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Photo by Robb Long
Troy Gallas (left) and Colin Kloecker.
By Sarah McKenzie
// Solutions Twin Cities founders Colin Kloecker and Troy Gallas are creating unique opportunities for creative people to make connections //
It’s a familiar scene in coffee shops all over the city — people lined up at tables staring at their laptops, seemingly oblivious to those around them.
If Colin Kloecker and Troy Gallas, founders of Solutions Twin Cities, could have their way, they’d have all those folks turn off their computers for a moment and introduce themselves to one another.
They want to see people making more meaningful, in-person connections these days. They’re involved in all kinds of projects with that goal in mind. “It’s the idea that your neighbor — somebody right in your backyard — could be doing this amazing project, or just have this great idea and you would never know about it,” said Kloecker.
They’ve been working to change that by bringing together a wide variety of creative folks from many different backgrounds and fields to talk about their work and dreams for the community. Both 26, the creative duo met while studying architecture at the University of Minnesota.
One of their newest projects is called Give & Take at Intermedia Arts, 2822 Lyndale Ave. S. It’s described as “where happy hour meets show & tell.”
At the monthly event, everybody in attendance — presenters and audience members — are asked two questions: What do they know about? And second, what do they want to know about?
The hope is that the exchange sparks new connections.
On their website, Kloecker and Gallas write: “Our goal is to create a welcoming, participatory, and effervescent environment in which unexpected connections can happen between members of the audience/community, and people with hidden talents, fascinations, and expertise can be invited onto the stage; revealing matches and overlaps in what people know and what they want to know, and — in doing so — create stronger interstitial bonds within the community.”
The next Give & Take event is scheduled for 7 p.m. Aug. 26.
These creative community organizers have also teamed up with a few other folks on the West Bank Social Center — a gathering space billed as “equal parts performance space, speakeasy and living room space.”
The art space above the Nomad World Pub on the West Bank has a variety of activities lined up. Recent events in August included Tuesday afternoon Coffee Klatches — a chance to hangout, share stories and make some art, a live taping of Twin Cities podcast Flak Radio on Aug. 11 and Astronaut Cooper’s Parade CD Release Show on Aug. 15.
Besides working on Solutions Twin Cities projects, Gallas is a self-employed designer who is helping coordinate a school project in Ethiopia as a volunteer with Architecture Humanity Minnesota. Kloecker works for the St. Paul architecture firm Cermak Rhoades Architects.
They were inspired to start Solutions Twin Cities after attending the Worldchanging tour event in Northeast Minneapolis in October 2006. The event promoted the book, “Worldchanging: A Users Guide for the 21st Century,” which explores innovative approaches to building a more sustainable future.
The gathering drew a wide swath of the Twin Cities creative community. On their way home, they decided they wanted to host their own event that would generate the same kind of energy and create a networking opportunity for people who might not otherwise cross paths.
“We really wanted to break down those boundaries between communities in the Twin Cities,” said Gallas. “There are opportunities where people crossover and work together, but there isn’t really a space where they can come together outside their social niche.”
The held their first event, Solutions Volume 1, at the Southern Theater, 1420 Washington Ave. S., in May 2007. They used a Pecha Kucha format for the gathering — a presentation style developed in Japan that has people do rapid fire show-and-tell presentations.
Stephanie Kinnunen, CEO and founder of NEED magazine, was one of the presenters. The Northeast Minneapolis-based magazine she co-founded with her husband Kelly focuses on stories of humanitarian projects around the world.
“Colin and Troy have developed a unique approach to community building that is informative, relevant and inspiring with the added component of fun,” Kinnunen said. “Their knowledge of Twin Cities people, arts, projects and nonprofits never ceases to amaze me. Solutions Twin Cities has been a great platform for NEED to reach out to an audience of like-minded individuals that care about their local and global communities.”
The Solutions Twin Cities community keeps growing. It includes people in many different professions, including photography, design, architecture, engineering, journalism and nonprofit work.
Cathy ten Broeke, the point person on the campaign to end homelessness in Minneapolis and Hennepin County, was another presenter at the first event.
“It was wonderful to be involved with them. It was incredibly refreshing to meet people so focused on solutions,” she said. “I found the presentations fascinating and the fact that they could bring so many diverse groups and interests together was great. … I know I left feeling a renewed sense of energy for my own work and very supported to keep going. People working on solutions to seemingly intractable problems are not alone.”
