Becka Thompson (Ward 12)

Detailed Responses

If elected, what will be your top three priorities?

1. Safety
2. Fiscal responsibility
3. Rebuilding Lake Street

From my perspective 1 can be achieved by a multi-pronged approach. I think it is imperative we find a way to engage schools in a manner where we get more touch points for our youth who struggle with activities that become detrimental both to them and our community. 2. can be achieved by delving into our planning comp plans and finding ways to rebuild downtown, streamline departments and audit all departments to discover if there is any corruption that has plagued our state in them.

What should the City do to generate missing revenue as downtown building values fall?

Safety. If downtown office workers return, the city will return. However we also need to look at residential and commercial. It would be incredible if we could revamp city center and hope that the old Dayton's space could be activated. Downtown used to be THE place to go for a night out shopping or dining with friends. It isn't just about office workers though that is HUGE. We cannot maintain our city without a robust downtown and we cannot have that without a direct and intentional return to safety. For every major crime there are a thousand petty ones that make people- residents of the city, the surrounding suburbs and the state- avoid downtown. We cannot just focus on major crimes, we need to acknowledge our failure to protect citizens from assaults, battery, theft, vandalism and other nuisance crimes.

What is the appropriate role of the City Council in developing policy and providing services under the 'Executive Mayor' system?

This is a challenging question. The city council should definitely develop policy and the mayor has control over the departments with, from my reading, has complete authority. The connection is to find ways to work together to develop policy and then implement it. Yes, there is a massive disconnect between the current mayor and the current council majority. This is unlikely to change without some sort of directional alignment to save the city. The city must be saved through the above measures. We are at a cross roads. So, the council gives direction on many projects and the mayor has the power to implement them.

What should the City Government do to support small and local businesses?

First we need to create the conditions for them to succeed. In teaching we talk a lot about 'creating a learning environment' for your classroom. We cannot force students to succeed, they must do that for themselves but we are tasked for creating the environment and instructing them. I believe there is a huge parallel to small businesses in the city with classroom environments in the sense that, there are definitely things the city can control: variances to rebuild, safety. Safety, safety. Let's give an example: there is one small business owner in ward 12 who has had vandals break in more than once. Each time the glass window alone is at least $1000 deductible on insurance, not to mention the contents of the display cracked, the objects stolen. Then from this the insurance goes up, making it even less inhabitable for this business owner. This is without the idea that rent might go up because the under lying building owner has to deal with advanced property tax. Another example- a different small business in ward 12 has had vandals again as well. It might seem like a 'petty' crime but the impact to our business owners is quite profound. Some have reported that when hey have had break ins and vandalism, a compounded issue is having to close their business or pay someone overtime to be able to drive downtown to get the police reports rather than have the 3rd precinct open. The failure to properly reopen the 3rd precinct IN the 3rd precinct has had profound effects on the community of business owners.

What is an immediate and urgent solution to encampments in Minneapolis?

Engage the county and the state. The state hospital still exists and we should lobby our local delegation to reopen other closed facilities. People need care and hope and treatment. Additionally many children have been trafficked in these encampments as have countless women. This is an extremely urgent need for their well being. In addition, the encampments are a terrible allowance of open air drug markets, effectively legalizing illicit and extremely dangerous narcotics inside of city limits. This is a terrible thing for our children to witness. A society that does not care for its most vulnerable is truly not a civil society. The residents of the encampments need to go to state facilities far away from their drug suppliers where they can get physical, mental and emotional care to help them overcome addiction.

What role should the City Council have in improving public safety?

It should fund police and it should assure that there are accountability metrics not only for sworn peace officers but also for the potential fraud engrafted in to alternative measures we have sought and seem to have failed.

Quick Hits

Property taxes?
Too high and should be reduced

The City has committed to transforming George Floyd Square in a way that honors community values and vision for the future. What option do you support for this transformation?
A Flexible Open-Street concept that would support development at the People’s Way.

What concept do you support for 3000 Minnehaha Ave, the site of the former Third Police Precinct?
Other community space as yet to be determined.

Do you support the City of Minneapolis moving forward a Boycott, Divestment and Sanction policy against Israel where possible?
No.

Do you support the removal of I-94 through Minneapolis and replacement with a boulevard and/or public transit?
No.

The City of Minneapolis has a Separation Ordinance in place preventing city employees from asking about immigration status. Do you support this ordinance?
Yes.

What would you prioritize in immediate future city budgets?
Focus more on core functions for which the city is currently primarily responsible like police, fire, and road maintenance.

Should a Labor Standards Board be revisited, its composition should be:

Something else. I'm not sure we should have a labor standards board. I do believe we should have labor standards. This could be achieved by a short term work group creating a guiding document that is then adopted by the city. That is my preferred method,. I believe developing a new board could simply create more gridlock.

Increased vibrancy and activity downtown is important for:
Everyone in Minneapolis.

Minneapolis small and local business owners receive:
Too little support from the City Council.

How important is economic health and the business environment in Minneapolis?
One of the top three most important issues facing our city.

Do you believe that Minneapolis currently has a hospitable business climate?
No.

I believe that perception of crime:
Has a real impact on local businesses and should be taken seriously by city policymakers

Would you support the implementation of a strict rent control policy with rents capped at 3% annual increases, such as was passed in Saint Paul in 2021?
No.

Are you open to supporting a different version of rent control than a strict 3% cap?
Yes.

In general, what effect do you believe the production of market-rate housing have on other units in the area?
Decreases rent through increasing supply.

Do you support the Revised Affordable Housing Right of First Refusal Ordinance?
No.

Do you think we need additional renter protections? If yes, what protections would you support?
Yes. I would support a comprehensive review of the city to determine how we can rehabilitate old buildings before destruction as the cost associated with older buildings is significantly lower than that of new construction, Additionally, I believe we need to look into our building codes so that we can make construction of new building more affordable for the builder, including but not limited to cost of construction materials, taxation and fees, so that the lowered construction cost can be passed on to the renter in terms of guaranteed protections for the builder and renter alike. I would support building duplex, triplex and 4-plex on the many vacant lots across the city, significant portions in north Minneapolis, wherein affordable units could be sprinkled throughout the city in more diverse sections of the city while also providing a greening of the city.

The existence of homeless encampments is:
A public health and safety emergency.

Should encampment closures be halted?
No.

Do you support the minimum police officer mandate of 1.7 per 1,000 residents?
Yes, and I believe the City should continue working to fulfill it.

As a city council member, would you support increasing funding for recruitment, hiring, and retention of officers as the mayor proposed and City Council majority rejected in their 2024 and 2025 budgets?
Yes.

Do you support the Office of Community Safety Department of Neighborhood Safety’s (DNS) RFP process awarding contracts to organizations through a basic competitive bidding process with expert-informed “best practices” proposal evaluations?
Yes.

Do you support the Department of Neighborhood Safety requiring data-driven accountability and reporting by violence interruption/prevention groups?
Yes.

With regard to public safety do you feel like the city's more pressing issue currently is police accountability or staffing levels?
Staffing levels.

The City reached a federal consent decree with President Biden’s Department of Justice. Despite President Trump’s administration indicating it may abandon efforts to finalize the decree, Mayor Frey has stated he will support the city and the MPD complying with the agreement even if it’s not enforced by the federal courts. Do you agree?
Yes.

Do you believe Shotspotter is a valuable tool?
Yes.

Should ShotSpotter be expanded to include additional high-crime areas?
Yes.