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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2021 10-11 CCM Regular SessionMINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION OCTOBER I I, 2021 VIA ZOOM 1. INFORMAL OPEN FORUM WITH CITY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER INFORMAL OPEN FORUM The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Informal Open Forum called to order by Mayor Mike Elliott at 6:47 p.m. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence - Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, Community Development Director Meg Beekman, Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson, Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. Mayor Mike Elliott opened the meeting for Informal Open Forum. Diane Sannes stated the old Target building has 10,000 new bikes that were dropped off by the nonprofit Free Bilces for Kids, and they will be distributed throughout the Metro area. She stated that Friday, October 15, at the Centennial Park Amphitheater, there is going to be a Mash -Up with performers, free food, and a discussion about the Opportunity Site. Mindy stated she owns a rental property in Brooklyn Center, and they have been experiencing a lot of crime recently. She asked what Mayor Elliott will do with the Police Department to address this issue. Mayor Elliott stated Public Open Forum is not usually an opportunity to engage in problem - solving, but he does not want to avoid the question. He asked City Manager Reggie Edwards if he had any comments or if they should circle back to it at another time. Mayor Elliott then asked Mindy if she thought that was fair. Mindy stated it is not fair because she is losing employees and tenants due to the crime, so she wants to know how the Council will address the issue. Mayor Elliott stated safety is at the very top of their list of responsibilities. He asked Dr. Edwards for input. 10/11/21 -1- City Manager Reggie Edwards stated that staff can prepare a report to present at the next meeting about what is currently happening and what measures are being taken to address the issue. He added that the staff would like Mindy's contact information to follow up with her directly. Mindy stated she can call to provide her contact information. She noted the Council has done a lot to build up the City, but if it continues to go down the way it has been then the City will lose a lot of businesses and property owners. Mayor Elliott asked Mindy for specific examples of the issues she was facing. Mindy stated robbery at gunpoint and stolen cars are a couple of the issues. Dr. Edwards asked Mindy to share her contact information with the City Cleric. Luther stated they appreciate the upcoming presentation on public safety, and they hope to follow up with each of the Councilmembers regarding the safety and reputation of the City. Luther noted they have seven dealerships on the Boulevard, and they have invested a lot of money into the community. Luther stated they would like the opportunity to speak with the Council offline about safety in the community. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson stated she spoke with a resident who asked her to read a statement on their behalf. She read, "What I want is for all of you to stand up and say, `yes, there are problems between community and our Police Department.' These problems are intertwined with historical and present-day racism, and we need to fix that. But we also have problems with violence in our community, and we very much need our Police because that violence is also a part of the problems that exist between our community and the Police Department and we cannot solve one problem without also dealing with the other and we need to do this together." Councilmember Ryan moved and Councilmember Butler seconded to close the Inforrnal Open Forum at 6:59 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. 2. INVOCATION Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson restated a quote from Albert Schweitzer, "The propose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others". Mayor Elliott stated it is Indigenous People's Day and Columbus Day, so he wanted to recognize Native Americans and all that they have gone through. 3. CALL TO ORDER REGULAR BUSINESS MEETING The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Regular Session called to order by Mayor Milce Elliott at 7:03 p.m. 10/11/21 -2- 4. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence - Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, Community Development Director Meg Beekman, Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson, Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. 5. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 6. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson seconded to approve the Agenda and Consent Agenda, as amended to remove Regular Agenda Item 6c, Resolution Approving Change Order Nos. 1.7, Improvement Project No. 2021-05, Brooklyn Boulevards Corridor Project Phase 2 Improvements; and, add discussion of Certified Special Assessment for Private Utility Service Repair to the Hennepin County Tax to Regular Agenda item 8a, and the following consent items were approved: 6a. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. September 27, 2021 -Study Session Meeting 2. September 27, 2021 - Regular Session Meeting 3. September 27, 2021 - Work Session Meeting 4. October 4, 2021— Joint CC and FC Meeting 6b. LICENSES GASOLINE SERVICE STATIONS Brooklyn Center Municipal Garage Holiday Stationstore 44292 420 66th Ave N MECHANICAL LICENSES Albertson Mechanical LLC Apollo Plumbing Inc RENTAL INITIAL (TYPE IV —six-month license) 2223 Brookview Drive 6807 Drew Avenue N. 5661 Northport Drive 6844 Shingle Creek Pkwy Brooklyn Center MN 55430 4567 American Blvd Minneapolis MN 55437 15662 137th St SE Becker MN 55308 307 Jackson Ave Ste 4 Ellc River Mn 55330 Willie Mae Overstreet John Yufani Allan Kembol 10/11/21 -3- 6106 Quail Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE IV — six-month license) 5331 Camden Avenue N. 3800 Commodore Drive 3007 Ohenry Road 6130 Scott Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE III —one year° license) 4100 61" Avenue N. 5530 Girard Avenue N. 5949 Vincent Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE II —two year• license) 3106 641h Avenue N. 5937 Abbott AvenueN. 6116 Aldrich Avenue N. 5542 Irving Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE I — th�ee year° license) 5347 Brooklyn Blvd. 5412 Fremont Avenue N. 6315 Brooklyn Boulevard 5643 Knox Avenue N. 4419 Winchester Lane Almamy Momo Toure Ross Herman — missing mitigation Plan Dave Koenig IH3 Property Illinois LP/Invitation Homes — met plan requirements 20174 IL Borrower LP Emmanuel Colter Kim Chew Royal Priesthood LLC — missing OPTED and action plan 2017-1 IL Borrower LP —met Action plan Marls Crost MNSF II W 1 LLC Cel Monton LLC/RiFive LLC Randall Cook Gary Analdcala Raymond He Jason Flaa Sara Brang TOBACCO RELATED PRODUCTS Holiday Stationstore #292 4567 American Blvd 420 66th Ave N Minneapolis MN 55437 Premier Tobacco Corp 10501 Van Buren Cir NE 6930 Brooklyn Blvd Blaine MN 55434 6c. This item was removed upon adoption of the agenda. 6d. RESOLUTION NO, 2021423 APPROVING CHANGE ORDER NIS. 1-7, IMPROVEMENT PROJECT NO. 2021-05, BROOKL.YN BOULEVARD CORRIDOR PROJECT PHASE 2 IMPROVEMENTS 6e. RESOLUTION NO, 2021424 APPROVING STATE OF MINNESOTA JOINT POWERS AGREEMENTS WITH THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER ON BEHALF OF ITS CITY ATTORNEY AND POLICE DEPARTMENT 10/11/21 -4- MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION OCTOBER I I, 2021 VIA ZOOM 1. INFORMAL OPEN FORUM WITH CITY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER INFORMAL OPEN FORUM The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Informal Open Forum called to order by Mayor Mike Elliott at 6:47 p.m. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence - Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, Community Development Director Meg Beekman, Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson, Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. Mayor Mike Elliott opened the meeting for Informal Open Forum. Diane Sannes stated the old Target building has 10,000 new bikes that were dropped off by the nonprofit Free Bilces for Kids, and they will be distributed throughout the Metro area. She stated that Friday, October 15, at the Centennial Park Amphitheater, there is going to be a Mash -Up with performers, free food, and a discussion about the Opportunity Site. Mindy stated she owns a rental property in Brooklyn Center, and they have been experiencing a lot of crime recently. She asked what Mayor Elliott will do with the Police Department to address this issue. Mayor Elliott stated Public Open Forum is not usually an opportunity to engage in problem - solving, but he does not want to avoid the question. He asked City Manager Reggie Edwards if he had any comments or if they should circle back to it at another time. Mayor Elliott then asked Mindy if she thought that was fair. Mindy stated it is not fair because she is losing employees and tenants due to the crime, so she wants to know how the Council will address the issue. Mayor Elliott stated safety is at the very top of their list of responsibilities. He asked Dr. Edwards for input. 10/11/21 -1- City Manager Reggie Edwards stated that staff can prepare a report to present at the next meeting about what is currently happening and what measures are being taken to address the issue. He added that the staff would like Mindy's contact information to follow up with her directly. Mindy stated she can call to provide her contact information. She noted the Council has done a lot to build up the City, but if it continues to go down the way it has been then the City will lose a lot of businesses and property owners. Mayor Elliott asked Mindy for specific examples of the issues she was facing. Mindy stated robbery at gunpoint and stolen cars are a couple of the issues. Dr. Edwards asked Mindy to share her contact information with the City Cleric. Luther stated they appreciate the upcoming presentation on public safety, and they hope to follow up with each of the Councilmembers regarding the safety and reputation of the City. Luther noted they have seven dealerships on the Boulevard, and they have invested a lot of money into the community. Luther stated they would like the opportunity to speak with the Council offline about safety in the community. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson stated she spoke with a resident who asked her to read a statement on their behalf. She read, "What I want is for all of you to stand up and say, `yes, there are problems between community and our Police Department.' These problems are intertwined with historical and present-day racism, and we need to fix that. But we also have problems with violence in our community, and we very much need our Police because that violence is also a part of the problems that exist between our community and the Police Department and we cannot solve one problem without also dealing with the other and we need to do this together." Councilmember Ryan moved and Councilmember Butler seconded to close the Inforrnal Open Forum at 6:59 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. 2. INVOCATION Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson restated a quote from Albert Schweitzer, "The propose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others". Mayor Elliott stated it is Indigenous People's Day and Columbus Day, so he wanted to recognize Native Americans and all that they have gone through. 3. CALL TO ORDER REGULAR BUSINESS MEETING The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Regular Session called to order by Mayor Milce Elliott at 7:03 p.m. 10/11/21 -2- 4. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence - Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, Community Development Director Meg Beekman, Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson, Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. 5. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 6. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson seconded to approve the Agenda and Consent Agenda, as amended to remove Regular Agenda Item 6c, Resolution Approving Change Order Nos. 1.7, Improvement Project No. 2021-05, Brooklyn Boulevards Corridor Project Phase 2 Improvements; and, add discussion of Certified Special Assessment for Private Utility Service Repair to the Hennepin County Tax to Regular Agenda item 8a, and the following consent items were approved: 6a. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. September 27, 2021 -Study Session Meeting 2. September 27, 2021 - Regular Session Meeting 3. September 27, 2021 - Work Session Meeting 4. October 4, 2021— Joint CC and FC Meeting 6b. LICENSES GASOLINE SERVICE STATIONS Brooklyn Center Municipal Garage Holiday Stationstore 44292 420 66th Ave N MECHANICAL LICENSES Albertson Mechanical LLC Apollo Plumbing Inc RENTAL INITIAL (TYPE IV —six-month license) 2223 Brookview Drive 6807 Drew Avenue N. 5661 Northport Drive 6844 Shingle Creek Pkwy Brooklyn Center MN 55430 4567 American Blvd Minneapolis MN 55437 15662 137th St SE Becker MN 55308 307 Jackson Ave Ste 4 Ellc River Mn 55330 Willie Mae Overstreet John Yufani Allan Kembol 10/11/21 -3- 6106 Quail Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE IV — six-month license) 5331 Camden Avenue N. 3800 Commodore Drive 3007 Ohenry Road 6130 Scott Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE III —one year° license) 4100 61" Avenue N. 5530 Girard Avenue N. 5949 Vincent Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE II —two year• license) 3106 641h Avenue N. 5937 Abbott AvenueN. 6116 Aldrich Avenue N. 5542 Irving Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE I — th�ee year° license) 5347 Brooklyn Blvd. 5412 Fremont Avenue N. 6315 Brooklyn Boulevard 5643 Knox Avenue N. 4419 Winchester Lane Almamy Momo Toure Ross Herman — missing mitigation Plan Dave Koenig IH3 Property Illinois LP/Invitation Homes — met plan requirements 20174 IL Borrower LP Emmanuel Colter Kim Chew Royal Priesthood LLC — missing OPTED and action plan 2017-1 IL Borrower LP —met Action plan Marls Crost MNSF II W 1 LLC Cel Monton LLC/RiFive LLC Randall Cook Gary Analdcala Raymond He Jason Flaa Sara Brang TOBACCO RELATED PRODUCTS Holiday Stationstore #292 4567 American Blvd 420 66th Ave N Minneapolis MN 55437 Premier Tobacco Corp 10501 Van Buren Cir NE 6930 Brooklyn Blvd Blaine MN 55434 6c. This item was removed upon adoption of the agenda. 