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OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD

Record of Proceedings

Ramsey County Board Workshop: Homelessness Response, Roles, and What's Next – September 22, 2026

Board of Commissioners & Authorities — Tuesday, September 22, 2026

BodyRamsey County, Minnesota

SessionBoard of Commissioners & Authorities

DateTuesday, September 22, 2026

StatusFILED

Video Record

0:00 / 1:27:22

Transcript — VerbatimClick a timed line to jump · ⧉ to share it

0:00

This morning.

0:02

Good morning, everyone.

0:04

We want to get started on this morning workshop.

0:06

I want to thank you all for being here.

0:09

I'm excited about this presentation.

0:11

And I hope everyone here is as excited as I am and relieved here.

0:17

I think this day a little bit more informed around the housing stability within Ramsey County.

0:24

So I just want to welcome you to Ramsey County Board Workshop.

0:28

Today workshop topic is understanding the homelessness response, our roles and what's next.

0:37

First of your mind that this board workshop is live streamed and recorded.

0:41

There will be no votes taken during this workshop.

0:45

And so before we do our introduction, I want to apologize to everyone from there.

0:50

I hope a news news conflict and feel like a huge responsibility is going to call me away early from the morning workshop.

1:00

So I would depart this morning at around 11:20.

1:06

And I will return for the afternoon workshop.

1:10

And so but I do not apologize.

1:19

I feel like there's a lot that I'm I have learnt that I'm still learning and still need to learn.

1:25

And so this is not the in all of you know when I leave here early today, right?

1:30

But I'm hoping my colleagues here will be uh just as informed around as part as I am.

1:38

So with that, um list dog of introductions of commissioners and presenters around the table, and then the rest of the rooms.

1:47

Good morning.

1:48

Breen Moran, Ramsey County Commissioner, District Four.

1:51

Good morning, Mary Joe McGuire, Commissioner District 2.

1:55

Target Evans, Commissioner District One.

1:57

My Changshan, Commissioner District 6.

2:02

Kelly Miller, Commissioner District 7.

2:04

Denise Schmeyer, Deputy Director of Housing Stability.

2:07

Jamie Wilkins, Director of Housing Stability.

2:10

Karen Francois, Deputy County Manager for the Community Services and Support Service Team.

2:15

Lynn Becker, County Manager.

2:27

And we need your community.

2:42

Christy Cobb planning with the county managers out there.

2:47

Hi I'm Paul B a community member almost.

2:51

Ali Aline Director of Finish Sub Services.

2:58

Jolie Wood, Government Relations Director.

3:00

I'm sorry, I've been chief of staff.

3:02

Flori Ray and Deputy County Manager, City and Justice Service Team.

3:06

Jerry Collins, Deputy County Manager, Economic Purple, who's meeting Westmouth.

3:10

Veronica Jackson, Racing Health Faculty Administrator, obviously Chief of Staff.

3:16

Gina, I'm also Grace Nelly for Mr.

3:19

During Hox, Chief Staff.

3:22

All right, thank you.

3:24

So we were, I think I have the wrong talking points here, but because they say it's the afternoon workshops.

3:34

Not your fault, probably mine.

3:36

We have a bunch of papers.

3:37

But what we will do, we will hear about housing stability department work, the investment, the priorities, and the current system pressures.

3:45

We'll also discuss opportunities to strengthen the systems and what we are learning through our encampment response.

3:53

So, but if you can please can we hold your questions until the end of this workshop regarding the county's roles in the homelessness responses we possibly can.

4:05

So with that, I want to turn it over to our deputy comment manager, okay.

4:11

Thank you, Chair.

4:12

And rest assured, we're we are equally excited about being here today as you are.

4:19

Um so thank you for this opportunity to talk with you about our homelessness response system and the important role that Ramsey County plays within it.

4:30

We were intentional about uh dividing this into morning and afternoon workshops because there is a lot of information.

4:39

Um, this morning we'll focus on the continuum of care heading home Ramsey, and this afternoon we'll focus on Ramsey County's role as the lead agency.

4:50

Um, as you know, I am the deputy county manager for community services and supports, and that includes housing stability.

5:00

But I also serve as county managers back county manager Becker's proxy on the Heading Home Ramsey Governing Board.

5:08

And just a side note, the assistant mayor, Cedric Baker serves as the mayor's proxy on the governing board so that uh the city-county connection is represented there as well.

5:22

Um, because of these two roles I have, I get to see this work from a couple of different vantage points.

5:29

The broader community response to homelessness and the work the counties responsible for within that system.

5:36

And what becomes very clear is just how connected all of this has to be.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting

Homelessness█████████████████████████████████████████████64%

Affordable Housing██████8%

Housing█████7%

Governance Structure████6%

Public Health███4%

Community Engagement███4%

Encampment Management███4%

Procedural█2%

Mental Health Awareness█1%

Summary of Proceedings

Ramsey County Board Workshop: Understanding the Homelessness Response, Our Roles, and What's Next – September 22, 2026

On September 22, 2026, the Ramsey County Board convened a workshop in Courthouse Room 220, 15 West Kellogg Blvd., Saint Paul, MN, to examine the county's homelessness response. The workshop was live-streamed and recorded, and no votes were taken. The sole agenda item (2026-367, sponsored by Housing Stability) was split into two parts: the morning session focused on system governance and strategy of the Heading Home Ramsey continuum, and the afternoon session at 1:30 p.m., led by Chair Moran, was scheduled to cover the county's role, funding buckets, and shared work.

