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SEPTEMBER 2012 Vol. 29 No. 7 21,000 Circulation Your Neighborhood Newspaper For Over Twenty Years By JAN WILLMS Franklin Station to Cedar River- With customers boarding the side Station and then back. light rail trains at the Lake Street “There is a detail of officers Station nearly 2,800 times each going back and forth,” LaVine weekday, it is one of the busiest Lake Street Station said. He also said officers are as- stations on the Hiawatha Line signed to ride the trains. INSIDE So when the number of Although LRT falls under problematic incidents at this lo- grapples with crime Metro Transit jurisdiction, Shun cation appears to be increasing, it Tillman, 3rd precinct safety offi- is not surprising. cer, said a crime may be respond- According to John Siqveland, problems ed to by either transit police or Metro Transit spokesman, the local officers, depending on who News.................2 Lake Street station is in the mid- might be closest to the situation. dle of the Hiawatha Line and one “They’ll ask for the first of the busiest spots for connec- available squad,” he said. tions of rail, bus, auto, bike and Although overall, transit pedestrian travel. crime has dropped about 45 per “Lake Street Station has the cent over the past five years, Till- highest number of incidents the man said he believed activity police respond to,” he said. “And from Lake to 38th has picked up it is number one for fare eva- recently. sion.” He said most riders are He said he does not have a not boarding there, however. good reason for this. “From an Good vibes return Brian Lamb, general manag- economic standpoint, things to Longfellow Park er of Metro Transit, said that over have been bad for awhile,” he the past six months serious claimed. crimes like robberies and as- Another promotion for safe- saults, although very few, are ty in transit use has been the use nonetheless down. of slogans on buses, trains and at A frequent rider of the LRT, the railway stations stating “If News..................3 Longfellow resident Marcea Mar- you see something, say some- iani said she and her husband thing.” This slogan began with have hardly used their car to the New York Transit system and drive to downtown Minneapolis is being used in conjunction with since the light rail started. the Department of Homeland Se- What she said she most no- curity and Public Safety Depart- tices is the vocal decibel of some ment. of the young people. “We have trained 900 opera- “As that level increases, their tors to be better attuned to teach- behavior decreases to a negative,” ing people to identify suspicious she said. “Their behavior is not behaviors,” Siqveland added. “It Keewaydin so egregious, but it is irritating to has taken hold with our own welcomes the point it makes one consider staff.” new principal whether the ride is worth it.” The Lake Street station is in the middle of the Hiawatha Line and one of the He said the conversation She said she notices the busiest spots for connections of rail, bus, auto, bike and pedestrian travel. with the Corcoran Neighbor- same youths there when she (Photo by Stefanie Berres) hood Association has been time- leaves on the train are still there ly. Addressing concerns with an News..................4 when she returns an hour and a place the new cameras in the He said that when school added police presence, addition- half later. “They are not there to Lake Street Station in September. starts up, Metro Transit Police al cameras, uplifting music and be moved,” she said. She said she Eight cameras at the station are have a presence in the afternoon better lighting have all resulted thought monitoring the platform being replaced with 24 high-defi- to assist with students who use in an improved Lake Street Sta- and having no teens there unless nition models. the LRT system. There is also a tion, according to Siqveland. they are coming or going could “Although there is some de- presence in the evening hours, “We’re adding capability to prove beneficial and perhaps in- terrent value to the cameras, they with officers periodically moving match the growth in the transit crease ridership. are used generally to identify sus- from Lake Street Station to system,” he said. “Most of them are just hav- pects,” Siqveland said. He said ing a good time, and don’t mean cameras have been on the buses to make anyone uncomfortable,” since the mid-90s and have pro- Emerald ash she said. “They get carried away vided footage to often identify a borer found at with themselves, and then it be- suspect or for lost and found. comes a problem.” Siqveland cited a case a few Fort Snelling Responding to those prob- years ago in which a blind pas- lems led Metro Transit and the senger had her special laptop Corcoran Neighborhood Associ- stolen, and the video from a 7 ation to work together to address camera helped identify the thief. Feature............ community concerns about the Besides updated high-resolu- safety and comfort of the Lake tion cameras, other improve- Street Station. ments include more police pa- Throughout 2011, the two trols, higher density of lighting, a entities identified some solutions cleaner station and the playing of that could be used to improve classical music to present a more the Station. inviting atmosphere. Although cameras were in- “The Lake Street Station is stalled at the light rail’s incep- one of our busier stations be- tion, more and better surveil- cause of the sheer volume of Little Crow statue lance cameras are being installed. people,” explained Capt. Mike Lake Street Station has the highest number of incidents the police respond Metro Transit received a LaVine of the Metro Transit Po- to, and it is number one for fare evasion. (Photo by Stefanie Berres) link to Dakota $100,000 grant and plans to lice. conflict Neighbors put ‘good vibes’ 1885 University Ave. back into Longfellow Park St. Paul, MN 55104 651-645-7045 Vigil held following troubling cat burning incident; $1,000 reward offered Publishers: Calvin deRuyter, Tim Nelson By TESHA M. CHRISTENSEN opened up the event’s program When she heard about the with a blessing. Minneapolis Managing Editor: cat burning incident at Longfel- Council Member Gary Schiff Denis Woulfe low Park the morning of the spoke, bringing along his dog, Advertising: 2012 Minnesota primary, Kristy Butters, who “stands in solidari- Denis Woulfe - 651-917-4183 Snyder was upset. ty with all animals against ani- Colette Mullenmaster - 651-494-8047 “It felt a bit unreal that it mal cruelty.” Photographer: happened in our park,” said Five-year-old Spencer Sny- Snyder, a four-year Longfellow der was pleased with the event. Stefanie Berres resident. “While I hurt for the “It did go really well. I was hap- Production/Illustrations: person that discovered it, I was piest with the parade. There was Bob Wasiluk so grateful it was not a kid that so many people that I couldn’t Contributing Writers: stumbled upon that scene.” even count! It was so lovely, it A Longfellow Park employee went so well! I would just love Iric Nathanson, Deborah Brotz, Jane McClure, Tesha M. Christensen, found a cat burnt to death on to do it again!” Sherri Moore, Tom Gilsenan, the south end of the park just District 3 Park Commis- Jan Willms before dawn on Tuesday, Aug. sioner Scott Vreeland was not 13. It was impaled with an able to attend the event that American flag. An Obama/Biden served as an antidote to a crime lawn sign was nearby. The inci- he calls “bizarre,” and “trou- dent is being treated as a Home- bling,” but he agrees that it was land Security offense, and both important to do something to the Secret Service and the FBI put “good vibes back in the Now, communicate with the are involved in the investigation. park.” Longfellow/Nokomis Messenger electronically! Snyder and her husband, He hopes that the perpetra- Dave, told their two kids, tor turns him/herself in and gets Now it’s easier than ever to keep in touch with the Messenger. Letters to the editor Spencer, age 5, and Nora, age 3, some help. and news releases for publication can be about what happened at the “It doesn’t make sense,” sent via e-mail at denisw@aplacetore- park they play at frequently. said Vreeland. “As humans we member.com. Be sure to send copy in the body of the e-mail, and please mark Snyder didn’t want them hearing want to know why and it’s not whether the copy is a letter, a news release about it from others. always possible.” for publication, or perhaps just your “I felt a bit stuck about how A $1,000 reward has been thoughts on the last issue. Don’t forget to write! to re-enter that park,” Snyder ad- offered by the Minnesota Feder- mitted. So she, together with her ation Humane Society. Call 612- The Longfellow/Nokomis Messenger is a kids, neighbor Kathy Cassidy Over 50 people attended the vigil on Wednesday evening, Aug. 15. Com- 866-8663 or 1-877-8ANIMAL. monthly community publication in the Longfellow and Nokomis areas of Min- and her daughters Nora and munity members made chalk drawings of cats on the sidewalks. Kids faces “It’s an unspeakable act and neapolis, owned and operated by Naomi Sojourner, decided to or- were decorated with cat whiskers and noses. One neighbor showed up to we want to make people aware deRuyter-Nelson Publications, Inc.

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