North Mpls could receive $600K for tornado relief

North Minneapolis neighborhood associations could receive a total of $600,000 over the next two years to deal with longer-term needs after last month's tornado.

City Council members tentatively approved the measure Thursday and are expected to pass it in about two weeks.

David Rubedor is in charge of the city's neighborhood and community relations. He said the city will rely on the neighborhood groups to provide on-the-ground assessments of what people need.

"If I'm on my block and i know someone down the street isn't getting the resources that are there, then I can communicate it to them, and build that support network that way," Rubedor said. "The tornado came, and we needed to mobilize quickly."

Rubedor said the response has been good, but he thinks they can do better and they are pushing to do better.

"This is intended to build that support longer term," he said.

Rubedor said the groups will help keep government accountable on recovery efforts.

The city will use $300,000 in untapped interest earnings from an existing neighborhood fund to start the program. The City Council would need to sign off on additional $300,000 next year.