City of Coates issued the following announcement on June 12.
Dakota County is digging in to give first responders a place to learn important crisis intervention techniques.
Construction will begin soon on the SMART (Safety and Mental Health Alternative Response Training) Center after Dakota County officials and community leaders broke ground on the project Monday, June 9. Participants took turns celebrating in order to follow COVID-19 physical distancing guidelines.
“The SMART Center is needed now more than ever," Dakota County Board Chair Mike Slavik said. “We'd like to thank all of our partners who made today a reality."
A broad coalition of first responder organizations from Dakota County and across the state, along with community and mental health advocacy groups, has supported the project. The county secured state bonding funds in 2018 to help finance the facility's construction. The county purchased land for the SMART Center near Inver Grove Heights Fire Station 2 at Highway 52 and Concord Boulevard.
The 35,000-square-foot facility will be a new home for crisis response and de-escalation training that is required of law enforcement officers and first responders. The Minnesota Crisis Intervention Team, a statewide leader in the specialized training, has conducted on-site instruction across the state but will have dedicated facilities at the SMART Center. The space will include a large classroom and four training rooms that can be staged to simulate specific scenarios, such as an apartment or hotel room. Crisis response training gives first responders “soft skills" to improve their interaction with people experiencing a mental health crisis.
“First responders need to have many tools to help people in crisis — arrest being a last resort,” Dakota County Sheriff Tim Leslie said. “The de-escalation methods and other techniques taught at the SMART Center are what we need to be successful.”
The SMART Center also will be home to other public safety partners, including the Dakota County Electronic Crimes Unit and the Dakota County Drug Task Force. The Electronic Crimes Unit needs additional space to handle more cases from within the county and requests from departments outside the county to help with their investigations.
SMART Center construction is scheduled to be complete by early summer 2021.
Original source can be found here.
Source: City of Coates
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