6d. RESOLUTION NO, 2021423 APPROVING CHANGE ORDER NIS. 1-7, IMPROVEMENT PROJECT NO. 2021-05, BROOKL.YN BOULEVARD CORRIDOR PROJECT PHASE 2 IMPROVEMENTS 6e. RESOLUTION NO, 2021424 APPROVING STATE OF MINNESOTA JOINT POWERS AGREEMENTS WITH THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER ON BEHALF OF ITS CITY ATTORNEY AND POLICE DEPARTMENT 10/11/21 -4- 6f. RESOLUTION NO. 2021-125 APPROVING THE CONTRACT FOR THE LABOR AGREEMENT FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT LABOR SERVICE, INC. (LELS NUMBER 82) AND THE CITY OF BROOKL,YN CENTER FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS 2022-2024 66. RESOLUTION N0.2021-126 SETTING THE 2022 EMPLOYER BENEFITS CONTRIBUTIONS FOR FULL-TIME NON -UNION EMPLOYEES Motion passed unanimously. 7. PRESENTATIONS/PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS/DONATIONS 7a. EMBEDDED SOCIAL WORKER AND HENNEPIN COUNTY MENTAL HEALTH OVERVIEW PROGRAMS City Manager Reggie Edwards summarized the item and invited Interim Police Chief Tony Grueling to present. Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig stated Brooklyn Center just started an embedded social worker program in May 2021. Chief Gruenig stated the embedded social worker has two primary responsibilities which are to respond to and identify mental health -related and substance abuse reports, provide the client with intervention and stabilization for people who may benefit from connections to services and resources as well as offer support to help reduce the use of 911 and coordinate service needs for community members. Chief Gruenig stated the two goals of the program are timely engagement with people who need support and increased access to community resources. Interim Chief Gruenig noted the program began in 2019 with six suburban cities and will be expanding in 2022 to an additional 15 departments covering 29 cities in Hennepin County. He stated the program operates under a 60/40 split cost -sharing with the City paying 60% of the social worker wages. Brooklyn Center began its embedded social worker program on May 3, 2021. Interim Chief Gruenig explained the embedded social worker does referrals that are made to them in person, via email, or through a referral form completed by an officer. He noted the social worker also reviews the prior week's mental health -related calls for service as a way to make additional referrals. Interim Chief Gruenig stated there were 65 referrals to the social worker from May 3, 2021, to June 30, 2021. Interim Chief Gruenig noted the Police Department received 100 mental health - related calls for service during that time, and 45 were for mental health issues, nine for substance abuse issues, six were a combination of mental health and substance abuse, and nine were classified as "other" referrals. As for the referrals made by the social worker in the second quarter, 12 were for mental health services, three for substance abuse treatment services, two for housing, six for obtaining public assistance, one was for transportation, and 31 were for care coordination with other social service providers. 10/11/21 -5- 6f. RESOLUTION NO. 2021-125 APPROVING THE CONTRACT FOR THE LABOR AGREEMENT FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT LABOR SERVICE, INC. (LELS NUMBER 82) AND THE CITY OF BROOKL,YN CENTER FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS 2022-2024 66. RESOLUTION N0.2021-126 SETTING THE 2022 EMPLOYER BENEFITS CONTRIBUTIONS FOR FULL-TIME NON -UNION EMPLOYEES Motion passed unanimously. 7. PRESENTATIONS/PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS/DONATIONS 7a. EMBEDDED SOCIAL WORKER AND HENNEPIN COUNTY MENTAL HEALTH OVERVIEW PROGRAMS City Manager Reggie Edwards summarized the item and invited Interim Police Chief Tony Grueling to present. Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig stated Brooklyn Center just started an embedded social worker program in May 2021. Chief Gruenig stated the embedded social worker has two primary responsibilities which are to respond to and identify mental health -related and substance abuse reports, provide the client with intervention and stabilization for people who may benefit from connections to services and resources as well as offer support to help reduce the use of 911 and coordinate service needs for community members. Chief Gruenig stated the two goals of the program are timely engagement with people who need support and increased access to community resources. Interim Chief Gruenig noted the program began in 2019 with six suburban cities and will be expanding in 2022 to an additional 15 departments covering 29 cities in Hennepin County. He stated the program operates under a 60/40 split cost -sharing with the City paying 60% of the social worker wages. Brooklyn Center began its embedded social worker program on May 3, 2021. Interim Chief Gruenig explained the embedded social worker does referrals that are made to them in person, via email, or through a referral form completed by an officer. He noted the social worker also reviews the prior week's mental health -related calls for service as a way to make additional referrals. Interim Chief Gruenig stated there were 65 referrals to the social worker from May 3, 2021, to June 30, 2021. Interim Chief Gruenig noted the Police Department received 100 mental health - related calls for service during that time, and 45 were for mental health issues, nine for substance abuse issues, six were a combination of mental health and substance abuse, and nine were classified as "other" referrals. As for the referrals made by the social worker in the second quarter, 12 were for mental health services, three for substance abuse treatment services, two for housing, six for obtaining public assistance, one was for transportation, and 31 were for care coordination with other social service providers. 10/11/21 -5- Interim Chief Gruenig added that 75 referrals were made for the third quarter, and they received 176 mental health service calls. He noted the breakdown for referrals is not available yet. Interim Chief Gruenig stated their goal is to have a 90% referral rate, so they have a little ways to go yet. Director of Emergency Communications at Hennepin County Sheriff's Office Tony Martin stated he has been in public safety for 21, mainly with the City of Edina, and he has been working with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office for two years. Mr. Martin asked for Mike Risvold, Suburban Community Engagement Liaison with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, to introduce himself. Suburban Community Engagement Liaison with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office Mike bsvold stated he is the retired Chief of Police for the City of Wayzata and has been a part of the County's behavioral health team for quite a few years, so he was asked to be a liaison between behavioral health resources, law enforcement, and the Sheriff's Office. Mr. Martin showed a slide with a map of Hennepin County reflecting the different public safety answering points. He stated there are eight primary 911 centers in Hennepin County and noted Brooklyn Center is one of the 39 cities that the County dispatches for. Mr. Martin stated four secondary 911 centers cover Hennepin County which is primarily emergency medical service dispatchers. He added the County dispatches for 27 law enforcement agencies and 26 fire departments. Mr. Martin stated about 1.2 million people are living in Hennepin County, and they dispatch for over 523,000 residents. Their division also maintains the radio towers for public safety and has technical groups that assist with their computerized dispatch groups. Mr. Martin stated they are primarily thereto share about initiatives the Sheriff's Office is currently doing. He noted they provide a menu of services and it is not a one -size -fits -all way to fix issues in a city. The current county initiatives include the Suburban Police Department Embedded Social Workers, 911 Embedded Social Worker Pilot, 911 Mental Health Task Force, Suburban Community Engagement Liaison, and Hennepin County Behavioral Health Proposal. Mr. Martin noted these are all separate initiatives, but the work is parallel. Mr. Risvold showed a slide of which police departments have embedded social workers. They are working on contracts with Maple Grove and Rogers/Champlin/Dayton and there are committed folks from Eden Prairie and the Lake Minnetonka Consortium. He noted the goal is for every city to have some support from the program, and it is a rapidly growing program. Many of the cities that have previously shared a social worker are looking to have their own, and Brooklyn Park is looking to add as many as three social workers. Mr. Martin stated Sheriff David Hutchinson and Hennepin County Commissioner Irene Fernando started a pilot program for a social worker to be embedded within 911. He stated that law enforcement prefers to not respond to most mental health calls if a social worker can take the call, but not all mental health calls come in as such. For example, it may come in as a welfare check. Mr. Martin stated they have identified the need to do more as an emergency services department, so they want to increase training related to mental health. 10/11/21 -6- Mr. Martin noted the desired outcomes of the embedded social worker program are to match appropriate professionals with 911 mental health -related calls, increase mental health training for dispatchers, provide officers and community members with information related to community resources, provide social service follow-up to mental health -related 911 calls. Is Martin stated the program has been set up in three phases. The first phase was data collection, identifying repeat callers, and providing social worker aftercare for people identified as having been in a mental health crisis. Mr. Martin stated phase 2 will be getting off the ground shortly; for this phase, they are partnering with Golden Valley Police to provide real-time info to police officers on mental health calls where they need to respond as sharing necessary information can help provide a successful outcome. He noted that there have been some issues dealing with information sharing in terms of following state and local laws. He added to phase 3 will include routing calls that meet criteria to mental health professionals and alternative responses. Mr. Martin stated the 911 Mental Health Taslc Force was a board action presented by Commissioner Irene Fernando in December 2020. He stated a big part of that is collecting and analyzing data surrounding calls involving the mentally ill or people in crisis. The task force is researching national best practices in alternative responses to people in crisis and evolving them For their own needs. Mr. Martin stated the task force is collaborating with stakeholders on community engagement surrounding response and will be providing the Hennepin County board with recommendations on responding to people in crisis. Mr. Martin showed a slide listing the current members of the 911 Mental Health Task Force that include folks from city and county personnel and community groups. Mr. Martin stated the 911 Mental Health Task Force is looking at an alternative response proposal similar to the Denver STAR Model which also originated within the 911 department. He stated they hope for a social worker and community paramedic to respond without police and noted this would be for lower risk calls, meaning without weapons or violence. 911 call takers would screen the calls for riskiness. Mr. Martin stated the 911 Mental Health Task Force is focusing heavily on collecting data to promote consistency across the county. He showed a slide of data examples from Denver that guides how they dispatch resources through the Denver STAR Model such as heat maps of where they responded, STAR incidents by problem type, and days and times with the most responses to ensure proper staff. Mr. Risvold stated the plan is to pilot the alternative response with Brooklyn Park in 2022 if they receive the grant. He noted Brooklyn Park has the highest number of mental health calls that Hennepin County Sheriff's Office dispatches for. Mr. Risvold explained they have studied models from all over the country, and they are trying to mold Hennepin County's response after Denver. Mr. Risvold stated Hennepin County Behavioral Health put together an action request for the board to approve $20 million to meet the increasing need for behavioral health services. He showed a slide listing all of the programs and projects that the money would go towards, some of which they just explained. 10/11/21 -7- Councilmember Ryan asked which government entity is funding the aforementioned grant. Mr. Risvold stated the Department of Justice would be funding the grant, so it is federal funding they would access. Councilmember Ryan stated City law enforcement has used an app to assist them in responding to calls, and the app notifies law enforcement if a particular resident has a history of mental health issues or a behavioral deficit. Interim Chief Gruenig stated the app is called Vitals and is a way for residents to self -identify if they are on the Autism spectrum, have a history dealing with mental health, or other things in that realm. Councilmember Ryan stated he hopes that this app and similar information could be accessible to any responders to best serve the recipients of such services. Mr. Martin stated as a part of the task force, they are looking to have a deliverable that is available to the public. He stated it would be a platform that residents can choose to sign up on and provide as little or as much information about themselves to include name, address, mental health history, or medical history. The only way that information can be accessed by 911 is if the resident calls From the number assigned to their account, but that information would be populated for the 911 dispatcher if that is the case. Mr. Martin stated this would be a free service for residents, and they will more closely partner with cities to ensure the resource is understood and accessible. Councilmember Butler asked how much the Vitals app is being utilized and if it has had a positive impact. Interim Chief Gruenig stated they have seen very low turnout with people registering their information on the platform, but all of the law enforcement have the app ready to go. He noted that is something they would like to have a campaign of some sort to increase awareness and use of the app by the community. Councilmember Graves stated she was going to aslc the same question as Councilmember Butler. She noted it is ultimately an individual's choice, but she hopes that the program can provide more individualized services in the future. Councilmember Graves asked what the cost is in each city for the social worker and if that is based on any sort of model. Mr. Risvold stated the 60/40 model was developed in 2014 and that split is used regardless of the size of the city. He noted the way for a city to make that more equitable at this point is through the sharing of services. For example, many cities in Lake Minnetonka are sharing one social worker as they are each very small. Mr. Risvold stated the split ends up being closer to 50/50 because the county provides phone service, computers, and those types of things. He stated the County's perspective of the cost -sharing model is the cities are much more invested in the social worker and the social worker is entirely the city's for 40 hours per week. 10/11/21 -8- MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION OCTOBER I I, 2021 VIA ZOOM 1. INFORMAL OPEN FORUM WITH CITY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER INFORMAL OPEN FORUM The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Informal Open Forum called to order by Mayor Mike Elliott at 6:47 p.m. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence - Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, Community Development Director Meg Beekman, Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson, Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. Mayor Mike Elliott opened the meeting for Informal Open Forum. Diane Sannes stated the old Target building has 10,000 new bikes that were dropped off by the nonprofit Free Bilces for Kids, and they will be distributed throughout the Metro area. She stated that Friday, October 15, at the Centennial Park Amphitheater, there is going to be a Mash -Up with performers, free food, and a discussion about the Opportunity Site. Mindy stated she owns a rental property in Brooklyn Center, and they have been experiencing a lot of crime recently. She asked what Mayor Elliott will do with the Police Department to address this issue. Mayor Elliott stated Public Open Forum is not usually an opportunity to engage in problem - solving, but he does not want to avoid the question. He asked City Manager Reggie Edwards if he had any comments or if they should circle back to it at another time. Mayor Elliott then asked Mindy if she thought that was fair. Mindy stated it is not fair because she is losing employees and tenants due to the crime, so she wants to know how the Council will address the issue. Mayor Elliott stated safety is at the very top of their list of responsibilities. He asked Dr. Edwards for input. 10/11/21 -1- City Manager Reggie Edwards stated that staff can prepare a report to present at the next meeting about what is currently happening and what measures are being taken to address the issue. He added that the staff would like Mindy's contact information to follow up with her directly. Mindy stated she can call to provide her contact information. She noted the Council has done a lot to build up the City, but if it continues to go down the way it has been then the City will lose a lot of businesses and property owners. Mayor Elliott asked Mindy for specific examples of the issues she was facing. Mindy stated robbery at gunpoint and stolen cars are a couple of the issues. Dr. Edwards asked Mindy to share her contact information with the City Cleric. Luther stated they appreciate the upcoming presentation on public safety, and they hope to follow up with each of the Councilmembers regarding the safety and reputation of the City. Luther noted they have seven dealerships on the Boulevard, and they have invested a lot of money into the community. Luther stated they would like the opportunity to speak with the Council offline about safety in the community. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson stated she spoke with a resident who asked her to read a statement on their behalf. She read, "What I want is for all of you to stand up and say, `yes, there are problems between community and our Police Department.' These problems are intertwined with historical and present-day racism, and we need to fix that. But we also have problems with violence in our community, and we very much need our Police because that violence is also a part of the problems that exist between our community and the Police Department and we cannot solve one problem without also dealing with the other and we need to do this together." Councilmember Ryan moved and Councilmember Butler seconded to close the Inforrnal Open Forum at 6:59 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. 2. INVOCATION Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson restated a quote from Albert Schweitzer, "The propose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others". Mayor Elliott stated it is Indigenous People's Day and Columbus Day, so he wanted to recognize Native Americans and all that they have gone through. 3. CALL TO ORDER REGULAR BUSINESS MEETING The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Regular Session called to order by Mayor Milce Elliott at 7:03 p.m. 10/11/21 -2- 4. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence - Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, Community Development Director Meg Beekman, Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson, Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. 5. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 6. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson seconded to approve the Agenda and Consent Agenda, as amended to remove Regular Agenda Item 6c, Resolution Approving Change Order Nos. 1.7, Improvement Project No. 2021-05, Brooklyn Boulevards Corridor Project Phase 2 Improvements; and, add discussion of Certified Special Assessment for Private Utility Service Repair to the Hennepin County Tax to Regular Agenda item 8a, and the following consent items were approved: 6a. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. September 27, 2021 -Study Session Meeting 2. September 27, 2021 - Regular Session Meeting 3. September 27, 2021 - Work Session Meeting 4. October 4, 2021— Joint CC and FC Meeting 6b. LICENSES GASOLINE SERVICE STATIONS Brooklyn Center Municipal Garage Holiday Stationstore 44292 420 66th Ave N MECHANICAL LICENSES Albertson Mechanical LLC Apollo Plumbing Inc RENTAL INITIAL (TYPE IV —six-month license) 2223 Brookview Drive 6807 Drew Avenue N. 5661 Northport Drive 6844 Shingle Creek Pkwy Brooklyn Center MN 55430 4567 American Blvd Minneapolis MN 55437 15662 137th St SE Becker MN 55308 307 Jackson Ave Ste 4 Ellc River Mn 55330 Willie Mae Overstreet John Yufani Allan Kembol 10/11/21 -3- 6106 Quail Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE IV — six-month license) 5331 Camden Avenue N. 3800 Commodore Drive 3007 Ohenry Road 6130 Scott Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE III —one year° license) 4100 61" Avenue N. 5530 Girard Avenue N. 5949 Vincent Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE II —two year• license) 3106 641h Avenue N. 5937 Abbott AvenueN. 6116 Aldrich Avenue N. 5542 Irving Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE I — th�ee year° license) 5347 Brooklyn Blvd. 5412 Fremont Avenue N. 6315 Brooklyn Boulevard 5643 Knox Avenue N. 4419 Winchester Lane Almamy Momo Toure Ross Herman — missing mitigation Plan Dave Koenig IH3 Property Illinois LP/Invitation Homes — met plan requirements 20174 IL Borrower LP Emmanuel Colter Kim Chew Royal Priesthood LLC — missing OPTED and action plan 2017-1 IL Borrower LP —met Action plan Marls Crost MNSF II W 1 LLC Cel Monton LLC/RiFive LLC Randall Cook Gary Analdcala Raymond He Jason Flaa Sara Brang TOBACCO RELATED PRODUCTS Holiday Stationstore #292 4567 American Blvd 420 66th Ave N Minneapolis MN 55437 Premier Tobacco Corp 10501 Van Buren Cir NE 6930 Brooklyn Blvd Blaine MN 55434 6c. This item was removed upon adoption of the agenda. 6d. RESOLUTION NO, 2021423 APPROVING CHANGE ORDER NIS. 1-7, IMPROVEMENT PROJECT NO. 2021-05, BROOKL.YN BOULEVARD CORRIDOR PROJECT PHASE 2 IMPROVEMENTS 6e. RESOLUTION NO, 2021424 APPROVING STATE OF MINNESOTA JOINT POWERS AGREEMENTS WITH THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER ON BEHALF OF ITS CITY ATTORNEY AND POLICE DEPARTMENT 10/11/21 -4- 6f. RESOLUTION NO. 2021-125 APPROVING THE CONTRACT FOR THE LABOR AGREEMENT FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT LABOR SERVICE, INC. (LELS NUMBER 82) AND THE CITY OF BROOKL,YN CENTER FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS 2022-2024 66. RESOLUTION N0.2021-126 SETTING THE 2022 EMPLOYER BENEFITS CONTRIBUTIONS FOR FULL-TIME NON -UNION EMPLOYEES Motion passed unanimously. 7. PRESENTATIONS/PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS/DONATIONS 7a. EMBEDDED SOCIAL WORKER AND HENNEPIN COUNTY MENTAL HEALTH OVERVIEW PROGRAMS City Manager Reggie Edwards summarized the item and invited Interim Police Chief Tony Grueling to present. Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig stated Brooklyn Center just started an embedded social worker program in May 2021. Chief Gruenig stated the embedded social worker has two primary responsibilities which are to respond to and identify mental health -related and substance abuse reports, provide the client with intervention and stabilization for people who may benefit from connections to services and resources as well as offer support to help reduce the use of 911 and coordinate service needs for community members. Chief Gruenig stated the two goals of the program are timely engagement with people who need support and increased access to community resources. Interim Chief Gruenig noted the program began in 2019 with six suburban cities and will be expanding in 2022 to an additional 15 departments covering 29 cities in Hennepin County. He stated the program operates under a 60/40 split cost -sharing with the City paying 60% of the social worker wages. Brooklyn Center began its embedded social worker program on May 3, 2021. Interim Chief Gruenig explained the embedded social worker does referrals that are made to them in person, via email, or through a referral form completed by an officer. He noted the social worker also reviews the prior week's mental health -related calls for service as a way to make additional referrals. Interim Chief Gruenig stated there were 65 referrals to the social worker from May 3, 2021, to June 30, 2021. Interim Chief Gruenig noted the Police Department received 100 mental health - related calls for service during that time, and 45 were for mental health issues, nine for substance abuse issues, six were a combination of mental health and substance abuse, and nine were classified as "other" referrals. As for the referrals made by the social worker in the second quarter, 12 were for mental health services, three for substance abuse treatment services, two for housing, six for obtaining public assistance, one was for transportation, and 31 were for care coordination with other social service providers. 10/11/21 -5- Interim Chief Gruenig added that 75 referrals were made for the third quarter, and they received 176 mental health service calls. He noted the breakdown for referrals is not available yet. Interim Chief Gruenig stated their goal is to have a 90% referral rate, so they have a little ways to go yet. Director of Emergency Communications at Hennepin County Sheriff's Office Tony Martin stated he has been in public safety for 21, mainly with the City of Edina, and he has been working with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office for two years. Mr. Martin asked for Mike Risvold, Suburban Community Engagement Liaison with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, to introduce himself. Suburban Community Engagement Liaison with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office Mike bsvold stated he is the retired Chief of Police for the City of Wayzata and has been a part of the County's behavioral health team for quite a few years, so he was asked to be a liaison between behavioral health resources, law enforcement, and the Sheriff's Office. Mr. Martin showed a slide with a map of Hennepin County reflecting the different public safety answering points. He stated there are eight primary 911 centers in Hennepin County and noted Brooklyn Center is one of the 39 cities that the County dispatches for. Mr. Martin stated four secondary 911 centers cover Hennepin County which is primarily emergency medical service dispatchers. He added the County dispatches for 27 law enforcement agencies and 26 fire departments. Mr. Martin stated about 1.2 million people are living in Hennepin County, and they dispatch for over 523,000 residents. Their division also maintains the radio towers for public safety and has technical groups that assist with their computerized dispatch groups. Mr. Martin stated they are primarily thereto share about initiatives the Sheriff's Office is currently doing. He noted they provide a menu of services and it is not a one -size -fits -all way to fix issues in a city. The current county initiatives include the Suburban Police Department Embedded Social Workers, 911 Embedded Social Worker Pilot, 911 Mental Health Task Force, Suburban Community Engagement Liaison, and Hennepin County Behavioral Health Proposal. Mr. Martin noted these are all separate initiatives, but the work is parallel. Mr. Risvold showed a slide of which police departments have embedded social workers. They are working on contracts with Maple Grove and Rogers/Champlin/Dayton and there are committed folks from Eden Prairie and the Lake Minnetonka Consortium. He noted the goal is for every city to have some support from the program, and it is a rapidly growing program. Many of the cities that have previously shared a social worker are looking to have their own, and Brooklyn Park is looking to add as many as three social workers. Mr. Martin stated Sheriff David Hutchinson and Hennepin County Commissioner Irene Fernando started a pilot program for a social worker to be embedded within 911. He stated that law enforcement prefers to not respond to most mental health calls if a social worker can take the call, but not all mental health calls come in as such. For example, it may come in as a welfare check. Mr. Martin stated they have identified the need to do more as an emergency services department, so they want to increase training related to mental health. 