1000 Friends of Minnesota is changing its name...

Our new logo and taglineIt is my pleasure to announce an important change at 1000 Friends of Minnesota. While we are still the same organization that has advocated for livable, thriving communities since 1998, we have chosen a new name and are in the process of updating our look. In late April, we will officially become Envision Minnesota, a name that more aptly describes our work and our mission.

We are changing our name because Envision Minnesota better reflects the evolution of the organization and more clearly describes our vision. We believe the new name invokes strong feelings of progress, action and aspirational work that will make Minnesota a better place.

The fundamental mission of the organization and its programs are not changing. We will continue to advocate for thoughtful development and thriving communities. We aim to be a resource for communities that want to grow sustainably. We collaborate with local partners to stay informed about the changing issues and the best strategies to achieve our mission. We will continue to work with our “sister” organizations around the country and in D.C. to affect change nationally as well.

We envision a state with vibrant cities and towns close to clean rivers, lakes, and parks. A state where people have the freedom to choose how they get around and there are housing options for people at all income levels and stages of life. A state that invests its taxpayer money wisely, and sees its economic competitiveness directly tied to its high quality of life. In short, we envision a Minnesota focused on thoughtful development and thriving communities.

Our new website address will be www.envisionmn.org. When the new site is complete, the www.1000fom.org site will redirect you there automatically. For now, you can become a friend of Envision Minnesota on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. Let us know what you think of our new name and logo. We look forward to continuing to work with you.

Sincerely,

Sally K. Wakefield
Executive director
Envision Minnesota/1000 Friends of Minnesota

Airtimes for New Metropolis Minnesota

TPT taping "New Metropolis Minnesota"The New Metropolis Minnesota forum, held March 30, 2011 in Bloomington and hosted by 1000 Friends of Minnesota/Envision Minnesota, was taped by Twin Cities Public Television. The content of the panel discussions and question and answer sessions will comprise the new 60 minute program.

The new program, also titled “New Metropolis Minnesota,” will air in conjunction with the complete documentary, The New Metropolis, on Sunday, May 1 from 8 – 10 p.m. and Sunday, May 8 from noon – 2 p.m.

Here are the details:

Sunday, May 1, 2011 on TPT’s Minnesota Channel
8:00 p.m. “A Crack in the Pavement” (episode 1)
8:30 p.m. “The New Neighbors” (episode 2)
9:00 p.m. “New Metropolis Minnesota”

Sunday, May 8, 2011 on TPT Life:
12:00 p.m. “A Crack in the Pavement” (episode 1)
12:30 p.m. “The New Neighbors” (episode 2)
1:00 p.m. “New Metropolis Minnesota”

Additional air dates will be added as they are added to the schedule. Click here to access the TPT website featuring the “New Metropolis Minnesota” program. To find the TPT channel in your area, click here.

Policies that built first-ring suburbs in 1950s now foster their decline

There are two ways to think about the decline and impending decay of the inner suburbs, a hot topic around the country.

One is to consider it part of a natural progression. Just as older Northeastern and Midwestern cities began their downward spiral in the 1950s, losing both population and relative wealth, now it’s the turn of their first-ring suburbs.

Responding to evidence in recent Census reports, a gloomy audience at the Bloomington Arts Center on Wednesday night watched clips from two films by Andrea Torrice depicting the decline of 1950s-era suburbs near Philadelphia and Cincinnati. Panelists then lamented some of the same trends in Brooklyn Park, Richfield, Robbinsdale and other first-ring Twin Cities communities. Increasing poverty, crumbling infrastructure, struggling schools and abandoned strip malls were all part of the discussion, as were reductions in population, tax base and political influence.

Read the full story.

Gloomy? We thought there was good energy in the crowd! Check out our photos from the event.

MinnPost: Twin Cities-area project focuses on how to revitalize declining suburbs

Coming on the heels of recently released U.S. Census findings pointing to a decline in the populations of many of the Twin Cities older suburbs, an upcoming forum is sure to get people talking and thinking.

Read the full story in MinnPost.

The event she describes is the upcoming 1000 Friends of Minnesota event, “New Metropolis Minnesota: Growing Together as a Region.” More information about the March 30, 2011 forum can be found here.

