Metro briefs: Dakota County to open waitlist for rental assistance

The agency will randomly choose 2,500 applicants for the rental assistance program waitlist.

Another 700 people will be selected for project-based waiting lists. Those lists are for two properties, in Apple Valley and Eagan, that serve families that meet certain income and family size limits.

Voucher recipients have to put at least 30 percent of their monthly adjusted income toward rent. Of the applicants who will be selected, 95 percent must live, work or attend school full time in Dakota County.

Jessie Van Berkel

Matt Clark, assistant chief of the Minneapolis Police Department, is one of two finalists to lead the University of Minnesota police force after a monthslong search to replace the retiring Greg Hestness.

Hestness, a longtime Minneapolis cop who rose to the rank of deputy chief, is retiring in June after 11 years on the job, according to school officials. Hestness also serves as the university's assistant vice president for public safety.

The other finalist to replace him is Colleen Luna, commander of the St. Paul Police Department's Property Crimes Unit.

Libor Jany

House Republicans released major tax legislation Saturday, and, as promised, it offers up about $2 billion in tax cuts to a range of Minnesotans, from income tax filers to Social Security recipients, military veterans, people with college debt, businesses and a plethora of other groups.

"The overall direction is tax relief to middle-class Minnesotans. It's about helping seniors, military veterans, farmers and students," said Rep. Greg Davids, chairman of the House Taxes Committee. Republicans will hold a news conference to discuss their plan Monday, and the House Taxes Committee will hold hearings on the Davids bill all week.

The GOP tax plan will face stiff resistance from DFL Gov. Mark Dayton, who has proposed spending much of the projected $1.9 billion surplus on education and especially prekindergarten. Dayton has said the surplus gives Minnesota a rare opportunity to invest in priorities like early childhood education. The DFL-controlled Senate's budget targets are much closer to Dayton's than to House Republicans.

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Gateway Drive on the south shore of Lake Como will take on the name of St. Paul's sister city in a ceremony at 10:30 a.m. Monday in St. Paul. The name change will commemorate the 60th anniversary of St. Paul's relationship with Nagasaki, Japan.

The ceremony will include Mayor Chris Coleman, Council Member Amy Brendmoen, a taiko drumming group called Taikollaborative and JoAnn Blatchley, president of the St. Paul-Nagasaki Sister City Committee.

The name change is a resurrection of sorts for Nagasaki Road. The old Nagasaki Road, on Harriet Island, disappeared years ago when the city realigned its flood wall.