Minneapolis City Council deadlocks over Third Precinct police station

A split Minneapolis City Council deadlocked Tuesday on whether to move ahead with the latest proposed location for a new Third Precinct police station.

The council voted 6-6 on whether to green-light the purchase of a building and parking lot at 2633 Minnehaha Av. The tie vote meant the proposal failed to move ahead with the council's endorsement. However, the idea is slated to come up again in a matter of days — and it's possible the result could be different.

The location is the most recent to be pushed by Mayor Jacob Frey, who pitched it as the lowest cost of any sites seriously considered. It could also be occupied by police as soon as a year — the fastest turnaround of any of the sites.

On Tuesday, a majority of council members echoed that sentiment — including Council Member Jamal Osman, who, in the course of the afternoon meeting, appeared to reverse his stance and ultimately cast a key dissenting vote.

Additionally, a pitch for a different site supported by a number of council members will now appear before the full council later in the week, adding to the ongoing uncertainty surrounding the issue.

City leaders have been wrestling with how to re-establish a working police station within the southeast Minneapolis boundaries of the Third Precinct since it was vacated to a crowd of thousands of protesters in the days after George Floyd's murder in 2020. Some members of the crowd ransacked the building and set it ablaze, and today it remains vacant, cordoned off by razor wire.

Meanwhile, officers who serve the area operate out of makeshift quarters in a city-owned building downtown.

In fits and starts for the past three years, city leaders have argued and reversed course as they've publicly considered a handful of possible locations out of more than 29 vetted by staff.

The cost to buy the property at 2633 Minnehaha and transform the building into a police precinct is $14 million, and it would take a year to a year and a half to complete, city officials have estimated.

On Tuesday, Frey's newly appointed commissioner of public safety, Todd Barnette, told council members one of the advantages of the 3.3-acre site, which includes a 78,500-square-foot building, is that there's space to expand from a basic police station to a "community safety center."

Exactly what services would be offered in a community safety center — beyond a traditional police station — has remained unclear for months.

Barnette said that couldn't be answered until after a community engagement process to determine what services are wanted, such as a food shelf or a driver's license center. Regardless of the specifics, city officials estimate it would cost an additional $7 million to $8.5 million to build a community safety center on that site, or any of the other sites being considered.

The lack of specifics has been a sticking point for those on the council who have resisted moving forward with any sites offered by Frey's administration. Council Member Jeremiah Ellison accused Frey of a "bait and switch" because his formal proposal described a "community safety center" but didn't include any specifics, and noted the extra cost almost as an afterthought.

The site first emerged in summer 2020, when city officials scouted more than two dozen locations for a temporary solution. They landed on 2633 Minnehaha Av. and were prepared to sign a lease with the owners.

However, when word of the plan got out, graffiti calling for the deaths of officers was scrawled on the building and, according to police, a threat was made to burn it down. The leasing plans fell apart.

Last week, the property's owner contacted the city and said they were now interested in selling the property, Barbara O'Brien, director of property services, said Tuesday.

Here's how they voted Tuesday:

Voting in favor were Council President Andrea Jenkins, Council Vice President Linea Palmisano and Council Members Michael Rainville, LaTrisha Vetaw, Lisa Goodman and Emily Koski.

Voting against were Council Members Elliott Payne, Robin Wonsley, Jeremiah Ellison, Jason Chavez, Aisha Chughtai and Osman.

Osman said he was disappointed to learn that a new police station at 2633 Minnehaha might not open with all the unspecified trappings of a community safety center — his only criticism of the site after initially saying it was "a smart move" and indicating he was prepared to vote in favor of it. He left council chambers before the meeting adjourned and could not be reached for comment.

But Osman might not ultimately be the deciding vote.

Council Member Andrew Johnson was absent Tuesday, but after Tuesday's vote he indicated he preferred 2633 Minnehaha and was prepared to vote in favor of it Thursday.

Nothing that happened Tuesday was definitive. Tuesday's meeting was the council gathering as a committee; the full council could approve — or kill — the location at its formal meeting Thursday.

In September, a similar situation happened: The committee of the whole voted to move ahead with a location on the edge of downtown, but the council reversed itself days later, and eventually scuttled that location.

On Tuesday, Council Member Chavez pushed for an alternative location that Frey's administration had considered at one point: 3716 Cheatham Av.

According to city documents, buying the property and designing and building a new facility on the 2-acre site is estimated to cost $36.5 million to $41.5 million and take at least five years. Building out a community safety center would cost an additional $7 million to $8.5 million there as well, according to city estimates.

"This is the most centralized location," Chavez said, noting it was near the light-rail station and several bus lines, as many of the potential sites are. "It would also give the community an alternative to the currently proposed site [at 2633 Minnehaha]. If you want consensus, this is a fresh way to get there."

Council Member Goodman started to pepper Chavez with questions about the site, which would require demolishing an old granary and cleaning up pollution, but their exchange soon grew acrimonious, with the two shouting over each other from opposite ends of the dais.

"It is frustrating the way you treat me in public," Chavez said, calling it "disgusting."

"Look in the mirror!" Goodman shouted back several times.

The decision to move the Cheatham site along to the full council Thursday — without recommendation — passed 8-4. But several council members voting in favor of it clarified that they preferred the location at 2633 Minnehaha.

Several council members wondered aloud what might happen if both sites are approved Thursday. No clear answers were offered.