Morning. Would you please stand and say the pledge with me? I aliance to the flag of the United States of America and to the republic for which it stands. One nation under God, indivisible with liberty and justice for all. Okay, we uh reserve this time for public comments that relate to an item on the agenda which may be heard when I didn't say that right. Not on the agenda. Whatever is not on the agenda, we prefer that you wait till the agenda item comes up. How about that in plain English? So, who do we have that might want to make some comments? We're gonna hear from Americaore. Yeah. Um gota adjust this a little bit. Um um good morning to the board and everyone in the room. Um my name is Danny Luc Sheler. I'm a member of Minnesota Public Health Corps, a branch of Americanore whose mission is to improve lives and strengthen communities through service. Um, I was last here for public health week and was invited by Commissioner Utterman to speak on my experience. Um, I didn't speak then, but I'm now here to do so um, briefly because I really think it's worth sharing how meaningful this program has been for me and my peers both professionally and personally. Um, also a quick shout out to the chairman who I quickly talked to last week. Um, that further motivated me to speak today. So last May, I graduated from WMadison, majoring in global health and science communication. I knew I wanted to work in public health, especially regarding health communication, but I didn't know where to look for experience. That's where Minnesota Public Health Corps came in. Listen, I'm a proud motan. I love where I grew up, its values, and through my work here at Carver County Public Health Department, I've had the honor and the pleasure to serve my community by supporting initiatives that promote healthy people and families. During my time here, I've worked to strengthen internal communication efforts by using my research background to understand ways to support staff with their communication needs and goals. And I've also put together health education materials for things like mosquito and tick safety to share with community partners. I could have taken any path, medical school, grad school, clinical research, just to name a few, but I chose Americanore because I truly believe addressing health needs starts local and through community outreach and collaboration. What better way to do that than service work? And that is what the program has allowed me to do through interacting with staff on projects and shadowing their work in the community. So being able to see public health in action and its impact has also played a huge role in strengthening pride in my commitment to a career in public health. Seeing a young girl at an immunization clinic determined to get all four shots she needs, that matters. Going to a food distribution site and seeing people line up one to two hours before pickup. That matters. When people go out of their way to call for a car seat checks to keep their child safe, that matters. And it all shows that public health matters. I'm not passionate for public health because of the pay. I don't even earn much to begin with. I'm passionate because I've seen the impact it's had in helping people live healthier lives. I want to help people get connected to needed resources, not when they're sick, but before they get to that point. That is the value in public health and it's why I care for the work I do. I could go on and on um but I would like to end with a message of gratitude. I would like to say thank you to the board, to Carver County, the public health leadership and staff, and especially my supervisor Sarah Pressure, as well as thank my fellow Americanore members and the many others who have made my time in Americanore such a valuable experience. Although my time here will be cut cut short as me and others have been told we do not align with federal priorities, your openness and welcome to members like me al in these spaces to learn and grow does not go unnoticed and I hope that continues and thank you and here's where I end my time. Well, thank you very much. When I saw you last week at the I guess we called it the Cinco de Heroes uh breakfast, I didn't know you were a badger. So, this this was a problem. But, uh maybe you can get an advanced degree at the University of Minnesota and uh and make it all all right. But, thank you very much. I know that the feds are working through uh a lot of things. Um the the idea that we got to spend an extra $2 trillion a year and create debt probably wasn't a good idea nor a sustainable one for too long. And so unfortunately all the things in government that we want to do uh fall away to the things we need to do. And so that debate's going on and uh hopefully it all works out and I know Americaore is great organization and and uh and you're evidence of that. So thank you very much and you have a good boss too. So okay, anybody else? Um I think um I don't think my thing is agenda items. I think correct. Yep. I have a handout. I don't know. Can I certainly you can hand it to me and then we'll pass it down. Is there two two pieces? Uh three. Um hi, I'm um Jonas Schoberg. I'm a resident in Shaza. Um I wanted to talk today about partisanship in Carver County and in the board um or in the commissioners and particularly in relation to a message that was sent out by Carver County on um April 16th, the one I'm passing out here. So from my perspective, um I was watching the commissioner meeting on April 8th, um when you guys were um I was listening and I heard that the federal government was pulling away 40,000 or sorry $400,000 in funding. You guys had to lay off two people or um and um you know some negative effects on the on the federal the things are hand happening on the federal level. I got the sense that you guys were brushing that off as yeah, that's just something that happens. Then um I heard um Commissioner Workman mentioned that he had met with some uh lobbyist that mentioned that there was going to be tax increases, property increases due to something that um governor was doing. And um um then I also heard I don't know the details about this but