Gun Crime Grant and Looking Ahead: A Message from Council Member Shaffer

The question I raised on the dais is: Where is the same concern, the same passion, the same urgency and outrage over the unacceptable number of shootings in our city?

The 19^th century Danish philosopher Søren Kierkegaard wrote: “Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards.”

In reflecting on my newsletters so far this term, I believe I’ve done a good job of explaining what has happened over the course of the previous week and sharing that with you; but I haven’t done the same when it comes to helping the public look forward to what is coming down the pike.

Going forward that’s going to change as we regularly include a “what’s coming” section in this newsletter. The purpose of this is so that you can be informed and get involved advocating for the kind of initiatives you do – or don’t – want to see coming out of city hall.

As I mentioned in last week’s newsletter and has been covered in the media, there was a charged debate on council this week regarding granting MPD permission to apply for a $300,000 grant from the Department of Justice to maintain access to the National Integrated Ballistic Information Network (NIBIN). NIBIN is a law enforcement tool that compares spent shell casings from crime scenes to identify when the same firearm may have been used in multiple shootings. The shell casings left behind are like fingerprints. NIBIN can help MPD connect a gun to a crime, connect related shootings to one another, identify the person responsible, and prevent that person from doing it again.

The controversy is about the harmful language contained in the notice for the grant directed at undocumented immigrants, and the suggestion was made that applying for it might be a violation of our separation ordinance. Our city attorneys answered that question publicly, explicitly, and clearly: it does not. MPD will use this grant solely to investigate shootings that occur in Minneapolis.

The question I raised on the dais is: Where is the same concern, the same passion, the same urgency and outrage over the unacceptable number of shootings in our city?

Two weekends ago, two mass shootings left more than a dozen people injured, one person dead, and another unable to walk. Those are the shootings that make the headlines. We rarely hear about all the others.

Businesses are being shot at in the middle of the day. One restaurant owner wrote to me after someone fired into his business for no apparent reason. A bullet missed one of his employees by only a few feet.

Imagine the horror and trauma that employee carries, wondering, “What if I had been standing over there instead of right here?” Imagine the burden on that business owner, wondering how he can ask his employees to come to work when they no longer feel safe.

We are also facing the prospect of unprecedented financial pain. We have heard about the roughly $30-$40 million plus shortfall ahead of us, and we will face extraordinarily difficult budget choices in the coming months. We cannot afford to turn up our noses at $300,000 because we dislike who occupies the White House or who leads the Department of Justice. In fact, I’d rather it be Minneapolis spending their money than them.

MPD needs access to NIBIN because we need to get these shooters and the guns they use off our streets. We can accept this grant without compromising our values. Our residents’ safety is too important to reject a useful tool without a compelling reason.

We granted MPD permission to apply for this grant 7-5. If it is awarded it will require a 9 vote threshold to receive the funds.

Much like our upcoming neighborhood association meetings section of the newsletter, we’ve decided to start a “looking ahead” section, to flag issues coming up in the next council cycle that we believe might be of interest to Ward 7 constituents. Items that made it onto our radar this week include:

Minnesota Ballpark Authority: The Business, Housing and Zoning (BHZ) Committee will be considering the re-appointment of Ward 7 resident Justin Baylor for a new term on the Ballpark Authority, where he’s already serving with another Ward 7 resident, city COO Margaret Anderson Kelliher.

Ownership of dangerous and potentially dangerous animals: The Public Health, Safety, and Equity (PHSE) Committee will be referring to staff a proposed ordinance making it easier for people convicted of violent felonies to own dangerous or potentially dangerous animals. (2026-00871).

Special events: The Climate and Infrastructure (CI) Committee will be considering permits for a range of summertime special events. Of particular interest to Ward 7, these will include the Loring Alley Live 2026 Music Festival (August 14), the MODE by Flickr photography event large block party (September 18-20), and events related to Target’s “Target Together Core Week” for its employees (Sept. 14-18).

Sewer lateral insurance: Sounds exciting? No. Expensive? Yes. Homeowners generally own and are responsible for their lateral sewer lines. When they break, it can be very expensive (staff says $15,000 is typical). At next week’s CI meeting, Public Works staff will be presenting information about insurance coverage homeowners can purchase to help spread out the pain. They’re clearly excited about this, and it could provide a helpful benefit to homeowners who want to better manage unpredictable expenses.

Build-out of the old First Precinct building: The Employment and Labor Relations (ELR) Committee is expected next week to approve a final contract amendment to complete work on the old First Precinct Building, on Fourth Street, which will repurpose it for various MPD training activities as a partial stop-gap. We’ve heard from nearby neighbors that it has attracted nuisance activity during the time it has been sitting vacant, so we’re excited to see the building being reactivated.

Via constituent newsletter