January 22, 2021 Newsletter

Hennepin County, Minnesota sent this bulletin at 01/22/2021 05:00 PM CST

January 22, 2021

Dear Neighbors and Friends,

We started this week in reflection on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. day. I was grateful to virtually attend the 31st annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday Breakfast. Dr. King's legacy reminds us that we must remain united and steadfast in our fight against racial injustice.

I also attended my first Meet Minneapolis meeting as a board member and our board officially approved our 2021 State Legislative Priorities and Platform. As Chair of the Hennepin County Housing and Redevelopment Authority, I had productive and inspiring conversations with members of the Minnesota Coalition for the Homeless and the local Minnetonka Housing Team. We discussed the future of housing and the work that is required of us in order to ensure everyone has a safe, reliable, and affordable place to call home.

I welcome you to reach out to our office with any questions, concerns, or comments you may have.

In service,

Chris

Small Business Relief Fund Dashboard

Map and graph showing small business grant relief allocations

The interactive Small Business Relief Fund Dashboard is a tool that shows the outcomes and data on direct emergency financial relief to businesses impacted by COVID-19. As of January 6, 2021, Hennepin County District 6 has received $6.04 million in funding through 613 grants awarded for small businesses through these grants.

Hennepin County has held four application rounds through the Small Business Relief fund, each targeting new groups of businesses. A fifth round of funding opened in early January, including $24.6 million to support businesses and nonprofit organizations impacted by COVID-19. The application period closed on Thursday, January 14.

Learn more and interact with the dashboard, here.

Weekly Board Actions

The full board officially approved the County's proposed 2021 State Legislative Platform. Our platform reflects our dedication and support for key policies in housing, mental health, disparity reduction, criminal justice reform, child protection, and much more.

You can access the full meeting, here.

Take the Hennepin County Plastic-Free Challenge

Join in taking the Hennepin County Plastic-Free Challenge to reduce plastic consumption and contribute by finding ways that best fit your lifestyle and are most impactful to reducing your plastic footprint. The challenge runs through February 17. Visit the online dashboard to take the pledge, see who's participating, and earn points!

Community Events

Tanager Bridge Informational Open House

Learn more about the 2021 Tanager Bridge reconstruction project by attending the online open house on Wednesday, January 27 at 4 p.m. The meeting will cover:

• Project timeline
• Improvements the project will provide for people traveling through the area
• How to stay informed

Hennepin County is scheduled to reconstruct the Shoreline Drive Bridge (County Road 15) over Tanager Lake in Orono this year. The bridge is more commonly referred to as the Tanager Bridge. Starting as soon as late February, work will begin to replace the Tanager Bridge and realign the bridge approaches on Shoreline Drive. This work will improve safety for people using the bridge and the channel below.

To attend, visit the project website on January 27 at 4 p.m. and click on the event link. There is no need to register. If you cannot attend, we will post a recording of the open house on the project website after the event.

Minnetonka's February Sustainable Webinar

This free, one-hour webinar will touch on home energy efficiency brought to you by Minnetonka’s Energy Action Team. Following up on January’s Home Energy Efficiency webinar, the next in the “Sustainable Minnetonka” series will answer a question that’s likely asked by many who have had an audit from the Home Energy Squad. "After the Audit: Now What?"

Learn more about this event and register, here.