in the meeting uh Commissioner Workman mentioned that he had received an email from the health and human services director um Heather Goodwin uh that described the impact of the federal um chaos um of the county um but I don't know I haven't seen that email so I don't know what that what that was all about. Um anyway, after that meeting, so I was thinking, okay, maybe the county is going to share with the public what's happening, how the federal situation is impacting the county. Then four days later or five days later, instead the county sent out a message that is described here that that Governor Waltz is proposing XYZ and it's going to have giant impact on property taxes. That message is describing is hyperartisan. It's describing that I'm paraphrasing a little bit here, but it's saying if Governor Wall's proposal takes effect 20%, property taxes will increase 20% and then in the end it says when you account for uh inflation and you know other other types of impacts. Um, and it just seems strange to me that the county would put out a message of that nature that in the past I felt that the county was trying to be level-headed or level, you know, even though I know that many people in the county are, you know, voting one way and um um but and I'm guessing that the commissioners probably um have a, you know, slant. Uh, which is completely fine, but it doesn't seem right that the county would put out messages that are slanted like that. Um, and that's that's my that's my gist here today. I um I thought it was unfortunate that it was sent out like that. I was and I also so I took that message, I put it into chat, not chat, GPT, uh, Google AI is called Gemini. And I asked the AI, hey, is this a partisan message? is this a politically slanted message? And the result was exactly that. It's describing that, yep, this message is partisan. This message is politically slanted. And um and it described why. And I completely agree with those statements that the message that was put out by the county didn't describe the benefits. Why why is governor why is the governor asking for this? Why is he shifting the um and what what is that impact? what um um what is it that he's asking the county to pay for? No details, no nothing, just numbers, vague numbers like, oh, 20% property tax increase, no information about why and how it and and then of course when the county put out that message, the Republican um groups picked that up and start saying that, hey, Carva County is stating that 20 governor is going to raise property taxes 20% in Carv County. I know that's not what the message said from the county, but still it seems like why would the Carver County go ahead and become the source of political misinformation and um become a source of Republican um strategy messaging. Um, since the county is roughly 51 to 46% Republican and Democrat, it would be nice if the county could um keep a little bit more levelhead in terms of how you communicate issues. And if you communicate issues, be honest, be fair, describe the pros and cons, describe the details, give us the data so we can take um so we can take um so we can know better. That's all. Thank you. Thank you. Well, the county will be coming out with more messages on the state of the state budget, which remains a big problem for all 87 counties, Democrat ones, Republican ones. We just had an hour legislative meeting to talk about where we're at. It's still there. When the governor redid his proposal, it's still there. It's still a problem. It's it's sherking their responsibility to balance their budget on the backs of the taxpayers of Carver County. This board is in unison against that. Whether you're a Democrat or Republican, I don't think you want your property taxes going up. Um, we have an expert in the room, Heather. Uh, I'm not going to have her come up here. Um, but she knows where the problem is. In fact, the problem is going to get worse next year and the year beyond if this passes. A person could go to any of a number of county websites. AMC, the Association of Minnesota Counties, not a conservative bastion, and learn the truth. Micah Minnesota Inner County Association, not a conservative bastion, or the Minnesota Rural Counties Association, uh, who are all in unison against what the governor is trying to do. Thank you. Anybody else have anything they want to say? Seeing none, agenda, review, and adoption. So move, Mr. Yeah, I would second, Mr. Chair. A motion by Uterman and a second by Lynch to approve the agenda. Any other discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say I. I. Motion passes. Item 1.4, approval of the April 8, 2025 minutes. Move to approve as presented. Mr. Chair, second. I have a motion by Fehee and a second by Anderson to approve the minutes from April 8th. Any discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say I. I. I. Those opposed. Motion passes. Community announcements. If I could, Mr. Chair, I'd like to say that uh 60 years ago, uh be uh sky aware, we had the worst uh event in in the state of M Minnesota history in weather related. We had six tornadoes. Four were F4s. um had major damage in Chanhasson, Wakonia and 13 people lost their lives. It was 60 years old 60 years today and uh an F4 is 200 mph winds had four of those that swept across and there was heavy dam damage across uh the Twin Cities and across Fidley was hit particularly hard. On a happier note on uh May 18th, if you like German food, uh go to St. Peter's Lutheran Church east of Watertown, County Road 24. They have German food, German music, and German beer. And then uh at the same time, uh I know that we're going to have uh um someone has a nice vest on that uh still fits very very well and it's uh safety riding and we're going to have a resolution today, but it's a blessing of the bikes in Watertown and come on out. It's at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church. And if you u want to get your bike blessed, you can come on out and have uh Father Peter and Pastor Dave uh bless your bikes and they're both riders and they'll have their bikes there, too. So, welcome and hopefully see you guys there on uh May 18th. So, with