Charles Exner

Charles Exner

Education

Bachelor's

Augsburg College

Personal

Profession

Environmental consultant

Contact

Personal website

Charles Exner was a candidate for District 3 representative on the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board in Minnesota. He was defeated in the general election on November 7, 2017. Although park and recreation board elections are officially nonpartisan, Exner was endorsed by the Green Party and identified by Southwest Journal as a Green Party candidate.

Biography

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Exner earned a B.A. in environmental studies from Augsburg College. His experience includes service as a board member and community organizer for the Minnesota Public Interest Research Group and work as a project associate for Ecova and an administrative assistant for Augsburg College.

Elections

2017

See also: Municipal elections in Minneapolis, Minnesota (2017) and Mayoral election in Minneapolis, Minnesota (2017)

Minneapolis, Minnesota, held a general election for mayor, all 13 seats on the city council, both elected members of the board of estimate and taxation, and all nine members of the park and recreation board on November 7, 2017. The filing deadline for candidates who wished to run in this election was August 15, 2017.

Incumbents ran for re-election to all but two of the city council seats. Ward 3 Councilman Jacob Frey filed to run for mayor instead, and Ward 8 Councilwoman Elizabeth Glidden opted not to run for re-election.

Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board District 3, 2017, Round 2
Candidate	Vote %	Votes	Transfer
AK Hassan - Winner	57%	7,753	659
Abdi Gurhan Mohamed	43%	5,841	426
Charles Exner - Eliminated	0%	0	−2,069
Undeclared Write-ins - Eliminated	0%	0	−52
Exhausted		1,036	1,036
Total Votes		14,630	0
Note: Negative numbers in the transfer total are due to exhaustion by overvotes.

Legend:     Eliminated in current round     Most votes     Lost

This is the first round of voting. To view subsequent rounds, click the [show] button next to that round.

Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board District 3, 2017, Round 1
Candidate	Vote %	Votes	Transfer
AK Hassan - Most votes	48.5%	7,094
Abdi Gurhan Mohamed	37%	5,415
Charles Exner	14.1%	2,069
Undeclared Write-ins	0.4%	52
Exhausted		0	0
Total Votes		14,630	0
Note: Negative numbers in the transfer total are due to exhaustion by overvotes.

Campaign themes

2017

Exner's campaign website highlighted the following issues. Click "show" on the boxes below for more information about his positions.

ENVIRONMENT

"Create a Pollinators’ Path through the city. Consideration needs to be taken for our nonhuman neighbors—and the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) is the best place for that. I’ve noticed a dearth of milkweed and other pollinator-friendly plants in District 3, and that has got to change. Plant more fruit-bearing and edible plants on our streets. Mulberries, haskap, gooseberries, plums…there’s a wide variety of local food that we can have in our city to decrease our reliance on shipping, monocropping, and fossil fuel-based agribusiness. Focus on local and native plants. Geographically-appropriate plants can reduce or eliminate our pesticide use. We can replace the water-intensive Bermuda grass with soft, perennial groundcovers wherever possible. Create micro-parks. The empty lots around District 3 are ripe for the creation of micro-parks—even if all it has is a lamp and some flowers. The major parks can get crowded, or may be out of reach for some individuals. Being alienated from nature is a stressor in its own as well as compounding any emotional or psychological problems. Correct this by making sure that everyone has access to nature."

LABOR

"Communicate more directly with park employees. Currently, the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) only takes responsibility for the treasurer and the superintendent—washing their hands of any other labor disputes. We need to end this adversarial relationship with the board and the employees by bringing more of their voices to the table—after all, if it wasn’t for the staff there would be no difference between a Minneapolis Park and a vacant spot of land. Determine the annual budget after all contract negotiations have taken place. The MPRB currently determines its annual budget before meeting with our unions. This makes it much harder for our employees to obtain higher wages, since the available funds have already been decided. If we want the Minneapolis Park System to be an enviable place to work, the first step is in empowering our workforce. Take accusations of bias and racism seriously. At the June 7th meeting, there was a contingent of protestors recriminating the MPRB of racist practices, followed by an 'expert' claiming that there was no example of bias in staffing procedures. The MPRB is in dire need of hiring a Racial Justice officer to ensure that the MPRB is following affirmative hiring practices instead of ignoring cries for justice. Say 'NO' to privatization. Minnesota, and the country as a whole, is in need of good, pensioned, high-paying public sector jobs more than ever. I would reject any attempt to bring corporations into our parks or rely on outsourced, non-union labor as is currently happening at Theodore Wirth Park. The union makes us strong!"

ARTS & RECREATION

"Expand our arts activities citywide. We can turn the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) into a job-creating machine by offering more opportunities to our low-wage and no-wage workers. Art teachers, coaches, tradespeople and even Zumba instructors contribute to the well-being of our city by offering great community education programs. Call me the mural man. Public Art should be a central feature of our parks system. The brick buildings in District 3 are a great canvass to start a district-wide mural project, with the final decisions being chosen by the folks who will see them the most. Focus on maintaining what we have. Instead of the costly and fossil fuel-intensive process of procuring new equipment, pathways and amenities, I support maintaining what we have and using the money more wisely. Build amenities and programming for all. New playgrounds seem to be built every year, yet Powderhorn Park still has the same adult enrichment exercise equipment that it had over a decade ago. Instead of just focusing on one type of family structure, amenities should be built for everyone, including those with limited mobility and families or individuals without children. Culturally-appropriate programming should be offered along with adapted and therapeutic activities."

Endorsements

2017

Exner received endorsements from the following in 2017:

• Green Party - 5th Congressional District
• Minneapolis Professional Employees Association
• Movimiento Immigrant Por La Justicia
• Socialist Action

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Charles Exner Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Charles Exner - Google News

See also

Minneapolis, Minnesota	Minnesota	Municipal government	Other local coverage

External links

Suggest a link

• Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board
• Campaign website
• Social media
  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn