Patch Candidate Profile: Mary McKelvey For Minneapolis Parks

MINNEAPOLIS — This fall, Minneapolis residents will vote in several important local elections. Among the offices on the ballot is the mayor and city council seats, as well as the Minneapolis Park Board. Early voting in Minneapolis has already started.

Mary McKelvey is running for one of the three at large Minneapolis Park Board Commissioner seats.

Patch asked candidates to answer questions about their campaigns and will be publishing candidate profiles over the coming weeks.

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Are you running for office in Minneapolis? Contact William Bornhoft at william.bornhoft@patch.com for information on being featured in a candidate profile and submitting campaign announcements to Patch.

Age (as of Election Day): 53

Town of Residence: Minneapolis

Position sought: Minneapolis Park Board Commissioner At Large

Party Affiliation: DFL

Family: Husband of 23 years, Chris. Will, age 20, and Sophie, age 18.

Does anyone in your family work in politics or government? No

Education: BA, Middlebury College, 1990. MEd, University of Minnesota, 1995.

Occupation:

I've been a licensed teacher since 1994. I taught all middle school students requiring ELL support in Robbinsdale Public Schools for five years. Then we lived overseas, where I taught English free-lance classes. Returning, I have become a public schools advocate and volunteer, a coach of trail sports including cross country skiing, and a substitute teacher in Minneapolis Public Schools.

Why are you seeking elective office?

I believe Minneapolis' parks are the best part of our city, and as one who is in the parks every day, I see opportunities to make them a better shared place for all of us and our environment. I especially will advocate for programs, spaces, and communication for youth so they feel welcome in our parks and connected to nature.

The single most pressing issue facing our (board, district, etc.) is _______, and this is what I intend to do about it.

The most pressing issue is our basic need for our parks to be healthy and safe spaces, which includes adapting to the reality that our climate is changing. There are many opportunities in parks to make people and nature healthier, and parks safer and more climate-resilient. I will start by integrating more programs to encourage active, outdoor fun. On any decision, I want the governing Park Board to be trusted to pay attention to both constituents and to data. If the Board has this trust, cooperation with other agencies and funds will flow to the best-loved urban park system in the county.

What are the critical differences between you and the other candidates seeking this post?

I am present in the parks every day myself, and I may have the widest range of experiences in accessing and using the parks. I am a parent who has brought my children at all ages into parks and using park programs; I am a coach and teacher of people who both have easy access to parks, and those who have barriers; of elite athletes as well as novices; I have sat on advisory councils and heard from many communities. Because I am present, I have a more practical than ideological approach to solving problems. For example, I bike everywhere I can, but I also understand that there are many instances and entire seasons where biking isn't possible for most. I'd like to decrease car traffic on our parkways, too. However, my solution would be to partner with bike shops, bike groups, trail clubs and nonprofits to make biking and bike gear more accessible and fun for more people. I'd also love to educate people on how to stay warm, dry, and safe longer while biking.

If you are a challenger, in what way has the current board or officeholder failed the community (or district or constituency)?

There are three seats at-large, and one of them is open, so I am not directly challenging any incumbent. I look forward to working with the other at-large candidates; they also care about our parks. However, I will say that I will show up for meetings, sign up for committees, and actively seek and provide input before and during decisions.

How do you think local officials are performing in responding to the coronavirus? What if anything would you have done differently?

The parks have been a critical outlet for people during the coronavirus pandemic. I think the park board did a decent job in 2020-21, by temporarily opening parkways to pedestrians and temporarily closing recreation centers. Going into another winter of the coronavirus, I would like the parks to leverage the recreation centers to be staffed and have limited access (with covid-safe guidelines), to bring many of the activities that are normally indoors to the outdoors. Winter is still a great time to connect with nature, and we all need to keep active and keep from being nature deficient.

Describe the other issues that define your campaign platform.

I am a champion for youth; what benefits kids sustains the whole city. I want to see the City of Lakes treat our lakes and waterways and surrounding trails and amenities with pride again. We have Master Plans, and will soon have a Comprehensive Plan for the whole city; I look forward to accomplishing the plans in a transparent, fiscally and environmentally sustainable way.

What accomplishments in your past would you cite as evidence you can handle this job?

I have been a member of many teams and boards, and while I don't always seek leadership, I have been chosen to lead them during times of transition and chaos. For example, I was president of the Armatage PTA during the school board's district overhaul in 2010, in which half of the school building was moved to another building. Parents fought to keep it together, then successfully mobilized to make the school viable. I am considered a nice person and team player by most, but that doesn't mean I don't have thick skin or tenacity. I have many examples of this, but maybe I only need to say that I am a substitute teacher who chooses middle school assignments.

The best advice ever shared with me was:

Listen more than you speak.

What else would you like voters to know about yourself and your positions?

Please contact me through maryforparks.org about what is important to you in our shared parks.