that, Mr. Chair, that's it. It fits very well. I bought it very large years ago. It's fitting better every day. Mr. Mr. Chair, thank you. I would just like to excuse me. Uh, congratulations to Hillary and Leanne Solder. Uh, they've been dancing together for 75 years. They were recently, uh, featured on Fox 9 News and and just great people and congratulations to them. Uh, also, uh, the 2025 Carver County Farm family of the year, uh, Lenny and Rose Hayne. Um, the Rosland Farm. uh they're just located north of Mongards. Uh continue to uh milk and so congratulations to them. Also, last week a few of us participated in the Carver Place Apartments groundbreaking in Carver. Carver Place will offer affordable housing for 43 households. So, thank you to the CDA. Um our healthy communities need all types of housing and housing for everyone. Also, it's uh town ball season. It has started. So, get out and support a local town team. Uh buy a burger, a beverage, enjoy a game of baseball. So, go Black Socks, go Hollanders, go Indians, go Cardinals, go Hawks, and go Dutchman. Thank you, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Commissioner Rman. Mr. Chair, I wanted to call out uh all the moms or people that have played a mom role. Uh Mother's Day is this weekend. I think we got seven softball games. So, people are sacrificing some of their times to be on the fields and most moms. I'm looking at one right there. Um would love to be out there. Wanted to comment on the things that you said. Thanks for coming. It's brave and bold for you to be here. Um hopefully mom and dad and loved ones can see you on TV. That's great. Um but some of the things that you said kind of resonated with me because you represent talent pipeline for me, right? Somebody that's young and I know part of your name is loose and loose in Spanish I think is bright and so it's not um un un unnoticed that you're a bright spot not only within the short time that you've been with us but in the world despite that you're a Badger and all those things and so thank you for for being here. Thank you for taking the time to come up here. Thanks for the staff because I know it takes some time to prepare and do those things and make investments in into our next generation. So um thank you for that. Uh we saw you at the linkage meeting too. So, you got to see um 60 or 70 other organizations that are represented within that 187 individuals at last count. And and when you elevate what's great about our community, it's it's those things. Um and it's not just the people that have been here for a long time in multi-generation. It's people that we welcome from other communities. So, thank you for being here. Ursula Demler. Um I don't know if many people have heard that name. Um but Tom and I had lunch at the Legion last week and we had a chance to see her and her husband. Um, she was a commissioner up here and she lit up like a Christmas tree when she found out there was another female member of our board. And so, uh, I'd never met her before. I didn't know that her husband was a lawmaker. Um, and apparently he was in, uh, was instrumental in the law that more or less if you are 10 miles an hour o or less on on speeding tickets. Sorry guys, I'm looking over at you. I didn't mean to do that. Um, but if you're 10 or less over on your speeding ticket, um, it doesn't count against your insurance. And so, you know, one, it was the learning of all those things. And I asked Ursla, I said, "What was the best thing that you did on the county board?" And uh she said, "I stopped tolls on 212." I didn't even know that there was consideration for tolls on 212. It would have been the only I think the only road in the state. And I guess it was really active at the time. And so you can thank Ursla for us not having toll roads. Um uh Commissioner Fehee talked about one of the groundbreings that we've been to. I had a chance to be there with Commissioner Anderson, myself. I think we've had five ribbon cutings or groundbreings uh in the last couple weeks of which you know all of us have had a part of um either in the planning of it and the vision of it um to be there to cheerlead or whatnot. But some of the quotes that came out of those things and I and I'm not going to quote the source on all of them um but a couple things uh that came out of them that that that stood out for me. One person said what stood taller than the opt ob obstacles was the belief of achieving the goal. Um uh one of the quotes was some topics won't help you win elections, but you got to do the right thing anyway. And then the last one I captured was action over avoidance, risk over responsibility. A risk versus responsibility. So often we see it as someone else's problem. It's not. It's ours. And so those were kind of inspirational quotes that I gathered. Um and I'll just name off a few of those. Groundbreaking yesterday at Prairie Point. Um our very own Heather Goodwin had a chance to be there and present. Um Dr. Scott was there. That's a partnership. um that has had a lot of zigs and zags. So, it was kind of cool to see all the different people that were there to celebrate something that does serve our regional community. Um as Commissioner Fehee said, Carver Place, it wasn't just a ribbon cutting for that one. I think just nine or a few short months ago, we did another ribbon cutting on the same land close to there. And so, historic times led by the CDA and others um for addressing some of the housing challenges that we have. 82nd Street seems like so long ago, but I was out there driving over by Costco and the connection point behind the arburetum. Dirt is being moved. Um lives are being inconvenience, but the overall the greater good will be served. The highway 41 and 10 um uh groundbreaking um and we got a lot of feedback from residents. It's not lost on us. We don't share every little piece, but a lot of people are saying it's a pretty long light. You know, it takes a while to get through there, particularly through the schools. Schools are like, "Hey, we got to get people in out of our schools." I didn't realize, but Mindot has cameras so they can monitor that stuff and they've