3.9. SR 07-12-2010 - Laserfiche WebLink

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REQUEST FOR ACTION TO ITEM NUMBER Ci Council 3.9. AGENDA SECTION MEETING DATE PREPARED BY Consent July 12, 2010 Nicki Blake-Bradley, Environmental Technician ITEM DESCRIPTION REVIEWED BY Letter of Support for Two Minnesota GreenCorps Members Rebecca Haug, Environmental Administrator REVIEWED BY Lori ohnson, Ci Administrator ACTION REQUESTED Staff requests the City Council approve the Letter of Support for two MN GreenCorps members. BACKGROUND/DISCUSSION Minnesota GreenCorps is a statewide initiative to help preserve and protect Minnesota's environment while training a new generation of environmental professionals. Minnesota GreenCorps is coordinated by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and started in September 2009. It was initiated in response to a variety of statewide needs aiming to: • Respond to higher energy costs by local governments ^ Assist community members to take eco-friendly actions ^ Reduce greenhouse gases and other air pollutants ^ Transition to a green economy ^ Train new environmental professionals Minnesota GreenCorps is a statewide program that is designed to include members supported and deployed by the MPCA. Eligible host sites include local governments, school districts, educational institutions, and nonprofit organizations. For-profit entities are not eligible to serve as host sites. Placement will be from September 2010 through July 2011. Typically, teams of two Minnesota GreenCorps members will be placed at a host site. Members will carry out one or two specific projects. This program is funded through a grant from the Corporation for National and Community Service as well as through ServeMinnesota. For the past couple of years, staff has indicated a desire for an Energy City Coordinator position. When this opportunity arose, this seemed to be a perfect fit for the work that the Coordinator position would have been responsible for. Also, with the City's new organics program starting and a business recycling program being in the infancy stages, this again seemed like a perfect opportunity. So staff filled out the attached application requesting two members to assist in Energy City initiatives and in the City's recycling programs. The member assigned to Energy City initiatives will also be working with the Elk River Municipal Utilities on the Project Conserve Phase II. One of the requirements is a Letter of Support from the City indicating its commitment. C:\Documents and Settings\XPMUser\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\OLK66\MN GreenCorps - RCA.doc