A guy spots a sign on a door that says “Mangoes” so he steps on through. Get it?
Maybe not, but the following folks sure have. On Kellogg Boulevard, the almost spring-like weather has apparently inspired some changes in city and county employ.
Ramsey County Parks and Recreation will soon have a new director. County Manager Julie Kleinschmidt named Brooklyn Park Parks and Rec Director Jon Oyanagi to the position, which begins for him on May 5.
Oyanagi, who led efforts to bring the first dog park and community garden to Brooklyn Park, replaces Greg Mack, who is retiring. Oyanagi also led efforts to construct the only competitive wheelchair softball field in the five-state area.
A former Pioneer Press reporter has gone nuclear. Ramsey County spokesman Art Coulson will soon leave his position to take an eight-month contract with Xcel Energy, representing its nuclear power division in Minnesota. Coulson, a Lacrosse player and self-described “devilishly handsome writer,” is also working on his second book. A public relations firm will handle the county’s outreach for now. When Coulson took over the spot, the spokesman position had been vacant for a year.
St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman is still interviewing for a replacement for mayoral spokesman Joe Campbell, who left not long ago to become marketing manager for MNsure, the state health insurance exchange.
Coleman’s right hand man, Deputy Mayor Paul Williams, also took off this month to run Project for Pride in Living, a nonprofit that specializes in affordable housing. Some say Williams is the guy who not-so-secretly managed the entire city apparatus, especially during those times when Coleman has been off in D.C., Israel, Seattle, Chicago, Minneapolis… etc. etc. Williams’ replacement has yet to be named.
St. Paul city planner Allen Lovejoy is retiring on Monday after 35 1/2 years with the city. Lovejoy’s credits include advocating for a little thing called the Central Corridor Light Rail Transit line — a campaign he joined back in 1981.
Noel Nix, a former legislative aide to Ward 1 city council members Melvin Carter III, Nate Khaliq and Dai Thao, has stepped down to pursue other interests. Mai Chong Xiong, a former organizer with TakeAction Minnesota, now joins Council Member Dai Thao as his legislative aide.
Gary Leavitt, a former real estate broker who worked on development along the light rail corridor in Phoenix, Ariz., joined the city of St. Paul as a transit-oriented development planner in late January.
Meanwhile, longtime Pioneer Press reporter John Welbes (15 years!) has left the PiPress for a communications job with the Metropolitan Council.
That’s a fair number of folks changing positions. Goodbye and Godspeed. Now who did the Scoop miss?