Our Mission: Providing quality services through responsible leadership, innovation and the cooperation of dedicated people Date: Dec. 18, 2018 Contact: Yvonne Klinnert, Public Information Manager Phone: 651-430-6026, after hours 952-807-3723 E-mail: yvonne.klinnert@co.washington.mn.us FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE The following actions were taken at the Dec. 18, 2018, Washington County Board of Commissioners meeting at the Government Center in Stillwater, Minnesota County Board approves contracts for legal representation for children in need of protection The Washington County Board of Commissioners approved contracts Dec. 18 for legal representation for children in need of protection services (CHIPS), termination of parental rights, and permanency cases with Greg Schmidt, Dorothy Gause, Megan Hunt, John Chitwood, and Amy Senn for the next three years. Since 2014, the county has been contracting with attorneys to provide these services and providing a flat monthly amount for compensation. The county contracts with five attorneys, whose contracts will expire Dec. 31. Eight attorneys responded to the county’s request for proposal issued in November. After review, contracts were offered to five attorneys. The contracts may be renewed for two additional single years. Monthly compensation for all services would be $5,200 in 2019, $5,325 in 2020, and $5,450 in 2021. Contact: Kevin Corbid, Deputy Administrator, 651-430-6003 County Board approves comments on draft comprehensive plans for City of St. Paul Park The Washington County Board of Commissioners approved comments Dec. 18 prepared following review of the draft comprehensive plan for the City of St. Paul Park. All local governments within the seven-county metropolitan region must prepare a comprehensive plan and update that plan every 10 years. The Metropolitan Council is charged with reviewing local comprehensive plans. Before formally submitting local comprehensive plan updates to the Metropolitan Council, local governments must provide adjacent and affected jurisdictions the opportunity to review and comment on the draft plan during a mandatory six-month review period. Comprehensive plans must be submitted to the Metropolitan Council by Dec. 31. The county’s comments stated its support for the city’s protection of solar access through zoning ordinances, and commended the city for its detailed discussion about the value of a diverse housing supply and workforce housing Contact: Hally Turner, Senior Planner, 651-430-4307 County Board approves contract for electronic monitoring services The Washington County Board of Commissioners approved a service agreement Dec. 18 with Satellite Tracking of People, LLC, (STOP) to purchase electronic monitoring for juvenile and adult correctional clients for $200,000 a year. This is a new vendor for 2019 for the county, which is providing a more competitive rate over previous vendors. The service is being purchased through cooperative purchasing opportunities through the State of Minnesota, which provides lower costs. In 2018, the county experienced a 42-percent increase in monthly costs of services from the increased use of electronic monitoring. Much of that increase related to clients released from jail on pretrial supervision with a condition for some form of electronic monitoring. While there are staff costs related to electronic monitoring, the lower rates for equipment and monitoring in this contract have the potential to slow the growth in costs. Contact: Terry Thomas, Jr., Community Corrections Deputy Director, 651-430-6951 Washington County will contract with Ramsey County for detox services Washington County will contract with Ramsey County for detoxification services after the Washington County Board of Commissioners approved a joint powers agreement between the counties Dec. 18. The agreement guarantees Washington County’s use of two beds per day at the Ramsey County Detoxification Center in St. Paul. Setting aside the two beds for Washington County is necessary for Washington County law enforcement to have options for detox patients every day. Since 2016, the county has spent an average of $175,204 on detoxification services annually. The average daily census of Washington County residents using detoxification services since 2016 is 2.3. The current rate for services at the Ramsey County Detoxification Center is $258 per day and the average length of stay per admission ranges from one to three days, depending on individual circumstances. Securing the guaranteed two beds at the Ramsey County Detoxification Center at a yearly cost of $188,598 helps to ensure the county will be able to meet its statutory requirement to provide detoxification services. Detoxification services are provided 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with assessment and referral to appropriate treatment programs. Contact: Kathy Mickelson, Community Services Division Manager, 651-430-6532 Washington County will contract with Rise for training, habilitation services The Washington County Board of Commissioners approved a contract