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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1991 01-09 HRRMMINUTES OF THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE HUMAN RIGHTS AND RESOURCES COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF BROOKLYN CENTER IN THE COUNTY OF HENNEPIN AND THE STATE OF MINNESOTA REGULAR SESSION JANUARY 9, 1991 CITY HALL CALL TO ORDER The Brooklyn Center human rights and resources commission met in regular session and was called to order by Commissioner Eckman at 7:37 p.m. ROLL CALL Commissioners Eckman, Carmody, and Larsen. Also present were Patty Wilder, Northwest Hennepin Human Services Council Executive Director, Phil Cohen, and Recording Secretary Geralyn Barone. DISCUSSION OF ISSUES IMPACTING CHILDREN Wilder and Cohen were welcomed to the meeting. They noted they were present at the meeting to discuss with the commission issues impacting children. Wilder proceeded to review the Success By Six Program, which is funded by the United Way. She reviewed demographics related to children living in the northwest Hennepin County area. She noted some of the barriers for overcoming problems related to children include lack of a sense of community and denial of the existence of problems in the suburbs. Wilder noted efforts are under way in the northwest Hennepin County area for replication of the Success By Six Program which was started in Minneapolis. Cohen said he represented the City of Brooklyn Center on the Success By Six initial project and has continued to participate in the implementation stage. He further discussed barriers affecting children, including the general public's lack of awareness of the issues; housing problems; lack of community cohesiveness; turf battles between schools, nonprofit providers and the public sector; inadequate cycles of child development; and unfocused resources (children do not lobby). Cohen said the initiative is developing an action agenda with the United Way to develop access for all who need it. He noted the Brooklyn Center Charitable Foundation recently donated $6,000 for children's programs. Cohen said it is necessary to have people volunteer, get business involvement because people in business have technical expertise, and involve both public and private sectors. He expressed concern over the state funding cutbacks for cities and the imposition of levy limits; more demands from the ageing community; and the decreasing number of young people who are able to work and pay for needed programs. Cohen said people need to understand the gravity of the situation, and we cannot neglect problems of children. He 1/9/91 1 said the general public thinks there is no problem, but it is there and the issue needs to be brought forward to the state and federal governments. He noted the demographics are there to prove there is a problem, so it is necessary to take positive action now. Cohen said he is asking the Brooklyn Center human rights and resources commission to make the children's issue an agenda item, study the problem, and recommend a course of action to the city council. He feels this will help develop legislative priorities and the county's priorities. There was a brief discussion about the prevailing attitude that suburban residents are expected to go to Minneapolis to receive services. Wilder explained the Head Start Program in Minneapolis and pointed out the difficulty of transporting suburban residents to the city to participate in social programs. Cohen said he feels the schools will play a big role in the response to children's issues because they see the problems first. However, the schools need the financial resources to deal with the problems. He added employers can help in dealing with children's issues by being understanding of parents who have sick children. Cohen noted there are a number of human service issues related to housing issues and suggested the commission look at the human service component of housing. He noted once Brooklyn Center's needs are identified, it will be necessary to vigorously pursue solutions and bring matters to the city council for implementation. He favors an aggressive approach to this. Cohen asked if the commission has reviewed the recent Brooklyn Center housing study, and the Recording Secretary said it has not. She added it will be distributed to commissioners and placed as a discussion item on the next meeting's agenda. Cohen suggested once the commission has had an opportunity to review the housing study, it should meet jointly with the housing commission to discuss the human services component of it. Commissioner Larsen said she senses there is a very definite need and there is a very immense problem related to children. She said she is trying to determine what role the commission should take and whether there is one key concern at the top of the pile that should be addressed by the commission. Cohen said the issue is an immense problem that needs to be sorted out. He suggested the commission look at all of the components one by one because they all tie together. Once the commission has taken the time to slowly review the issues, it should feel comfortable making a recommendation to the city council. The commission agreed that the Recording Secretary should prepare a proposal of what Cohen would like the commission to do so the commission can review it at the next meeting. In addition, the Maxfield Report will be reviewed by the commissioners for discussion at the February meeting. 1/9/91 2 TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM PROPOSAL FOR BROOKLYN CENTER. The Recording Secretary informed the commission that she has been in contact with representatives of the City of Brooklyn Park regarding the transportation program proposal. The Brooklyn Park City Council is expected to review the issue at the end of January, and it is hoped that more information will be available to the commission at its next meeting. OTHER BUSINESS There was discussion regarding the date of its next meeting, and the consensus of the commission was to change the next meeting to February 6, 1991, at 7:30 p.m. APPROVAL OF MINUTES - NOVEMBER 14, 1990 There was a motion by Commissioner Larsen and seconded by Commissioner Carmody to approve the minutes of the November 14, 1991, human rights and resources commission meeting as submitted. The motion passed. ADJOURNMENT There was a motion by Commissioner Carmody and seconded by Commissioner Larsen to adjourn the meeting. The motion passed. The Brooklyn Center human rights and resources commission adjourned at 8:53 p.m. • Chairperson 1/9/91 3