Creative Placemaking a Topic of Conversation in St. Paul

By Lisa Steinmann, Neighborhood Notes

September 18, 2012, Twin Cities Daily Planet

Creative placemaking (ignore the spell check--that’s how new this compound word is) may simply be the latest term coined to describe the age old activity of people gathering in a place and creating something there. From stacking rocks to create an altar to building a sweat lodge or a public water fountain, people have been placemaking from time immemorial. 

On Tuesday, September 18, Envision Minnesota, a sustainable land use nonprofit organization, hosted a lunchtime forum titled Creative Placemaking: Spotlight on St. Paul at the Wilder Foundation. The event featured two of St. Paul’s pioneers on the creative placemaking frontier: Regina Flanagan from Public Art Saint Paul and Jun-Li Wang of Springboard for the Arts.

Click here to read the complete story in the Twin Cities Daily Planet.

Envision Minnesota hosts placemaking forum

Wednesday, September 12, 2012
By Anna Pratt, The Line Media

An upcoming forum from Envision Minnesota, a sustainable land use nonprofit organization, will highlight cutting-edge public art initiatives underway in St. Paul.

The event, called, "Spotlight on Saint Paul: A Creative Placemaking Forum," is happening on Sept. 18 at the Wilder Foundation in St. Paul.

For example, the city has an artist-in-residence program, something that Public Art Saint Paul funds, according to Jill Mazullo, communications director for Envision Minnesota.

Through the program, an artist, in this case, Marcus Young, works alongside city officials. One project he's leading brings poetry to city sidewalks. (See The Line story here.)

"It's a unique public-private partnership," she says.

Click here for the complete article in The Line.

Former St. Paul Council Member Lee Helgen heads nonprofit land-use group

By Joe Kimball | 09/10/12

Lee Helgen, the former St. Paul City Council member who lost his re-election bid last year, has been named the executive director of Envision Minnesota, the sustainable land-use nonprofit formerly known as 1,000 Friends of Minnesota.

Helgen had been an eight-year incumbent when he lost by 33 votes last November to newcomer Amy Brendmoen.

Helgen, who starts the job Monday, said in a statement: "I am excited to join Envision Minnesota at this time and I look forward to making a positive difference across the region and state."

The group, based in St. Paul, says it liked Helgen's sustainability work on the city council.

Click here to read the complete article on MinnPost.

Working on the Railroad: Little Mekong coming out of its shell

Posted: 2:17 pm Mon, September 10, 2012

By Drew Kerr, Finance & Commerce

Tags: Asian Economic Development Association, Central Corridor, Central Corridor Funders Collaborative, Envision Minnesota, Jazz on the Line, Jun-Li Wang, Little Mekong, Mai Village Vietnamese Restaurant, Public Art Saint Paul, Regina Flanagan, Springboard for the Arts, Va-Megn Thoj

Leaders with the Asian Economic Development Association are organizing a series of branding and marketing activities they hope will better convey the area’s cultural qualities and draw more people into the district.

This article previews Envision Minnesota's Creative Placemaking forum, "Spotlight on Saint Paul," featuring Jun-Li Wang and Regina Flanagan on Sept. 18, 2012.

Finance & Commerce subscribers can read the complete story here.

Envision Minnesota names new exec

Posted: 9:31 am Mon, September 10, 2012 in Finance & Commerce
By Drew Kerr
Tags: Amy Brendmoen, Envision Minnesota, Lee Helgen

Former St. Paul City Council member Lee Helgen has been named the new executive director of Envision Minnesota.

Finance & Commerce subscribers can read the full story here.