Carter tackles crime, rent control

In his first state of the city address since his November re-election, St. Paul Mayor Melvin Carter offered a smart list of recommended uses for federal pandemic relief funds.

Carter wisely wants to focus on hiring more police officers, distributing gun safes, recovering from the pandemic and crafting a reasonable rent stabilization ordinance.

The mayor's proposals on public safety are welcome and on point. St. Paul experienced a record 38 homicides last year and had recorded eight just eight weeks into 2022. And although Carter has seemed reluctant to increase the number of officers — favoring investments in prevention efforts over more cops — he's rightly realizing that the city needs to bolster its Police Department.

On Tuesday, Carter announced plans to use some of the $166 million St. Paul received from the federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARP) to hire more officers. He said he also recommends that the city accept at least a portion of a $3.75 million grant from the U.S. Justice Department to help fund those salaries. And he plans to launch a second police academy later this year.

Rightly acknowledging the proliferation of stolen guns on the street, Carter said he'll propose an ordinance that would require legal firearms to be locked, unloaded and stored separate from ammunition when not under an owner's control. And he would allocate a portion of ARP funds for to buy and distribute safes to gun owners and make it more difficult for thieves to steal firearms.

"This is a common-sense way for us to take action on a local level to help keep illegal guns off of our streets, reduce the likelihood that they get into the wrong hands or are used in ways that are counterproductive to our community's goals," said Carter, who has long advocated for stronger laws around gun ownership.

Carter reiterated his vision for the non-law enforcement, community-first public safety programs he has emphasized during his time in office. He talked about how increased violent crime and carjackings drive the need to invest in emergency responses. And he said continued video evidence of "officer-involved shootings, high-speed pursuits and no-knock warrants keep us grounded in our continued need for accountability and reform."

That's consistent with the Star Tribune Editorial Board's position that the leaders of Minnesota's largest cities must take a both/and approach to public safety. Longer-term crime prevention efforts are needed — and so are more immediate law enforcement strategies including bringing on more patrol officers.

Housing is another critical issue in St. Paul, and Carter encouragingly said he wants to move quickly to exempt new rental units from a voter-approved rent control measure. "We cannot afford to lose the thousands of housing units currently on pause while we wait for bureaucratic processes at City Hall to run their course," he said, referring to developers who have said the vote caused lenders to back out of projects.

Other plans for the federal relief funds include an extension of the city's guaranteed income pilot that would distribute monthly payments to 300 low-income families for two years. And Carter said he would extend Saturday hours at recreation centers and add ambassadors to patrol the city's skyways.

Carter has laid out sensible plans that address the top issues in St. Paul. As the details are fleshed out, the council and citizens should support these efforts.