Letters - Jun 2026

Fewer Trees + More Concrete ≠ Improvement
On May 15, 2026, I attended a St. Paul Arbor Day event at Newell Park. The event included tree planting and activities for kids and families. It was great to see so many participants, not to mention all those precious tree seedlings find homes among the stately oaks for which Newell Park is beloved. The activities kicked off with a couple of speeches, one by an assistant St. Paul mayor, who spoke eloquently about tree canopies and the role trees play in protecting us from a warming climate change. I clapped for him, I planted some trees, and then I went home to my east Como neighborhood.

East Como, in its second straight summer of transformative street construction, is dramatically different from two years ago, and the results do not support the assistant mayor’s words. While planting trees in Newell Park is wonderful, the tree canopy we need to think about first is the one that protects our neighborhoods and homes. Studies show that even single trees can have a significant cooling effect on adjacent urban sidewalk areas.

Yet the City of Saint Paul continues to prioritize sidewalks OVER trees. Hot, bright, impervious concrete has literally replaced the mature tree canopy on many blocks in my neighborhood. (This is called an “improvement,” by the way, on my $12,000 assessment bill. I do not agree.)

We can and must do better in protecting our trees! It does not have to be an either/or choice; other cities find a way to balance construction and sidewalk needs without decimating their tree cover. Trees provide shade, increase mental health, provide natural habitat, clean the air, and reduce heat.

I don’t even enjoy walking on the new sidewalks in the neighborhood because they are too hot! I head to a different neighborhood to walk my dogs now.

The City’s failure to value it’s boulevard trees has altered the quality of life for the foreseeable future in my and other neighborhoods – we won’t get that tree canopy back in my remaining lifetime.
Jessica Ebertz
East Como

Cyrptocurrency kiosks will be removed
Scammers steal millions of dollars from Minnesotans every year, and cryptocurrency kiosks have made it easier for criminals to take money and quickly disappear. These machines, often found in convenience stores and gas stations, have been heavily used in scams because transactions are fast and difficult to reverse, leaving victims with few options for recovery.

After learning how these scams work and hearing from law enforcement and scam victims about the financial devastation these crypto kiosks have caused Minnesotans, I joined other AARP volunteers in urging lawmakers to take action. I’m grateful to my Representative, Athena Hollins, for helping author this legislation alongside her colleagues, and to Senator Clare Oumou Verbeten for voting yes on the final bill.

Now signed into law by Governor Walz, this measure will lead to the removal of these kiosks across Minnesota.
Gordon Wrobel
Como