The following is Mayor Frey’s statement regarding the shooting that took place Monday night at an encampment on private property on Lake Street:
“Last night, multiple people were seriously injured at an encampment. My thoughts are with the victims and the Southside community.
We are grateful to our partners at the State who are willing to assist MPD’s efforts to address crime in the area, and we will be closing this landlord’s private property encampment today, now that MPD has finished investigating the scene. If the landlord wants to sue us, we’ll see him in court. It was his choice to prevent us from closing it twice before, and this won’t be tolerated.
Equivocation on this issue is unconscionable. Whether you’re a private property owner or an elected official, the time for hedging is over.
We have years of evidence showing that encampments are unsafe. They don’t just endanger residents; they create conditions where some of our most vulnerable neighbors are exploited by drugs, violence, and trafficking. They regularly end with violence, fire, or tragedy. That is why we close them.
Making encampments more “permanent” is not harm reduction—it entrenches harm. Our obligation is to help people transition to safer, healthier alternatives.
The City’s Homeless Response team will continue to go out daily, offering shelter and resources. Our Mobile Medical Unit will continue to go out daily, providing health care and opioid resources. The Minneapolis Police Department will continue to respond to areas to ensure tents aren’t being set up. And we will continue to work with our partners at the County to connect people to housing.
After we offer those services, encampments must be closed. We cannot allow them to persist when violence, danger, and tragedy are the norm. More lives will be lost if we do.”
It looked to me that Mr. Sabri’s site might have been a vacant lot he purchased after the former building was burned down during the 2020 riots/protests/whatever. Does anyone know the exact address of this camp?
To help set some context…from 2 years ago about another encampment.
About MUID
Nearly 30 years ago, the Metropolitan Urban Indian Directors (MUID) group was formed by Executive Directors of American Indian organizations in Minneapolis to support each other in their work providing services to the American Indian Community.
November 1, 2023
To Whom It May Concern,
We are writing to demand that the Nenookaasi encampment located at 23rd St and 13th Ave in Minneapolis is closed immediately. The recent death of a baby and the overdose death at the encampment is just the most recent of many reasons we cannot wait until December 6th to act. Not only are crimes being committed regularly, but they are also being hidden from the police with threats of, and physical acts of violence, to those who would normally report. Neighbors have witnessed women and girls being dragged into cars in the middle of the night, open drug use throughout the day, open sex acts, and more.
Over the last several weeks and months, leaders from MUID organizations have reported many of these crimes and concerns to city and county officials, which has not resulted in any improvement while the situation continues to deteriorate and become more and more of a threat. This is unacceptable.
We understand that there may be misinformation about the position of MUID on this encampment. An interested community member has presented the Nenookaasi Homeless Response Action Plan to the MUID Opioid/Unsheltered Committee for consideration. However, we must clarify that this does not represent MUID.
In the long run, we understand that this encampment is part of a larger more complex housing issue that requires a collaboration of multiple jurisdictions and community partners to best serve our relatives, and MUID is willing to be part of this process. However, due to the immediate and growing public health and safety crisis this situation poses, we demand that the Nenookaasi encampment is closed immediately.
We request acknowledgement of receipt of this letter and an expedited response by Friday, November 3rd. Please direct your response to Ryan Salmon, Interim Chair of MUID.
Ryan Salmon
White Earth Band of Ojibwe
Interim Chair of MUID Ryan.Salmon@Whiteearth-NSN.gov
Supported by the FULL MUID MEMBERSHIP
MUID promotes the well-being, growth and mutual interests of metropolitan American Indian organizations.