with Rise Dec. 18 to provide Day Training and Habilitation (D&H) for persons with disabilities. The contract will cost $1.5 million in 2019. The contract will replace the contract that the county has with ESR, Inc., which is merging with Rise Jan. 1, to provide services under the umbrella of Rise. DT&H services assist adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to achieve and maintain the highest level of independence, productivity, and integration in the community. The day programming provides services related to employment, self-care, communication skills, socialization, physical mobility, and cognitive development. The county is mandated to protect the health and safety of vulnerable adults, which includes providing supervision and care for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities during the day when their caregivers are not present. Rise will also provide three types of new employment services. The employment services program assists individuals with developmental disabilities to work for compensation in a variety of community-integrated work environments in which persons without disabilities are employed. The program is designed to promote regular interaction with persons without disabilities who are not paid caregivers or service providers. The three new services are: * Employment Exploration Services – Community-based services that introduce and explore employment, such as work experiences. * Employment Development – Individualized services that help people find competitive, integrated employment or attain self-employment. * Employment Support Services – Individualized services and supports that assist people with maintaining community employment in an individual or group arrangement. The rate of the services vary for each individual based on their needs. This rate formula is determined by a state rate management system. Contact: Kathy Mickelson, Community Services Division Manager, 651-430-6532 County approves labor agreements with several bargaining groups The Washington County Board of Commissioners approved labor agreements with a number of the county’s bargaining groups Dec. 18. Two-year agreements beginning Jan. 1, 2019, and ending Dec. 31, 2020, were approved with the following groups: • the exempt and non-exempt bargaining units represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Council 5; • the Law Enforcement Labor Services (LELS) Local # 214 Deputy Sheriff Unit; • the Law Enforcement Labor Services (LELS) Commander Unit; • the International Union of Operating Engineers Local #49 AFL-CIO Unit; • the Assistant Washington County Attorneys’ Association; and • the Teamsters Local 320-Probation Officers bargaining unit. Each of the agreements include a 2.5 percent general salary adjustment at the beginning of both 2019 and 2020 and nearly all include a three-week paid parental leave benefit for the birth or adoption of a child. Agreements also include adjustments to the vacation and paid time off schedules for employees hired after Jan. 1, 2019, as well as an increase in the amount of employer contribution towards the cost of health insurance provided to each employee. The County Board also approved compensation and benefits for 2019 and 2020 for department heads, department deputy directors, confidential employees and confidential supervisors. Each of the employees in these groups will receive the same general adjustment and health insurance contribution as approved for the bargaining units. Contact: Jan Webster, Human Resources Director, 651-430-6075 County Board approves plat for Autumn Run in West Lakeland Township The Washington County Board of Commissioners approved an abstract plat for Autumn Run Third Addition in West Lakeland Township Dec. 18. The two-lot plat is east of Oakgreen Avenue North and south of 15th Street North. Contact: Nancie Schwintek, Property Records Division Manager, 651-430-6758 Washington Conservation District will provide technical, educational services in 2019 Washington Conservation District will continue to provide technical assistance and educational services to promote and apply soil and water conservation practices throughout Washington County in 2019, after the County Board approved a $260,000 contract with the agency Dec. 18. The contract is for the same amount that the county paid in 2018, and provides partial funding for the Conservation District's administrative activities and services in the areas of local water management, land and water treatment, and public education. Included in the agreement is funding for the East Metro Water Resources Education Program. The contract runs through 2019. Contact: Jessica Collin-Pilarski, Senior Planner, 651-430-6703 Washington County will continue to receive money to fight aquatic invasive species Washington County will continue to fight aquatic invasive species after the County Board approved a resolution to accept funding from the state Department of Natural Resources Dec. 18. Based on the county’s 24 watercraft trailer launches, and 353 watercraft trailer parking spaces, Washington County will receive $135,887 in