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We have one correction and one piece of additional news. Below you’ll find the corrected Greenway information (it *is* reopened at Fremont Avenue), and details of an exciting deconstruction incentive program piloting in Minneapolis and St. Louis Park.
Thank you for reading our monthly newsletter on activities and highlights from Hennepin County government. In November the board took enormous strides towards finalizing our 2020 budget. I look forward to updating you further after the final vote on December 12. In the meantime, the Greenway at Fremont Avenue is reopening in time for your Thanksgiving Day rides! More information below.
As always, please reach out with questions, comments, or to learn more about how to get involved. In this season of gratitude let me thank you for your engagement with me and my office.
 With follow up questions or requests, please contact Elie Farhat at elie.farhat@hennepin.us or my office at 612-348-7883.
Hennepin County is beginning a deconstruction incentive program to make deconstruction more affordable and increase awareness about the option. Deconstruction is the process of carefully dismantling structures to salvage building materials for reuse and recycling. Commonly salvaged building materials include old growth lumber, doors, flooring, cabinets and fixtures.
Only 30 percent of the construction and demolition waste generated in the Twin Cities metro area is diverted for recycling. Deconstruction provides an opportunity to divert up to 85 percent of construction and demolition waste and provides several environmental and social benefits compared to standard demolition. However, deconstruction techniques are not widely used because they add additional cost and time to demolition projects. While homeowners want more environmentally-friendly ways to divert construction and demolition waste, general awareness of deconstruction as an option is low.
The deconstruction incentive program will provide up to $5,000 per project for the complete removal or major renovation of residential properties, offsetting some of the costs for homeowners and developers associated with utilizing deconstruction techniques versus traditional demolition. City partners will help promote the program when homeowners and developers apply for demolition and renovation permits, making applicants aware of more environmentally-friendly options to waste disposal. Initially, the program will be offered to homeowners and developers applying for permits in Minneapolis and St. Louis Park.
This deconstruction incentive program is one part of a broader strategy outlined in the county’s solid waste management master plan to divert construction and demolition waste from the trash. Other efforts include: encouraging deconstruction practices in county demolition projects, assuring proper disposal of hazardous materials by demolition contractors, and promoting opportunities to reuse building materials to builders and residents.
Learn more about the Deconstruction Program Incentive and eligibility here.
Significantly fewer teens are becoming parents in Hennepin County.
From 2017 to 2018, the teen birth rate fell by 21 percent. That one-year change among teens ages 15-19 contributes to an overall decrease of more than 65 percent since 2009.
In real numbers, 339 teens gave birth in 2018. In 2007, that number was 1,170.
Many factors may have contributed to the change, but they align with Hennepin County Public Health’s teen pregnancy prevention program, Better Together Hennepin, begun in 2006. With help from a federal grant, as well as state and county funding, the pregnancy prevention initiative has developed and implemented a range of evidence-based programming options meant to help teens:
- Care and advocate for their own health and well-being, with knowledge of a range of options, from abstinence to safer sex
- Become educated about their bodies have access to sexual health information
- Connect with a caring adult who can answer questions and provide guidance
- Plan for and embark on their futures before becoming parents
National studies suggest that fewer teens are having sex, and that more of them who are sexually active use contraceptives.
"Preventing teen pregnancies is a very high priority for Hennepin County, and our work has been strikingly successful,” said Hennepin County Board Member Mike Opat. “We all know that teens are not ready to become parents. This progress is the best kind of prevention work we do in county government.”
When young people have information and resources, they can create a healthy future for themselves and a healthy start for the next generation, if they choose to have or raise children.
Programming made possible by government, private partners
Better Together Hennepin relies on our partners on the ground – schools, clinics and nonprofit organizations that are rooted in their communities – to deliver information and services to the young people we serve.
Since 2010, the program has benefited from about $18 million in federal grant monies, augmented by state and local funding, as well as investment from community partners.
Much work remains to reduce disparities in teen births and to reach young people in the communities that are disproportionately affected because of structural racism and other forms of structural inequities.
Forming Forever Families: National Adoption Day
 Twenty-two children found their forever homes on November 23 at Hennepin County's National Adoption Day event.
National Adoption Day raises awareness of the more than 123,000 American children in foster care waiting to find permanent, loving families. It's a day when many adoptions are finalized.
“There are no unwanted children – just unfound families," said Juvenile Court Judge Hilary Caligiuri.
Jackie Williams was part of one of the 14 families adopting on Saturday. By adopting her two teenage nieces, the Williamses' are among more than 55% of adoptions finalized by relatives.
Read more here.
Share your voice and help shape policy
Give back to your community by applying for a citizen advisory board. The Hennepin County Board is recruiting for 25 openings this fall.
Volunteers advise the county board on a variety of issues, such as mental health, our region's workforce, libraries, water quality and more.
Current openings
- Adult Mental Health Advisory Council – 10 vacancies
- Capital Budgeting Task Force – two vacancies
- City Planning Commission (Minneapolis) – one vacancy
- County Extension Committee (University of Minnesota Extension) – one vacancy
- Library Board – five vacancies
- Mental Commitment Attorney Panel Advisory Board – one vacancy
- Minnehaha Creek Watershed District Board – two vacancies
- Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Board – three vacancies
Application timeline
- Now through December 31 – apply at hennepin.us/advisoryboards.
- Starting January or February 2020 – the county board will conduct interviews.
- First quarter of 2020 – the county board will appoint volunteers to the positions.
County public works and contractors have partnered to get the Midtown Greenway reopened through the Fremont Avenue Bridge construction area. We are grateful teams could do this a month earlier than anticipated.
The county works project team has also confirmed with the City of Minneapolis that they are ready for snow removal on the Greenway through the area.
Staying informed
visit hennepin.us/greenwaybridges.
For questions, please contact the project at greenwaybridges@hennepin.us or call 612-543-4255.
Budget briefings are open to the public. My office welcomes direct feedback via call or email, or in-person testimony at the meetings.
Tuesday, December 3:
- 6pm - Truth in Taxation public meeting
Thursday, December 12:
- 1:30pm – County board approves budget and levy at regularly scheduled board meeting
History Day Hullabaloo
Hennepin County Library offers a variety of resources and services to help students choose and research their History Day projects.
Baking and cooking resources from your library
If you are a foodie and love to make meals or bake, the library has books and online resources that can help you expand your creative horizons.
Ask us for reading suggestions
We can help you find a book that fits your needs in the format of your choice. We'll email you suggestions that may include authors, specific titles or book lists. Get reading suggestions by email.
BookFLIX for younger readers
Kids can enjoy fiction and nonfiction eBooks, streaming video and games with this online resource.
We love sharing profiles of District 3 residents in our newsletter— be on the lookout for more stories of our neighbors who work at Hennepin County in 2020!
Contact us
Marion Greene
Commissioner, 3rd District
612-348-7883
Elie Farhat
Principal Aide
612-348-7125
Laura Hoffman
District Aide
612-348-0863
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