The Minneapolis Downtown Council annual meeting, held earlier this month, always is the place to go to learn about the numbers behind the downtown economy.
And a few of the people generating the numbers, also are honored for their work of the heart.
Lynette Dumalag, who works for NTH, the commercial real estate firm, also has worked for five years as a volunteer to end downtown homelessness, one of the 10 stated goals of the Downtown 2025 plan and one in which the council has made significant gains with its nonprofit, government and religious partners.
Dumalag, the daughter of Filipino immigrants, said she was first connected to the issue years ago as a volunteer at Aeon, the nonprofit developer and manager of affordable housing. And she has known folks who have struggled to make rent.
One evening a few years ago, while Dumalag was serving a meal for residents at the Continental, an Aeon-owned apartment building for the working poor, she noticed that one of the diners was wearing a Downtown Improvement District (DID) uniform. That is the Downtown Council subsidiary that provides supplemental visitor, security and sanitation services. The workers make less than $15 an hour.
"I remember thinking that if he can help keep us safe and downtown livable, then we can support him and others with affordable housing," Dumalag said.
Minneapolis was the first major city to declare ending street homelessness as a goal. And Dumalag and many others believe that, in a district fast filling with luxury accommodations, the temple stands unfinished until everybody has a decent place.
That also makes downtown a better, safer place for everyone.