been monitoring it and looking at the flow of traffic. They extended that light so we see fewer interruptions. So, thank you, Lyndon, to you and your team. Um, uh, a couple more things. Um, and Jod's in the room and maybe you'll talk about it briefly with some of the things going on, but a couple of us had the opportunity to acknowledge and recognized the 10-year anniversary of the library in Victoria. I wasn't around when that launched, um, but it doesn't seem so long ago, just 10 years ago. And part of the speeches were, you know, 20 years ago people envisioned that library and what are we envisioning for the next 20 years. And she'll be able to share some of the big things that we've got going on. And when she talks, she's not going to talk about how much work it took to get there. But you're going to talk about expanded access. So we'll see 150% increase in the number of hours at the Victoria Library for relatively no cost to taxpayers. Those are smart things. Bob Lincoln gets a call out too on the technology side because we've seen record number of youth signups within our our library system. And these are one of those things that when we talk about um taxes and cuts and potential cuts and growth and all the things that our services our community needs, this is a discretionary service and we don't take it lightly that it it's important to our community and we have to invest in that and we have to make sure that people are getting value from it. Couple more things. Um had a chance to bowl at the Ridge View event a couple weeks ago. It's a family-friendly event. Um that's an on-ramp for people that maybe can't throw down a th000 or 2,000 bucks for their golf tournament. Very well attended. had a chance to bump into CEO Michael Phelps and he was talking about the partnership with Alina Health and how they have absorbed a number of things within the community when it comes to mental health and I know we're talking about that a little bit later today but just to elevate those partnerships and the personalities. Dr. Scott, I'm looking at you. You said through COVID the worst time to exchange business cards is in a crisis and so those thousands of relationships that collectively this board has out in the community helps move these things along. And then finally, I'm just going to rattle off a few things I had the opportunity to be invited to and participate. I know a number of our commissioners were very active in these. The Cinco de Mayo celebration sponsored by the Rotary Club. Christmas in May sponsored by the city of Chask and other partners. The park run down by the courthouse. Um informal donuts after church and then the love inc banquet. So thank you. Thank you, Commissioner Anderson. All right. Um so thank you to so many of you who mentioned um this has been a very very busy season. Um, I do want to thank the my fellow commissioners who were at the Cinco deio event um last Thursday. I had an opportunity to honor two very active um Latino leaders and and that was such an such an honor. Um also had an opportunity to uh kick off, I guess, the the library staff meeting at last Friday. That was so wonderful. So much energy in the room. Um, and there's a super secret entrance, library entrance that I found, but now it's not so secret. So, sorry, Jody, but she um that was great. And, um, also, um, Steve Curtis is in the room, was able to attend the first the third, second or third, the third annual first responders lunchon that the chamber uh, um, hosts. That was a great event. Um, somehow I didn't get to sit at the cool kids table with the other sher with the sheriff's department. Um, I I guess I'm going to have to to work on that ne next time. So, um, and you know, a lot of conversations around budget. I know that that we talked about that and and that's very much on the minds of not just our staff members but our community and and um I'm glad those conversations are happening happening and we're being transparent about it. So that's all I got. Thank you very much. Uh it is Mother's Day and I have a little bit of a tradition. Uh, I retell a story that uh I'm looks like I'm looking around the room. Maybe only one person might not remember who Paul Harvey was on the radio. Here we go. Uh, but I was in the legislature. Maybe I wasn't in the legislature just yet, but anyway, my good friend uh Dave Greenus from St. Cloud Representative Greenus had the bill that since Mother's Day kept falling on opening fishing weekend, had the bill to, uh, let moms fish free on that weekend. And so, uh, I know a lot of you might remember the name Dong. Dong was the speaker for a short while when I first got down to St. Paul, but the bill was on the House floor and Representative Long stood and asked Representative Greenus a question. How will we know if those moms aren't lying that they're moms? And Representative Green has said moms don't lie. The bill passed. You can fish for free if you're a mom and don't lie about it. So there you go. We can wait till next year to hear that again. All right. The consent agenda. So move I move to approve the consent agenda. Second, Mr. Chair. I have a motion by Anderson and a second by Commissioner Lynch. And I want to just say a couple of things. 2.2, we're reappointing our county engineer. We decided not to go with toll roads. We decided to go with Lynden Robin. And that was a good thing. So glad you're staying on. We're going to make you stay on. Uh I thought I had one more thing on there, but that's on there. I didn't want to uh let that slip. Uh yeah, that's it. Okay. So, I have a motion and a second. No more discussion. And all those in favor say I. I. Those opposed. Motion passes. All right. Item 3.1, resolution to proclaim May 2025 as National Mental Health Awareness Month. Commissioner, Chair Workman, Commissioners, staff, those in the audience, and those listening online, and those who might be listening after on the recording. Uh, thank you for this opportunity to be with you. I'm here today to request the Carver County Board of Commissioners um to approve the resolution proclaiming the month of May 2025 as National Mental Health Awareness Month. Before