Get Involved with an Armatage Neighborhood Committee

Hi Neighbors! Did you know that Armatage has three committees that plan fun and educational events to bring the neighborhood together? Last year these committees worked as teams to host free workshops, film screenings, neighborhood clean-ups, organized food truck nights and more.

We would love for you to join us on the Safety, Equity & Outreach, Green Team, and Community Engagement Committees. Check out the Get Involved page on the Armatage neighborhood website and then choose to volunteer for a single event or join a Committee e-list to help plan new events throughout the year. Come meet new friends and neighbors while making Armatage an even better place to live!

Learn more, register for a meeting or volunteer at armatage.org/get-involved/:

• The Green Team meets TONIGHT (Thursday, March 10) at 7:00pm on Zoom
• Safety, Equity & Outreach meets next on Tuesday, April 5 at 6:00pm on Zoom
• Community Engagement meets next on Thursday, April 7 at 6:00pm on Zoom

Personal Safety & Carjacking Prevention Tips

Our Safety Equity & Outreach Committee put together these helpful safety tips and graphics with a few simple actions you can take to stay mindful AND safe.  See the full list at armatage.org/safety-tips/  Follow the ANA on Facebook or Instagram for posts to share with family, friends and neighbors.

Low Cost Tree Sales Are Coming Soon!

Start dreaming about where you have room in your yard for trees, neighbors! Minneapolis property owners will soon be able to order 5- to 8-foot trees in 30 varieties (including shade, fruit and flowering trees!) for $30 each to plant on their private property. Minneapolis property owners in Green Zones, rental property owners and property owners who haven’t ever gotten a tree in the City Trees program will get a chance to order a tree earlier:

• Rental property owners can order their trees for a maximum of five properties starting at 8:00am Wednesday, March 16. Please fill out a separate order for each property.
• Minneapolis property owners who haven’t received a tree from the Minneapolis tree sale in the past and aren’t in a Green Zone can order their trees starting at 8:00am Wednesday, March 16.
• All Minneapolis property owners can order two trees per address starting at 8:00am Wednesday, March 23.

New this year: two trees can be ordered per property! The sale closes  April 15 or when the trees run out, whichever is first. Low-cost trees are available first-come, first-served. People will pick up their trees May 21, 22 or 23 (subject to change). Location is to be determined and will be emailed to people who bought a tree. Volunteers onsite will help load each new tree and a complimentary bag of mulch into vehicles on request. Find more information and get ready to order your trees through Tree Trust here!

After Action Review from Civil Unrest Released

Hillard Heintze, a security risk management firm, presented key findings and recommendations of an after action review (AAR) of the City’s response to civil unrest following the murder of George Floyd to the City Council’s Committee of the Whole on March 8. Learn more about the after action review and read the full analysis here.

The analysis focuses on the City’s actions immediately following Floyd’s murder from May 25, 2020 to June 3, 2020 and recommendations to rebuild trust in the community. Watch the March 8 Committee of the Whole presentation here (start around minute 21).

Remove Racial Covenants Through the Just Deeds Project

Applications are open for the Minneapolis Just Deeds Project, which provides property owners with the opportunity to discharge racial covenants recorded against their properties and reclaim their homes as equitable spaces. Racial covenants were legal documents recorded against a property’s title that prohibited all future owners of the property from selling it, renting it or allowing it to be used by people of certain races or ethnicities. Thanks to the work of Mapping Prejudice, we know that more than 8,000 properties in Minneapolis contain racial covenants including many here in Armatage (see above).

The City’s Just Deeds Project and Hennepin County will help homeowners record a discharge form against their property title, free of charge. Participation is first come, first served and applications are accepted on a rolling basis. Learn more, check whether your home has a racial covenant, and apply for the project on the city’s website here. If you have questions, contact JustDeedsProject@minneapolismn.gov.

Redistricting is Complete!

The Minneapolis Charter Commission has approved new boundaries for 13 City Council wards and the six Park & Recreation districts. These ward and park district maps are available on the City website. Every registered voter in Minneapolis will receive a notice of their ward, precinct and polling place via a postal verification mailing before the primary election.

After every census, Minneapolis updates the boundaries of its 13 wards and six park districts to reflect new population counts. The Redistricting Group, made up of 24 Minneapolis volunteers, built the new maps with input from their communities. The Minneapolis Charter Commission approved the maps on March 2. The City Council will now consider and approve updated election precincts and polling place locations, all of which go into effect this year.