More Traffic Expected at Ridgedale County Service Center

Staff at the expects increased traffic after the Eden Prairie Service Center closes, on Jan. 20.

The Hennepin County Board, facing significant budget cuts for 2012, approved closing of the center as part of the 2012 budget. The decision was made to close the Eden Prairie Service Center because it handles fewer transactions, has fewer customers and generates less revenue than the other county service centers, said Kathy Schons, service centers division manager.

It’s estimated closing the Eden Prairie center will save the county at least $300,000 each year. The closing is expected to affect 10 employees. Most will probably be transferred to other centers to fill positions now held by temporary workers.

Hennepin County Commissioner Randy Johnson, who represents Eden Prairie, was disappointed that the majority of the board voted against his resolution to keep the center open.

"The County Board's vote is another example of government just kicking the can down the road,” Johnson said. “What we need is a comprehensive study of which, if any, of these services should be provided directly by the county, figure out how to provide those services as conveniently and cost effectively as possible, and then vote to implement those reforms.”

The closest county service centers to Eden Prairie are Ridgedale and Southdale in Edina. The county also has service centers at the Government Center in downtown Minneapolis, the Midtown Exchange in south Minneapolis, at Brookdale in Brooklyn Center, and in Maple Grove.

Schons said no new services will be housed at Ridgedale, and she doesn't know of additional actions coming in regards to the service centers. However, the board will study the six remaining service centers during the coming year to measure whether they're necessary.

Business at Hennepin County’s service centers has dropped 9 percent since 2008, said Schons, due in part to reduced travel (fewer passport applications) and other transactions.

Hennepin, like other counties, receives an agent fee for each state and federal transaction. About seven of every 10 transactions involve either passports or state business, said Schons. Other services completed at the centers include certificates (birth, death, marriage), identification documentation (state ID, driver's license renewals, new passports), licenses and registrations (automobile/motor vehicle, snowmobile, ATV, boat).

Hennepin County service centers handle about 1 million transactions a year. The Hennepin County Government Center Service Center in downtown Minneapolis handles approximately 200,000 transactions; the other centers each handle from 95,000 to 145,000 transactions a year. Eden Prairie processed approximately 85,000 transactions in 2011.

Over recent years, agent fees haven't kept pace with costs, says Schons. In 2010, the centers brought in $6.6 million in revenue, but an additional $2.3 million in property tax revenue was needed to sustain them.