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Dear Friends and Neighbors,
I hope you were able to enjoy some time last week for Thanksgiving and National Native American Heritage Day.
As the federal government prepares for a change in administration and leadership, I find myself more and more thankful for my community at home and across District 3. If you're energized to get more involved, I encourage residents to consider applying to be on a Hennepin County Community Advisory Board — the application deadlines are December 31 — more details below.
You'll also find in this newsletter:
- 75 years of conservation efforts in Hennepin County with a recap of efforts to plant 3,500 trees in St. Louis Park's Westwood Hills Nature Center
- A highlight of a Hennepin County's Elevate Talent graduation
- Calendar events for craft, thrifted, and reused holiday gifts and supplies
- Information on downloading and using the new Hennepin County Library mobile app
- Survey opportunity to help set priorities for Federal Housing Funds in Hennepin County; and,
- MinnesotaCare eligibility and enrollment information
My best,
Hennepin County now accepting applications for community advisory boards
The Hennepin County Board is recruiting volunteers for 43 advisory and watershed district board positions through its annual open appointment process.
Each fall, the board accepts applications from residents interested in volunteer service positions on advisory boards, commissions, councils and special task forces. Board members will advise commissioners and help set policy on a variety of topics important to the county.
Community advisory board openings:
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Adult Mental Health Local Advisory Council
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County Extension Committee, U of M Extension
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Racial Equity Advisory Council
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Special Board of Appeal and Equalization
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Three Rivers Park District Board of Commissioners
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Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Board
Watershed board openings:
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Minnehaha Creek Watershed District
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Starting January 2025 – the county board will conduct interviews.
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First quarter of 2025 – the county board will appoint volunteers to the positions.
Hennepin County has an abundance of natural resources that serve as the foundation for a high quality of life. To protect these resources, Hennepin County has the unique role of fulfilling the duties of a soil and water conservation district, meaning the county takes the lead on providing services that improve natural resources on privately owned land.
Evolving work with a consistent mission
These services have been available to Hennepin County residents for 75 years, starting in 1949 when the Hennepin Conservation District was founded with a focus on offering technical assistance to farmers.
Although a lot has evolved in our approach to conservation work, our guiding star has remained protecting the environment in a prioritized and cost-effective way to enhance the quality of life for current and future generations.
Our current priorities include:
Planting and caring for trees
The county is committed to planting a diverse, resilient and equitable tree canopy. And we’re making great progress – we’re over one-third of the way toward achieving our climate action goal of planting 1 million trees by 2030.
Protecting and improving habitat
The county has secured more than $9 million from the state’s Outdoor Heritage Fund in recent years in partnership with the Minnesota Land Trust. This funding is used to establish conservation easements and complete restoration projects to expand the benefits these ecosystems provide.
Improving water quality
Making significant water quality improvements requires sustained, long-term, partnership-based investments. The county takes a data-driven approach to identify specific sources of pollution and invest in the highest impact solutions.
Working collaboratively to achieve our goals
The county works with residents throughout the county to provide habitat for pollinators, protect water, and engage youth in environmental education. We also work closely with our partners to align our goals and priorities and advance a unified vision for natural resources protection.
Partnering with landowners in this work provides benefits for everyone in the county is foundational to achieving our climate action goals. Learn more about the history and future of conservation in Hennepin County.
St. Louis Park volunteers and county partners plant 3,500 trees at Westwood Hills Nature Center
 I had a great time joining partners and volunteers from St. Louis Park, Green Corps, and the Life Time Foundation to help Hennepin County foresters plant 3,500 trees at Westwood Hills Nature Center.
Trees and forests provide many benefits, including improving our air and water, making us and our communities healthier, reducing the urban heat island, providing wildlife habitat, saving energy, and increasing property values.
County foresters planted about 21,850 trees throughout the county in 2024, moving us closer to achieving our climate-action goal of planting 1 million trees by 2030 with the help of cities, partners, and residents.
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I was pleased to be a part of celebrating a new opportunity from the Hennepin County Economic Development and Workforce Development teams.
The groups just wrapped-up a Hennepin County-sponsored pilot to support business owners with strategic guidance and best practices around hiring, employee retention, company culture, and other human resources (HR) essentials.
Five businesses shared their experience and agreed this endeavor was not only useful but transformed how they thought about HR.
I’m excited this work will continue with a new group-learning opportunity called HR Next, provided at no cost to businesses across the county under the county’s Elevate Hennepin initiative.
This new opportunity will launch early next year. Be sure to sign up for the Elevate Hennepin newsletter or keep an eye out for the application period.
The holiday shopping and gift-giving season is upon us, which means an abundance of local business sales, holiday markets, and other opportunities to buy used! See our Choose to Reuse list of upcoming events and sales for details about the following sales and events.
Your local thrift stores and reuse retailers may be offering sales throughout the holidays, such as, Small Business Saturday sales at Cream and Amber and CAKE Plus-Size Retail, and Thriftmas as Arc’s Value Village.
Special events and markets include:
- Twin Cities Record Show Holiday Pop-up on December 7 at Midtown Global Market in Minneapolis
- Wood from the Hood’s Holiday Maker’s Market on December 14 and 15 in Minneapolis
- Nicollet Island Winter Market on December 15 at Nicollet Island Pavilion in Minneapolis
- A Very Vintage Holidazzle Market on December 20 and 21 at City Centre in Minneapolis
Green Tip: Four traditions to make the holidays more about reducing and reusing
Thanksgiving marked the beginning of a holiday season full of family, friends, and food. But it’s also the beginning of an enormous consumer spending season. With Black Friday sales offering amazing deals on everything from TVs to home improvement tools, it’s easy to get caught up in the rush of shopping and lose track of the potential for these habits to create clutter, generate a lot of packaging, and strain your finances.
The latest Choose to Reuse post suggest these four low-waste traditions to make the season more about reduce and reuse:
- Plan a clothing and toy swap with family or friends
- Appreciate and share stories about past gifts, family heirlooms, and cherished items
- Establish gift-giving guidelines that make the holidays fun while preventing unused gifts
- Repair or repurpose items with friends and family
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Carry your library card anywhere with the new Hennepin County Library app, available for Apple and Android devices. Use the Hennepin County Library app to discover new titles, plan your next visit, and browse recommendations. You can also:
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Instantly access your library card barcode
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Check library hours and locations
Whether you’re browsing from home or scanning your barcode in-person at the library, the new app makes it even easier to connect and explore.
Each year, Hennepin County receives around $5 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for suburban housing and development projects and services.
To guide the use of the funds, Hennepin County works with cities, residents, and other partners to set goals and priorities for affordable housing and community development in suburban communities as part of a five-year plan. These priorities also help shape broader affordable housing efforts by the county and partner cities.
The next five-year plan is now under development. You can help us understand your personal housing experiences and priorities by taking a quick online survey.
You may now be eligible for MinnesotaCare. Your immigration status does not matter. You may qualify even if you are undocumented.
It’s a good idea to have health insurance because you and your family can save money on medical bills. You should apply if you:
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Don’t have other health insurance options.
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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