10/11/21 -6- Mr. Martin noted the desired outcomes of the embedded social worker program are to match appropriate professionals with 911 mental health -related calls, increase mental health training for dispatchers, provide officers and community members with information related to community resources, provide social service follow-up to mental health -related 911 calls. Is Martin stated the program has been set up in three phases. The first phase was data collection, identifying repeat callers, and providing social worker aftercare for people identified as having been in a mental health crisis. Mr. Martin stated phase 2 will be getting off the ground shortly; for this phase, they are partnering with Golden Valley Police to provide real-time info to police officers on mental health calls where they need to respond as sharing necessary information can help provide a successful outcome. He noted that there have been some issues dealing with information sharing in terms of following state and local laws. He added to phase 3 will include routing calls that meet criteria to mental health professionals and alternative responses. Mr. Martin stated the 911 Mental Health Taslc Force was a board action presented by Commissioner Irene Fernando in December 2020. He stated a big part of that is collecting and analyzing data surrounding calls involving the mentally ill or people in crisis. The task force is researching national best practices in alternative responses to people in crisis and evolving them For their own needs. Mr. Martin stated the task force is collaborating with stakeholders on community engagement surrounding response and will be providing the Hennepin County board with recommendations on responding to people in crisis. Mr. Martin showed a slide listing the current members of the 911 Mental Health Task Force that include folks from city and county personnel and community groups. Mr. Martin stated the 911 Mental Health Task Force is looking at an alternative response proposal similar to the Denver STAR Model which also originated within the 911 department. He stated they hope for a social worker and community paramedic to respond without police and noted this would be for lower risk calls, meaning without weapons or violence. 911 call takers would screen the calls for riskiness. Mr. Martin stated the 911 Mental Health Task Force is focusing heavily on collecting data to promote consistency across the county. He showed a slide of data examples from Denver that guides how they dispatch resources through the Denver STAR Model such as heat maps of where they responded, STAR incidents by problem type, and days and times with the most responses to ensure proper staff. Mr. Risvold stated the plan is to pilot the alternative response with Brooklyn Park in 2022 if they receive the grant. He noted Brooklyn Park has the highest number of mental health calls that Hennepin County Sheriff's Office dispatches for. Mr. Risvold explained they have studied models from all over the country, and they are trying to mold Hennepin County's response after Denver. Mr. Risvold stated Hennepin County Behavioral Health put together an action request for the board to approve $20 million to meet the increasing need for behavioral health services. He showed a slide listing all of the programs and projects that the money would go towards, some of which they just explained. 10/11/21 -7- Councilmember Ryan asked which government entity is funding the aforementioned grant. Mr. Risvold stated the Department of Justice would be funding the grant, so it is federal funding they would access. Councilmember Ryan stated City law enforcement has used an app to assist them in responding to calls, and the app notifies law enforcement if a particular resident has a history of mental health issues or a behavioral deficit. Interim Chief Gruenig stated the app is called Vitals and is a way for residents to self -identify if they are on the Autism spectrum, have a history dealing with mental health, or other things in that realm. Councilmember Ryan stated he hopes that this app and similar information could be accessible to any responders to best serve the recipients of such services. Mr. Martin stated as a part of the task force, they are looking to have a deliverable that is available to the public. He stated it would be a platform that residents can choose to sign up on and provide as little or as much information about themselves to include name, address, mental health history, or medical history. The only way that information can be accessed by 911 is if the resident calls From the number assigned to their account, but that information would be populated for the 911 dispatcher if that is the case. Mr. Martin stated this would be a free service for residents, and they will more closely partner with cities to ensure the resource is understood and accessible. Councilmember Butler asked how much the Vitals app is being utilized and if it has had a positive impact. Interim Chief Gruenig stated they have seen very low turnout with people registering their information on the platform, but all of the law enforcement have the app ready to go. He noted that is something they would like to have a campaign of some sort to increase awareness and use of the app by the community. Councilmember Graves stated she was going to aslc the same question as Councilmember Butler. She noted it is ultimately an individual's choice, but she hopes that the program can provide more individualized services in the future. Councilmember Graves asked what the cost is in each city for the social worker and if that is based on any sort of model. Mr. Risvold stated the 60/40 model was developed in 2014 and that split is used regardless of the size of the city. He noted the way for a city to make that more equitable at this point is through the sharing of services. For example, many cities in Lake Minnetonka are sharing one social worker as they are each very small. Mr. Risvold stated the split ends up being closer to 50/50 because the county provides phone service, computers, and those types of things. He stated the County's perspective of the cost -sharing model is the cities are much more invested in the social worker and the social worker is entirely the city's for 40 hours per week. 10/11/21 -8- Councilmember Graves stated she thinks it might be worth looking at moving forward not only in the city's ability to pay but also reflective of the number of calls. She explained Maple Grove and Brooklyn Park would be vastly different in what they can afford as well as the number and type of calls they receive. Councilmember Graves stated using an equity lens could be very beneficial. Councilmember Graves stated she appreciates that the County is looking at alternative response options, and she would like to know how other cities can get on board with that. She asked if that is something they would apply for in the future through the Department of Justice or if the County would be providing some of those funds. Mr. Martin stated they do not currently have answers to that as they are looking at the first phase still. He stated the goal is to have every city in Hennepin County utilize the service, but they do not know which funding avenues would support it yet. Mr. Martin stated everything they have researched shows that they need a good foundation for the program with measurables before implementing it elsewhere. He noted he agrees with Councilmember Graves' comment about equitable access to the programs. For example, Brooklyn Center, being that it is touching Minneapolis, is likely to need more support from social workers than a city like Corcoran. Mr. Risvold stated this is just a test period to see how it works with the hope to fine-tune as the go. He noted the long-term goal is for this program for the entire County to access it. Mr. Risvold stated they are focusing on the process first and foremost. Councilmember Graves stated she knows the changes can be frustrating as they are long overdue, but it is so important to be aware of the data and intention to avoid unintended consequences. Councilmember Graves asked is there was an initiative by the County to make it easier for cities to track data. She noted different cities may need to track different things, but some cities have not yet begun to track data at all. Councilmember Graves stated the data is important for applying for and accessing grant funding and increasing transparency, so she would like the County to provide resources to support that process. Mr. Martin stated he is chairing a statewide 911 worlcgroup. He noted that Travis' Law was implemented earlier this year which states 911 should coordinate with a mental health team, and one of the things the worlcgroup is talking about is how to collect data to support such initiatives. Mr. Martin noted the importance of collecting data clearly and consistently across different entities to best respond to a mental health crisis. Councilmember Graves asked if a call is initially coded as something other than a mental health call and ends up being a mental health call, does it end up being recorded. Councilmember Graves asked if something does get recoded, what are the requirements a call must meet to be recoded. She noted she wouldn't want the code to be misused or taken advantage of. Mr. Martin stated calls are all about the perception of the situation by the caller. For example, callers may misrepresent or exaggerate a call to affect the 911 response. He stated it comes down to consistent coding and malting sure they know what the calls are, so 911 needs more education and training. Mr. Martin noted everyone has been told to call 911 in an emergency, but they are rarely told how to call 911, so he would like there to be more community education in that area. 10/11/21 -9- Councilmember Graves stated she thinks it might be worth looking at moving forward not only in the city's ability to pay but also reflective of the number of calls. She explained Maple Grove and Brooklyn Park would be vastly different in what they can afford as well as the number and type of calls they receive. Councilmember Graves stated using an equity lens could be very beneficial. Councilmember Graves stated she appreciates that the County is looking at alternative response options, and she would like to know how other cities can get on board with that. She asked if that is something they would apply for in the future through the Department of Justice or if the County would be providing some of those funds. Mr. Martin stated they do not currently have answers to that as they are looking at the first phase still. He stated the goal is to have every city in Hennepin County utilize the service, but they do not know which funding avenues would support it yet. Mr. Martin stated everything they have researched shows that they need a good foundation for the program with measurables before implementing it elsewhere. He noted he agrees with Councilmember Graves' comment about equitable access to the programs. For example, Brooklyn Center, being that it is touching Minneapolis, is likely to need more support from social workers than a city like Corcoran. Mr. Risvold stated this is just a test period to see how it works with the hope to fine-tune as the go. He noted the long-term goal is for this program for the entire County to access it. Mr. Risvold stated they are focusing on the process first and foremost. Councilmember Graves stated she knows the changes can be frustrating as they are long overdue, but it is so important to be aware of the data and intention to avoid unintended consequences. Councilmember Graves asked is there was an initiative by the County to make it easier for cities to track data. She noted different cities may need to track different things, but some cities have not yet begun to track data at all. Councilmember Graves stated the data is important for applying for and accessing grant funding and increasing transparency, so she would like the County to provide resources to support that process. Mr. Martin stated he is chairing a statewide 911 worlcgroup. He noted that Travis' Law was implemented earlier this year which states 911 should coordinate with a mental health team, and one of the things the worlcgroup is talking about is how to collect data to support such initiatives. Mr. Martin noted the importance of collecting data clearly and consistently across different entities to best respond to a mental health crisis. Councilmember Graves asked if a call is initially coded as something other than a mental health call and ends up being a mental health call, does it end up being recorded. Councilmember Graves asked if something does get recoded, what are the requirements a call must meet to be recoded. She noted she wouldn't want the code to be misused or taken advantage of. Mr. Martin stated calls are all about the perception of the situation by the caller. For example, callers may misrepresent or exaggerate a call to affect the 911 response. He stated it comes down to consistent coding and malting sure they know what the calls are, so 911 needs more education and training. Mr. Martin noted everyone has been told to call 911 in an emergency, but they are rarely told how to call 911, so he would like there to be more community education in that area. 10/11/21 -9- He noted it is very important to follow up on the recording of a call to make sure everything was properly coded. Councilmember Graves asked if there is a way to encourage a social worker to respond to a call for example, someone was to call 911 as they are seeing a mental health crisis. Mr. Martin stated there is not currently a way to do that. He stated the initiative is hoping to provide more education and ultimately an alternative response such as that. Mr. Martin noted he wants people to share the facts so dispatch can send out the appropriate response. He stated the ultimate goal is for social workers to be the fourth response on top of police, fire, and medical. Mr. Martin explained they rely on pre -built information from the system to ensure consistency from the dispatcher and to dispatch the appropriate response. Councilmember Graves stated a large amount of homelessness is due to mental health issues. She asked if there have been conversations around homelessness and connecting folks to other organizations that can support them in that area. Mr. Martin stated the grant proposal aims to bridge the gap between County response and comuni mty resources and to tie the services together. Mr. Martin stated they are always looking for feedback from community groups and workgroups and opportunities such as presenting to the Council to help improve programming. He stated they are working hand -in -hand with other County initiatives and community groups that are out there to best support the people they serve. Councilmember Butler asked how the task force is addressing other cultural communities and languages. Mr. Martin stated part of the task force is identifying those groups and how to work with them. He noted they have worked with National Alliance on Mental Illness and Communities United Against Police Brutality. Mr. Risvold stated they are working on that. He noted that it is challenging, but they are working on it. Hennepin County District 1 Commissioner Jeffrey Lunde noted the $20 million will be used in quite a few ways to support mental health initiatives. For example, they are in talks with community high schools and they plan to offer grants to nonprofits for mental health treatments. He noted the conversations include talks about how the services can be culturally supportive and inclusive. Mr. Lunde assured the Council that Brooklyn Center will see the effects of that investment. Mr. Lunde stated the beautiful thing about the embedded social worker is that they have a County employee who knows about resources and services. He noted one of the first effo�ts by the social worker is to get people into the shelter and then can deliver additional services from there. W. Lunde added, to address the topic of addressing various cultural communities, the Trusted Messenger program is used to help connect groups and encouraged anyone listening to sign up for 10/11/21 -10- that program if they are interested. He stated they have the Office of Multicultural Affairs that covers every language spoken in Hennepin County, including the dialects and other language variations. Mayor Elliott moved and COullcllmember Ryan seconded a motion to accept the presentation Embedded Social Worker and Hennepin County Mental Health Overview Programs. Motion passed unanimously. 