Opinion editor’s note: Editorials represent the opinions of the Star Tribune Editorial Board, which operates independently from the newsroom.
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St. Paul’s City Council is in for big changes as all seven seats are up for election. Four seats are open because incumbents are not running again. With their departures, the council will lose more than 30 years of experienced leadership.
And, with at least four new members, most of the council will be new to the job when they are sworn in early next year. The council will address much-discussed issues, including crime, rent control modifications and expanding the city’s housing stock for all income levels. With legitimate concerns about the city’s deteriorating infrastructure — especially roads — they’ll handle the results of the ballot question that asks voter approval for a 1% sales tax increase to fund nearly $1 billion for streets and parks over 20 years.
In addition, the council should rethink a poorly conceived and costly 2024 ballot initiative for a special levy increase to fund child care for low-income families.
First Ward: Anika Bowie
St. Paul’s central city First Ward is the city’s most economically and racially diverse, encompassing lower-income areas in Frogtown and the North End, middle incomes in Midway and Union Park, and more affluent neighborhoods on Summit Avenue and Cathedral Hill. The position is open because former member Dai Thao left office last year and appointed interim member Russel Balenger agreed not to seek election.
Eight people are vying for the seat. Most are well-versed on issues facing the ward, and they represent the diversity of the area with a variety of backgrounds. Three are immigrants or come from first-generation immigrant families, half are women and five are people of color.
Of this field, we give the edge to Anika Bowie (anikabowie.com). The small-business owner, community organizer and political strategist has worked on numerous campaigns and understands government operations. She’s a native of the Rondo neighborhood and has helped manage six-figure budgets through work with a local NAACP branch.
Bowie is running an energetic campaign, and her grassroots work positions her well to reach across communities to serve the diverse groups in her ward. She supports the sales tax increase but questions whether there is another funding source for the child care proposal. Bowie is endorsed by several progressive groups, including AFSME and Women Winning, as well as numerous DFL elected officials, including Mayor Melvin Carter.
Also mounting strong campaigns are school counselor and Realtor James Lo (jameslo.org) and business owner Omar Syed (omarward1.com). Both oppose strict rent control policies and the proposed 1% tax increase for infrastructure and parks. Lo has the St. Paul Chamber of Commerce and teacher’s union endorsement, as well as support from numerous former and current elected officials. Syed is a citizen member of the St. Paul Planning Commission and is supported by current Council Member Jane Prince and several community members and business owners.
Candidate Yan Chen (chen4ward1.com) is a research scientist who has studied the St. Paul city budget. She believes reallocating current funds, not necessarily raising taxes, could better address city needs.
And Suz Woehrle (facebook.com/suzforward1saintpaul), is an IT representative and biking and pedestrian advocate who favors both tax increase initiatives. However, in the future she would look to other funding sources such as PILOT, or Payment in Lieu of Taxes, which asks non-taxpaying entities like hospitals, nonprofits and universities to contribute toward city services.
The DFL did not select a candidate in this race. Five candidates sought the St. Paul DFL endorsement in April, but following just three ballots in nearly 10 hours, the convention ended when participants walked out, with Bowie leading Syed by a handful of votes.
Also running are Lucky “Tiger Jack” Rosenbloom, an educator, Travis Helkamp, a construction project engineer and Jeff Zeitler (jeffzeitler.com), winemaker and entrepreneur. They did not participate in Star Tribune Editorial Board interviews.
Second Ward: Rebecca Noecker
Second Ward residents have two serious candidates among the four running in the City Council race — incumbent Rebecca Noecker and Peter Butler. But Noecker, who was first elected in 2015, gets the Star Tribune Editorial Board’s nod (rebeccanoecker.com).
Her pragmatism and thoughtfulness stand out. On St. Paul’s rent control policy, for example, she worked with other council members to pass necessary exemptions to the 3% requirement, recognizing that a stringent cap would deter developers from building housing the city needs. (It’s worth noting that the Editorial Board was not in favor of the original policy, but we appreciate that Noecker understands that St. Paul is not immune to the laws of supply and demand.) She also favors a balanced public safety strategy that includes targeted violence prevention as well as increased police funding. And Noecker rightly thinks that the proposed 1% sales tax is the fairest way to pay to fix St. Paul’s crumbling streets after years of underinvestment.
The incumbent has long championed child care in St. Paul. She helped override Mayor Melvin Carter’s veto on a plan to ask voters in 2024 to raise property taxes to subsidize child care for low-income families. On this subject, the board disagrees. We argued in August that the plan as currently envisioned is too costly and lacks specifics.
Noecker’s most serious challenger, Peter Butler, has many years’ experience working for state and local government and, if elected, would bring a financial background to the council. This background gives him a more realistic view of certain city projects, like the Rethinking I-94 initiative, which the Editorial Board sees as noble but in need of clearer goals. St. Paul would also benefit from a more tax-averse council as residents have raised alarm about high property taxes. However, Butler’s skepticism extends too far; he opposes the 1% sales tax that the board argues is necessary.
With four of seven current members stepping down, the council risks losing important experience and city know-how. Noecker will have the longest tenure on the council if re-elected and can play an important guiding role for less-experienced colleagues. This experience, combined with her thoughtful and deliberate approach to policy, makes her an excellent choice for Second Ward residents.
Artist Noval Noir is also running for the seat, but her knowledge of city issues and policy specifics is sparse (novalnoirforward2.com). The fourth candidate, small-business owner Bill Hosko, declined an endorsement interview (billhosko.org).
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For more on the Nov. 7 elections, see the Star Tribune newsroom’s voter guides for Minneapolis and St. Paul. Star Tribune Editorial Board endorsements in St. Paul City Council races will continue in the coming days. Our recommendation for approval of St. Paul’s ballot question on a 1% sales tax increase appeared Sunday. Our full list of Minneapolis endorsements can be found here. The Editorial Board operates separately from the newsroom, and no news editors or reporters were involved in the endorsement process.
