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MINUTES & AGENDAS

March, 2013

Commissioner Proceedings

March 12, 2013

The Lake of the Woods County Board of Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, March 12, 2013, in the Commissioners’ Room at the Government Center.

Call to Order

Chairman Hanson called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited with the following members present: Commissioners Patty Beckel, Buck Nordlof, Thomas Hanson, Ed Arnesen and Ken Moorman.  Also present were: Deputy Auditor Janet Rudd, John Oren and Brian Peterson.

Approval of Agenda

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Moorman to approve the agenda with the following additions: Amy Ballard travel, Williams School and NWA Airport. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Beckel and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.  

Approval of Consent Agenda

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to approve the consent agenda as follows: Travel for Marti Carlson for MN County Highway Accountants Association Annual Conference on April 24-26 in St. Cloud; Amy Ballard to Duluth on April 28-30 for Children’s Mental Health, Child Welfare and Chemical Dependency.  The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

Approval of Minutes

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to approve the minutes of February 26, 2013, regular meeting with changes. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

COMMITTEE REPORT

Commissioner Hanson:

  • Building and Safety Committee- recommendations of security cameras at the GC Building, GCN and Highway; parking lots and EMD, Arlen Block will present a security plan at the next committee meeting.
  • Airport- Ordinance to review

 Commissioner Moorman

  • State Advisory Council on Mental Health- update on bills currently in legislature, earlier intervention, enhanced provisions for school-linked mental health

Commissioner Beckel

  • Criminal Justice Coalition- presentation on their new Transition from Prison to community

Commissioner Arnesen

  • Keep It Clean Campaign- going well and trying to set a date for spring clean up

Social Services Director

Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler, met with the County Board requesting approval of claims. Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Arnesen to approve the following claims against the county:

                                                Commissioners’ Warrants          $  6,099.22

                                                Commissioners’ Warrants          $  4,215.61

The motion was seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

Minnesota Department of Human Services

Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler, met with the County Board and presented the Human Service Financial Reporting Performance Review and informed the board that her staff received a perfect performance. The County Board congratulated Nancy and her staff for a perfect performance.

COUNTY AUDITOR

Claims

Deputy Auditor, Janet Rudd met with the board for approval of claims:

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to approve the claims as follows:

Revenue                              $    39,574.68

Road & Bridge                    $    31,680.94

Co. Devlep                          $      3,840.00

Solid Waste                         $    23,502.83

EDA                                    $      1,500.00

                                             $  100,098.45

WARRANTS FOR PUBLICATION

Warrants Approved On 3/12/2013 For Payment 3/15/2013

Vendor Name                                                                 Amount

Cenex Co-Op Services, Inc.                                      8,615.38

Derson Manufacturing, Inc                                         9,613.41

First State Tire Recycling                                           2,755.20

Howard’s Oil Company                                              8,736.53

Mar-Kit Landfill                                                             9,711.45

Mn State Dept-Correction                                          13,235.80

Northwest Trailer Products                                         5,615.00

R & Q Trucking, Inc                                                     2,777.65

Roseau County Cooperative Assn                             2,169.26

Widseth Smith Nolting&Asst Inc                                4,473.34

Woody’s Service                                                          7,047.18

72  Payments less than  2000   25,348.25

Final Total:   100,098.45

Further moved to authorize the payment of the following auditor warrants:

                                                   February 26, 2013           $    65,200.77

                                                   March 1, 2013                 $ 122,103.71   

                                                   March 8, 2013                 $        233.08

                                                   March 8, 2013                 $      4,746.82

                                                   March 8, 2013                 $    98,700.80

The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

NW ANGLE AIRPORT-NWA BOARD MEETING

The board discussed if the county should move forward with the NW Angle Airport, Phase II project and discussed the 80% funding that the county should receive for this project.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Arnesen to move forward with the NW Angle Airport, Phase II project contingent upon the 80% funding from MN DOT, and the county’s 20% funding from the Natural Resource Enhancement Fund. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Beckel and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

NW ANGLE BOARD MEETING

The board discussed the NW Angle Board meeting that is scheduled for June 18, 2013. The board would like Short Elliott Hendrickson Inc. to present the NW Angle Airport Project; HRDC, Executive Director, Cliff Tweedale to discuss the Red Lake Tribe issues and HRDC, Development Specialist Marcus Grubbs to present the Lake of the Woods Hazard Mitigation Plan.

LAKE OF THE WOODS HAZARD MITIGATION PLAN UPDATE 2013

Headwaters Regional Development Specialist, Marcus Grubbs met with the board and reviewed the Hazard Mitigation Plan. Marcus informed them that the plan is to reduce or eliminate long-term risk to people and property from natural or human caused hazards or effects. The Federal government partners with states, local governments, and tribes to accomplish hazard mitigation planning and mitigation activities.  Marcus informed the board that this plan needs to be reviewed annually.

