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FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Carolyn
Marinan, Communications, 612-348-5969
County board actions
 Committee will
advise staff, board on child well-being
The board established the Hennepin County Child Well-being
Advisory Committee to guide work to protect and care for children.
In October, the Hennepin County Child Protection Oversight
Committee laid out six core recommendations to improve the well-being of
children in Hennepin County. The newly created advisory committee will continue
these efforts.
“It is important to keep building on our past work. This advisory
committee will help Hennepin County translate the oversight committee’s recommendations
into better outcomes for children,” Commissioner Mike Opat said.
Opat, who
chaired the oversight committee, will also chair the advisory committee. Commissioner
Debbie Goettel will also participate in the committee, along with up to 18
board-appointed members.
The county is working to:
- Adopt a new focus on child well-being to
prevent maltreatment
- Recruit and retain the workforce and
allow for reasonable caseload distribution
- Improve
professional supports by co-locating work teams to the same offices
- Offer early and
practical help to families that are at risk for violence or dysfunction
- Improve data collection,
analysis and collaboration
- Continue monitoring
improvement and ensuring accountability
“The county’s central goal is adopting the new child
well-being focus. The key of this new focus is prevention – providing support
to at-risk families,” Jennifer DeCubellis, Hennepin
County’s deputy administrator of health and human services, said.
The advisory committee will track the county's progress in adopting the new child well-being focus. Hennepin
County staff and partners are using multiple approaches to prioritize children’s
physical health, emotional and social health, relational health and
development.
“The county is using a variety of metrics to
evaluate the well-being of youth involved with the child protection system,
such as high school graduation rates, prenatal care and developmental
screens. The advisory committee will review these metrics to inform the
direction and focus of this important work,” Commissioner Debbie Goettel said.
 The board confirmed the appointment of Jodi Wentland as director of Human Services, effective April 3. Wentland has more than 25 years of public human services experience, most recently serving as associate director of Olmstead County Child and Family Services. She has also served as co-chair of the Children's Committee for the Minnesota Association of County Social Services Administrators. Wentland received an
undergraduate degree in social work and a master’s degree in business
administration and master's degree in management.
Read more about the appointment.
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The board awarded 14 aquatic invasive species prevention
grants totaling $320,000. Organizations will use funding for inspections at
public lake accesses, outreach and education, research on zebra mussels, boat
cleaning facilities and more.
Grant recipients include:
- CD3 General Benefit Corporation ($63,000) – to develop and test self-serve boat cleaning stations, including at North
Arm and Spring Park public access points on Lake Minnetonka
- University of Minnesota ($30,500) – to research controlling population of zebra mussels
- City of Bloomington ($25,000) – to incorporate a
boat cleaning station and educational signage at West Bush Lake public access
- City of Edina ($12,000) – to develop teaching aids to use at public events
and training
- Minnetonka Yacht Club ($21,000) – to create an on-site
decontamination station and provide education to students and sailors
- Fortin Consulting, Inc. ($25,000) – to train lake association volunteers
to monitor for aquatic invasive species at 16 lakes
- Wood Lake Nature Center, Richfield ($5,500) – to eradicate
a goldfish population in Wood Lake and provide education about how to properly
dispose of aquatic pets
- City of Eden Prairie ($28,000) – to incorporate a boat cleaning station and
educational signage at Lake Riley public access
- Three Rivers Park District ($25,000) – to expand
watercraft inspections and outreach activities at public accesses
- Christmas Lake Homeowners Association ($10,000)
– to support watercraft inspections at Christmas Lake in Excelsior
- Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board ($15,000) – to develop educational tools and conduct outreach at boat launches
- Nine Mile Creek Watershed District ($15,000) – to develop educational activities and
conduct outreach at community events
- City of Mound ($45,000) – to install a programmable
message board at Surfside Park on Lake Minnetonka that will run aquatic
invasive species prevention and safety messages
Learn more about the grants.
The board awarded a $995,217 contract to
Terra General Contractors for remodeling the Hennepin County Library - Edina. The
refurbishment will include a larger children’s area with interactive learning elements, additional quiet study rooms and an enclosed reading room. This project will also add a
new automated book drop to the facility. The renovation is scheduled to begin in April, and the library will be closed for approximately four months.
Read
more about the contract.
Read
more about the remodeling project.
The
board awarded $250,000 of Youth Sports grants to several organizations
for playground projects and small sports equipment. Since the Youth Sports program began in 2009, the county has awarded $19.6 million to 122 facility projects, 221 small equipment
projects and five playground projects.
Learn more about the program.
The board approved a
building use resolution enabling the Minnesota Vegetable Growers Association to
host the Minneapolis Farmers Market again this summer at the Government Center
South Plaza. The farmers market will be open 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursdays from
May 4 to November 9. The 2017 market will build on the overwhelming success of last year's Government Center lunch hour events, including Summer on the Plaza music, lawn games and food
vendors.
Read more about the farmers market.
The
board concluded its public hearing on a proposed new sales tax of up to
one-half cent to fund transportation and transit projects. The new
sales tax would replace the current one-quarter-cent sales tax imposed by the
county for the Counties Transit Improvement Board (CTIB), should CTIB dissolve. Because
all five CTIB counties have not agreed to dissolution, with Dakota County
opposing, the board laid over a resolution to both terminate the joint powers
agreement establishing CTIB and adopt the new sales tax. The
resolution may be brought up again in its current form, at a later date, at the
call of the chair, for action by the board. View
the resolution.
View
the resolution.
Hennepin County is hosting a
public hearing to gather comments on its annual action plan to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development:
- Tuesday,
April 18, at 1:30
- Hennepin
County Government Center Board Room (A-2400)
- 300
South Sixth Street, Minneapolis
This action plan will guide the
use of approximately $4 million in federal funding for housing and community development activities in
suburban Hennepin County.
A draft of the plan will be
available March 31 on the county’s website and at Hennepin County Ridgedale, Southdale and Brookdale
libraries.
You may submit written comments
from March 31 to May 1 to Margo Geffen, manager, Housing Development and
Finance, Hennepin County Community Works Department, 701 4th
Avenue South, Suite 400, Minneapolis, MN 55415.
Read more about the public hearing.
The board recognized the following observances during Tuesday's meeting:
– 30 –
Look for more news on
the Hennepin County website at www.hennepin.us/news.
Discover how we're making a difference in our communities at www.hennepin.us/stories.
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