Hey neighbor, please keep your dog on a leash
Whatever happened to keeping dogs on a leash while out walking them? I am an early morning walker in the Armatage neighborhood, and it has become a daily occurrence to find at least half of the numerous dog owners letting their pets roam freely while they stand several feet away, carrying the leash.
Maybe the owners think they can control their animals, but on more than a few occasions, a free dog has come running up to me, angrily barking, while the owner stands there telling me that the dog won’t hurt me. Meanwhile, my heart is racing 100 mph and I’m feeling unsafe in my own neighborhood.
Sorry, but there have been too many cases in the news lately of dogs getting out of yards or off leashes who end up biting and seriously injuring innocent people. Please keep your dogs on their leashes when you take them out for a stroll. I deserve a peaceful walk around my neighborhood without worrying about whether a dog is lurking around the next corner with his owner a half-block up the street. Keeping your dog on a leash is not only the polite thing to do, it’s a city ordinance.
FYI: There are four parks in Minneapolis where you can let your dog run around leash free. According to the city of Minneapolis website, "Minneapolis residents pay $25 for the first dog and $15 for each additional dog. Non-Minneapolis residents pay $50 for the first dog and $30 for each additional dog." The four dog parks are Columbia Park, Franklin Terrace, Lake of the Isles and
Minnehaha Park.
Karen Gaskell
Armatage
Response to Bassett Creek redevelopment article
Your article, "Bassett Creek Valley Rezoning Unveiled" in the Aug. 27–Sept. 9 issue, misrepresents my stated views about the city’s proposal for rezoning a portion of the Harrison neighborhood. The article claims I said that allowing apartments near existing residences could make things "uncomfortable" for current property owners. This is most assuredly not what I said. (In fact, such a statement would be bizarre, as many of the current homes in the area are multifamily. Additionally I, and the Harrison Neighborhood Association, actively support higher density, multifamily, and affordable housing in the area.)
What I did say was: I am concerned that rezoning the immediately adjacent blocks to the highest residential density permissible in the City (R-5) could threaten our existing housing stock.
It is important for readers to know that this rezoning proposal comes in the context of a process of city and community planning for (and current developer proposals for) massive redevelopment of the Valley. For years, the Harrison neighborhood has been working hard to ensure that this process does not displace community members. Harrison families’ median income is just over $21,000.
Specifically, the concern I shared about the city proposal is as follows: our existing homes in this area are a mix of duplexes, four-plexes, small apartment buildings and single-family homes. While currently affordable, these properties are not subsidized; therefore, there are no affordability contracts in place, and current residents — primarily lower-income people of color — could be vulnerable to the increases in market value leading to wholesale, rather than in-fill redevelopment, that such a dramatic rezoning is explicitly intended to encourage.
I also said that Harrison has supported a more gradual transition (a buffer block zoned R-3, which supports a lower level of multifamily density) between the existing residential fabric and taller buildings.
Maura Brown
Harrison