The South Minneapolis Public Safety Coalition (SMPSC) platform objective centers on improving livability and safety at the street level in areas of the city with deep cultural and economic diversity by concentrating, targeting, and connecting new and existing programs, services, and tools with the aid of a $10 million annual investment.
SMPSC’s platform framework focuses on three elements to achieve its objectives:
The first involves increasing awareness and access to existing public and private health and human services among vulnerable community members.
The second element of the framework involves the strategic and continual activation of public and private areas that often attract unhealthy and illegal activity.
The last element of SMPSC’s platform framework entails providing financial assistance for businesses and organizations t hat provide public access to clean and safe restrooms.
Community Services Team (CST) $6,378,367.62
This pillar focuses on establishing and maintaining a mix of full-time and part-time persons whose role centers on outreach and expediting service and maintenance requests within the public realm. The primary role of CST personnel will involve contributing to a positive street-level experience by conducting a range of outreach functions. This will include acknowledging and greeting all members of the community, modeling national best practices for street outreach, and identifying and reporting a range of service and maintenance needs within public spaces. The increase in touch-points that CST personnel will make with people and reporting maintenance issues will increase demand for health and human services and those delivered by the city’s Public Works department. As a result, the corresponding budget for this proposal accounts for increased utilization and allocates funds to reimburse select agencies for additional support.
Street-Stand Program (SSP) $845,088.67
Development of a Street-Stand Program (SSP) will provide t he structure, consistency, and reliable means to help positively activate community spaces t hat often attract unhealthy or illegal activity. The SSP will include a licensure process that permits the sale of qualifying goods and services. Examples include food, periodicals, and massage. This program will help fuel economic inclusion throughout all parts of the city. It can be especially effective in reducing small business start-up barriers that disproportionately impact many within low-wealth and people of color communities.
Restroom Access Fund (RAF) $1,416,308.67
Establishing a Restroom Access Fund (RAF) is a first step toward creating a bridge between vulnerable and non-vulnerable community members. When the former group does not have reasonable access to public restrooms, it increases the frequency of public urination and defecation. This not only presents health risks for the community-at-large but also fuels broad community frustration and resentment toward the most vulnerable. Increasing access to public restrooms in a manner that accounts for the city’s climate factors will help directly address this issue. The RAF will allow businesses and organizations with ownership of their facility to submit an application to become a recognized public restroom. This will allow qualifying establishments that are approved to submit reimbursement for restroom service and supply expenses up to $20,000 annually. Key qualifying factors center on the accessibility and security of the entry to the restroom and individual stalls.