Bridges meetings — Public process or pep rally?

If you havent heard Jerry Trooiens sales pitch for the Bridges of Saint Paul, there certainly have and will be numerous opportunities to do so this spring. Trooien and his team from JLT Group have secured close to 20 hours of air time at a series of public meetings that purport to represent a community input process.

As proposed, the Bridges development would put an imposing wall of buildings along the riverfront on Saint Pauls West Side, cutting off views of the Mississippi River valley and bluffs.

The first series of four meetings was put on by JLT Group itself in late April and early May. A full-page ad disguised to look like a public announcement fooled many, including the Pioneer Press editorial page staff. Each public forum consisted of two and a half hours of JLT consultants (with frequent interjections by Trooien) extolling the virtues of the Bridges plan and explaining away all its shortcomings from a neutral perspective. The 30-minute audience participation portion (often reduced to 20 minutes) offered some sparks and some planned kudos from supporters, but nothing very newsworthy, and certainly nothing that resembled community input.

Series number two is being put on by the West Side Citizens Organization (WSCO). Based on broad community input, WSCO had staked out a strong position in opposition to the Bridges proposal until late last year when the board was taken over by a new slate of people voted in by Bridges supporters, many of whom did not live in the neighborhood. A loophole in WSCOs bylaws allowed the takeover to occur, but it left the new board in the challenging position of appearing fair and responsive to their community.

The WSCO-sponsored meetings will have equal time for JLT Group and other stakeholders, such as FMR, the National Park Service–MNRRA, and the city planning department, to present to the community at each of the sessions.

Future WSCO meetings are scheduled for 6:00-8:00 pm on May 29, June 4 and June 12 at Neighborhood House, 179 Robie St E, Saint Paul.

The Minnesota Monitor has good coverage of many of the community forums. Search for bridges within the site and a list of articles will come up.