Minneapolis City Council — Transcript
Wednesday, August 5, 2026
Consent Agenda Management
City Trees Program Annual Report
Minneapolis Tree Advisory Commission Annual Report
Police Department After Action Reviews
Police Response to Public Gatherings
Votes (5)
Consent Agenda Items 1-11 and Postponement of Item 12
Dissent: None
Moved by Chair Chavez [06:00] · Seconded by Not explicitly stated, but implied by vote
The committee reviewed the consent agenda, which included contract amendments for public safety services, acceptance of various grants, and setting public hearings for new ordinances. Item 12, related to law enforcement identity, was postponed. There was no substantive policy debate on the items themselves.
Presentation related to the city's tree program
Dissent: None
Moved by Not applicable · Seconded by Not applicable
Sydney Chaff presented the City Trees program's annual report, highlighting its 20-year history, distribution of over 25,000 trees on private property, and projected 2026 planting of over 3,200 trees. Key initiatives discussed included the residential city tree sale, full-service plantings emphasizing green zones, the mini-forest concept, educational graphics, and the Tree Ambassador pilot program. The Condemned Tree Assistance Program, a federally funded initiative providing financial aid for hazard tree removals, was also detailed, showing 600+ trees removed across 500+ addresses. Progress on the Private Property Tree Preservation Ordinance, balancing tree protection with development needs, was also updated.
Presentation about the Minneapolis Tree Advisory Commission
Dissent: None
Moved by Not applicable · Seconded by Not applicable
Co-chairs Jeppi Marari and Tim Keane presented on the commission's role in enhancing the urban forest. They detailed the benefits of trees (climate mitigation, socioeconomic, public health) and the accomplishments of the park board and city trees program, including planting diversity and a new forestry director. Major challenges identified were unreliable and impermanent funding for the park board's 2:1 tree replacement goal, canopy threats from development and invasive species, and private urban forest challenges. Recommendations included securing permanent funding, establishing a grant writer for the park board, strengthening tree protection policies, improving collaboration with developers, and continuing public engagement and tree removal assistance programs.
Presentation from the police department related to a report on after action reviews
Dissent: None
Moved by Not applicable · Seconded by Not applicable
Commander Bryce Robinson provided an update on the Minneapolis Police Department's (MPD) response to the 37 findings from the Muri and Lucer audit reports, which translate into 89 specific action items. Six items have been completed, while 31 remain in progress. Completed actions include establishing a neighborhood mediation program, requiring inspectors to report on 911 call service delays to increase accountability, forming a violent criminal apprehension team (VCAT), and assigning homicide lieutenants to domestic violence death cases. The committee expressed a desire for more detailed future reports, including specific action item descriptions, completion statuses, and timelines for public tracking.
Report from the legislative research and oversight department regarding police responses to public gatherings
Dissent: None
Moved by Not applicable · Seconded by Not applicable
Nick Barkley from LRO presented a comprehensive report on police crowd management, detailing the evolution from 'escalated force' to 'negotiated management' and 'command and control,' leading to the modern 'Elaborated Social Identity Model' (ESIM). Columbus, Ohio's 'Public Order Policing Strategy' (POPS), driven by a federal injunction, was highlighted as a national standard, demonstrating significant reductions in force and arrests. MPD's 'fluid response model' was discussed, showing a shift towards scalable, layered responses and reactive deployment, but noting challenges in formalizing dialogue teams and standardizing training/equipment. The report also emphasized the crucial role of community organizers' professionalization and communication in positive outcomes, suggesting future steps like dedicated funding for dialogue teams, standardized reporting, and academic partnerships. A key finding was that legal exposure and mandated reform, rather than voluntary adoption, often drive these policing changes.
Notable Quotes (13)
One of the biggest ones that we think about are the ways that trees help cool our cities and help mitigate the effects of climate change. The larger the tree is, the more of these benefits that it provides.
The condemned tree assistance program is a federally funded program that is through a grant to the forest service. We were awarded this a couple years ago and we pursued it because of advocacy from community members who elevated a need for financial assistance for diseased and infested and hazard tree removals.
I think you know it was interesting having the survey split between community members and then the professionals. definitely uh varied a lot. I think from a lot of community members, what they're wanting to see is pretty strict protections. Um very strict requirements to try to limit tree removal as much as possible and then really emphasize if preserving trees is not possible to be sure that we're having strict requirements of replacement tree planting.
The park board itself, one of the goals of the park board is to plant two trees per every tree removed. And that is still a goal. That requires about a million dollars in annual budget to plant around 10,000 trees a year.
We need to make investments in the urban uh forestry continuously. Uh this is not a uh uh a single project effort. It's a way of thinking. It's a way of implementing our way of life.
As you consider public projects, public taxpayer supported projects that come through your committee for approval, whether it's the Met Council, Henipin County, Minot, Park Board, school district, ask the questions, what are we doing to preserve our urban tree canopy?
So, our unit was tasked with um tracking uh the progress from uh the auditor uh the audit report. So, what we did was we broke it down. Um there was 37 findings from the report and from that uh the Minneapolis police we came up with 37 action items.
So, um, so one of the items that was set up was the neighborhood mediation program, getting neighbors to resolve, uh, their issues and sending people out there to to mediate.
I think something that I would love to see is the category component broken down into some of the goals that need to be met, which particular ones are completed, which ones are in progress, need to be timed out until particular goals that days that need to be met because I think that would help the public track some of these goals and it would be really helpful.
If police treat a crowd as a threat and use or threaten to use heavy-handed tactics, people in the crowd may feel there are being they are being unfairly targeted as a group.
POPS leaders attribute much of their success to the intrinsic desire of their officers to uphold the constitutional rights of protesters. The team's guiding motto, honest dialogue, requires honest intent, is prominently displayed on the web page uh and as the first uh slide in their training materials.
Organizers describe their own professionalization, training, and willingness to communicate with law enforcement as equally responsible for these improved outcomes.
This suggests that while the underlying research has been available for close to 20 years, it was legal exposure and mandated reform, not voluntary adoption of evidence-based practice that has been the primary drive for change in these agencies represented.
Ordinances & Resolutions (14)
Authorizing amendments for Human Trafficking Investigators Task Force, Crime Analysts, and Investigators.
Authorizing amendment for behavior crisis response services.
Accepted to support emergency preparedness activities.
Accepted to support emergency responses.
Accepted for bomb disposal equipment and training.
Public hearing set for August 19th.
Public hearing set for August 19th.
Postponed to the September 23rd meeting.
Under development to preserve trees lost during construction, with public engagement completed and expected early next year.
Audit report on MPD, identifying 15 recommendations related to policies, training, staffing, and 911 response.
Audit report on MPD, identifying 22 recommendations related to policies, training, staffing, and 911 response.
Barred indiscriminate force and kettling, and prohibited use of force to disperse non-violent crowds in Columbus, Ohio.
Requires an independent monitor to review and approve MPD policies.
Requires additional changes to MPD policies to obtain compliance.