A Tree for the ``Tree Lady'' Last April, DPPA gave Nancy Nelson the DPPA Civic Activist of the Year Award. To honor Nancy, her choice of a Northern Pin Oak will soon be planted in Lake Place Park. The plaque next to the tree will read: ``This Northern Pin Oak tree is dedicated to Duluth’s beloved ‘Tree Lady,’ Nancy Nelson. May they both flourish in a city that values the beauty of our natural wonders. Duluth Public-Policy Alliance Civic Activist of the Year, 2002.'' A formal dedication will be planned after the tree and plaque are in place. DPPA Calendar of Events October 2002 Fri 04 6:30 pm-2030 Progressive Duluth forum: Senate Districts 6 and 7 candidates, City Council Chambers (DPPA co-sponsors) Sat 05 11:30 am Free trade rally: Cloquet Wal-Mart Sat 05 1:00 pm ``Fair Trade Not Free Trade'' and Jim Hightower’s ``Rolling Thunder'' rally: Bayfront Festival Park Fri 11 7:30 pm Evan Drachman on cello, Sacred Heart Music Center Sat 12 11:00 am ``Unraveling the Mysteries of DEDA,'' Fireside Room, Fitger’s Bldg. Sat 12 9:00 am SPPA interpretive hike (Hawk Ridge). Meet at Bixby’s Bagels. Info: 728-1002. Tue 15 5:30 pm SPPA Annual Meeting/Potluck Dinner. Meet at Janette Pollay Girl Scout Camp, 3702 Jean Duluth Road. Info: 728-1002. Tue 15 7:00 pm Duluth City Council meeting (2003 street improvement program amendments). Tue 15 7:00 pm Laura Erickson, local author and bird expert, speaks. 205 W. 2nd St., 2nd Flr. Info: 740-3175. Wed 16 7:00 pm L.I.V.E. meeting (Wal-Mart). Labor Temple, 2002 London Rd., Hall A. Fri 18 6:30 pm-2030 Progressive Duluth forum: County Commissioner candidates, City Council Chambers (DPPA co-sponsors). Mon 21 7:00 pm City Council Committee: DEDA/Council relationship. Mon 28 7:00 pm City Council meeting. November 2002 Tue 05 7:00 pm Election day. Tue 12 7:00 pm City Council meeting. Wed 13 8:00 am-1300 Land-use seminar, new EPA Conference Room. Tue 19 7:00 pm Author Paul Gruchow speaks. 205 W. 2nd St., 2nd Floor. Info: 740-3175 Wed 20 7:00 pm L.I.V.E. meeting (Wal-Mart) Labor Temple, 2002 London Rd., Hall A. Mon 25 7:00 pm City Council meeting. Sat 02 7:00 pm City Council meeting (2003 budget and levy). Sat 16 7:00 pm City Council meeting. Sun 17 7:00 pm Singer/songwriter Lauren Burton. 205 W. 2nd St., 2nd Floor. Info: 740-3175 Sat 16 7:00 pm L.I.V.E. meeting (Wal-Mart) Labor Temple, 2002 London Rd., Hall A. These articles are retained on the web for historical interest and do not necessarily reflect the views or goals of DPPA today.