aquatic invasive species prevention aid in 2019. A county plan or resolution must be submitted to the Department of Natural Resources by the end of the year before funds may be distributed for the following year. The plan lists the water bodies in the county that are affected by a variety of aquatic invasive species. The county will ask for competitive requests for proposal to award portions of the funds to entities in the county that focus on preventing aquatic invasive species. Contact: Maureen Hoffman, Planner, 651-430-6684 State will provide compensation for use of county roadways as detours The Minnesota Department of Transportation will pay Washington County $36,094 for the use of its county roads as a detour while the state repairs Highway 95, or Manning Avenue, in the southern portion of the county next summer. The state will repair the highway between Highway 61 and County State Aid Highway (CSAH) 22 (70th Street South). The improvements include widening shoulders, adding right turn lanes, improving sight distance, improving drainage, resurfacing the roadway, and installing centerline and shoulder "mumble strips." Traffic will be detoured onto county roadways during construction. The amount of compensation is determined by looking at the amount of road life consumed by the detours by means of the "Gas Tax Method," which factors in traffic counts, road length, and duration of the detour. The detours will route traffic onto CSAH 19 (Keats Avenue South), CSAH 21 (Stagecoach Trail), CSAH 22 (70th Street South), and County Road 78 (110th Street South) during various stages of the project. Contact: Joe Gustafson, Traffic Engineer, 651-430-4351 County will request foundation money to replace windows in Historic Courthouse Washington County will request $81,875 from the Huelsmann Foundation to restore doors and windows in the county’s Historic Courthouse over the next two years. The County Board approved the request Dec. 18. The Historic Courthouse is in Stillwater. The project would help bring the building up to fire code by having operating windows that can open and close, and repair leaking and rotting wood around the doors. The grant does not require any match by the county. Contact: Sandy Breuer, Parks Director, 651-430-4371 County will request state money for safety project on Bailey Road Washington County will request $300,000 in a Safe Routes to Schools grant to support the construction of a roundabout at Bailey Road (County State Aid Highway (CSAH) 18), after the County Board approved the request Dec. 18. The planned roundabout is at Woodlane Drive in Woodbury adjacent to Gordon Bailey Elementary School. The proposed roundabout is part of the Safe Route to Schools Plan adopted by the school as a recommendation to increase pedestrian and vehicular safety at the intersection. The roundabout is a portion of the overall safety and pavement improvement project along CSAH 18. The total project budget is $6.8 million. Washington County anticipates using $5.3 million in state aid funds and $1.25 million in local contributions. Contact: Wayne Sandberg, County Engineer and Deputy Public Works Director, 651-430-4339 Washington County will transfer antenna system to Hennepin County Washington County will transfer to Hennepin County a used Distributed Antenna System that it no longer uses, to supplement Hennepin County’s still-functioning system, after the County Board approved the transfer Dec. 18. In 2005, Washington County installed a Distributed Antenna System (DAS) in the Law Enforcement Center, which boosts cell phone and radio signals to maintain adequate coverage within the building. The components of the original system have been replaced over the years and the final components were replaced in August 2018. Hennepin County continues to use the older style system in some of its municipal buildings, and could use components as spare parts in its systems. Washington County no longer has a need for the equipment, which has little value and is not capable of using modern cell telephone bands and technology. Contact: Sheriff Dan Starry, 651-430-7601 Valley Paving will do Lake Elmo Avenue improvement project Valley Paving will do the Lake Elmo Avenue improvement project that will resurface and reconstruct the roadway from Interstate 94 to 30th Street, after the Washington County Board of Commissioners approved a $3.82 million contract with the company Dec. 18. The roadway between the interstate and 20th Street will be resurfaced; the roadway from 20th Street to 30th Street will be reconstructed. The project was planned for last summer, but the single bid for the project came in 11 percent over the engineer’s estimate, and the project was put off until this coming year. The board also approved construction and maintenance agreements with the City of Lake Elmo regarding the project. The city will pay for 15 percent of the project, while the county’s pavement preservation funds will pay for a quarter of the project, and highway state aid will pay for the remainder. Contact: Andrew Giesen, Engineer, 651-430-4336 Kimley-Horn and Associates will