News Release: "New Metropolis MN" forum to address suburban challenges

Harold Adams and Lynn Cummings in "The New Neighbors"FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts:
Jill Mazullo, 1000 Friends of Minnesota, jmazullo@1000fom.org, (651) 312-1000 ext. 204

Andrea Torrice, Torrice Productions, atorrice@mindspring.com, 513-751-7050

“New Metropolis Minnesota” forum uses documentary to launch conversation about Twin Cities development patterns and equity issues

Film excerpts document fiscal challenges and demographic changes in older suburbs

St. Paul, Minn. – March 22, 2011 – 1000 Friends of Minnesota and Twin Cities Public Television (TPT) are hosting an upcoming forum called “New Metropolis Minnesota: Growing Together as a Region.” The evening event will use a new documentary called The New Metropolis as a springboard for a conversation about how to strengthen Twin Cities suburbs on fiscal and social measures. The forum will take place Wed., March 30, 2011 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Bloomington Center for the Arts.

“We’re proud to be the Minnesota sponsor of the national community engagement campaign for The New Metropolis,” says Sally Wakefield, executive director of 1000 Friends of Minnesota. “The documentary humanizes complex issues like suburban fiscal constraints and changing social demographics through a few well-chosen stories. I anticipate a rich panel discussion of our suburbs and the greater region.”

The New Metropolis, a documentary by Andrea Torrice now airing on public television, has been used successfully in other cities across the country, including Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Cleveland, to spark cross-stakeholder conversations about regional challenges. More information about the episodes is online at http://www.thenewmetropolis.com/.

Program for the evening

The evening forum will include two panel discussions addressing the two episodes that comprise The New Metropolis. The panel host is Terri Thao of Nexus Community Partners. Rodolfo Gutierrez of HACER, former Minneapolis Board of Education director Chris Stewart, Eden Prairie School Superintendent Melissa Krull and Eden Prairie Somali community advocate Ahmed Jama will discuss the episode, “The New Neighbors.” The film features Pennsauken Township, N.J., where two ordinary people, one black and one white, successfully made racial integration the centerpiece of revitalizing their community.

Metropolitan Council Chair Susan Haigh, Richfield City Manager Steve Devich, Colleen Carey of The Cornerstone Group and newly appointed Metropolitan Council member Gary Cunningham of the Northwest Area Foundation will address the themes in “A Crack in the Pavement.” This episode features suburban officials struggling to fix their crumbling infrastructure and argues for regional cooperation.

The panels will provide a Minnesota context to these national episodes, touching upon opportunities here such as the change in leadership following the recent elections, how we can maximize current investments in a time of limited resources, such as the build-out of the transit system, and the connection between integrated communities and schools. The audience will have a chance to pose questions to all panelists at the end.

TPT to tape forum

The forum will be taped by TPT for the purposes of creating a new 60-minute program that will include the panel discussion and the citizen conversations. “While Twin Cities urban planning is held up as a national model in The New Metropolis, there are many warnings and lessons embedded in the programs that will be valuable for thoughtful Minnesota citizens and civic leaders,” says Bill Hanley, vice president of Public Engagement at TPT. “Twin Cities Public Television is enthusiastic about working with 1000 Friends of Minnesota to present, amplify and localize The New Metropolis programs here in Minnesota.”
The new program will be titled “New Metropolis Minnesota” and will air statewide on TPT’s Minnesota Channel in late spring 2011, adjacent to an airing of the original New Metropolis national episodes, with additional airings of “New Metropolis Minnesota” throughout 2011. Air dates will be announced in April.

How to register

The “New Metropolis Minnesota: Growing Together as a Region” forum takes place Wed., March 30, 2011 from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Bloomington Center for the Arts, 1800 W. Old Shakopee Road, Bloomington. A reception will follow in the lobby. The event is free and open to the public but registration is required. Click here to register online.

This event is a collaboration of 1000 Friends of Minnesota and Twin Cities Public Television, with support from the McKnight, Surdna and Ford foundations and Torrice Productions. Advisory organizations include the Alliance for Metropolitan Stability, Housing Preservation Project, Institute on Race & Poverty at the University of Minnesota, ISAIAH, Metro Cities, Metropolitan Council, and Urban Land Institute/Regional Council of Mayors.

Attachment: NewsReleaseNew Metropolis MN_032311.pdf