The Mpls Downtown Improvement District will hold its annual National Night Out Kickoff event on Tuesday, August 7 from 3-5 pm at the DID Pop-Up Satellite Office outside Gaviidae Common (6th Street & Nicollet).
With Minneapolis being a national leader in the number of National Night Out neighborhood events hosted each year, the NNO Kickoff Event in downtown Minneapolis features games, treats and information about where you can find your neighborhood’s NNO event as well as overall community safety.
This year’s NNO Kickoff Event on Nicollet will feature:
- Appearances by local law enforcement and public officials
- Free treats and giveaways (ice cream, lemonade, popcorn and more)
- Games (chess, connect4, bean bags, little kids waffle blocks, tic-ta-toe and more)
- Live Street Show musical performances
- Time/location list of NNO events in the City of Minneapolis on August 7
- And more
Great visuals are available of community gathering together to play games and meet local officials during the NNO Kickoff event on Nicollet.
Joint Beats collaboration on display at National Night Out
National Night Out also brings members of the ongoing Joint Beats law enforcement collaboration led in partnership with the mpls downtown council and Downtown Improvement District together to meet members of the community and interact while helping promote neighborhood safety.
Now in its 12th year, the Joint Beats program showcases collaboration between MPD, HCSO and Metro Transit Police Department that increases law enforcement visibility on the streets and helps enhance collaboration with street outreach teams—all in an effort to keep downtown safe during the summer months.
The 2018 Joint Beats program launched on Memorial Day and will run through Labor Day. During that span, more beat officers are being placed in downtown’s core as a way to enhance real and perceived safety during the summer months. Below are highlights from the partnership’s leaders on the impact it has downtown.
“We strive to create a consistently compelling experience downtown—one that everyone who lives, works, plays and visits here can enjoy,” said Steve Cramer, president & ceo of the mpls downtown council and Downtown Improvement District. “Partnerships with law enforcement agencies help make that possible through their visibility on the streets and their support of our other strategies like outreach and activations downtown.”
“Collaborative safety plans require collaboration—and Joint Beats is a perfect example of why that’s especially true of public safety efforts.” said Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey. “Every year, Joint Beats brings our law enforcement partners and the community together to help achieve the goal of keeping downtown safe and inviting for all.”
“The Joint Beats collaboration really highlights the importance of relationships between our law enforcement partners, as we collectively provide a visible presence downtown,” said Minneapolis Police Chief Medaria Arradondo. “I’d also like to recognize the tremendous contribution of social service ‘street outreach’ workers; everyone is working together to increase public safety for those who live, work and visit Downtown.”
“Downtown is the heart of this county, and the entire Metro area,” Hennepin County Sheriff Rich Stanek said. “It needs to be safe and secure for residents and visitors.”
“Working together and collaborating with our fellow law enforcement agencies is something we at Metro Transit Police feel is very valuable to the community,” said Metro Transit Police Chief John Harrington. “Keeping the visitors, riders and operators safe is our top priority, and the Joint Beats initiative is one that annually yields results doing that.”
The continued efforts this summer communicates a serious and shared focused on downtown safety, which is the foundation of any successful community. The Joint Beats program works in tandem with City of Minneapolis leadership, the downtown business community, and street outreach organizations to help meet the needs of all who live, work and play downtown.
