4.0. SR 06-07-2004 - Laserfiche WebLink

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Visit us on the web at www.erstarnews.com · Wednesday, May 26, 2004/Star News / 7 SHERBURNE COUNTY JUNE 3 ~ ~ER~ ~2:40, 2:~0, 4:5~ 7:35 ~:25, 4:25, 7:05, 9:05 6:50, 7:25, 9:i5, 9:55 i2:35, 2:40, 4:40 ~:OO, 5:0~, 7:20, 9:35 ~2:55, 4:35, 7:30 ;:50, 4:20, 5:10, 6:30, Z:lO, 7:5~, 9:10,9:~0 t:20, 4:15, 6:55, 9:20 l:45, 7:~, 7:40, 9:00 1:~,1:45,2:15,2:45, ]'30, 9:00, 9:30, content?' 30 an~ 5:30, ~als seniors ate ,flio[s are $3.50. re $3.50. !1 Arne Engstrom will carry message to WashinDton: Support clinic for veterans th le~enda ry a~d swirled d hew splR$ by Joni Astrup Associate editor Sherburne County plans to lobby 'politicians in Washing[on to bring an ontpatient clinic for veter- ans to Elk River. Commissioner Arne Engstrom of Elk River intends to present letters from the county to some members of Minnesota's congressional delegation when he's in Washington, D.C., next month on other business. The city of Elk River will also be asked to write a letter in support of the clinic to be given to law- makers. "As long as I'm there, I think it would mean a lot coining from our county, comin§ from a commission- er right in Washington. I Engstrom think they would remem- ber that," Engstrom told the county board last week. The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced earlier this month that Elk River has been chosen as the site for an outpatient clinic for vet- erans. The clinic must be approved by Congress. Sherburne County Veterans Service Officer Launette LaBrie said the announcement of the clinic is fabulous news. "We're really excited about that," she told the county board last week. She said the recommenda- tion of Elk River as a clinic site came as a result of a national Capital Asset Realignment for Enhanced Services (CARES) initia- tive. CARES was developed to re-evaluate VA assets and identify gaps in services. It identified where the veteran population is located and whether there are VA facili- ties in those areas to sup- port the veterans, she said. Then decisions could be made to build additional clinics, expand services and close some facilities. She said Elk River was selected as a possible site for a community-based clinic due to an increase in the number of veterans in the area. There are eight such clin- ics now in Minnesota. Five more are proposed, includ- ing the one in Elk River. LaBrie said she will assess the impact a clinic in Elk River will have on the vet- erans smwice office. She said the clinic would draw veterans not just from Sherburne County, but from surrounding counties such as Anoka, Wright and Mille Lacs. The Elk River clinic and other recommendations in the CARES plan reqnire congressional approval. The next step is to seek approval from Congress this fall. That would be followed by a clinic site selection process. LaBrie anticipates the clinic opening in fiscal yea[' 2007, which lneans it could open as early as October 2006. Sherburne County Attorney Kathy Heaney wondered what the county could do to facilitate the process, such as helping find a clinic site. LaBrie said comnmnities where the outpatient clinics were built in the past were heavily involved in helping with the land procurement process. "I think it's advantageous for us to explore that," LaBrie said.