Public Comments & Testimony

No formal public comment period was held. One community member affiliated with Union Gospel Mission attended and was publicly welcomed by the board.

Discussion Items

Heading Home Ramsey governance: Presenters described the 23-member governing board, composed of senior leaders with decision-making authority, supported by a steering committee, standing committees, and work groups. The City of St. Paul is represented on the governing board, and Assistant Mayor Cedric Baker serves as the mayor's proxy. Pam Axberg, CEO/President of Union Gospel Mission and member at large, was unable to attend.
System strategy and performance: Housing Stability staff presented the 2026 needs assessment, which took roughly one and a half years to complete, and described system goals of making homelessness rare, brief, and non-recurrent. Staff noted that more than 80% of households do not return to the homelessness response system after entering it.
Coordinated entry wait times: A commissioner asked why the time between enrollment and consideration in coordinated entry had nearly doubled. Staff attributed the longer waits to the county's internal single list and the lack of affordable housing stock.
Eligibility and voucher portability: Commissioners asked whether coordinated entry requires Ramsey County residency and whether successful referrals must be housed in Ramsey County. Staff responded that Ramsey County vouchers could be used statewide.
Cross-county coordination: A commissioner asked how coordinated entry and continuums of care in different counties (e.g., Hennepin County) could coordinate across county lines. Staff noted that the Ramsey County coordinated entry list connects to housing programs funded through the county's Continuum of Care and other sources, while acknowledging differences between Hennepin and Ramsey counties.
Encampment policy: A commissioner asked whether Heading Home Ramsey had discussed a county-wide approach to encampments. Staff cited a meeting with the mayor's office and stressed the importance of connecting with the continuum of care on encampment next steps.
Elected official representation: A commissioner recounted that when a Ramsey County delegation met with Representative Hussein, who suggested forming a work group, the county pushed back on the premise, consistent with the absence of elected officials on the Continuum of Care. A related discussion addressed how governing board elections could yield more diverse representation.
Federal policy concerns: A commissioner expressed concern about the federal shift away from Housing First policy (housing with no preconditions plus support services) and about local barriers and restrictions on harm-mitigation approaches facing people experiencing homelessness.
NACO advocacy: Commissioners discussed providing local data and stories to the National Association of Counties (NACO) to counter federal narratives, with county attorneys helping ensure the data is accurate.
County roles: The board chair, who departed around 11:20 a.m., emphasized that Ramsey County is one of several critical partners and, as the administrative entity, should not take on roles, responsibilities, or funding beyond its scope. A commissioner also stressed the importance of city roles such as zoning and approvals in supporting housing development and expansion.

Key Outcomes

No votes were taken; the workshop was informational.
Part One concluded in the morning; Part Two was scheduled for 1:30 p.m. with Chair Moran to discuss the county's role, funding buckets (e.g., prevention, outreach, shelter, coordinated entry, housing), and shared work with partner agencies.
The board indicated support for sharing local data and examples with NACO, with county attorneys involved to verify accuracy.

Meeting Transcript

This morning. Good morning, everyone. We want to get started on this morning workshop. I want to thank you all for being here. I'm excited about this presentation. And I hope everyone here is as excited as I am and relieved here. I think this day a little bit more informed around the housing stability within Ramsey County. So I just want to welcome you to Ramsey County Board Workshop. Today workshop topic is understanding the homelessness response, our roles and what's next. First of your mind that this board workshop is live streamed and recorded. There will be no votes taken during this workshop. And so before we do our introduction, I want to apologize to everyone from there. I hope a news news conflict and feel like a huge responsibility is going to call me away early from the morning workshop. So I would depart this morning at around 11:20. And I will return for the afternoon workshop. And so but I do not apologize. I feel like there's a lot that I'm I have learnt that I'm still learning and still need to learn. And so this is not the in all of you know when I leave here early today, right? But I'm hoping my colleagues here will be uh just as informed around as part as I am. So with that, um list dog of introductions of commissioners and presenters around the table, and then the rest of the rooms. Good morning. Breen Moran, Ramsey County Commissioner, District Four. Good morning, Mary Joe McGuire, Commissioner District 2. Target Evans, Commissioner District One. My Changshan, Commissioner District 6. Kelly Miller, Commissioner District 7. Denise Schmeyer, Deputy Director of Housing Stability. Jamie Wilkins, Director of Housing Stability. Karen Francois, Deputy County Manager for the Community Services and Support Service Team. Lynn Becker, County Manager. And we need your community. Christy Cobb planning with the county managers out there. Hi I'm Paul B a community member almost. Ali Aline Director of Finish Sub Services. Jolie Wood, Government Relations Director. I'm sorry, I've been chief of staff. Flori Ray and Deputy County Manager, City and Justice Service Team. Jerry Collins, Deputy County Manager, Economic Purple, who's meeting Westmouth. Veronica Jackson, Racing Health Faculty Administrator, obviously Chief of Staff. Gina, I'm also Grace Nelly for Mr. During Hox, Chief Staff. All right, thank you. So we were, I think I have the wrong talking points here, but because they say it's the afternoon workshops. Not your fault, probably mine. We have a bunch of papers. But what we will do, we will hear about housing stability department work, the investment, the priorities, and the current system pressures. We'll also discuss opportunities to strengthen the systems and what we are learning through our encampment response. So, but if you can please can we hold your questions until the end of this workshop regarding the county's roles in the homelessness responses we possibly can. So with that, I want to turn it over to our deputy comment manager, okay. Thank you, Chair.

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