I ask the commissioner to read the proclamation, I'd just like to give it just a brief background if I may. Mental Health Awareness Month first was established in 1949 and takes place nationally every year in May. It is a time to come together as a community to raise awareness, support people living with mental illness and their families and foster uh well-being. This year's theme is safety, highlighting the importance of creating safe spaces for open conversations, support, and recovery. Carver County has a strong commitment to providing both behavioral and mental health services to those in need. This includes, and there's a long list, outpatient therapy, school-l mental health, Anika adolescent day treatment, our mobile crisis response team, adult mental health case management and computer and community support program, children's mental health case management, substance abuse assessment and referral services, and coordination of mental health services with the Carver County Corrections and the Sheriff's Office. We are proud to work uh with many of our dedicated employees performing every day to make Carver County a healthy place to live, learn, work, and play. So with that, I would surely be honored if um the commissioner board chair would be willing to read the proclamation. And I will do that. Whereas mental health impacts the health and well-being of our children, families, schools, businesses, and communities. And whereas the changing socioeconomic conditions may exacerbate the stress, trauma, anxiety, depression, and suicide ideiation across our communities, making mental health awareness and provision of services more important now than ever. And whereas one in five adults and one in six young persons between the ages of 6 to 17 years experiences a mental health illness in any given year. And whereas suicide is a second leading cause of death among children ages 10 to 14 in the US, the 11th leading cause of death across the nation, and a higher percentage of older adults 65 old and older commit suicide more often than any other age group. Whereas it is critical to increase the awareness and knowledge of mental health programs and how to get help when it is needed. Whereas early identification and treatment are vital to the prevention of suicide and successful management of mental health problems and recovery. And whereas every citizen and community can make a difference in helping end the silence and stigma that surrounds mental illness and discourages people from getting help. And whereas public education and civic activities can encourage mental wellness and help improve the lives of individuals and families affected by mental illness. Therefore, be it resolved that we, the Carver County Board of Commissioners, do hereby acknowledge the month of May, 2025 as mental health month in Carver County in honor of the dedicated professionals who work to create a safer and healthier community in Carver County. Good words. And then before you make a motion and and hope hopefully approve it, if I just may quickly do another comment, Commissioner Udman, I know you often quote me, so I thought maybe I'd share another quote, please. I'm not the originator of these quotes. Of course, this one's by John Maxwell. It's probably one of my favorite quotes, and I think it pertains to the work that we're doing. John Maxwell says, "When you have hope in the future, you have power in the present." And I think by having proclamation of mental health awareness month, we're letting our community know that we care about that issue, that there's hope for a better future for them. And with that hope, hopefully they'll have the power and the dedication, the bravery to step out and reach for that support to help them have a better life. So, thank you, Mr. Chair. I move approval for the um proclamation. Second. All right. I have a motion by Commissioner Udman, a second by Commissioner Anderson. Any other discussion on that, Mr. Mr. Chair, if I may, um we were at a ribbon cutting yesterday and one of the pastors came forward and he was talking about, you know, some of the things we do seem so minimal and and this seems so minimal compared to the body of work that maybe most people that are watching don't get to see. Um when we had our health assessment recently and you presented that we recognized many years ago that one of the biggest gaps is the social connections within our community that's very very much changing and your team said didn't just look at it and put it on a shelf. You said, "Let's create this thing called communities of belonging." And you didn't take it on yourself. You took it into, you know, the big communities and the smaller communities, and you brought people together. Just as one example, I've asked for a robust mental health plan, and I've seen many elements of the those robust plans that we don't often see as a community, but but when I ask the question, who does it best? Um, we don't do it perfect, but we do it best for a couple reasons. One, we connect relationally, and then two, we move upstream. We don't wait for the all the challenges downstream. And so I want to applaud you and your team and the people that work um the informal interactions and then all the people in the community too. So thanks for taking this little small token effect. Um it means so much for the the body of work that you and your team are doing. Thanks. Thank you. Okay. Victoria Library Extended Access Vendor. This is this is the exciting stuff we are waiting for. Indeed. Good morning, Mr. Board Chair. Good morning, commissioners. Thank you for the opportunity to be here and share with you uh a the plan that we have to implement extended hours access at Victoria Library. And as Commissioner Udman noted, we celebrated and Commissioner Anderson was there as well. We celebrated 10 years of Victoria on Saturday. And as I mentioned to the folks that were there that day, as much as we were celebrating the history that we've seen in these last 10 years, we're also looking forward to the future of not only Victoria, but our library system as a whole. And I think this is a piece that's really going to carry us