SHERIFF

Communications Network Grant

County Sheriff, Gary Fish met with the board requesting approval to enter into a grant contract with the State of MN, Commissioner of Public Safety, Emergency Communication networks grant contract.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Moorman to authorize Sheriff, Gary Fish to enter into a grant contract with the State of Minnesota, Commissioner of Public Safety, Emergency Communication Networks and Lake of the Woods County effective March 15, 2013 thru June 30, 2013 and authorize Chairman Hanson and County Sheriff to sign. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Beckel and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

Hiring of Deputy Sheriff

County Sheriff, Gary Fish met with the board requesting approval to hire Brad Abbey as Deputy Sheriff.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Arnesen to approve County Sheriff, Gary Fish to hire Brad Abbey as fulltime Deputy Sheriff at grade 12 (points 282), and increment A, effective March 17, 2013. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

Cell-Phone Stipend

County Sheriff, Gary Fish met with the board requesting approval for a cell phone stipend for Deputy Sheriff, Brad Abbey.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to allow Deputy Sheriff, Brad Abbey a Cell Phone stipend in the amount of, $60.00 for a smart cell phone per month effective April 1, 2013. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

MIS/GIS

MIS Director, Peder Hovland met with the board to introduce newly hired GIS Specialist, Daniel Fish to the board. The Commissioners welcomed Daniel to the County.

GREAT NORTHERN TRANSMISSION LINE

Great Northern Transmission Line Marketing Manager, Cindy Hammarlund met with the board to review the MN Powers’ Great Northern Transmission Line project which includes a 500 KV transmission line from the Canadian Border to the Iron Range which will deliver power generated by Manitoba Hydro to customers. Cindy explained that the reason this is needed is for diversity base load generation, reduce negative financial exposure, increase system reliability, support industrial growth and provide economic benefits. There will be another Open House meeting in April of 2013 here in Baudette.

RADIO TOWER LEASE AGREEMENT

The board reviewed the comments from County Attorney, Philip Miller in regards to the Radio Tower lease agreement between Lake of the Woods County and Rural Tower network, LLC. The board made changes and referred the contract back to County Attorney for his final approval.                                       

PUBLIC WORKS

Public Works Director, Tim Erickson met with the board and requested that they remove from the agenda equipment purchases for he did not get the information from the businesses. Tim discussed the hiring of heavy Equipment Operator. After discussion, the board requested that Tim bring this request back in September to discuss this further. Tim distributed the Local Roads and Bridges Highway Users Tax Distribution handout.

Correspondence:

The following correspondence was read and acknowledge- University of MN 2013 Red River Valley Farmer and Homemaker Honor Banquet honoring Doris and Darrell Nelson from Lake of the Woods on March 16; Thank you letter from the Lake of the Woods County Fair Board for the county’s financial support

Recess

With no further business before the board, Chairman Hanson called the meeting to recess at 12:24 p.m.

Attest:                                                                                     Approved: March 26, 2013

____________________________                                        _______________________________

Commissioner Proceedings

March 26, 2013

The Lake of the Woods County Board of Commissioners met in regular session on Tuesday, March 26, 2013, in the Commissioners’ Room at the Government Center.

Call to Order

Chairman Hanson called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited with the following members present: Commissioners Patty Beckel, Buck Nordlof, Thomas Hanson, Ed Arnesen and Ken Moorman.  Also present were: Chief Deputy Auditor Lorene Hanson, Deputy Auditor Janet Rudd, John Oren and Brian Peterson.

Approval of Agenda

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Arnesen to approve the agenda with the following additions: Dena Pieper travel, authorization to purchase mower, 911 signage, and Thank you letter from Lake of the Woods School Students and Closed Session for Union negotiations. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Beckel and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.  

Approval of Consent Agenda

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to approve the consent agenda as follows: Travel for Shelley Pepera to St. Cloud on April 11-12 for statewide SSIS Mentor meeting and Dena Piper to Breezy Point on May 29-31 for Victims Service Conference.  The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

Approval of Minutes

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Moorman to approve the minutes of March 12, 2013, regular meeting. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

Representative Roger Erickson

Chairman Hanson welcomed Representative, Roger Erickson to the meeting. Representative gave a legislative update on the following:

Wetland Issues, Health, Appointment of Auditor/Treasurer, Communications, Shoreland issues, Minnow Bill, Testing in Schools, Wheelers Point Sewer District, Human Services, Technology, Proposed Gas Tax Bill/Solar Energy and Parks and Trails.

LAKEWOOD PUBLIC HEALTH

LakeWood Public Health Nurse, Michelle Brown met with the board to discuss the contract between Lake of the Woods County and LakeWood Helath Center for providing community health services.

