District 3 April Newsletter: The Profile is Back!

Commissioner_Marion_Greene

4/5/2017

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IN THIS ISSUE


CONTACT US

Marion Greene
Commissioner, 3rd District
612-348-7883

Elie Farhat
Principal Aide
612-348-7125

Nancy Asan
Administrative Assistant
612-348-0863


ABOUT THE DISTRICT

The 3rd District serves the city of St. Louis Park, and parts of west and downtown Minneapolis.

3rd District map

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GET INVOLVED

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COUNTY RESOURCES

County departments, agencies & other entities

Hennepin County libraries

Hennepin County Medical Center

Hennepin volunteers

Online services

Phone directory

Service Center information

Southwest Light Rail

Understanding your property tax

City of Minneapolis

City of St. Louis Park

Greetings!

We hope our newsletter serves as a resource for connecting to Hennepin County activities and staying updated on county news and services. Visit our website to find more ways to connect with the county.  

Please let me know if you have any questions or concerns.  I value your opinions. 

Best regards,

Marion

News

County Doubling Efforts to Find and Prosecute Sex Traffickers and Buyers

In an initiative championed by Commissioner Greene, the Hennepin County No Wrong Door pilot program will add two employees dedicated to aggressively investigating and prosecuting youth sex traffickers and purchasers. The county began its No Wrong Door Plan in 2014 in response to Minnesota’s Safe Harbor Legislation, which stipulates that sexually exploited youth must not be treated as criminals, but rather as sexual abuse victims. 


This work to attack the demand for sex-trafficked children will complement robust programming already in place to support victims. Learn more about No Wrong Door

 

Child Well-Being Advisory Committee

County Commissioners established the Hennepin County Child Well-being Advisory Committee to guide work that protects and cares for children. This is the next step in work that began in October 2016, wherein Hennepin County laid the foundation of six core recommendations to improve the well-being of children in Hennepin County:

  • 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 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. 

 

CTIB Dissolution and Proposed Sales Tax

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.


Board Meeting Highlights

March 14

Minneapolis Farmers Market will return to Government Center

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. 


Contract awarded for Hennepin County Library – Edina remodel

The board awarded a 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.


March 28

2017 spring Youth Sports grants awarded

The board awarded Youth Sports grants to several organizations for playground projects and small sports equipment:

  • Bryant Square Recreation Center: $6,200 for outdoor sport equipment
  • Whittier Recreation Center: $2,450 for sport nets and storage space
  • Southwest High School: $8,120 for football 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.

 

Comment on plan to use housing and community development funds

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. 


Board approves declarations supporting crime victims and prevention efforts

The board recognized the following observances during Tuesday's meeting:

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Hennepin County Profile

Administrative Aide Nancy Asan 

NA Head Shot

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.

Nancy Asan

Nancy is a resident of the Loring Park neighborhood in the southwest corner of Downtown Minneapolis, and is the Adminsitrative Aide in the Office of Commissioner Marion Greene. 

Click here to find out how Nancy makes Hennepin County tick.


County Calendar

TimeToTalk.MN Book Club

  • TimeToTalk.MN is a monthly book club that focuses on diversity and social justice, planting the seeds of empathy and peace, one story at a time. April’s book is Citizen: An American Lyric by Claudia Rankine. Walker Library, 2880 Hennepin Avenue. Learn more about TimeToTalk.MN.
  • Monday, April 10, 6:15 to 7:15 p.m.

Southwest Minneapolis 1930: From the Air

  • In the late 1920s and early 1930s, pioneer aerial photographer Joe Quigley was hired to take images of all Minneapolis schools. These remarkable high-resolution photos have been in the school district files for 80 years. Join local historians Michael Wilson and Tom Balcom to view the Southwest neighborhoods circa 1930. Washburn Library, 5244 Lyndale Avenue South, Minneapolis. Learn more about this history event.
  • Saturday, April 15, 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Minnesota Independent Scholars Forum: Yet Another Kind of Fusion

  • Join us for this research-based lecture series founded by the Minnesota Humanities Commission. Major Wesely will discuss cold fusion investigations and a possible explanation of the excess energy now reported in recent experiments. Washburn Library, 5244 Lyndale Avenue South, Minneapolis. Learn more about this Scholars Forum event.
  • Saturday, April 22, 10 a.m. to noon

Great Decisions: Trade and Politics

  • The metrics used to gauge economic strength – Gross Domestic Product and balance of trade – have not kept up with the realities of modern manufacturing. Obtaining an accurate picture of U.S. economic stature requires a critique of those numbers so the U.S. can develop appropriate policy solutions for the challenges at hand. Presented by Todd Lefko. Washburn Library, 5244 Lyndale Avenue South, Minneapolis. Learn more about this Great Decisions discussion.
  • Friday, April 28, 10 to 11:30 a.m.

Día de los Niños: Baile y Cuento / Children's Day: Dance and Stories

  • ¡Celebremos el día de los niños en la biblioteca! Acompáñanos a disfrutar de cuentos y bailables interpretados por estudiantes de Windom Dual Immersion School y Windom Enrichment Resource Center. Celebrate Children's Day at the library! Come experience stories and dance presented by Windom Dual Immersion School and Windom Enrichment Resource Center students. Washburn Library, 5244 Lyndale Avenue South, Minneapolis. Learn more about Día de los Niños.
  • Saturday, April 29, 10 a.m. to noon

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