forward to um to the future. So, I'm going to give you a brief overview of what this looks like. Uh what is extended access? If you don't know what that indicates, uh it's a service model, an added service model that allows adult patrons to use the library during select non-staffed hours. So, adult patrons can come in, they can have access to the collection, they can browse the collection, pick up their holds, use selfch checkckouts, have access to all of the technology, um, public PCs, Wi-Fi, printing, faxing, and scanning, as well as have access to quiet study spaces. So, how does it work? eligible users, library card holders ages 18 and up, complete an application and then they read and sign a user agreement which includes our library's conduct policy and then they attend a short orientation with staff to learn how this system works. Once approved, their library card number and PIN number will give them access through a secured entry panel at the entrance of the library. And because of the way city hall at Victoria and the library is situated, we'll actually have two entry panels to work seamlessly depending upon the hours of city hall and then the hours of the library. Security of course is a top concern and we want to make sure to keep our patrons and our staff safe. So we are uh installing a security system with uh security cameras and a video server manager. Um we've brought awareness to the sheriff's department, but we'll continue to have those conversations. Obviously, um there is happens to be a small sheriff's office right on site there, which we know is not staffed all of the time, but that is a really great um opportunity to have adjacent to the space there. Um patrons can also report any non-emergency issues through an online form, through QR codes. They could potentially say if they're there on a Sunday afternoon, they could call the Chanhassin Library for assistance. No one's going to come over from Chanhassen to assist them, but it's just another option um to connect patrons. Um and we do have full support from the city of Victoria and partnership. They're really excited about this. So, why Victoria and why Carver County for extended access? Uh well, we selected Victoria. It's a newer building um and a smaller footprint. So, great great testing ground. Um we don't have to do a lot of retrofitting or changes to the actual physical space. It's a nice central location so other uh communities can easily access it. Um we've also seen a need through our express library at the rec center. Um we're seeing a need for uh library services outside of our traditional staffed hours. Um and then Victoria's always had some gaps in ours compared to some of our larger branches. And so this provides that access. I can tell you because I was there when we opened. I was on the original team that opened Victoria. from the beginning. We'd be sitting before we opened all morning and people would be yanking on that door wanting to come in. So, that's a really exciting piece to be able to connect with this service model. And then this also aligns us with other metro area libraries. Uh we look to our neighbors in Scott County. They've been hugely successful with this service model in several of their branches. And we've we've already had a lot of conversations, a lot of tours to really learn um and walk alongside our our metro neighbors. So, our proposed hours for this service would be essentially every day of the week, Monday through Sunday, 7:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. It would be a combination with our regular hours. It would be available during holidays as well. And so total library access would increase from where we are currently at 40 hours to 105 hours per week of access which is pretty incredible. The vendor that we've selected and recommend for this project is Bibliotecha. They have a product called Open Plus which is encompassing of the hardware, the software, the support and maintenance. Um they're really a global leader uh in this area in libraries. As you can see, they've had over well over 800 installations worldwide, 70 installations in North America, several of which are in Scott County. So, we know that it's been very successful. Um it they are a local vendor. They have a brand new local warehouse in Lake Elmo. So, we know that the products are available and the support is there as well. Thanks to the Charles J. Dulky grant program which you all approved um this project last November. We are able to fund this project for the next three years. Um and as you can see with the breakdown the year one obviously is a little higher because you have the initial hardware components and training and installation and then years two and three are support and maintenance essentially. So next steps pending approval today. We would continue to move forward with our implementation plan and we would aim to launch uh in early September with this additional service. So our recommendation is for a motion to approve a professional service agreement with Bibliotecha for a three-year agreement for software, hardware support, and maintenance. But of course, I would welcome any questions or comments and I'll do my best to answer those today. be happy to move it for discussion. And okay, got a motion by Commissioner Udman. Second, and a second by Commissioner Anderson, our library powerhouse commissioners. I uh want to apologize for not being there on Saturday. I uh I think I said in your my email uh 10 years ago when we kicked off that library, I didn't have any grandkids and now I have six. And uh I wasn't going to miss uh an event for uh for one of them over in Stillwater. So, but uh sorry I missed the party. So I think it was a nice day. Any comments? Well, Mr. Chair, I this is a passion for me, too. I think when I first came in, I was like, man, we only open so many hours in our libraries and based on staffing models and flow patterns and all the other stuff, we're only open so many hours. And I know that there's been a lot of time that's spent researching this, a lot of time that's researched um fears, concerns, and addressing those things. Um I also think that it's