oversee Highway 36/Hadley Avenue interchange project Kimley-Horn and Associates will do construction inspection, administration, and surveying services for the Highway 36/Hadley Avenue interchange project, after the Washington County Board of Commissioners approved a $1.7 million contract with the company Dec. 18. The interchange project, which involves construction of a bridge, retaining walls, noise walls, pedestrian tunnel, and on and off ramps at a very busy trunk highway, will be one of 17 that Washington County will oversee in the coming construction season. This work will span two years and have a construction cost of approximately $21.54 million. The project will include a bridge, retaining and noise walls, a pedestrian tunnel, and large excavations and embankments. Due to the projected construction workload for the county in 2019, multiple agency involvement in the project, and the specialized work involved, it was determined that the administration, inspection, and surveying would be best managed through a consultant contract. The county's staff will provide guidance and oversight throughout the project. Contact: Gerritt Bangma, Construction Engineer, 651-430-4317 Kraus-Anderson will remodel Stillwater Licensing Center Kraus-Anderson will remodel the Stillwater Licensing Center in the Valley Ridge Mall, after the Washington County Board of Commissioners approved an $866,433 contract with the company Dec. 18. The board approved a new 10-year lease of the current space in November, and reviewed the proposed layout of the space remodel. The project will improve the customer service area in the licensing center. The cost of the remodeling will come half from the county’s repair fund, and half from the county’s contingency fund. The licensing center will be closed from Feb. 4, through Feb. 23, reopening Monday, Feb. 25. Residents may find information and locations of the county’s other licensing centers on the county’s website at www.co.washington.mn.us. Contact: Erik Jalowitz, Project Manager, 651-430-6227 County will request speed studies on county roads The Washington County Board of Commissioners requested Dec. 18 that the Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) conduct a number of speed studies on county roads in 2019. The studies will help determine the reasonable and safe speed limit on the roadway segments to be studied, and MnDOT will authorize the County Engineer to install and maintain the appropriate signs on the roadways. The speed studies will be conducted at: * County State Aid Highway (CSAH) 4, from Parade Avenue North to Highway 95 in the City of Marine on St. Croix; * CSAH 13, from 44th Street North to 50th Street North in the cities of Lake Elmo and Oakdale; * CSAH 14, from Stagecoach Trail to Highway 95 in the City of Bayport; * CSAH 14, from 39th Street North to Mendel Avenue North in the City of Lake Elmo and Baytown Township; * CSAH 15, from 30th Street North to 43rd Street North in the City of Lake Elmo and Baytown Township; * CSAH 21, from 50th Street South to Hudson Road in the City of Afton; * CSAH 21, from 34th Street North to CSAH 14 (Fifth Avenue North) in the City of Bayport and Baytown Township; * CSAH 24, from Minnesota Correctional Facility – Oak Park Heights to 65th Street North in the cities of Oak Park Heights and Stillwater; and * CSAH 38, from Glen Road to the Interstate 494 westbound ramp in the City of Newport. State law grants the authority to set speed limits only to MnDOT, including for all local and county roadways, to ensure objective and consistent practices for setting speed limits throughout the state. The law further requires that these limits be set based on the results of an engineering and traffic investigation. MnDOT conducts such investigations upon the request of the local road authority. Washington County has requested that MnDOT study these county highway segments which have been affected by construction, development, or other changes to the roadway character. Based on the results of the studies, MnDOT will determine the appropriate speed limit for the requested segments and the county will be required to install speed limit signs accordingly. Contact: Joe Gustafson, Traffic Engineer, 651-430-4351 Board sets salaries for commissioners County Sheriff, County Attorney, County Administrator The Washington County Board of Commissioners set salaries for 2019 for several elected and appointed officials Dec. 18, including salaries for board members. Commissioners set their salary at $69,000 for 2019, the first increase in commissioner salaries in nearly a decade, with the last increase in 2009. The board also set salaries for: * Attorney Pete Orput, at $180,159; * Sheriff Dan Starry, at $161,570; and * Administrator Molly O’Rourke, at $185,161. Contact: Molly O’Rourke, Administrator, 651-430-6002 A great place to live, work and play…today and tomorrow Government Center • 14949 62nd Street North — P.O. Box 6, Stillwater, Minnesota 55082-0006 Phone: 651-430-6001 • Fax: 651-430-6017 • TTY: 651-430-6246 www.co.washington.mn.us Equal Employment Opportunity / Affirmative Action