For those of you who missed it....
Minnesota Public Radio
Midday broadcasts from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. CT.
Tuesday, January 1, 2002

The new Minneapolis Mayor R. T. Rybak joins Gary Eichten in the studio to preview his inauguration Tuesday and talk about the issues facing the city and take questions from MPR listeners

18 minutes 30 seconds into the program;

Caller:
RT, doesn't the city have an interest in preserving Coldwater Springs? For example it's an emergency drinking water supply in south Minneapolis, as well as the birthplace of the state of Minnesota, and
sacred to the Dakota nation.

Rybak:
Thanks for the call and thanks for all your work over the years, if that Susu Jeffrey, who I believe it is.

Those of you who are driving out to the airport, you come on crosstown, you come on Hiawatha, you come to a turn there by the Vets Hospital. It seams right now as if it's simply another place in the
road.

*It's not.*

It's really one of the most historic parts of this state. It's where the early pioneers came to find a tremendous well, that was great drinking water for them, but generations before it was a place for our native cultures to come and worship.

It's an extremely important place that I think has really been jeopardized by some of the construction around there. We should all care about that spot, because of what it represents, symbolizes to all of us, and also in the future what it means to our drinking water and others. So I'm very committed to making sure the construction in that area respects that, and understands how important this is for everyone in Minnesota.

I think one of the things in a period of time now where we look at the whole word progress. We have to recognize that it does mean building freeways, it does mean new construction, it does mean new businesses. But it also means recognizing that the parts of our culture, and the parts of our urban environment, that are unique and indigenous, should really be saved.

I mean, when we think about the city that I'm coming in to lead, Minneapolis didn't become great because people for a few years were
kinda interested in the environment. I mean there were people for generations who were tremendous stewards of what I believe is the most significant urban environment anywhere in America. And when I
think about the facts that with that, we have a place like Coldwater threatened, when I think about the fact that in a lake as precious as lake Harriet, still choked with algae because we are putting too much phosphorus on our lawns. When I look at what's happening with traffic all around the region.

It's *really* clear that right now, at this real special time in history, and everything else, we should recognize that progress also means protecting that which has been around. I think that should be protected as part of our national environment.