fantastic to elevate um Mr. Dulkkey and his relationship with your predecessor, um Heidi Hawk. Uh he donated close to a million dollars. That's more or less an annuity to plug into some things that we can test and trial that might not fit nicely within the community budget. So for the first three years, um we have a great runway to test this out and see if it works and when it works. Um there will be a cost to us in year four. We'll have to absorb that. So we're buying tales on this. Um it's minimal uh given the impact. I also think that um if you elevate moments like this where you can serve your general population, your stakeholders, your voters, and you can serve your internal customer, which may or may not be residents, um but our staff. Um, it's not lost on me that that sometimes when we've had these conversations, staff thinks, man, we're going to just use this technology to eliminate people. That's not the goal at all. In fact, some communities have actually seen that their demand on those staff is not only elevated in the quality of their staff um and what they're being asked to do, but in the number of hours. And so, that's a risk, if you will, when you look in the future that this actually may um mean more for staff. I also think that, you know, in our community, we're very affluent um by and large, but there's some families that don't go on vacations on MEA and and whatnot. And it breaks my heart sometimes to think that sometimes our staffing model is such on those key dates. There isn't a place, and this is this is hopeful. This is um this is looking at that and we'll get more data for that in the next three years. I also think with budgetary cuts, it makes prudent sense for us to consider um researching and accelerating, potentially accelerating in Chanhast and Wakonia. And then of course we've done this um so that we can get that data before um the proposed Chaz library launches um so that it can be embedded within that buildout. And so thank you for your leadership on this. Thank you for your staff. Thanks to Bob Lincoln. I'll continue to say his name. It's a lot of work to get this off the ground. Fully support it. Thanks for doing it. Thank you. I would also like to thank you and your leadership on this. Um I actually met Bob Lincoln door knockocking. He was very kind to me. gave me a water. Um, and had this conversation pretty early. Um, so I I appreciate your vision and his vision. Um, because it's going to change the way people look at libraries and and that's what's what's beautiful. when we met I uh when early on in your tenure um or early on when when you took over I I asked you what your vision was and you wanted libraries to be a community uh a a community gather gathering space and this really accelerates that vision and um I know the all the a word automation is a scary word for some um but it for in this case it's going to mean more access and and that's really what we're looking at. So, um, congratulations on this. Congratulations on the 10th anniversary of Victoria and on just the the work you're doing and the community gathering places that you've created. This is a great next step. Thank you, Commissioner Fehey. Yeah, Mr. Chair. Thank you, Jody. Good to see you again and thank you for everything that you and your staff do. And as we talk about the Victoria Library, it being a newer building and this the smaller footprint and obviously the need is there and something that hopefully you're thinking about what's going to be next because of the older Wakonia Library and the older Chan Library and the cost then that's going to be done um for those retrofits. Just a question I had for you is it's a three-year contract. Is there any way to get out of the contract if something happens in year one if if we have a problem or a concern? Um, that's a good question. I'll have to if I can get back to you on that with an firm answer. Um, absolutely. So, because hopefully it all goes well, but if if just something happens. Absolutely. maybe speak with that lady after the I would appreciate it. Sure. No problem. Commissioner and if I could um again, Jody, thank you for your leadership on this. Um I'm glad we're following uh Scott County because I think they probably went through a lot of different issues that we're going to come up with. I thought that was an excellent question. Uh my my question is about security and I'm glad we're having cameras security. If uh for instance, Commissioner Workman comes in at 9:00 p.m. to grab a quick book and then he sees somebody and has a conversation and it turns to his grandchildren all of a sudden pictures come out and then he runs past 10:00. What's the procedure for that? Be careful. That's a very high likelihood. There is a there's a a PA system. So um say at a/4 to 10 announcements will start to commence. Um there isn't an alarm system. Um uh but there would be um if someone the system I believe senses that there's still activity in the building then there may be a call that's that goes to not Bob but our branch manager or myself likely that there's still someone there past um past those hours. Wonderful. I'm glad that's addressed. Thank you. You know, more likely Commissioner Lynch would uh, you know, get together with his grandchildren and wonder, gosh, I could use a bigger room to maybe have a little party. Couldn't Couldn't a couldn't a group of people go in and go, hey, why don't we all meet at the library? Well, that's been a concern that we've addressed. So, essentially, that's um one adult needs to enter at a time. Um, I mean it's not to say there's not a capacity I mean there is a capacity limit per fire code, but um that's a question we we'll have to address with the vendor like if it only allows so many people in at once. But we're not supposed to as part of the user agreement. Um folks agree to not have extra folks coming in with them, not to invite their whole neighborhood along with them. Um, and obviously with video surveillance that would be that would be essentially captured. So, good questions, good concerns. What we're hearing from the other systems that have implemented this, they really haven't had issues other