8. PUBLIC HEARINGS 8a. RESOLUTION NOS. 2021-127, 2021-128, 2021-129, AND 2021-130 FOR PROPOSED SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR TALL GRASS AND WEED ABATEMENT COSTS, DEAD AND DISEASED TREE ABATEMENT COSTS, ADMINISTRATIVE FINES/CITATIONS, AND EMERGENCY PRIVATE UTILITY SERVICE REPAIRS Dr. Edwards summarized the item and introduced Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson to make the presentation. Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson stated four public hearings will be held. He noted the owners have been notified of the public hearing, and it was also posted in legal notices. Mr. Anderson stated Minnesota state law allows cities to recover costs of certain types of services through special assessment of the property. He noted the city incurs costs associated with these public service programs and activities and, if unpaid, these costs may be specially assessed to the property. He added that a public hearing is required. Mr. Anderson stated grass and tree abasements are when properties are found to be in violation. From there, a written notice is provided, an inspection is done, the staff makes every effort to make contact with the residents to gain voluntary compliance. He noted that voluntary compliance is the preferred route. Mr. Anderson stated in certain cases, the property owner may provide a written agreement to a City -facilitated abatement. He added that the City bills the owner for the portion of costs the City has incurred including a service fee. He noted the service fee was lowered last year. Mr. Anderson stated administrative citations and penalties are issued for non-compliance with the City Ordinance. He explained notices are issued before citation and staff attempts to make contact with the owner multiple times. Mr. Anderson stated the citation doubles each time up to $2,000, but it rarely gets to that high of an amount. W. Anderson stated the City Council adopted a policy that allows the City to assist with the unexpected financial burden of emergency utility repairs. He explained repairs are related to sewer or water repairs between the house and the water main and noted that these repairs can be fairly costly. Mr. Anderson stated the assessments are for five years. 10/11/21 -11- Mr. Anderson explained there are a couple of different payment options that have been tweaked over the years. They extended the grace period to the ore -certification date, so there is no interest by November 24. He noted if they don't pay by November 24, the assessment will be certified to Hennepin County, and the property owner will pay with taxes starting in 2022. He added the total principal will be payable in annual installments. Mr. Anderson pointed out that they reached out to Hennepin County and received permission to accept partial payments before the assessments being certified to Hennepin County. Mr. Anderson showed a slide detailing the budget issues. He noted the administrative fines and citations and weed destruction are down from 2020. Mr. Anderson stated they are trying more and more to make contact with property owners. He stated that dead and diseased tree removal fees and utility repair totals are up from 2020. Mr. Anderson stated the recommended procedure is for Council to remove any reasonable appeal from opposed levy roll and adopt remaining proposed assessments. He noted staff will review and provide a report for appeals at an upcoming City Council meeting for them to review. Tentatively, they plan to bring that back on October 25. Mr. Anderson stated if anyone is appealing, they should state their full name and current address, provide the address of the property with a pending special assessment, and state the reason for the appeal. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson asked why there is such an increase in utility repair totals from 2020. Mr. Anderson stated he believes one assessment itself was around $10,000 which accounts for a fourth of the total utility repairs. Mr. Anderson stated there was not a particular reason for the increase, but utility repairs are relatively expensive projects. Each project costs $4,000 to $10,000, so doubling the total fees would only relate to a couple of properties. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to open the public hearings concurrently. Motion passed unanimously. Matt G. stated he has had tree root people coming out every 18 months, and they have commented how it is a crime that the City put in four -inch clay pipe downsizing from his six-inch PVC pipe as that is a constriction. The three professionals stated the City always does the cheapest option. Matt G. asked if he had a problem and needed repair, would he have to pay for a mistake that the City made. Mayor Elliott asked if the resident's concern was related to one of the properties they are discussing. Matt G. stated it is not one of the properties in question. 10/11/21 -12- Mayor Elliott asked Dr. Edwards to take note of the comment and have Public Works follow up with Matt G. on that concern. COuncilmember Graves stated she has suffered from a similar problem, and one of the suggestions she got was to put a lining inside of the pipe to prevent the roots from getting into the line. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to close the public hearing. Motion passed unanimously. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson seconded a motion to adopt RESOLUTION NO, 2021427 Certifying Special Assessments for Administrative Citations to the Hennepin County Property Tax Rolls. Motion passed unanimously. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to Adopt RESOLUTION NO. 2021428 Certifying Special Assessments for Diseased Tree Removal Costs to the Hennepin County Property Tax Rolls. Motion passed unanimously. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to Adopt RESOLUTION NO. 2021429 Certifying Special Assessments for Weed Removal Costs to the Hennepin County Property Tax Rolls. Motion passed unanimously. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to Adopt RESOLUTION NO. 2021-130 Certifying Special Assessments for Emergency Private Utility Service Repairs to the Hennepin County Property Tax Rolls. Motion passed unanimously. 9. PLANNING COMMISSION ITEMS None. 10. COUNCIL CONSIDERATION ITEMS 10a. RESOLUTION NO. 2021431 ENDING THE DECLARATION OF A LOCAL EMERGENCY Dr. Edwards stated there is not a formal presentation for this item and introduced City Attorney Troy Gilchrist to further explain the item. 10/11/21 -13- Mayor Elliott stated he approved the local emergency when he saw the C0VID-19 number increasing. He stated this was discussed at the last meeting and Council expressed interest in readdressing it. City Attorney Troy Gilchrist stated a majority of the Council requested that this resolution be drafted and presented. He explained the resolution covers the history of the declaration and points out the emergency ordinances that the Council has adopted regarding face masks and electronic Council meetings. A declaration of a local emergency is not required for the Council to use its powers to enact an emergency ordinance. He explained that ending the local emergency does not interfere with the emergency face mask ordinance or the remote Council meetings. The only effect would be ending the declaration of a local emergency. He added this only needs a majority vote to pass. Councilmember Graves asked what does ending the emergency does. Mr. Gilchrist stated the enactment of the local emergency was recognizing the sharp increase in cases and getting the City ready to respond. In a couple of months since it was enacted, the City did not need to implement its emergency plan although it was ready to act. He explained that the emergency powers allowed by the local emergency declaration did not need to be exercised. Mr. Gilchrist stated ending the local emergency will not ultimately affect anything. Councilmember Graves asked if the Mayor could enact it again if it were needed in the future. Mr. Gilchrist confirmed that Councilmember Graves is coiyect. Councilmember Ryan stated he thinks the clarification is important so the public understands the decision and that such is reflected in the record. He asked if the preventative measures would still be in place Mr. Gilchrist said the required face coverings would still be implemented. He added that any measures such as sanitation or interaction with the public can be done without declaration. He stated it was a prudent move at the time, but it hasn't triggered the need to institute any further emergency initiatives. Councilmember Ryan moved and Councilmember Graves seconded a motion to adopt RESOLUTION NO.2021-131 ending the declaration of a local emergency. Motion passed unanimously. lOb. APPOINTMENTS TO CITY COMMISSIONS Dr. Edwards stated this item was discussed at the last City Council meeting and introduced City Clerk Barb Suciu to present the update. 10/11/21 -14- MINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION OCTOBER I I, 2021 VIA ZOOM 1. INFORMAL OPEN FORUM WITH CITY COUNCIL CALL TO ORDER INFORMAL OPEN FORUM The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Informal Open Forum called to order by Mayor Mike Elliott at 6:47 p.m. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence - Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, Community Development Director Meg Beekman, Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson, Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. Mayor Mike Elliott opened the meeting for Informal Open Forum. Diane Sannes stated the old Target building has 10,000 new bikes that were dropped off by the nonprofit Free Bilces for Kids, and they will be distributed throughout the Metro area. She stated that Friday, October 15, at the Centennial Park Amphitheater, there is going to be a Mash -Up with performers, free food, and a discussion about the Opportunity Site. Mindy stated she owns a rental property in Brooklyn Center, and they have been experiencing a lot of crime recently. She asked what Mayor Elliott will do with the Police Department to address this issue. Mayor Elliott stated Public Open Forum is not usually an opportunity to engage in problem - solving, but he does not want to avoid the question. He asked City Manager Reggie Edwards if he had any comments or if they should circle back to it at another time. Mayor Elliott then asked Mindy if she thought that was fair. Mindy stated it is not fair because she is losing employees and tenants due to the crime, so she wants to know how the Council will address the issue. Mayor Elliott stated safety is at the very top of their list of responsibilities. He asked Dr. Edwards for input. 10/11/21 -1- City Manager Reggie Edwards stated that staff can prepare a report to present at the next meeting about what is currently happening and what measures are being taken to address the issue. He added that the staff would like Mindy's contact information to follow up with her directly. Mindy stated she can call to provide her contact information. She noted the Council has done a lot to build up the City, but if it continues to go down the way it has been then the City will lose a lot of businesses and property owners. Mayor Elliott asked Mindy for specific examples of the issues she was facing. Mindy stated robbery at gunpoint and stolen cars are a couple of the issues. Dr. Edwards asked Mindy to share her contact information with the City Cleric. Luther stated they appreciate the upcoming presentation on public safety, and they hope to follow up with each of the Councilmembers regarding the safety and reputation of the City. Luther noted they have seven dealerships on the Boulevard, and they have invested a lot of money into the community. Luther stated they would like the opportunity to speak with the Council offline about safety in the community. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson stated she spoke with a resident who asked her to read a statement on their behalf. She read, "What I want is for all of you to stand up and say, `yes, there are problems between community and our Police Department.' These problems are intertwined with historical and present-day racism, and we need to fix that. But we also have problems with violence in our community, and we very much need our Police because that violence is also a part of the problems that exist between our community and the Police Department and we cannot solve one problem without also dealing with the other and we need to do this together." Councilmember Ryan moved and Councilmember Butler seconded to close the Inforrnal Open Forum at 6:59 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. 2. INVOCATION Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson restated a quote from Albert Schweitzer, "The propose of human life is to serve, and to show compassion and the will to help others". Mayor Elliott stated it is Indigenous People's Day and Columbus Day, so he wanted to recognize Native Americans and all that they have gone through. 