Lino Lakes Approves English-Only Ordinance

CBS Broadcasting Inc

Jul 26, 2010

A northern Twin Cities suburb made English its official language Monday evening.

Lino Lakes will not use taxpayer dollars to print or translate city letters or council meetings into other languages.

Dave Roeser, the council member behind the idea, said it's all about economics. He said his plan could save the city thousands of dollars down the road.

"I think it's a good start. I think it's got to start somewhere. Instead of us catering to them, they should learn our way of life. Or speak the way we speak," said resident Gerald Sinna.

But critics pointed out that Lino Lakes has never spent money on translating documents and they think the move is anti-immigrant or could hurt business.

"We want to be sure that we have an increasingly diverse community with good-paying jobs from companies who want to expand here, relocate here. We live in a global economy and so we want to have an area that is welcoming to businesses," said Lori Higgins with the Metronorth Chamber of Commerce.

Ninety-two percent of the town's people are white and only about 1 percent are Hispanic.

There are several exceptions to the rule, including translating for health, public safety or education reasons.

Five city leaders voted on the proposal. It passed four to one.