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Marion Greene
Commissioner, 3rd District
612-348-7883
@MarionGreene
Ray Hoover
Principal Aide
612-348-7125
Pam Fahlstrom
Administrative Assistant
612-348-0863
The 3rd District serves the city of St. Louis Park, and parts of west and downtown Minneapolis.
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Learn more about Hennepin County at Citizens Academy
Learn about how county roads are plowed every winter, how the county is involved in light-rail transit, how county taxes are assessed and where your tax money goes.
The seven weekly sessions (Wednesdays from 6:30-9 p.m.) meet at various locations throughout the county. Attendees have the rare opportunity to tour county facilities and meet county leaders.
Learn more and register for the fall 2015 session at www.hennepin.us/citizensacademy.
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May
June
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Dear neighbors,
June 2015 was a month of powerful, contradicting events in the United States. The wonders and progress of the Supreme Court decisions on health care and marriage are in stark contrast to the tragic shootings in Charleston and a rash of suspicious fires at predominantly Black churches in South Carolina and other states. The Supreme Court decisions are significant, yet other inequities remain and demand the country’s full attention.
Here at Hennepin County the good news is that we are addressing challenges in Child Protection Services (CPS) that have existed for some time, stemming from massive cuts to human services during the Governor Pawlenty years. I am pleased we are supporting (and hiring more) CPS workers, and embracing best practices with renewed vigor. Change in both culture and practice is ongoing; Hennepin County is committed to the safety and wellbeing of children.
Wishing you a happy and safe Fourth of July.
My best,
Marion
Child Protection Services assessment finds need for overhaul
Protecting children from abuse and neglect is a core function of Hennepin County. It’s also incredibly difficult work for staff who work in human services and the courts each day. The Star Tribune and other media have reported on findings of an assessment the county sought of our child protection system, and that assessment is humbling.
The assessment was part of the Comprehensive Review of Children and Youth Services, and included interviews with dozens of staff and on-site visits. We intentionally undertook this assessment knowing that it would show areas in which we can better meet our goal to protect children. The report provides recommendations for improvements and opportunities for system change, and delivers a roadmap for improvement.
The assessment also confirmed what we’ve long believed to be true: Hennepin County benefits from an exceptionally skilled, committed and well-educated child protection workforce. The strength of this workforce will be an enormous asset to our organization as we implement recommendations from the assessment, as well as from from Governor Mark Dayton’s Task Force on the Protection of Children.
We must begin immediately to improve our organization. The Hennepin County Board of Commissioners Health and Human Services committee last week approved an additional $3.6 million in annual county funding to support the recruitment and hiring of approximately 100 additional staff positions in Child Protection Services and the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office. These positions include screeners, child protection investigators, case managers, case management assistants, supervisors, attorneys and support staff.
These are the first of many steps we will take in the coming months to improve our ability to respond to children in crisis. Coupled with the other initiatives and pilot programs resulting from the Comprehensive Review of Children and Youth Services, we maintain our steadfast commitment to improving the lives of county youth.
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Celebrate 4th of July!
St. Louis Park
Fireworks at Aquila Park are a St. Louis Park tradition!
Minneapolis
Watch the fireworks over the Mississippi River in downtown Minneapolis!
For more information, click here.
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SWLRT Corridor Management Committee recommends cuts
Today (July 1) members of the SWLRT Corridor Management Committee, an advisory body of officials with ties to cities along the 16-mile line from Minneapolis to Eden Prairie, has recommended a package of cuts to bring the cost of the line down.
The Metropolitan Council will discuss the committee's recommendation Wednesday afternoon and is expected to take a final vote on a cost-cutting plan July 8. This process will conclude later this month, so we will have more information in next month's newsletter.
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Find your Farmer's Market
As part of an effort to make healthy eating more effortless, Hennepin County Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and Hennepin County Public Health have combined forces to create a mobile-friendly web mapping application to help residents and visitors find farmers' markets and mini markets in their neighborhoods, or while they are on the go.
