2010-08-18_Agenda - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

Roseville Human Rights Commission DRAFT Minutes -June 8, 2010 Page 2 of 5 46 Kennedy said she is involved with many meetings with the Karen community and this was one 47 of the most powerful presentations that she had participated it. 48 49 Commissioner Grefenberg moved and Commissioner Kennedy seconded motion to accept the 50 committee report. Motion prevailed unanimously. 51 52 3b. Program Planners Subcommittee 53 54 Commissioner Grefenberg reported that the subcommittee had not met, but they continue to 55 research what other cities are doing to build civic engagement. Commissioner Grefenberg said he 56 met with City Manager Bill Malinen to let him know what they are working on. 57 58 Commissioner Kennedy moved and Commissioner Jaeger seconded motion to accept the 59 committee report. Motion prevailed unanimously. 60 61 3c. Data Geeks Subcommittee 62 63 The subcommittee had not met, but Commissioner Kennedy reported that the school has been 64 working with census workers to identify Karen families and overcome language barriers to 65 ensure that census forms are completed. 66 67 Commissioner Grefenberg said he watched a recent School Board meeting and learned that the 68 minority population in the schools is much higher than the general population of cities within the 69 Roseville Area School Districts. 70 71 Commissioners discussed the impact of Karen refugees moving to the area and whether enough 72 was being done to prepare for the influx. Commissioner Kennedy explained that Minnesota, as a 73 state, attracts many refugees through the refugee work of Catholic Charities, Lutheran Social 74 Services, World Relief and other organizations. She said the number Karen and Bhutanese 75 settlers will soon oL~.tnumber the Hmong and Somali who settled in Minnesota. She also noted 76 that many leaders in the Karen community make Minnesota their home and that draws people to 77 the state. 78 79 Commissioners talked at length about housing, whether it was affordable and available and 80 whether it meets code regulations. Commissioner Kennedy said the Roseville Housing and 81 Redevelopment Authority (RHRA) has been working on this issue, but finding adequate housing 82 is one of the biggest problems refugees face. 83 84 Commissioners noted that cuts to the federal housing funding add to the housing pressures. They 85 also noted that Roseville's schools and neighborhoods are welcoming and because of the city's 86 demographic shifts, homes are becoming available as seniors move on to housing to meet their 87 changing needs. 88 89 Commissioner Grefenberg moved and Commissioner Jaeger seconded motion to accept the 90 subcommittee report. Motion prevailed unanimously.