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MDID Livability Team Talks About Its Approach Downtown

09/13/2016, 1:30pm CDT
By Joseph Desenclos

The MDID Livability Team helps connect those in need with the proper resources.


The MDID Livability Team includes (from left) Joseph Desenclos, Christian Huelsman and Liz Conley

During a mid-summer heatwave in Downtown Minneapolis, a woman laid on the pavement along Nicollet Mall amid zig-zagging pedestrian traffic and construction barriers. Her clothes covered in stains of homelessness, she was in need of help.

Within minutes, the Minneapolis Downtown Improvement District’s (MDID) Livability Team received a call from the MDID Fusion Center through a concerned community member who said the woman “looked like she was in need of social services and possibly intoxicated.” When the Livability Team arrived, they engaged with the woman who was experiencing homelessness and was under the influence of alcohol.

The Livability Team was able to assess her immediate condition and coordinate with St. Stephen’s Street Outreach Team to have her transported to the hospital for additional medical observation.

“Why do you always show up when I need you most?” she asked.

How is it that we can show up when an individual is most in need? It is with the help of people like you. Currently, the MDID Livability Team consists of three staff members who cover the MDID’s 120 blocks. Our work could not be accomplished without the help of concerned community members who assist us by calling the MDID Fusion Center to dispatch and direct our services.

The MDID Livability Team includes Joseph Desenclos, Christian Huelsman and Liz Conley.

Every quarter, the Minneapolis/Hennepin County Office to End Homelessness, St. Stephen’s Human Services, and numerous social service partners conducts a point-in-time survey to assess the number of individuals who are considered unsheltered. On July 27, Hennepin County had 399 unsheltered individuals. As of August 30, Minneapolis/Hennepin County Office to End Homelessness reported that 1,083 single adults and 498 children were accessing the emergency shelter system in Minneapolis.

Currently the Minneapolis/Hennepin County Office to End Homelessness and numerous social services partners are actively developing the Coordinated Entry System to assess anyone that enters into the emergency homeless social service system. The goal is to insure that a person’s homelessness is brief and non-reoccurring. Additionally, the county is in the process of restructuring the emergency shelter system in Hennepin County to provide designated shelter services to meet the diversity of the homeless population to further assist in reducing the amount of time people remain in shelter.

In the meantime, I would like to ask for your assistance in connecting with individuals experiencing homelessness in Minneapolis. You can be a part of our team’s effort in changing lives for our residents that are most in need by contacting the MDID Fusion Center at (612) 332-1111

Located within the Minneapolis Police Department’s 1st Precinct, the MDID Fusion Center serves as the information hub of the Minneapolis Downtown Improvement District. Dispatch Ambassadors staff the Fusion Center 365 days a year to respond to pedestrian request of Ambassadors on the streets, track weather and emergency alerts, communicate with outreach services for people in need, monitor public area cameras and serves as the central point on the RadioLink system.

Thank you for your help in this important effort as we continue to help those in need throughout our community.

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