Item Description:
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Request a final determination on naming an unnamed waterbody in Mound
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WHEREAS:
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WHEREAS, petitioners submitted a valid petition, pursuant to Minnesota Statutes Section 83A.05, seeking to name the dredged cove off Harrison Bay (Lake Minnetonka) in Mound “Golds Cove;” and
WHEREAS, the Ecological and Water Resources Division of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources reports that there is no other body of water in the state named “Golds Cove;” and
WHEREAS, all testimony presented at the public hearing was in favor of establishing “Golds Cove” as the name of the currently unnamed body of water, and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources indicated that “Golds Cove” is an “acceptable name.”
Resolution:
BE IT RESOLVED, that after following the process outlined in Minnesota Statutes Sections 83A.05 to .07, including a public hearing and approval from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners determines the name of the dredged cove off Harrison Bay (Lake Minnetonka) in Mound to be “Golds Cove;” and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners directs the County Auditor to communicate this resolution to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and to take any other administrative steps necessary to finalize the above-referenced name for the cove.
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Background:
Voters in Hennepin County (confirmed by Hennepin County Elections) brought a petition to name the unnamed cove off Harrison Bay (Lake Minnetonka) in Mound “Golds Cove,” a name which commemorates Meyer “Mike” and Sylvia Gold (both deceased), the grandparents of the current property owners. The Golds owned the land that was dredged to create the cove.
Pursuant to Minn. Stat. §§ 83A.05-.07, county boards have authority to name a “lake, river, stream, or other body of water” with the approval of the Commissioner of Natural Resources, so long as the name is not a duplicate of an existing body of water, as far as possible.
Hennepin County Board Action Request 23-0169, approved on Tuesday, May 2, 2023, established a public hearing for Tuesday, June 13, 2023 at 1:30 p.m. before the Resident Services Committee of the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners to discuss and receive testimony on the petition. Notice of this public hearing was published in Finance and Commerce for three weeks as required by Minn. Stat. § 83A.06, subd. 4, and was served on the Commissioner of Natural Resources and the Mayor of the City of Mound. Although not legally required, notice of the public hearing was also provided to property owners surrounding the cove.
The public hearing was held on Tuesday, June 13, 2023, before the Resident Services Committee of the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners. The authors of the petition were present to give public testimony in support of the petition. No testimony in opposition to the petition was presented. A representative from the Department of Natural Resources also appeared and shared with the board that there is no other cove named “Golds” in Minnesota, and that the name “Golds Cove” is acceptable to the DNR.
Hearings on petitions to change water body names are statutorily defined processes. This name change does not significantly impact or support Hennepin County disparity reduction efforts.
recommendation
Recommendation from County Administrator: Recommend Approval