Big ideas: Wants Minneapolis to be the "greenest" city in the country. Seeks a "reinvention" of the riverfront to connect trails, transit and industry. Pushing to install solar panels on up to 150 city-owned buildings.
Big accomplishment: Spearheaded effort in 1990s to create the Midtown Greenway, now a heavily trafficked bicycle corridor.
Weakness/baggage: Has been largely out of the spotlight in the last decade, but remains well-connected. The FBI scrutinized plumbing work at his home in 2002, during the same probe that landed a council member in prison, but filed no charges.
Personal: Lives in the Lynnhurst neighborhood with his wife, Connie. They have two children.
Supporters that matter: Sam and Sylvia Kaplan, the building trades union, Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman.
Stadium position: Critical of state's reliance on gambling funds to pay its share, but says the project will be a "jobs machine."
Quotable moment: "The three [mayoral candidates] who are on the City Council ... have done practically nothing to promote or create new job opportunities."
Ideas for growing jobs/population: Says greening the riverfront and the North Side, including trail and transit connections, will foster business growth and attract residents. Also stresses the importance of "world class" cultural amenities.