Karen Rose OSB, St. Benedict’s Monastery
Efrain Rosado, OSB, St. John’s Monastery
Vince DeVargas, St. Joseph Church, St. Joseph
Deacon Rick Scheierl, St. Mary’s Cathedral and St. Augustine, St. Cloud
Pr. James Alberts, Higher Ground Church, St. Cloud
GRIP/ISAIAH is an organization of faith leaders working together across race, faith and region in the St. Cloud area. We care deeply about the needs of our broader community, such as transportation, housing, jobs and education.
This past winter transportation became a central issue for us. We realized the transportation needs of Greater Minnesotans have changed and will continue to do so. There is an increased need for public transportation across nearly every demographic in the St. Cloud region: old, young, students, work force, long-term residents and our newer neighbors and residents.
Early last legislative session, GRIP/ISAIAH leaders found we weren’t alone in our concern for Greater Minnesota transportation needs. We met with all of our local representatives and had an impromptu meeting with Speaker of the House Kurt Daudt.
We were excited to experience the swift, collective and bipartisan action of the House after our meeting. Seven days later the Koznick bill was created and had the support of 33 House Republicans and three Democrats. This bill was going to increase Greater Minnesota transit funding with $10 million of dedicated revenue. After a long drawn-out session, this bill was dropped and a smaller “lights on” bill was passed by the House. This bill gave an increase of $5 million to Greater Minnesota transit over the next two years. We applaud Rep. Knoblach (14B) and others for beginning to address changing transportation needs in our state. But there is more work to be done.
In early March, GRIP/ISAIAH leaders decided after BNSF announced they would be laying extra track from Big Lake to Becker in 2016, that now is the time to finish the Northstar Rail to St. Cloud. Add to that our new relationship to the House and its campaign promise of passing a transportation bill that would “meet the needs of Greater Minnesotans.”
In a short time, our Northstar campaign received the support of Mayor Dave Kleis of St. Cloud, St. Cloud State University President Earl Potter, the Greater St. Cloud Development Corp., the Central Minnesota Senior Federation and countless other area leaders. Add to that the organizing done within area faith organizations: a clergy letter of support with 54 signatures and more than 2,000 petitions signed (a petition drive which is far from complete!) and it’s hard to argue the greater St. Cloud region would not benefit from this investment.
We applaud Knoblach and Gov. Mark Dayton for announcing their support for this project at a recent public meeting in St. Cloud. Our region needs strong leadership as we struggle with rising poverty rates. GRIP/ISAIAH urges our state leaders, local reps Howe (13A), O’Driscoll (13B), Theis (14A) to lead together and make sure Northstar is completed to St. Cloud in this coming session. We also call on the leadership of the House Speaker Kurt Daudt and Speaker Pro Tempore Rep. Tim O’Driscoll to pass a transportation bill, including the completion of Northstar Rail to St. Cloud this next session.
On Nov. 12, GRIP/ISAIAH will hold our event The Time is Now: Finish Northstar. It is open to the public. Knoblach has committed to attend. We are disappointed in the lack of interest in this event from our local representatives. Rep. Jeff Howe of Cold Spring is now a likely supporter of the Northstar Rail extension. Rep. Tama Theis (Waite Park/St.Cloud) has also expressed support for the project, though without a firm commitment. And despite our efforts, we do not know the position of Rep. Tim O’Driscoll (Sartell) on this issue.
Despite the lack of collective leadership among our state legislators, GRIP/ISAIAH is committed to continuing to lead in our region across race, faith, region and culture. We are one people and believe we are stronger when we work together toward a common vision. Join us Nov. 12 to learn why we believe finishing Northstar is critical to the health of our area. To register, go to: www.tinyurl.com/GRIP12.
