Brooklyn Park loses its mayor to cancer

Brooklyn Park Mayor Steve Lampi was never the type to toot his own horn.

Revitalization of the Zane Avenue-Brooklyn Boulevard corridor, the Brooklyn Park alignment of the proposed Bottineau light-rail line and neighborhood placement of the new Brooklyn Park library are just a few of the projects that progressed under his watch. But such achievements were not the main thing for Lampi, said his friend and City Council colleague Mike Trepanier.

"That wasn't the rudder," Trepanier said. "The issue was livability for people. ... The most important thing would be to drive through the neighborhoods."

Lampi, 56, died at his home Saturday night, just three weeks after a cancer diagnosis. He had been elected to his third term in November.

In addition to his eight years as mayor, Lampi was owner, CEO and president of Bridgeman's Restaurants Inc., his employer since he was hired as a dishwasher at age 15.

He grew up across the border from his adopted city, in Brooklyn Center. After graduating from Robbinsdale Cooper High School in New Hope, he continued to climb the ladder at Bridgeman's. He was a 24-year-old manager when he met his future wife, Kathy, a waitress at a different Bridgeman's location. They married a year later and raised three children.

The family moved to Brooklyn Park in 1996. Lampi soon became involved in city affairs, joining, then taking the lead in, that city's Citizens Long Range Planning Group.

He ran unsuccessfully for City Council in 2000, the year before he purchased Bridgeman's Inc. In 2002, he ran for mayor and won.

Maple Grove Mayor Mark Steffenson, a colleague and friend, noted that the two worked together on the Hwy. 610 extension, securing funding and keeping the project moving, and also worked together on transformation of the Zane Avenue neighborhood.

The latter project involved tearing down a group of problematic apartment complexes and an outdated shopping mall and replacing them with new apartments, townhouses and retail development.

"If you'd been by there 10 to 15 years ago, it was one of the worst crime areas of the metro area, and it's not today," Steffenson said. "A lot of that has to do with his leadership in moving that project forward. That's the type of thing he did, and worked hard for it. It was a very positive thing for the community to have happen."

Hennepin County Commissioner Mike Opat noted accomplishments such as the Village Creek police substation, the award-winning community policing initiative, the Family Service Center partnership with the school district and the county, and others.

"He made sure he was pushing me and others to make progress," Opat said, offering the new library as an example. "From time to time it would slip down the to-do list, but he would always remind me, 'When are we going to get to the library site?' I always got the message -- it was very clear. But he had a nice style about sending the message. He understood it wasn't always the first thing on the list, but he didn't want it to be forgotten."

His passion for his city and its residents didn't go unrecognized. In his final days, his family set up a hospice area in his home. As cards from well-wishers poured in, family members affixed them to the walls so he could see them. By the end, the walls were covered.

The City Council will set a date for a special mayoral election at its March 7 meeting. In the meantime, Trepanier will serve as acting mayor.

Besides his wife, Lampi is survived by two daughters, Katie Lampi Hermanson of Minneapolis and Anna Eberhardt of White Bear Township, and a son, Matthew, of St. Paul.

Services are being planned.