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Granting approval to submit a grant application for 2011 Minnesota Historical and Cultural Grant Program funds administered by the Minnesota State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) for the Great River Passage Interpretive and Exhibit Concept Plan project.
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WHEREAS, the City of Saint Paul is committed to preservation and interpretation of the cultural and historic resources of the recently unveiled Great River Passage Master Plan; and
WHEREAS, the City supports, and will continue to support, collaboration with the SHPO and other applicable agencies and groups to provide resources for research, planning, and design for preservation and exhibition of interpreted historical and cultural and Native American resources along the 17 mile Mississippi River corridor in Saint Paul; and
WHEREAS, the Historic Sites Act of 1935 and the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, administered by the Secretary of the Interior, encourage the preservation, protection, restoration, and reuse of significant historic, cultural, and archeological resources for enjoyment by the public; and
WHEREAS, the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966 provided for a network of historic preservation offices in every state to spearhead state preservation initiatives and help carry out the nation's historic preservation program; and
WHEREAS, Minnesota's SHPO was created by state statute in 1969 to provide statewide leadership and the director of the Minnesota Historical Society serves as State Historic Preservation Officer; and
WHEREAS, in 2008, Minnesota residents voted to enact the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Act Amendment to the state's constitution, that dedicates an additional 3/8 of 1% of sales tax to "protect our drinking water sources; to protect, enhance, and restore our wetlands, prairies, forests, and fish, game, and wildlife habitat; to preserve our arts and cultural heritage; to support our parks and trails; and to protect, enhance, and restore our lakes, rivers, streams, and groundwater;" and
WHEREAS, the SHPO is the State of Minnesota agency empowered to administer the Minnesota's Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund, which is funded by the Clean Water, Land, and Legacy Act Amendment; and
WHEREAS, for the 2012-13 biennium, a portion of the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund - $24.5 million - has been appropriated to the Minnesota Historical Society (MHS) for a variety of history programs around the state; and
WHEREAS, the MHS/SHPO has solicited grant applications for its 2011 Historical and Cultural Grant Program fund; and
WHEREAS, the Saint Paul Parks and Recreation Department has determined that the Great River Passage Interpretive and Exhibit Concept Plan project is appropriate for these funds; and
WHEREAS, most of the cultural resources within the area of the Great River Passage have already been thoroughly researched, catalogued, and reported on as parts of other projects, and this project will build on that substantial body of knowledge; and
WHEREAS, the funds would be disbursed to Saint Paul Parks and Recreation Department projects on a reimbursement for work completed basis from MHS Historical and Cultural Program funds in the amount of $90,000; and
WHEREAS, matching funding in the amount of $20,000 is available and will be dedicated from Great River Passage funds;
NOW, THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, by the Council of the City of Saint Paul, that support is hereby granted for the Park and Recreation Department's application to the MHS/SHPO's 2011 Historical and Cultural Grant Program, to include historic Native American cultural and/or sacred sites along the river, and to apply for grants to other agencies and groups as needed for any matching amounts required; and if funds are granted, accept the grant, and enter into a grant agreement executed by the proper City of Saint Paul authorities in compliance with all applicable laws, and staff is authorized to apply for reimbursement from the grant funds approved for the projects herein.