North news briefs: Youth homeless shelter opening

The public is invited to an open house from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 31, at a new 12-bed shelter and transitional housing program for homeless youth. Brooklyn Avenues, at 7210 76th Av. N, Brooklyn Park, is the first youth homeless shelter in the Twin Cities suburbs. The open house will come a day after a grand opening ceremony featuring various speakers. The shelter will begin operating in early February and will serve homeless people ages 16 to 20 from the northwest suburbs.

Brooklyn Avenues was built by the city of Brooklyn Park but is the result of collaboration among numerous participants. It is being leased for $1 a year to Avenues for Homeless Youth, which will operate the shelter.

Rhonda Sivarajah, chairwoman of the Anoka County Board since 2011, was re-elected to that position for 2015. She has been a member of the board since 2003. Sivarajah also will chair the county's Airport and Human Services committees.

Here are other committee chairmanships that were decided at the seven-member board's recent organizational meeting:

• Matt Look: Anoka County Regional Railroad Authority; Finance and Capital Improvements Committee. Look also was elected vice chairman of the board.

• Robyn West: Management Committee; Information Technology Committee; Benefits and Compensation Committee.

• Scott Schulte: Transportation Committee.

• Jim Kordiak: Parks and Community Services Committee; Waste Management and Energy Committee; Internal Audit Committee; Property Records and Taxation Committee; Fairgrounds Advisory Committee.

• Julie Braastad: Intergovernmental Relations Committee; Public Safety Committee.

Snowshoeing, ice fishing and cross-county skiing are just a few of the activities on the docket for Snow Day this Saturday at the Wargo Nature Center. The 15th annual event is free and will take place from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Nature Center, 7701 Main St., Lino Lakes.

Snow Day is presented by Anoka County Parks and Recreation along with Lino Lakes and Blaine Parks and Recreation.

The New Hope City Council voted this month to take part in the Minnesota GreenStep Cities program, a voluntary public-private partnership designed to help cities achieve sustainability goals. The program is free and provides best practices information in five categories: building and lighting, transportation, land use, environmental management and economic and community development.

Seventy-seven cities participate and partners include the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency, the League of Minnesota Cities, Clean Energy Resource Teams, the Minnesota Department of Commerce and others.

New Hope says it has already taken steps toward sustainability, including energy improvements at the city ice arena and other city buildings, a rain garden at the golf course and starting the farmers market and community garden, and others.

Hennepin County's Human Services and Public Health department is seeking volunteers to serve as greeters at its northwest suburban human services center in Brooklyn Center.

The greeters will welcome and guide visitors, answer questions and help with special projects. The county is looking for people who can commit to two four-hour shifts each workweek, in the morning or afternoon, for at least three months.

Candidates must be 18 years old or older and be good communicators and team players.They should also be reliable self-starters who are respectful of client confidentiality and should enjoy working with diverse populations. Bilingual skills are a plus, the county says.

Interested candidates should call 612-348-4749 or contact rosemary.carpenter@hennepin.us.

The interpretive center at the Springbrook Nature Center in Fridley will undergo a major expansion and renovation, and the city has scheduled an open house on the project for Monday, Feb. 2. The event will take place from 5:30-7 p.m. at the Nature Center, 100 85th Av. NE. The city's Parks and Recreation Commission will meet at the center after the open house, and architects will make a presentation.

The cost of the Springbrook project is estimated at $7.6 million. Fridley received $5 million in state bonding money last year, and the rest will come from fundraising efforts.

Plans call for tripling the size of the interpretive building. Green technology, including solar cells on the roof and the use of geothermal energy, will be part of the renovation. For further information, go to www.ci.fridley.mn.us

The Robbinsdale Police Department will hold a crime prevention association meeting Feb. 4.

It will take place at 7 p.m. at the police department, 4101 Hubbard Ave. N., in the second floor meeting room. The focus of the meeting will be on confronting illegal drug activity in the community, with a presentation by the Northwest Metro Drug Task Force.

Robbinsdale Area Schools will hold a number of meetings for parents whose children will be entering kindergarten in the fall:

• Districtwide kindergarten information and registration nights will take place at 6 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 19, at all neighborhood elementary schools.

• The Robbinsdale Spanish Immersion School will host a kindergarten information night at 6 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 29, at the school, 8808 Medicine Lake Road, New Hope.

The district notes that the 2015-16 school year will be the second for statewide all-day kindergarten. It also points out that the lottery for the district's magnet schools closes at 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27. Families of incoming kindergartners can get the magnet school application online at https://magnetlottery.rdale.org. In addition, paper copies of the applications will be available at all schools and at the Education Service Center, 4148 Winnetka Av. N., New Hope.

More information is available at rdale.org, under "Enrollment Center."

staff reports