While people have diverse backgrounds, they share a common goal, Gallas said.
“I think that it’s just a lot of people who want to be engaged in their community in some way,” he said. “They are maybe tired of what’s happening around them, and want to see things change for the better.”
The goal is to showcase the collective creative talent of the Twin Cities.
“We were always online and seeing all these really great things happening on the East Coast, on the West Coast, overseas, and we were like alright that’s fantastic, but I turn my computer off and it’s gone. What’s happening right here?” Gallas said. “By putting these events together we wanted to highlight and showcase the work being done right here in the Twin Cities and then project that out through the website to the rest of the world.”
While they’ve created many different outlets for creative community building, they have a vision for something even grander down the road.
“[The West Bank Social Center] is the first step toward that long-term goal, and it’s always been to have a physical space in the Twin Cities — ideally a storefront space in a really busy area with a lot of foot traffic,” Kloecker explained. “We’re kind of thinking of it as a storefront for ideas. … We’re just excited about all kinds of ideas — big ideas, small ideas. It’s really about the people behind them.”
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City declares snow emergency
UPDATED February 8, 2010, 1:28pm
By Cristof Traudes
With snow falling almost non stop since Sunday, the City of Minneapolis this afternoon declared a snow emergency.
Starting at 9 p.m. today, cars will not be allowed to be parked on either side of snow emergency route streets. From 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. tomorrow, cars should only park on the odd side of non-snow emergency route streets, and from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, cars should only park on the even side of non-snow emergency route streets. Cars parked on the wrong sides of streets will be ticketed and towed.
To look up what streets are affected when, click here. More information is at ci.minneapolis.mn.us/snow.
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Development update :: AIA MN kicks off weekend of pro bono design
By Gregory J. Scott
It could be a scene out of some Bravo reality television show. Beginning at about 8 a.m. on Saturday, Feb. 13, teams of student and professional designers will have less than 24 hours to turn nonprofit proposals into graphic realities. The one-day scramble is part of the 23rd annual Search for Shelter Charrette, a weekend of pro-bono design organized by the American Institute of Architects Minnesota’s Housing Advocacy Committee. Nonprofits that lack the funds to hire a professional design firm submit wish-list building proposals — anything from a simple redesign of a lobby space to an inside-out renovation of an entire apartment complex. Then volunteer architects, landscape architects and interior designers collaborate to produce visual tools
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Park Board votes to open search for next superintendent
UPDATED February 4, 2010, 9:05am
By Cristof Traudes
President says Superintendent Jon Gurban has done great work but that moving on 'happens as the natural growth of an organization' The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board is set to move beyond Superintendent Jon Gurban, voting 6–3 Wednesday night to begin a search for candidates.
It’s the will of Minneapolis’ residents, said a majority of the board that included all three new commissioners. The campaign trail sealed Southwest’s Brad Bourn and Anita Tabb’s decision, they said, while Northeast’s Liz Wielinski said people brought up the issue repeatedly last fall.
But three of the board’s longest-serving commissioners fought back, stringing along a discussion that dominated the night’s meeting.
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'Beyond Our Differences' screening on Friday
UPDATED February 3, 2010, 5:02pm
By Sarah McKenzie
There will be a special screening of the documentary “Beyond Our Differences,” a film exploring the positive impact of religion and spirituality in the world, at the Mayo Memorial Auditorium at the University of Minnesota campus Friday.
Peter Bisanz, the film’s director, will be on hand after the screening for a Q&A session.
Bisanz of St. Paul is the director and founder of New York-based Entropy Films. He is one of the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders — a group of people committed to turning their visions for positive change into action on a variety of important social causes.
