Undated black and white courtesy photo of Roberta “Bobbi” Magard, a former member of the St. Paul city council, died Nov. 16, 2023. She was 87. Megard was first elected in 1993 and served two terms on the council. She also ran for mayor twice. (Courtesy of the family)
Family and former colleagues of a longtime St. Paul activist and former city council member are remembering her for community work and a strong belief in government’s ability to improve lives.
Two-term city council member Roberta “Bobbi” Megard died earlier this month at age 87. Megard represented northwestern St. Paul’s Ward 4 on the council after being elected in 1993, and ran for mayor in 1997 and 2001.
One of her lasting marks is on downtown housing, says Ann Cieslak, who was a legislative aide to Megard for four years. Cieslak remembers Megard making early calls for more housing in the then-floundering district, which has since seen significant residential development.
Megard was an advocate for affordable housing, and a critic of former Mayor Norm Coleman’s unwillingness to raise taxes, something she said would only shift problems to future St. Paul residents, Cieslak said.
“She didn’t make her decision based on the politics of it,” said Cieslak. “She would always say what was best for St. Paul … so she was the fourth vote on some pretty tough votes.”
Cieslak, who eventually left the council for a job with the University of Minnesota, where she became director of the Board of Regents, said Megard had an “enormous” effect on her career.
Before she was elected to the St. Paul City Council in 1993, Megard had a long track record of civic involvement in the city she moved to with her husband in the 1960s.
“She loved her community and she worked very hard and was very dedicated to several important causes in St. Paul over her lifetime, and just was a tireless advocate for issues in her community,” said Rachel Tranberry, Megard’s daughter.
Some of the causes she fought for over the years included a push to desegregate St. Paul schools, and later, working to fight gun violence, Tranberry said. Megard lost her 2-year-old great-grandson in a 2016 Minneapolis shooting.
Tranberry said Megard became interested in civic involvement while growing up in Hermiston, Ore., where her father’s involvement with local infrastructure made her interested in how to get things done through government.
Besides her work in city government, Megard was president of the St. Paul League of Women Voters from 1983 to 1985, and was active in several community organizations including the Midway YMCA where she volunteered on the community board.
In 1992 she sat on St. Paul’s police chief selection committee. She also served as organizer for the St. Anthony Park Community Council until 1993.
Megard’s family has not yet made plans for a celebration of life. Her husband Robert “Bob” Magard died in 2017 at age 83. She’s survived by children Jason, Allison and Rachel.