3. CALL TO ORDER REGULAR BUSINESS MEETING The Brooklyn Center City Council met in Regular Session called to order by Mayor Milce Elliott at 7:03 p.m. 10/11/21 -2- 4. ROLL CALL Mayor Mike Elliott and Councilmembers Marquita Butler, April Graves, Kris Lawrence - Anderson, and Dan Ryan. Also present were City Manager Reggie Edwards, Community Development Director Meg Beekman, Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson, Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig, City Clerk Barb Suciu, and City Attorney Troy Gilchrist. 5. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Pledge of Allegiance was recited. 6. APPROVAL OF AGENDA AND CONSENT AGENDA Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson seconded to approve the Agenda and Consent Agenda, as amended to remove Regular Agenda Item 6c, Resolution Approving Change Order Nos. 1.7, Improvement Project No. 2021-05, Brooklyn Boulevards Corridor Project Phase 2 Improvements; and, add discussion of Certified Special Assessment for Private Utility Service Repair to the Hennepin County Tax to Regular Agenda item 8a, and the following consent items were approved: 6a. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. September 27, 2021 -Study Session Meeting 2. September 27, 2021 - Regular Session Meeting 3. September 27, 2021 - Work Session Meeting 4. October 4, 2021— Joint CC and FC Meeting 6b. LICENSES GASOLINE SERVICE STATIONS Brooklyn Center Municipal Garage Holiday Stationstore 44292 420 66th Ave N MECHANICAL LICENSES Albertson Mechanical LLC Apollo Plumbing Inc RENTAL INITIAL (TYPE IV —six-month license) 2223 Brookview Drive 6807 Drew Avenue N. 5661 Northport Drive 6844 Shingle Creek Pkwy Brooklyn Center MN 55430 4567 American Blvd Minneapolis MN 55437 15662 137th St SE Becker MN 55308 307 Jackson Ave Ste 4 Ellc River Mn 55330 Willie Mae Overstreet John Yufani Allan Kembol 10/11/21 -3- 6106 Quail Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE IV — six-month license) 5331 Camden Avenue N. 3800 Commodore Drive 3007 Ohenry Road 6130 Scott Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE III —one year° license) 4100 61" Avenue N. 5530 Girard Avenue N. 5949 Vincent Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE II —two year• license) 3106 641h Avenue N. 5937 Abbott AvenueN. 6116 Aldrich Avenue N. 5542 Irving Avenue N. RENEWAL (TYPE I — th�ee year° license) 5347 Brooklyn Blvd. 5412 Fremont Avenue N. 6315 Brooklyn Boulevard 5643 Knox Avenue N. 4419 Winchester Lane Almamy Momo Toure Ross Herman — missing mitigation Plan Dave Koenig IH3 Property Illinois LP/Invitation Homes — met plan requirements 20174 IL Borrower LP Emmanuel Colter Kim Chew Royal Priesthood LLC — missing OPTED and action plan 2017-1 IL Borrower LP —met Action plan Marls Crost MNSF II W 1 LLC Cel Monton LLC/RiFive LLC Randall Cook Gary Analdcala Raymond He Jason Flaa Sara Brang TOBACCO RELATED PRODUCTS Holiday Stationstore #292 4567 American Blvd 420 66th Ave N Minneapolis MN 55437 Premier Tobacco Corp 10501 Van Buren Cir NE 6930 Brooklyn Blvd Blaine MN 55434 6c. This item was removed upon adoption of the agenda. 6d. RESOLUTION NO, 2021423 APPROVING CHANGE ORDER NIS. 1-7, IMPROVEMENT PROJECT NO. 2021-05, BROOKL.YN BOULEVARD CORRIDOR PROJECT PHASE 2 IMPROVEMENTS 6e. RESOLUTION NO, 2021424 APPROVING STATE OF MINNESOTA JOINT POWERS AGREEMENTS WITH THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER ON BEHALF OF ITS CITY ATTORNEY AND POLICE DEPARTMENT 10/11/21 -4- 6f. RESOLUTION NO. 2021-125 APPROVING THE CONTRACT FOR THE LABOR AGREEMENT FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT LABOR SERVICE, INC. (LELS NUMBER 82) AND THE CITY OF BROOKL,YN CENTER FOR THE CALENDAR YEARS 2022-2024 66. RESOLUTION N0.2021-126 SETTING THE 2022 EMPLOYER BENEFITS CONTRIBUTIONS FOR FULL-TIME NON -UNION EMPLOYEES Motion passed unanimously. 7. PRESENTATIONS/PROCLAMATIONS/RECOGNITIONS/DONATIONS 7a. EMBEDDED SOCIAL WORKER AND HENNEPIN COUNTY MENTAL HEALTH OVERVIEW PROGRAMS City Manager Reggie Edwards summarized the item and invited Interim Police Chief Tony Grueling to present. Interim Police Chief Tony Gruenig stated Brooklyn Center just started an embedded social worker program in May 2021. Chief Gruenig stated the embedded social worker has two primary responsibilities which are to respond to and identify mental health -related and substance abuse reports, provide the client with intervention and stabilization for people who may benefit from connections to services and resources as well as offer support to help reduce the use of 911 and coordinate service needs for community members. Chief Gruenig stated the two goals of the program are timely engagement with people who need support and increased access to community resources. Interim Chief Gruenig noted the program began in 2019 with six suburban cities and will be expanding in 2022 to an additional 15 departments covering 29 cities in Hennepin County. He stated the program operates under a 60/40 split cost -sharing with the City paying 60% of the social worker wages. Brooklyn Center began its embedded social worker program on May 3, 2021. Interim Chief Gruenig explained the embedded social worker does referrals that are made to them in person, via email, or through a referral form completed by an officer. He noted the social worker also reviews the prior week's mental health -related calls for service as a way to make additional referrals. Interim Chief Gruenig stated there were 65 referrals to the social worker from May 3, 2021, to June 30, 2021. Interim Chief Gruenig noted the Police Department received 100 mental health - related calls for service during that time, and 45 were for mental health issues, nine for substance abuse issues, six were a combination of mental health and substance abuse, and nine were classified as "other" referrals. As for the referrals made by the social worker in the second quarter, 12 were for mental health services, three for substance abuse treatment services, two for housing, six for obtaining public assistance, one was for transportation, and 31 were for care coordination with other social service providers. 10/11/21 -5- Interim Chief Gruenig added that 75 referrals were made for the third quarter, and they received 176 mental health service calls. He noted the breakdown for referrals is not available yet. Interim Chief Gruenig stated their goal is to have a 90% referral rate, so they have a little ways to go yet. Director of Emergency Communications at Hennepin County Sheriff's Office Tony Martin stated he has been in public safety for 21, mainly with the City of Edina, and he has been working with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office for two years. Mr. Martin asked for Mike Risvold, Suburban Community Engagement Liaison with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office, to introduce himself. Suburban Community Engagement Liaison with the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office Mike bsvold stated he is the retired Chief of Police for the City of Wayzata and has been a part of the County's behavioral health team for quite a few years, so he was asked to be a liaison between behavioral health resources, law enforcement, and the Sheriff's Office. Mr. Martin showed a slide with a map of Hennepin County reflecting the different public safety answering points. He stated there are eight primary 911 centers in Hennepin County and noted Brooklyn Center is one of the 39 cities that the County dispatches for. Mr. Martin stated four secondary 911 centers cover Hennepin County which is primarily emergency medical service dispatchers. He added the County dispatches for 27 law enforcement agencies and 26 fire departments. Mr. Martin stated about 1.2 million people are living in Hennepin County, and they dispatch for over 523,000 residents. Their division also maintains the radio towers for public safety and has technical groups that assist with their computerized dispatch groups. Mr. Martin stated they are primarily thereto share about initiatives the Sheriff's Office is currently doing. He noted they provide a menu of services and it is not a one -size -fits -all way to fix issues in a city. The current county initiatives include the Suburban Police Department Embedded Social Workers, 911 Embedded Social Worker Pilot, 911 Mental Health Task Force, Suburban Community Engagement Liaison, and Hennepin County Behavioral Health Proposal. Mr. Martin noted these are all separate initiatives, but the work is parallel. Mr. Risvold showed a slide of which police departments have embedded social workers. They are working on contracts with Maple Grove and Rogers/Champlin/Dayton and there are committed folks from Eden Prairie and the Lake Minnetonka Consortium. He noted the goal is for every city to have some support from the program, and it is a rapidly growing program. Many of the cities that have previously shared a social worker are looking to have their own, and Brooklyn Park is looking to add as many as three social workers. Mr. Martin stated Sheriff David Hutchinson and Hennepin County Commissioner Irene Fernando started a pilot program for a social worker to be embedded within 911. He stated that law enforcement prefers to not respond to most mental health calls if a social worker can take the call, but not all mental health calls come in as such. For example, it may come in as a welfare check. Mr. Martin stated they have identified the need to do more as an emergency services department, so they want to increase training related to mental health. 10/11/21 -6- Mr. Martin noted the desired outcomes of the embedded social worker program are to match appropriate professionals with 911 mental health -related calls, increase mental health training for dispatchers, provide officers and community members with information related to community resources, provide social service follow-up to mental health -related 911 calls. Is Martin stated the program has been set up in three phases. The first phase was data collection, identifying repeat callers, and providing social worker aftercare for people identified as having been in a mental health crisis. Mr. Martin stated phase 2 will be getting off the ground shortly; for this phase, they are partnering with Golden Valley Police to provide real-time info to police officers on mental health calls where they need to respond as sharing necessary information can help provide a successful outcome. He noted that there have been some issues dealing with information sharing in terms of following state and local laws. He added to phase 3 will include routing calls that meet criteria to mental health professionals and alternative responses. Mr. Martin stated the 911 Mental Health Taslc Force was a board action presented by Commissioner Irene Fernando in December 2020. He stated a big part of that is collecting and analyzing data surrounding calls involving the mentally ill or people in crisis. The task force is researching national best practices in alternative responses to people in crisis and evolving them For their own needs. Mr. Martin stated the task force is collaborating with stakeholders on community engagement surrounding response and will be providing the Hennepin County board with recommendations on responding to people in crisis. Mr. Martin showed a slide listing the current members of the 911 Mental Health Task Force that include folks from city and county personnel and community groups. Mr. Martin stated the 911 Mental Health Task Force is looking at an alternative response proposal similar to the Denver STAR Model which also originated within the 911 department. He stated they hope for a social worker and community paramedic to respond without police and noted this would be for lower risk calls, meaning without weapons or violence. 911 call takers would screen the calls for riskiness. Mr. Martin stated the 911 Mental Health Task Force is focusing heavily on collecting data to promote consistency across the county. He showed a slide of data examples from Denver that guides how they dispatch resources through the Denver STAR Model such as heat maps of where they responded, STAR incidents by problem type, and days and times with the most responses to ensure proper staff. Mr. Risvold stated the plan is to pilot the alternative response with Brooklyn Park in 2022 if they receive the grant. He noted Brooklyn Park has the highest number of mental health calls that Hennepin County Sheriff's Office dispatches for. Mr. Risvold explained they have studied models from all over the country, and they are trying to mold Hennepin County's response after Denver. Mr. Risvold stated Hennepin County Behavioral Health put together an action request for the board to approve $20 million to meet the increasing need for behavioral health services. He showed a slide listing all of the programs and projects that the money would go towards, some of which they just explained. 