than someone fell asleep past, you know, past the open hours. That was an issue that's been addressed. Um but yeah, I mean so far I mean there's always there's always room for for challenges and we know that and we'll do our best to keep keep you know be proactive about how do we address each of these questions? Chair Workman, as a followup to that question is, but can two people or three people who have access to the library come in after hours and and have a meeting or meet or for whatever reason? If they all have access, if they all have access, then it does be then then it does become another um potential meeting place for for people for a variety of reasons, right? if they have all if they all have access and have been opted in and accepted into the system. Yep. Because there's a lot of restaurants that are closed on Monday and Tuesday. Um I found out the hard way. So So that that could be another benefit. Um as long as we don't let these two gentlemen in because they they can go on and on. Yeah. And plus we'd have to pass a background check which would be hard, right? All right. Well, thank you, Charles J. Dulki, folks, for uh for this opportunity. But we have a motion to approve a professional service agreement with Bibliotecha for a three-year agreement for software, hardware, support, and maintenance. And I think we have that motion on the floor. Do I hear any other discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor say I. I. Those opposed? Motion passes. Thank you very much. Thank you. I'll be at the 20 year celebration. Excellent. Inventory. Thank you. Okay. Item number 3.3, motorcycle awareness month in Carver County. This is uh something of And I don't know if Frank, you're going to come up or somebody's going to come up, maybe say a couple of words. Um, this is something that uh that uh I was a little bit involved in at the state and we usually got the uh the governor to sign a proclamation and what better than the county board to sign and I think they've uh the motorcycle groups have fanned out and asked counties to do it. But uh this is motorcycle safety month. You might have noticed a lot of motorcycles out there. This is Frank Ernst who is a good friend and a Chanhasson resident uh who probably uh helped in about 1992 unleash the motorc person in me and we've had a lot of fun fights together on behalf of motorcyclist at the state capital and I then was able to purchase a couple of motorcycles and I actually crashed one in front of Frank and uh he's still doing this. Um, uh, in his part-time, he trains can do canines. Do you still not? I'm still doing that a little bit. I'm waiting to recover from another small injury before I get another program, Doug. And you fall in love with each of the pups. I know that. So, commissioners, chairman, uh, the group with me, myself, and I'm sure several others in the room represent the motorcycle riding community. Um, and if I could, I would like to have you read the resolution. I would like to make a couple comments after the resolution is read, please. Okay, let's do that. I'm sure I have it here. There you go. Whereas motorcycles provide fuel efficient transportation for commuting, touring, and relaxation. And whereas motorcycles relieve congestion and reduce wear on our roadways. And whereas increased awareness of motorcyclists by motorists can reduce the number of crashes on our roadways. And whereas observance of motorcycleycling awareness month calls attention to the promotion of safe motorcycle operation, motorcycle rider training, and improved motorcycle licensing efforts. Therefore, be it resolved that the Carver County Board of Commissioner proclaims the month of May 2025 as motorcycle awareness month. Commissioner, Mr. Chairman, um this is particularly important this year, as some of you may be aware, uh last year the legislature passed a law that will allow motorcyclist to lane split and and lane filter. Um, unfortunately, as is often the case with new laws passed, we don't do a very good job of publicizing it. So, a lot of people may not be aware of it. Um, so I I see it as potentially a problem. There are efforts right now in the legislature to derail this, but I don't think that's going to happen. So, I think lane splitting will take effect July 1st of this year. And what that will allow is motorcyclists to ride between and through lanes of traffic. The important part of this is that they cannot exceed a maximum speed of 25 miles an hour. But that's going to take many people by surprise. There's probably many people here in this room that weren't even aware of the fact that this law is pending. Um so so this this resolution is particularly important because with the new laws allowing the profiling and filtering um awareness is going to be really really critical. So thank you. Thank you Frank. Thanks to the bikers in the room and we do need a motion. I'll make a I'll make the motion to approve the resolution. I would second it, sir. So I got a motion by Workman and a second by Lynch to approve the motorcycle awareness month resolution. Any other discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor say I. I. Those opposed? Motion passes. Thank you very much. Thanks for coming out. Yep. Be safe out there. I know some of those guy. I know all those guys. Thanks for Thanks for being here. Making the room. All right. We are at the county administrator report. No report, Mr. Chair. No report, sir. [Music] Uh, do I have the script for the closed session? Is it closed or I do or is it just work session? Okay, I'm going to read closed. Mr. Chair, make the motion. Oh, there's a close session. We go into closed session. Okay, we uh motion by Lynch. Second by Udman. It's a motion to enter into close session pursuant to Minnesota statute section 13D.05 subdivision 3B and 3C to discuss attorney client privileged confidential settlement negotiations related to property ID number 04.00900. See, I said zero and not all. Any discussion? Seeing nothing. None. All those in favor say I. I. Those opposed. Motion passes. We are in close session. Can we take a five minute? And we'll take a fivem minute break. See you. Jump.