NOTES from the committee's March 18, 2010 meeting:

We met at the new Seven Clans Casino at Red Lake last Thursday. Thank you to Jody and Mary for hosting the meeting, and thank you to the casino for providing such a warm, friendly place to meet.

The discussion was very productive this time. We discussed our desire to include more community members in the engagement and planning stages of this project. We highlighted the many ways in which we could invite and inform the larger community, including the city of Bemidji and the three local reservations. We shared a desire to collect more stories and images from the life of Shaynowishkung, the founding of the City, and the creation of the many statues and monuments to his name, including the monument in Bemidji's greenwood cemetery. We made plans to host public information meetings in four different locations this spring, to share what we have learned and to foster respectful debate. Finally, we discussed the importance of staying informed and involved in the planning and design of Bemidji's newest park spaces, in light of the Waterfront and South Shore development that is taking place, so that a future Chief Bemidji Statue, and more public art of all kinds, is given space and provided for. Our hope is that future generations will benefit from the work we are all doing now.

Below is a brief version of our meetings minutes:

1. Kevin reported on the outcome of the March 15, 2010 City Council meeting. Our committee was referred back to the Parks and Trails Commission, and the City will act as our fiscal agent. The City Council wants to make sure this project is what the native community wants, and feels that having adequate American Indian representation on the committee will ensure that.

2. Community Engagement
Questions to ask when we engage the public:
a. What is the value in creating a new statue to honor Chief Bemidji?
b. What are your impressions of the current statue?
c. Where should a new statue be located?
d. Do you have stories, photos, history to share related to Chief Bemidji and this time period?

3. Committee discussed the desire to host 4 public information meetings: Red Lake, Leech Lake, Bemidji, and White Earth. The meetings will be to a) give information on the project’s mission and goals, and possible locations, and b) get feedback from the communities on the new statue, existing statue, location, and stories/history. Meetings will be planned for early May, week night at 7-8:30 pm.

4. Committee reviewed maps of South Shore Development, Library Park, and Paul Bunyan Park. We would like to focus the next meeting solely on the topic of location, and take tours of these three park areas near the south shore of Lake Bemidji.

Four topics to discuss..

Please take a minute to review our 4 primary questions and if you would like to be a part of the conversation, click to comment on each question individually. This will help us gather and organize your opinions by their topics. All blog conversations are being archived and printed as a paper transcript, and is available to anyone who requests it.