The Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) held its annual meeting Friday, Jan. 2, 2026 to select officers for 2026. MPRB Commissioners elected Tom Olsen as President and Kedar Deshpande as Vice President.
President Olsen is in his second term serving as an At Large Commissioner. This is his first year as President of the Board of Commissioners. Vice President Deshpande is in his first term as District 3 Commissioner representing areas immediately south and east of Downtown Minneapolis on the west side of the Mississippi River. This is his first year as Vice President.
MPRB Commissioners also elected Olsen as the MPRB representative on the Board of Estimate and Taxation, and District 4 Commissioner Jason Garcia for a two-year term as the MPRB representative on the Minneapolis Planning Commission.
MPRB Deputy Superintendent Jennifer Ringold will serve as Secretary to the Board, and law firm Rice, Walther & Mosley as General Counsel.
Standing Committees
President Olsen appointed the following Commissioners to serve one-year terms on MPRB Standing Committees (first name included on first mention):
Administration and Finance Committee – Co-Chairs Meg Forney and Kay Carvajal Moran, Members Kedar Deshpande, Dan Engelhart, Jason Garcia
Legislation and Intergovernmental Committee – Chair Cathy Abene, Vice Chair Engelhart, Members Deshpande, Amber Frederick, Forney
Operations and Environment Committee – Chair Deshpande, Vice Chair Garcia, Members Abene, Forney, Charles Rucker
Planning Committee – Chair Garcia, Vice Chair Forney, Members Carvajal Moran, Deshpande, Engelhart
Recreation Committee – Co-Chairs Frederick and Rucker, Members Abene, Carvajal Moran, Forney
Standards and Conduct Committee – Chair Garcia, Vice Chair Engelhart, Members Abene, Deshpande, Forney
External Appointments
President Olsen appointed the following commissioners to serve on the external boards, committees and organizations. All appointments are one-year terms unless otherwise noted.
Cedar Riverside Partnership – Deshpande
Internal Audit Committee – Engelhart
Joint Endowment Committee (two-year term) – Deshpande and Forney
Lake Street Greenway Partnership – Carvajal Moran
METRO Blue Line Extension LRT Corridor Management Committee – Rucker, Alternate: Garcia
Minneapolis Institute of Arts Board – Frederick
Minneapolis Parks Foundation – Frederick and Rucker
Minneapolis Thriving Waters Partnership – Abene, Carvajal Moran, and Deshpande
Minneapolis Tree Advisory Committee – Engelhart
Mississippi Watershed Management Organization – Forney, Alternate: Rucker
Neighborhood Revitalization Program Board – Deshpande
Youth Coordinating Board – Carvajal Moran
President Olsen appointed the following residents to serve on the external boards and committees:
Minneapolis Bicycle Advisory Committee – Kate Adams
Pedestrian Advisory Committee – Edgar Leon Gomez
St. Anthony Falls Heritage Board – Sally Grans Korsh, also Commissioners Engelhart, Forney, Garcia
Board Meetings
The MPRB usually meets at 5 pm every first and third Wednesday of each month for regular meetings. MPRB meeting agendas and related information are posted on the Board Meetings page, usually the Friday preceding each Wednesday Board meeting.
Board meetings are broadcast live on the Minneapolis Parks YouTube channel, where videos of past meetings are also posted.