10/11/21 -7- Councilmember Ryan asked which government entity is funding the aforementioned grant. Mr. Risvold stated the Department of Justice would be funding the grant, so it is federal funding they would access. Councilmember Ryan stated City law enforcement has used an app to assist them in responding to calls, and the app notifies law enforcement if a particular resident has a history of mental health issues or a behavioral deficit. Interim Chief Gruenig stated the app is called Vitals and is a way for residents to self -identify if they are on the Autism spectrum, have a history dealing with mental health, or other things in that realm. Councilmember Ryan stated he hopes that this app and similar information could be accessible to any responders to best serve the recipients of such services. Mr. Martin stated as a part of the task force, they are looking to have a deliverable that is available to the public. He stated it would be a platform that residents can choose to sign up on and provide as little or as much information about themselves to include name, address, mental health history, or medical history. The only way that information can be accessed by 911 is if the resident calls From the number assigned to their account, but that information would be populated for the 911 dispatcher if that is the case. Mr. Martin stated this would be a free service for residents, and they will more closely partner with cities to ensure the resource is understood and accessible. Councilmember Butler asked how much the Vitals app is being utilized and if it has had a positive impact. Interim Chief Gruenig stated they have seen very low turnout with people registering their information on the platform, but all of the law enforcement have the app ready to go. He noted that is something they would like to have a campaign of some sort to increase awareness and use of the app by the community. Councilmember Graves stated she was going to aslc the same question as Councilmember Butler. She noted it is ultimately an individual's choice, but she hopes that the program can provide more individualized services in the future. Councilmember Graves asked what the cost is in each city for the social worker and if that is based on any sort of model. Mr. Risvold stated the 60/40 model was developed in 2014 and that split is used regardless of the size of the city. He noted the way for a city to make that more equitable at this point is through the sharing of services. For example, many cities in Lake Minnetonka are sharing one social worker as they are each very small. Mr. Risvold stated the split ends up being closer to 50/50 because the county provides phone service, computers, and those types of things. He stated the County's perspective of the cost -sharing model is the cities are much more invested in the social worker and the social worker is entirely the city's for 40 hours per week. 10/11/21 -8- Councilmember Graves stated she thinks it might be worth looking at moving forward not only in the city's ability to pay but also reflective of the number of calls. She explained Maple Grove and Brooklyn Park would be vastly different in what they can afford as well as the number and type of calls they receive. Councilmember Graves stated using an equity lens could be very beneficial. Councilmember Graves stated she appreciates that the County is looking at alternative response options, and she would like to know how other cities can get on board with that. She asked if that is something they would apply for in the future through the Department of Justice or if the County would be providing some of those funds. Mr. Martin stated they do not currently have answers to that as they are looking at the first phase still. He stated the goal is to have every city in Hennepin County utilize the service, but they do not know which funding avenues would support it yet. Mr. Martin stated everything they have researched shows that they need a good foundation for the program with measurables before implementing it elsewhere. He noted he agrees with Councilmember Graves' comment about equitable access to the programs. For example, Brooklyn Center, being that it is touching Minneapolis, is likely to need more support from social workers than a city like Corcoran. Mr. Risvold stated this is just a test period to see how it works with the hope to fine-tune as the go. He noted the long-term goal is for this program for the entire County to access it. Mr. Risvold stated they are focusing on the process first and foremost. Councilmember Graves stated she knows the changes can be frustrating as they are long overdue, but it is so important to be aware of the data and intention to avoid unintended consequences. Councilmember Graves asked is there was an initiative by the County to make it easier for cities to track data. She noted different cities may need to track different things, but some cities have not yet begun to track data at all. Councilmember Graves stated the data is important for applying for and accessing grant funding and increasing transparency, so she would like the County to provide resources to support that process. Mr. Martin stated he is chairing a statewide 911 worlcgroup. He noted that Travis' Law was implemented earlier this year which states 911 should coordinate with a mental health team, and one of the things the worlcgroup is talking about is how to collect data to support such initiatives. Mr. Martin noted the importance of collecting data clearly and consistently across different entities to best respond to a mental health crisis. Councilmember Graves asked if a call is initially coded as something other than a mental health call and ends up being a mental health call, does it end up being recorded. Councilmember Graves asked if something does get recoded, what are the requirements a call must meet to be recoded. She noted she wouldn't want the code to be misused or taken advantage of. Mr. Martin stated calls are all about the perception of the situation by the caller. For example, callers may misrepresent or exaggerate a call to affect the 911 response. He stated it comes down to consistent coding and malting sure they know what the calls are, so 911 needs more education and training. Mr. Martin noted everyone has been told to call 911 in an emergency, but they are rarely told how to call 911, so he would like there to be more community education in that area. 10/11/21 -9- that program if they are interested. He stated they have the Office of Multicultural Affairs that covers every language spoken in Hennepin County, including the dialects and other language variations. Mayor Elliott moved and COullcllmember Ryan seconded a motion to accept the presentation Embedded Social Worker and Hennepin County Mental Health Overview Programs. Motion passed unanimously. 8. PUBLIC HEARINGS 8a. RESOLUTION NOS. 2021-127, 2021-128, 2021-129, AND 2021-130 FOR PROPOSED SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS FOR TALL GRASS AND WEED ABATEMENT COSTS, DEAD AND DISEASED TREE ABATEMENT COSTS, ADMINISTRATIVE FINES/CITATIONS, AND EMERGENCY PRIVATE UTILITY SERVICE REPAIRS Dr. Edwards summarized the item and introduced Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson to make the presentation. Deputy Director of Building and Community Standards Jesse Anderson stated four public hearings will be held. He noted the owners have been notified of the public hearing, and it was also posted in legal notices. Mr. Anderson stated Minnesota state law allows cities to recover costs of certain types of services through special assessment of the property. He noted the city incurs costs associated with these public service programs and activities and, if unpaid, these costs may be specially assessed to the property. He added that a public hearing is required. Mr. Anderson stated grass and tree abasements are when properties are found to be in violation. From there, a written notice is provided, an inspection is done, the staff makes every effort to make contact with the residents to gain voluntary compliance. He noted that voluntary compliance is the preferred route. Mr. Anderson stated in certain cases, the property owner may provide a written agreement to a City -facilitated abatement. He added that the City bills the owner for the portion of costs the City has incurred including a service fee. He noted the service fee was lowered last year. Mr. Anderson stated administrative citations and penalties are issued for non-compliance with the City Ordinance. He explained notices are issued before citation and staff attempts to make contact with the owner multiple times. Mr. Anderson stated the citation doubles each time up to $2,000, but it rarely gets to that high of an amount. W. Anderson stated the City Council adopted a policy that allows the City to assist with the unexpected financial burden of emergency utility repairs. He explained repairs are related to sewer or water repairs between the house and the water main and noted that these repairs can be fairly costly. Mr. Anderson stated the assessments are for five years. 10/11/21 -11- Mr. Anderson explained there are a couple of different payment options that have been tweaked over the years. They extended the grace period to the ore -certification date, so there is no interest by November 24. He noted if they don't pay by November 24, the assessment will be certified to Hennepin County, and the property owner will pay with taxes starting in 2022. He added the total principal will be payable in annual installments. Mr. Anderson pointed out that they reached out to Hennepin County and received permission to accept partial payments before the assessments being certified to Hennepin County. Mr. Anderson showed a slide detailing the budget issues. He noted the administrative fines and citations and weed destruction are down from 2020. Mr. Anderson stated they are trying more and more to make contact with property owners. He stated that dead and diseased tree removal fees and utility repair totals are up from 2020. Mr. Anderson stated the recommended procedure is for Council to remove any reasonable appeal from opposed levy roll and adopt remaining proposed assessments. He noted staff will review and provide a report for appeals at an upcoming City Council meeting for them to review. Tentatively, they plan to bring that back on October 25. Mr. Anderson stated if anyone is appealing, they should state their full name and current address, provide the address of the property with a pending special assessment, and state the reason for the appeal. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson asked why there is such an increase in utility repair totals from 2020. Mr. Anderson stated he believes one assessment itself was around $10,000 which accounts for a fourth of the total utility repairs. Mr. Anderson stated there was not a particular reason for the increase, but utility repairs are relatively expensive projects. Each project costs $4,000 to $10,000, so doubling the total fees would only relate to a couple of properties. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to open the public hearings concurrently. Motion passed unanimously. Matt G. stated he has had tree root people coming out every 18 months, and they have commented how it is a crime that the City put in four -inch clay pipe downsizing from his six-inch PVC pipe as that is a constriction. The three professionals stated the City always does the cheapest option. Matt G. asked if he had a problem and needed repair, would he have to pay for a mistake that the City made. Mayor Elliott asked if the resident's concern was related to one of the properties they are discussing. Matt G. stated it is not one of the properties in question. 10/11/21 -12- Mayor Elliott asked Dr. Edwards to take note of the comment and have Public Works follow up with Matt G. on that concern. COuncilmember Graves stated she has suffered from a similar problem, and one of the suggestions she got was to put a lining inside of the pipe to prevent the roots from getting into the line. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to close the public hearing. Motion passed unanimously. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson seconded a motion to adopt RESOLUTION NO, 2021427 Certifying Special Assessments for Administrative Citations to the Hennepin County Property Tax Rolls. Motion passed unanimously. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to Adopt RESOLUTION NO. 2021428 Certifying Special Assessments for Diseased Tree Removal Costs to the Hennepin County Property Tax Rolls. Motion passed unanimously. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to Adopt RESOLUTION NO. 2021429 Certifying Special Assessments for Weed Removal Costs to the Hennepin County Property Tax Rolls. Motion passed unanimously. Mayor Elliott moved and Councilmember Ryan seconded a motion to Adopt RESOLUTION NO. 2021-130 Certifying Special Assessments for Emergency Private Utility Service Repairs to the Hennepin County Property Tax Rolls. Motion passed unanimously. 9. PLANNING COMMISSION ITEMS None. 10. COUNCIL CONSIDERATION ITEMS 10a. RESOLUTION NO. 2021431 ENDING THE DECLARATION OF A LOCAL EMERGENCY Dr. Edwards stated there is not a formal presentation for this item and introduced City Attorney Troy Gilchrist to further explain the item. 10/11/21 -13- Mayor Elliott stated he approved the local emergency when he saw the C0VID-19 number increasing. He stated this was discussed at the last meeting and Council expressed interest in readdressing it. City Attorney Troy Gilchrist stated a majority of the Council requested that this resolution be drafted and presented. He explained the resolution covers the history of the declaration and points out the emergency ordinances that the Council has adopted regarding face masks and electronic Council meetings. A declaration of a local emergency is not required for the Council to use its powers to enact an emergency ordinance. He explained that ending the local emergency does not interfere with the emergency face mask ordinance or the remote Council meetings. The only effect would be ending the declaration of a local emergency. He added this only needs a majority vote to pass. Councilmember Graves asked what does ending the emergency does. Mr. Gilchrist stated the enactment of the local emergency was recognizing the sharp increase in cases and getting the City ready to respond. In a couple of months since it was enacted, the City did not need to implement its emergency plan although it was ready to act. He explained that the emergency powers allowed by the local emergency declaration did not need to be exercised. Mr. Gilchrist stated ending the local emergency will not ultimately affect anything. Councilmember Graves asked if the Mayor could enact it again if it were needed in the future. Mr. Gilchrist confirmed that Councilmember Graves is coiyect. Councilmember Ryan stated he thinks the clarification is important so the public understands the decision and that such is reflected in the record. He asked if the preventative measures would still be in place Mr. Gilchrist said the required face coverings would still be implemented. He added that any measures such as sanitation or interaction with the public can be done without declaration. He stated it was a prudent move at the time, but it hasn't triggered the need to institute any further emergency initiatives. Councilmember Ryan moved and Councilmember Graves seconded a motion to adopt RESOLUTION NO.2021-131 ending the declaration of a local emergency. Motion passed unanimously. lOb. APPOINTMENTS TO CITY COMMISSIONS Dr. Edwards stated this item was discussed at the last City Council meeting and introduced City Clerk Barb Suciu to present the update. 