The Star Tribune (In St. Cloud, Gov. Mark Dayton calls for more funding to fight racial disparities) and St. Cloud Times (Gov. Dayton provides harsh criticism of racial tensions) both report on Tuesday's St. Cloud NAACP Community Conversation attended by Gov. Mark Dayton and local legislators.
Another issue surfaced at the meeting: extending the North Star commuter rail line to the Central Minnesota city. As we noted in Faith leaders: St. Cloud area reps, walk the walk on Greater MN talk, get on board with Northstar, local ISAIAH-MN members called for the extension in an open letter published in the paper.
Times staff writer Vicki Ikeogu reports in Knoblach supports Northstar extension, plans research:
St. Cloud Rep. Jim Knoblach said Tuesday he supports extension of the Northstar Commuter Rail from Big Lake to St. Cloud and wants to research the costs.
Knoblach made comments after supporters of the rail extension raised concerns at the St. Cloud NAACP Community Conversation attended by Gov. Mark Dayton.
Dayton said he supports the extension but plans depend on funding from the federal government.
"We get part of it, about 20 percent from the state, but we can't extend it without the federal government," Dayton said. "Whoever built that line and stopped ... miles short of St. Cloud should (receive) the idiot of the year award." . . .
Knoblach chairs the powerful Minnesota House Ways and Means Committee; after several sessions away from the body, he was -re-elected by a 69 vote-margin in the hotly-contested swing district, where "forces on both sides spent a chart-topping $972,000," J. Patrick Coolican reported in February in the Star Tribune.
Perhaps that margin and spending provide an incentive for Knoblach to keep an open mind about commuter rail. The Times report continues:
Knoblach echoed the governor's disappointment in the failure to have the Northstar Commuter Rail connect to St. Cloud and has also acknowledged the difficulty in securing additional federal funding for the project. But he is convinced that with the existing infrastructure and BNSF Railway's investment in a second track between Becker and Big Lake, implementation costs would be reduced.
"I really do wonder if perhaps it could be done for a lot less money than what was once thought," Knoblach said. "And that is one thing that I am definitely working on researching."
Community members expressed that without the extension of the Northstar Commuter Rail to provide access to jobs in the Twin Cities or the creation of additional manufacturing jobs in Central Minnesota, many in the area will be forced into working longer hours at minimum wage jobs such as retail.
After the formal discussion, Knoblach said he will continue to support the Northstar Commuter Rail expansion and continue working toward getting funding to secure the project.
We'll be keeping an eye on the consequences of that support.
Photo: One of the trains on North Star line.
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