In a recent interview, Bisanz said the concept for “Beyond Our Differences” came about while he was at the Dalai
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Twin Citites janitors vote to authorize strike
UPDATED February 1, 2010, 10:38am
By Gregory J. Scott
A near unanimous vote by over 500 union members has given Downtown janitors the authority to strike. Over 4,000 janitors in the Twin Cities have been working without a contract since Jan. 8. Negotiations with cleaning contractors have made little progress since then, and last Saturday's vote gives the bargaining committee the power to call a strike. Two more negotiation dates have been scheduled over the following weeks, but the affirmative vote means that the janitors who clean the vast majority of Downtown office buildings could walk off the job at any time. One of the major sticking points in talks is the green cleaning agenda proposed by the janitors. SEIU Local 26 has sought a transition to day shift cleaning, which the union argues could reduce
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Northeast spotlight :: Crafty entrepreneurs
By Sarah McKenzie
Stroll into I Like You and you are bound to find something that catches your eye. There are adorably hip outfits for little ones, artwork by notable local artists like Amy Rice and Adam Turman and all kinds of other handmade odds and ends you likely won’t find anywhere else. Owners Sarah Sweet and Angela Lessman recently moved their store to the neighborhood after a couple years in Kingfield in southwest Minneapolis. They plan on offering craft classes this spring to inspire other people in the community to tap into their own creative powers. Sweet recently spoke with the Downtown Journal about the business. DTJ: What do you look for when thinking about items for your store? Sweet: We look for things that you
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Community notebook :: Janitors’ union sets strike vote
By Gregory J. Scott
1 Comment
Janitors’ union sets date for strike voteAfter two full weeks of working without a contract, a union representing more than 4,000 Twin Cities janitors decided last week to set a strike authorization vote over unfair labor practices. The vote was scheduled to take place on Saturday, Jan. 30, at the union’s weekly member meeting. At press time, the outcome was not yet known, but the Downtown Journal has been posting web updates regarding this story at downtownjournal.com. SEIU Local 26 — Minnesota’s Property Services Union, which represents security officers and window cleaners in addition to janitors — had arranged for two additional weeks of negotiations at the end of last year, pushing the final deadline for a new
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Study shows uptick in Downtown skyway traffic
By Gregory J. Scott
If you’ve noticed a bit more jostling during your skyway lunch dashes, you’re not alone. Foot traffic in the elevated corridors jumped 4 percent in 2009, and in some areas pedestrian counts reached a 10-year high. The uptick is the major take-away from a report issued last week from Minneapolis-based Pedestrian Studies, a national consulting firm that analyzes foot-traffic patterns for people whose business depends on that sort of thing — shopping centers, property managers, organizers of public events. Pedestrian Studies founder Peter Bruce has conducted annual skyway counts in Minneapolis since 1991. For this study, Bruce focused on the corridors connected to Downtown’s major buildings, including City Center, Gaviidae Common, Northstar
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Biz buzz :: The Forum
By Gregory J. Scott
New restaurant to open in former Goodfellows spaceA former executive at Cargill is opening a new restaurant in City Center, taking over the space previously occupied by Goodfellows. The new restaurant, called The Forum, will blend comfort-food favorites and traditional chop house fare. It will also offer a “changing destination menu” that every month highlights a different culinary tradition from a region of the United States. Chef Christian Ticarro, executive chef at the Canyon Grille in Coon Rapids, will head the kitchen. The opening is planned for early April. The Forum takes over one of Minneapolis’ most historic spaces, the old Forum Cafeteria, which operated from the 1930s to the 1970s. The space was most recently
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Proposal would double fundraising needs for planetarium
By Cristof Traudes
In a shaky economy, it’s hard enough just to raise money. Try watching thought-to-be-secured dollars fall away. That’s what backers of the Minneapolis Planetarium project have been doing in the weeks since Gov. Tim Pawlenty presented his 2010 bonding proposal, a bill that would delete $22 million that’s been guaranteed to the Minneapolis Planetarium Society since 2005. Without the bonding, the society is looking at more than double the amount of money they need to raise to get the long-planned project up and running. “If the $22 million goes away, I think we have to really reconsider how everything looks,” said Angus Vaughan, president of the Minnesota Planetarium Society. The proposed planetarium would be a $35 million
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A tale of two housing markets
By Gregory J. Scott
// What do the 2009 numbers mean for Downtown? //The number of sales swelled, but median prices plummeted. Affordability reached a record high, but so did foreclosures and short sales. Realtors feel a twinge of optimism, but economists keep a nervous vigil. Since its release two weeks ago, a year-end report on the 2009 Twin Cities housing market has generated mixed emotions and mixed data, matching nearly every encouraging sign of a turn-around with a reason to keep hopes in check. And while real estate watchers metro-wide have chimed in with outlooks for the Twin Cities as a whole, getting an isolated assessment for Downtown has proven more difficult. “We stray from offering specific, neighborhood-level
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