I believe in St. Paul, but let’s take these concerns seriously

One of the themes in the post-presidential election postmortems has been an interrogation of Democratic failures at effective urban governance. Trump made hay of chaos at the border and has frequently derided urban areas as crime-ridden nightmares. As a lover of city life, it had been easy for me to dismiss his attacks. With further contemplation I think he does address a real concern that many Americans who live or work in cities share — and it is important for those of us who care about the vibrancy of cities to take that seriously.

I have lived and worked in St. Paul for most of my life. St. Paul is a city I love and believe in, but I fear that it is a city increasingly split between two realities. There are many beautiful St. Paul neighborhoods where the benefits of our city are readily apparent — beautiful homes, restaurants and shops within walking distance and great parks. The people who live in these neighborhoods are generally well enough off to pay the increasingly high property taxes, and heavy property regulations make sure that the neighborhoods won’t change much and that property values will keep going up.

Outside of these neighborhoods and downtown there is a different and more challenging picture. Downtown has experienced collapsing real estate values (exemplified by the St. Paul Athletic Club selling for $500k recently) and an evacuation of Lowertown. Many areas around the Green Line suffer from large amounts of antisocial behavior and blight. The Snelling and University intersection is an especially galling example of antisocial behavior and drug use — making an area that should have huge potential, with major public transit near Allianz Field, an eyesore where many people do not feel comfortable.

In 2021 St. Paul passed a rent-control ordinance, a well-intentioned effort to look after our city’s renters which has backfired spectacularly. The ordinance immediately required reworking and renters have not found much protection — though it was enough to spook developers from continuing to invest in St. Paul.

We need to change course. We cannot have wealthy neighborhoods cloistered from the dysfunction that other St. Paul residents face. People struggling with drug use and homelessness deserve compassion and care, but our transit systems and streets need to feel like places where everyone is comfortable. We need to make it easier to build housing to push rents down and encourage investment. I believe in St. Paul — it is time to jumpstart its renaissance.

Steven Quam, St. Paul

That’s how it works

Let’s put this argument that Donald Trump is a captive of the Heritage Foundation’s 2025 plan to rest.

Every public policy “think tank” exists by publishing research and trying to get government officials to listen to it. Every elected official hears from their favorites, and their constituents use those studies on publications to attempt to persuade presidents. It’s called free speech.

Elected officials like some of it, even like the authors, and hire them. Neither Trump, nor Biden nor Obama, nor any of them, accepts those ideas in the whole. They pick and choose, and reject most of them.

My writing partner and I were in Vice President Pence’s office on Jan. 13, 2020, delivering one of our own. We were heading across the street to the White House to meet with officials there, but unfortunately, the House served President Trump with impeachment papers. Our 96-page health care reform plan circulated in Congress, but we’re still waiting to see it adopted.

Some pieces of the 2025 plan will be sent to Congress. They will reject most of it. And that is how it works.

Dave Racer, Woodbury

Focus on long-term benefits

The recent decision by the City Council (“St. Paul City Council votes to increase franchise fees for Xcel Energy”) estimated the city could bring in at least $1.5 million and up to an additional $4.25 million for climate initiatives. So, why isn’t this reflected in the budget the mayor and City Council are negotiating?

According to the City’s Climate Action Resilience Plan, St. Paul has more than 42,000 energy-burdened homes in need of weatherization and electrification. This means they are paying more than 4% of their income for energy costs. With Xcel announcing that it will seek a 13% increase in electric rates following the 9% increase approved last year, the city has an opportunity to both help homeowners reduce their energy consumption and their energy bills, all while helping St. Paul meet it’s decarbonization goals.

Allocating $300,000 to weatherization when we have 42,000 energy-burdened homes isn’t the bold action we need the mayor and this City Council to take. Helping our energy-burdened neighbors benefits all of us and is the kind of long-term cost savings that we expect of our local officials.

Yvonne Cournoyer, St. Paul

‘Qualifications’

The writer of the letter to the editor “Pretty simple” in the Sunday Dec. 1 Pioneer Press stated that Kamala Harris lost the election because “she’s just not qualified to be president.” He’s right, of course; she doesn’t  have the qualifications to be president. She is not a convicted felon, doesn’t have sexual assault charges against her, is not a pathological liar, and did not rally her supporters to try to violently overturn a valid election. Sadly, these are the “qualifications” so many American voters were looking for.

Paul Wright, Hudson

Rethink

President Elect Donald Trump might be well advised to rethink his plan to deport all criminal immigrants. He just might  run out of unsavory characters to fill the rest of his cabinet positions.

Mary DePrey, Roseville

Pre-emptive pardons? Moral high ground

President Biden has the unquestioned legal authority and the high moral ground to grant pre-emptive pardons to the whole group of individuals and organizations that President-elect Trump and his acolytes have threatened, expressly or implicitly, to charge with federal offenses for political reasons.

Not exercising that right would allow the vindictive brigands coming into office next month to wreak havoc by unleashing a form of retribution never before seen in this country while simultaneously setting a tit-for-tat precedent that will tear at the already-tattered fabric of the country.

The incoming president would be far better served by ditching the desire to disembowel his perceived enemies and, instead, sew up the wounds rather than sowing more discord. Extending an olive branch to them, rather than using it against them as a cudgel, would  leave a much greater legacy.

Marshall H. Tanick, Minneapolis

The ‘Beer Can Island Sand Trap’

Regarding “Afton man racks up $44K in fines for beached St. Croix boat,” by Mary Divine, which reported that “A half-sunk 54-foot cruiser boat abandoned on Beer Can Island in the St. Croix River has been causing headaches in Hudson, Wis. As of Monday, the owner of the boat had racked up more than $44,000 in fines, according to Police Chief Geoff Willems.”

The story makes one wonder whether the boat’s owner, Afton’s Grayson McNew, 27, also plays golf. His boat landed on a sand trap, Beer Can Island.

The 1981 vintage boat, Sweet Destiny, has accumulated fines of $44,000, and more as time rolls on. It’s like a bogey that goes to infinity and beyond!

Pro golfer Jacob Skov Olesen landed a one-shot penalty for slow play on the 10th hole at the Australian PGA championship. He took 130 seconds. The rules allow only 40 seconds.

Slow play penalized both McNew and Olesen. Meanwhile, the boat lies stuck at the Beer Can Island “sand trap,” accumulating fines. Perhaps the PGA can rename one of its water hazards “Beer Can Island Sand Trap.” Naming rights cost extra. The hole in the boat’s hull can be classified as a “hull in one.”

Peter Verstegen, Hudson

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