While it was cold outside on January 23rd, CNO was hopping at  the annual book and bake sale. Caramel rolls, sweet potato muffins, gluten free cherry bars, special k bars, two kinds of chocolate chip cookies, and gingerbread  blondies were devoured while people shopped for books, tapped their foot to music, made bookmarks or talked to their neighbors.  We raised over $1300!

Corcoran Neighborhood Organization has new remodeled community space! Stop in to our office during the week and see our new space. We are now offering use of the space to residents as well as community organizations or businesses. We provide coffee, tea, and water service as well as access to the kitchen.  For more information and rental rates, please contact Heidi Johnson McAllister at [email protected] or 612-724-7457. 

We are still at the beginning of 2016 and this is a good time to remind people that they can sign up for crime alerts from the Minneapolis Police. All you need is an email account and you can sign up at: http://www.minneapolismn.gov/police/crimealert/index.htm

This month's crime map covers November 2015 to mid-January 2016. All statistics are sourced from the Minneapolis Police Department, 3^rd precinct from our sector's Crime Prevention Specialist Karen Notcsch ([email protected]).

On December 3, I attended the Minneapolis Park Board plans for the future of parks at an open house at Powderhorn Park. The event was really well staffed with staff and consultants eager to talk to citizens and gain genuine reactions to the plans as they were laid out. The plans were smart, well designed and conveyed a message that the park board is very serious about this overhaul and how to approach it. In nearly every park representation, there were two examples of possibilities for future plans of the park an participants were allowed to vote on the example they liked best, as well as provide feedback on the highlights they liked in each particular example. As a Corcoran resident, I was particularly concerned about the design proposals for Corcoran, Sibley, and Powderhorn. I found that the Corcoran design truly reflected the voice of the local park meeting hosted to Corcoran Neighborhood Organization earlier in 2015, where people identified what was or was not working at the park. 

The Park Board will be hosting another Open House on Monday, February 22nd from 6-8pm. For more information, go to the Minneapolis Park Board Website.  Here are details of the changes and upgrades they are proposing. 

February has many holidays and observances. One of these is Black History Month. Founded in 1926 by the historian and educator, Carter G. Woodson, it initially only lasted a week in February. The celebration intentionally coincided with the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass – two Americans who helped shape black history. Woodson’s goal was to integrate the teaching of black history into the classrooms of America’s schools. The “goal was, first, to give blacks a sense of pride in their accomplishments and, second, to educate whites on the many contributions made by African Americans.”

This list was complied with several people sharing their ways to love people.

I moved to Minneapolis (and to Corcoran Neighborhood) just a few months ago. As born and raised Midwesterners my girlfriend and I wanted to stay in this part of the county, but live somewhere progressive and dynamic. We chose Minneapolis for the bike scene, the affordable cost of living and excellent job market; in general, the high quality of life. Within months of moving to Minneapolis I had affordable, stable housing and a salaried job with a fair schedule and paid sick time.

February is African American History month.  This year I would like to recommend to the general public, especially those who would like to gain a better understanding of race relations in the US and abroad, certain titles and authors.  I share these titles and names, as memories of wisdom and knowledge grown here in this American soil, passing them on as seeds and fruits to be sown, harvested, and shared. Most cities have book gardens known as libraries. There, have these voices taken root.  They have taken root in our libraries, in our superstitions, in our foods, in our ingenuity, in our resilience and resourcefulness, in our sciences, in our language, in our styles, in our art, in our music, in our habits, and in our histories.  

The members of the renters’ committee met on January 15.  This meeting was a recap of what happened in 2015.  There were major wins including several unit repairs being made and the start of policy change discussions with city leadership.  Our group also came up with strategy for the New Year including organizing more tenants in the neighborhood who are having problems in their buildings and also building a coalition with other communities in fighting together for better renting conditions. The group welcomed many new faces to the committee, and the meeting ended with how we all envisioned home to be.

It wasn’t too long ago that my cranky vacuum, that happens to be less than two years old, decided to kick the bucket on me.  I was so aggravated, saying to myself, “they just don’t make things like they used to”!  So, I posted on the “Nextdoor app” for the Corcoran neighborhood, seeking guidance…to trash or to treasure and fix this stubborn newish cheaply made vacuum.  Well, within
hours I was bombarded with messages encouraging me to fix it and explaining how our landfills are overflowing with FIXABLE household items.  I am also one to save money and penny pinch, so I thought, “I can do this!  I am woman hear me roar”.  I set to taking that sucker apart and low and behold…I FIXED it after some suggestions from handy neighbors.  I saved myself money, my vacuum was rescued from the depths of despair, and there is one less household item polluting our earth.