Mayoral candidates keep the gloves on during second-to-last debate

The four leading candidates for Minneapolis mayor grappled with solutions to open-air drug use, whether the city should increase the minimum wage to $20, and whether buses should be moved off Nicollet Mall during a debate on Monday.

In a campaign with increasingly hostile attacks, the debate, sponsored by the Minnesota Star Tribune and Minnesota Public Radio, was mostly cordial, with state Sen. Omar Fateh taking a less confrontational approach to Mayor Jacob Frey than during some recent events, including a September forum sponsored by the Citizens League.

The mayor and all 13 City Council seats are on the ballot Nov. 4, in a vote widely seen as a stand-in for a larger fight among progressives and more moderate Democrats over the future of the party. Frey is the most moderate of the top four candidates, while his leading challenger, Fateh, is a democratic socialist.

Here are five takeaways from the debate:

The candidates didn’t have clear solutions for how they’d deal with open-air drug dealing in the city, including a hot spot off the Midtown Greenway, where a mass shooting injured five people.

After the shootings, Frey ordered the city to fence off the area.

Frey acknowledged it was a drug market, but said the city was taking a “multi-jurisdictional approach” to a fentanyl-fueled problem with compassion by not criminalizing addiction, instead targeting those who prey on vulnerable addicts.

Entrepreneur and attorney Jazz Hampton said the city needs “dedicated teams” to address open drug use, while DeWayne Davis said he dealt with the problem as the former pastor of Plymouth Congregational Church, which is near a hub of drug activity. He said the city was unable to provide violence interrupters — community members who de-escalate tension before it erupts into violence — to help deal with the problem.

The candidates were asked why Minneapolis can’t replicate St. Paul’s new nonfatal shooting unit, which has been credited with helping reduce violent crimes and shootings.

Fateh accused Frey of failing to implement alternative responses to 911 calls to free up police to solve cases. He said the city needs to take a more holistic approach to crime, tackling poverty, education and jobs.

Fateh is the only candidate who didn’t say MPD is understaffed and needs more officers, although after the debate, his spokesman said Fateh “believes we need more officers” to meet the minimum requirement in the city charter.

Frey said the city needs more police, adding it has one of the smallest forces in the nation for a city its size, but also touting the reduction in shootings in north Minneapolis. He credited violence-interruption work.

Frey also used the debate to again highlight Fateh’s past support for defunding the Minneapolis police, a position Fateh took in his 2020 state Senate campaign but has since moderated on.

Frey wants to move city buses off Nicollet Mall next year to make it more attractive for pedestrians, but bus riders, pedestrian advocates and City Council members are skeptical. Nicollet Mall has five bus lines that provide about 12,000 rides daily.

Fateh, Davis and Hampton said they oppose moving the buses.

Fateh said he wants to make the outdoor mall more walkable and create affordable housing downtown. Hampton said that doesn’t address the underlying issue: making it easier to do business downtown through permitting and inspections.

Frey said moving the routes one block away will make the mall more vibrant, contending you “can’t keep doing the same thing and expect different results.”

Fateh said without the boost, people will just need more government programs to get by.

Frey said you can’t commit to that without “the necessary engagement,” noting he was part of getting Minneapolis to the current $15 minimum wage.

Hampton and Davis said they would need to factor in the economy and have more conversations before changing the minimum wage.

Fateh said the city should explore a local income tax on the wealthy because it’s critical that the city not burden working families during a time of skyrocketing grocery prices amid sweeping cuts to federal aid.

The City Council voted in July to study new taxes on the wealthiest residents and businesses.

Davis said he’s “concerned” about levying a city income tax, but wants a larger conversation about other revenue sources.