10/11/21 -14- City Clerlc Barb Suciu stated the City of Brooklyn Center has four commissions: Financial Commission, Housing Commission, Park, and Recreation Commission, and Planning Commission. At the September 27 City Council meeting, the Council requested an update on the seats filled and available on each of the commissions. Ms. Suciu stated the applications for commission members must be obtained in the City Clerk's office and be submitted in writing to the City Clerk, the City Clerk shall forward all copies of the applications to the Mayor and City Council, the Mayor shall identify and include the nominee's application form in the City Council agenda materials for the City Council meeting at which the nominee is presented, and the City Council, by majority vote, may approve an appointment at the City Council meeting at which the nominee is presented. Ms. Suciu stated the Financial Commission consists of seven members and is an advisory body to assist the City Council in evaluating and developing fiscal policies and fiscal procedures. There are currently two vacancies on the commission, and they have three new applicants that applied in 2021. Ms. Suciu stated she contacted all of the applicants, and they are all still interested in joining the commission. Ms. Suciu stated the Housing Commission consists of seven members and works on all matters concerning housing, they are an advisory body forte Board of Appeals for Housing Maintenance and Occupancy, and they assist the Planning Commission in redevelopment policies. Ms. Suciu noted there are not any true vacancies but three commissioners are serving with expired terms. The three commissioners that are continuing to serve have re -applied to serve on the commission. Ms. Suciu contacted the three applicants, and they are still interested in serving. Ms. Suciu stated the Parlc and Recreation Commission consists of seven commissioners and acts as an advisory board to the City Council and other Brooklyn Center Advisory Commissions regarding matters relevant to the conservation, park, and recreation functions. She stated there are currently seven commissioners, three of which are serving with expired terms. The three serving with expired terms have submitted applications to be reappointed. Ms. Suciu noted they also have seven new applicants willing to serve on the commission. Ms. Suciu stated there are five park service districts and showed a map of the park service area districts. She noted they do not have any commissioners from District Five, Ms. Suciu stated the Planning Commission consists of seven commissioners, and there is currently one vacancy on the commission. She added three residents have applied for the open seat. Ms. Suciu stated she contacted all three of the applicants, and staff has only heard back from one. Councilmember Graves asked if Mayor Elliott had any nominees selected for the Financial Commission. Mayor Elliott stated he would present nominees at a later meeting. He noted he has been recruiting in an attempt to diversify the commissions, and he thinks they have made some strides in that area. Mayor Elliott reiterated the importance of diversity being represented on the commissions as that is reflective of the diverse community. For example, he plans to appoint someone from the Hmong 10/11/21 -15- City Clerlc Barb Suciu stated the City of Brooklyn Center has four commissions: Financial Commission, Housing Commission, Park, and Recreation Commission, and Planning Commission. At the September 27 City Council meeting, the Council requested an update on the seats filled and available on each of the commissions. Ms. Suciu stated the applications for commission members must be obtained in the City Clerk's office and be submitted in writing to the City Clerk, the City Clerk shall forward all copies of the applications to the Mayor and City Council, the Mayor shall identify and include the nominee's application form in the City Council agenda materials for the City Council meeting at which the nominee is presented, and the City Council, by majority vote, may approve an appointment at the City Council meeting at which the nominee is presented. Ms. Suciu stated the Financial Commission consists of seven members and is an advisory body to assist the City Council in evaluating and developing fiscal policies and fiscal procedures. There are currently two vacancies on the commission, and they have three new applicants that applied in 2021. Ms. Suciu stated she contacted all of the applicants, and they are all still interested in joining the commission. Ms. Suciu stated the Housing Commission consists of seven members and works on all matters concerning housing, they are an advisory body forte Board of Appeals for Housing Maintenance and Occupancy, and they assist the Planning Commission in redevelopment policies. Ms. Suciu noted there are not any true vacancies but three commissioners are serving with expired terms. The three commissioners that are continuing to serve have re -applied to serve on the commission. Ms. Suciu contacted the three applicants, and they are still interested in serving. Ms. Suciu stated the Parlc and Recreation Commission consists of seven commissioners and acts as an advisory board to the City Council and other Brooklyn Center Advisory Commissions regarding matters relevant to the conservation, park, and recreation functions. She stated there are currently seven commissioners, three of which are serving with expired terms. The three serving with expired terms have submitted applications to be reappointed. Ms. Suciu noted they also have seven new applicants willing to serve on the commission. Ms. Suciu stated there are five park service districts and showed a map of the park service area districts. She noted they do not have any commissioners from District Five, Ms. Suciu stated the Planning Commission consists of seven commissioners, and there is currently one vacancy on the commission. She added three residents have applied for the open seat. Ms. Suciu stated she contacted all three of the applicants, and staff has only heard back from one. Councilmember Graves asked if Mayor Elliott had any nominees selected for the Financial Commission. Mayor Elliott stated he would present nominees at a later meeting. He noted he has been recruiting in an attempt to diversify the commissions, and he thinks they have made some strides in that area. Mayor Elliott reiterated the importance of diversity being represented on the commissions as that is reflective of the diverse community. For example, he plans to appoint someone from the Hmong 10/11/21 -15- community as that is a large section of the City, and at the last meeting, he appointed someone from the Latino community. Councilmember Graves stated she appreciates the Mayor's efforts to diversify the commissions and added she drew attention to the makeup of the commissions to ensure a quorum. Councilmember Graves stated attendance has been an issue within the Financial Commission, which has been especially difficult in the last few months as they reviewed the budget. Councilmember Graves stated she has reviewed the applications, and she has two that stood out. She emphasized her appreciation for the current Commissioners and added the importance of having folks with experience in accounting and finance as well as having a commission that is diverse in terms of age, race, ethnicity, and background. Councilmember Graves stated she believes Yolanda and Rose are strong candidates for nominees as they seem to be more well -versed in the areas of finance, accounting, and government. She added it is important to get the vacancies Filled, and she is anxious to get more people that will show up and provide a strong eye for finance. Councilmember Ryan stated the Financial Commission has been particularly valuable to the Council because of the expertise that previous and current members have brought to deliberations. Councilmember Ryan stated he agrees with Councilmember Graves' opinions on Rose and Yolanda as they have expertise in finance. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson stated the existing Housing Commissioners have brought a lot to the table and have had good attendance. She stated in 2010 when she chaired the Housing Commission, they started the New Neighbor Welcome Program, and the Commissioners at that time voluntarily added additional duties to deliver the bags personally to residents. She stated Kathie Amdahl took that program on after Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson stepped down, so she would not want to do anything to jeopardize the New Neighbor Welcome Program. She looks Forward to the insight of new Commissioners, but she would like to recognize the importance of existing members as well. Councilmember Graves stated she did not read every one of the applications, but she does recognize Mark Goodell's name from the community. Along with Councilmember Lawrence - Anderson's note on Kathie Amdahl, she thinks they should keep those two on the Housing Commission. She noted that the Commission could benefit from having a younger person on the Commission as well. Councilmember Graves stated she thinks the third member could be a new member that would help them meet an area of diversity that they have not reached before. Councilmember Ryan stated he would concur with reappointing MarkGoodell and Kathie Amdahl from his interactions with the Housing Commission. He added that he has seen the benefits of the New Neighbor Welcome Program from the few outings he joined on, and the Commissioners deserve recognition for that. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson stated she would be remiss if she did not share the value that Paul Oman brings to the Housing Commission. She stated she has known Kathie for quite a while and Mark Goodell is the current Chair, but Paul Oman does bring unique housing experience. 10/11 /21 -16- Councilmember Graves stated she is the liaison to the rarK and Recreation Commission, and she is excited that there are so many applicants. She stated she would like to focus on the district that is not well -represented, which would be District Five in this case. Councilmember Graves stated she would suggest looking at I<•issa Jackson's and Noah Jeffrey's applications as they are from District 5. She added that since there is only one representative from District Four and District Two, they should look at adding folks from those areas as well. Councilmember Graves stated she would like the chair, Bud Sorenson, to continue as he has done a good job embracing new members and is very on top of preparing for meetings, ensures the staff has what they need for meetings, and reminds members of upcoming meetings. She added that Bud Sorenson has institutional knowledge as he has served on the Park and Recreation Commission for a while. Councilmember Graves added that Travis has brought on programs like Boy Scouts that are interactive for the community, particularly for young people. Councilmember Graves stated he has been a balanced person and is on the younger side of the Commission. Councilmember Graves noted she does not feel strongly about any of the applicants other than getting someone on the Park and Recreation Commission from District Five. She thinks it could be a good idea for applicants to meet with current members to learn more about the Commission and to start a possible mentorship. She added she would like to see some younger people as they have a unique stake in the parks. Dr. Edwards stated he wanted to remind the Council about previous discussions on youth on the boards and the pilot program they are doing. He noted staff would get back to them with more information on that as it will precipitate some changes in the commissions. Councilmember Ryan stated he would like to see the younger generation brought into the conversation, so perhaps they should discuss the number of members on each commission to both accommodate experienced commissioners and youth. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson stated she would like to see a change in numbers to accommodate youth. She added she would like to maintain the number of members they currently have and add youth on top of that. Councilmember Lawrence -Anderson noted the youth could learn from the legacy members. Mayor Elliott noted he also thinks that maintaining the number of current commissioners and adding youth could be beneficial. He stated he read a study that pointed out the most effective number of people for coming to a decision is seven and every member that is added from there decreases that capacity by 10%. Councilmember Graves stated she does not have strong feelings about the Planning Commission, but she is familiar with the applicant Randy Christensen. Mayor Elliott stated the Planning Commission is one place that they need to look at culture and ethnicity, and there is one person fiom the Hmong community that is interested in a place on the 10/11/21 -17- Planning Commission. He added it is a good problem to have when they have a lot of people wanting to serve. Mayor Elliott noted there is an organization that works with commissioners, particularly commissioners of color, and trains them on how to effectively serve on a board or commission. He stated they need to make sure people have the capacity and resources to be successful. Councilmember Graves asked what the name of the program is. Mayor Elliott stated the program is called Boards and Cormnissions Leadership Institute and it is a 7-month leadership program that supports, trains, and helps place people of color and other underrepresented community members on city and county publicly appointed boards and commissions that influence and impact equity in the Twin Cities Metro Area in economic development, health, housing, transit, and workforce development. He noted it is offered through Nexus. Councilmember Graves asked if the Council would have a chance to read the application from the Hmong applicant before the appointment. Mayor Elliott confirmed that the Council would receive a copy of the application before the appointment of the Hmong applicant. Councilmember Ryan stated he appreciates the opportunity for the Council to discuss the applications and appointments to the commissions. Councilmember Graves stated she agrees with Councilmember Ryan. ll. COUNCIL REPORT Council did not have any Council Reports to provide. 12. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Pro Tem Butler moved and Councilmember Graves seconded adjournment of the City Council meeting at 9:21 p.m. Motion passed unanimously. 10/11/21 -18- STATE OF MINNESOTA) COUNTY OF HENNEPIN) ss. Certification of Minutes CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER) The undersigned, being the duly qualified and appointed City Cleric of the City of Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, certifies: 1. That attached hereto is a full, true, and complete transcript of the minutes of a Regular Session of the City Council of the City of Brooklyn Center held on October 11, 2021. 2. That said meeting was held pursuant to due call and notice thereof and was duly held at Brooklyn Center City Hall. 3. That the City Council adopted said minutes at its October 25, 2021, Regular Session. City Clerk 10/11/21 -19-