From a tablet or mobile phone, residents and non-residents can click on the Farmers' Markets and Community Food Gardens page to open a Hennepin County map. They can make the map close and personal by entering a home zip code or current street address. The map will zero in on the selected location; users can click on individual locations for an address, days and hours of operation, contact information and a website link, when possible. Users of desktop and laptop computers still can access the same information in larger format on the full map.
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To share more about the work of Hennepin County, we profile a county employee who lives in District 3. Each month spotlights a person from varying departments and occupations.
Judy Hollander
Judy Hollander is the Property Services Director with Hennepin County Facility Services, which maintains over 6 million square feet of space in more than 130 county buildings. She is a resident of Minneapolis' Lowry Hill neighborhood, and after 16 years at the county, she is retiring. From making sure the elevators go up and down, to keeping us safe and making sure the sidewalks are free with snow, to building world class libraries, we honor Judy today for her service to Hennepin County
Click here to find out how Judy Hollander has helped make Hennepin County tick for the last 16 years.
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Public meetings set for 2016 budget
Public meetings have been scheduled regarding the 2016 budget and property tax levy:
- Tuesday, September 8 at 1:30 p.m. – proposed budget presentation
- Wednesday, September 9 at 1 p.m. – budget hearing for operations, library and public works
- Thursday, September 10 from 9 at 11 a.m. – budget hearing for human services and public health
- Monday, September 14 at 9 a.m. – budget hearing for public safety
- Tuesday, September 22 at 1:30 p.m. – Hennepin County Board adopts 2016 maximum tax levy and budget
- Friday, September 25 at 9 a.m. - budget hearing for human services and public health (follow-up if needed)
- Monday, November 2 at 1 p.m. - budget hearing for capital budget and fees
An additional public meeting will be held Tuesday, December 1 at 6 p.m. for public comment on the 2016 budget. The public meetings will take place at the Hennepin County Government Center downtown Minneapolis. The final levy adoption is scheduled for December 15, 2015 at 1:30 p.m. at the regular county board meeting.
Webber Park Library design
The board approved the design for a new Hennepin County Library-Webber Park in North Minneapolis. The design is for a free-standing 8,300-square-foot library building to be built on a 1.4-acre site located between 44th and 45th avenues north. The total budget for the project is $12 million, but costs are expected to be closer to $10 million. Plans for the new library include improved services, collaborative gathering spaces, an early literacy learning environment, a refreshed book collection, DVDs and CDs with world language resources, more public computers, improved work spaces, sustainable design, parking for cars and bicycles and an outdoor reading and gathering space.
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County to offer additional recycling grants to cities
The county is increasing funding to cities for recycling and organics recycling programs for food and nonrecyclable paper waste. More than $3 million will be available for metals, paper and plastics recycling, and more than $400,000 for organics recycling in 2015, and close to that again in 2016. The funds will be distributed to each city based on the number of households that receive curbside recycling and curbside organics services. This will help support the development of city organics recycling programs. About one-third of the trash currently discarded is organic material, but less than two percent of households have organics collection services.
Contract approved for girls' treatment program
The board approved a four-year contract with Nexus Diversified Community Services to provide treatment programming to as many as 12 girls, ages 14 and older, who have a history of serious psychological, psychiatric and behavioral issues. The program will be based at the Hennepin County Home School, in Minnetonka. This program is modeled after similar successful programs that Nexus operates in other states to meet the needs of difficult-to-place adolescent girls who have not been adjudicated as delinquent but have typically failed multiple placements in residential treatment. Until now, they have been placed out of state with very limited access to their families.
You're invited! In addition to our regularly scheduled board meetings, the County Board often meets for updates on Thursday mornings. These are informal opportunities to discuss emerging issues. No decisions are made, and the topics are subject to change. Board briefings occur in the board room on the 24th floor of the Hennepin County Government Center and are open to the public.
July 16
Sheriffs' Operations review (full session)
July 23
Capital Program (full session)
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