Parks lawyer's donation draws ire

Lawyer-lobbyist Brian Rice's big-bucks donation to the campaign for more independent parks in Minneapolis is arousing criticism from some on the city's political scene.

Rice gave $20,000 to an ultimately unsuccessful campaign to put a proposal for greater Park Board independence before voters on Nov. 3. One of his clients, the union representing Minneapolis police, gave another $10,000.

That accounted for 93 percent of the money raised by Citizens for Independent Parks through Sept. 1. Unlike the contribution limits for candidates, there is no limit on donations to political funds.

Rice has been the Park Board's outside general counsel since 1985 and lobbies for the board at the state Capitol. The board paid $608,507 to the firm of Rice, Michels & Walther for those services last year.

The charter proposal was intended to allow the Park Board to go to the Legislature to seek greater financial independence from City Hall. The Park Board pursued it because it felt the city hasn't provided enough money for parks, and it feared a City Council takeover of levying authority. The council refused to put the proposal on the ballot, and a judge agreed that it was unconstitutional.

Rice said he donated because he believes passionately in park independence and was in a position to make a big donation because his firm got part of $30 million in legal fees awarded in shareholder litigation against UnitedHealth Group.

Without that windfall, Rice said, "I would've written the check, but there would have been one less zero in it."

"It's just something that the Park Board's contracted legal counsel should steer clear of," said Stone, one of five candidates for the board seat now held by Carol Kummer. Stone said he respects Rice's work, but thinks there are problems with him representing the board and a police union and a police retirement plan.

"There's a number of different and competing interests that he represents, and it could affect the work that he's doing," Stone said. "He's in a sensitive position. Do I think it's illegal? No. Do I think it's exercising appropriate discretion? I think not."

Former Library Board and school board member Marilyn Borea also was critical of the donation. "It strikes me as job protection on the part of the Park Board attorney," Borea said. "You must really want to hang onto a client."

She thinks the Park Board should use the city attorney for most legal matters, as the disbanded Library Board did.

Rice said his backing of city parks led him to spend 10 years working for the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment added to the state constitution by voters last year. He was president of the vote-yes organization for that effort. "The only way that you can successfully get something like this up off the ground is to get the money," he said.

Park Board President Tom Nordyke said he believes that Rice has been upfront about disclosing when he has potential conflicts among clients. He said that the board retained another firm for work on pension issues after mayoral aide Peter Wagenius last May told the board that Rice has a conflict between board and police pension representation. The Police Officers Federation did not respond to an inquiry about why it donated to the fund, but others said they attribute that to periodic proposals to merge park police into the city department.