Michelle explained the increase dollar amount of $15,400 in their contract with the board.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Moorman to enter into a service agreement, between Lake of the Woods County and LakeWood Health Center to provide Community Health Services as outlined in the Agreement, and is authorized to contract for services pursuant to MN Statue §145.9814, subdivisions 1 ,5,6, in the amount of $88,781(originally was presented and budgeted for $73,381), with the $73,381 from the budgeted revenue fund and the $15,400 from the revenue account, and authorize County Auditor, John W. Hoscheid and County Attorney, Philip Miller to sign. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Beckel and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

Social Services Director

Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler, met with the County Board requesting approval of claims. Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Arnesen to approve the following claims against the county:

                                                Commissioners’ Warrants          $  23,532.51

                                                Commissioners’ Warrants          $    6,707.88

The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

RECESS

The meeting was called to recess at 10:04 a.m. and reconvened at 10:15 a.m. as follows:

COUNTY AUDITOR

Claims

Chief Deputy Auditor, Lorene Hanson met with the board for approval of claims:

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Arnesen to approve the claims as follows:

Revenue                                $    17,802.35

Road & Bridge                     $      3,996.12

Solid Waste                          $      3,914.56

EDA                                     $      1,844.18

                                             $    27,557.21

WARRANTS FOR PUBLICATION

Warrants Approved On 3/26/2013 For Payment 3/29/2013

Vendor Name                                         Amount

Abm Equip & Supply, Inc.                 3,121.77

Lyseng/Allen                                       2,500.00

59 Payments less than 2000   21,935.44

Final Total:   27,557.21

Further moved to authorize the payment of the following auditor warrants:

                                                   March 15, 2013              $    50,815.92

                                                   March 20, 2013              $      8,437.86  

                                                   March 20, 2013              $      2,545.54

The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

WILLIAMS LIBRARY

The board reviewed a letter from Williams Library Director, Alvina Lundsten, informing them that last year a request for funding was not presented for library support for the year 2013, and requested consideration of support in the amount of $500.00 as in previous years.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Moorman to contribute $500 from the Con-con fund for Williams Library for the year 2013.  The motion was seconded by Commissioner Arnesen and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

PUBLIC WORKS

Plate Compactor

Public Works Director, Tim Erickson met with the board requesting approval to purchase a plate compactor for the department as budgeted.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Arnesen to authorize the Public Works Director, Tim Erickson to purchase a plate compactor for the Highway Department as budgeted. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Beckel and the same being put to a vote, was unanimolys carried.

Mower

Public Works Director, Tim Erickson met with the board requesting approval to purchase a new mower for the department as previously approved within the 2013 budget.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to authorize the Public Works Director, Tim Erickson to purchase a new mower for the Highway Department, as previously approved within the 2013 capital expenditure budget in the amount of $5,885.  The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimolys carried.

911 SIGNAGE

Chairman Hanson discussed the ordinance and funding for the 911 signs. The board concurred that the funding would come from the Natural Resource Enhancement Fund. The board inquired when the ordinance would be completed; Tim hopes to have it completed by mid May.

Road Tour

The board discussed the 2013 Road Tour with Public Works Director, Tim Erickson.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to set May 21, 2013 at 7:30 a.m. for the 2013 Annual Road Tour. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

COMMITTEE REPORTS

Commissioner Hanson:

Legislative Conference:

  • Solar Energy, Legacy Funding, Public Safety Armor ,Broadband Service

Commissioner Moorman:

  • Joint Powers Natural Resource- Con-con and Ditch Assessment
  • NCLUCB/JPNR Joint Meeting/Legislative Conference-  PILT and Lottery Proceeds, Transportation
  • Red River Valley Development Association-  Farmer Homemaker Award Event- Darryl and Doris Nelson
  • Drainage Training Seminar

Correspondence:

The following correspondence was read and acknowledge- Thank you letter from Lake of the Woods Students.

RECESS

The meeting was called to recess at 11:35 a.m.

CLOSED SESSION- UNION NEGOTIATIONS MN STAT. §13d.03

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to close the regular meeting at 11:44 p.m. and open up the closed session. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to close the closed session and open the regular meeting at 11:52 p.m. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

UNION NEGOTIATIONS-Local 49 Union Highway Department

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Arnesen to approve a three year contract with Local 49 Union Highway Department bargaining unit as follows: 

The board agrees to pay a 0%, 0%, 2% increase in the 1st, 2d and 3d year of the contact respectively.  If the board determines that a percentage increase is otherwise warranted and offered to non-union employees, the percentage increase will be offered to the union members without need for negotiations. Members will receive an annual increment or a portion thereof as specified in the compensation study during the three year contract provided members are entitled to an increment increase.

The board agrees to pay union members back wages for longevity and 1 increment starting January 1, 2013.  The formula for computing longevity will be as specified in the 2012 compensation study.

Any adjustments to health insurance contributions for non-union members will be offered to union members without need for negotiations.

The motion was seconded by Commissioner Nordlof and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carried.

UNION NEGOTIATIONS-Local 49 Union Solid Waste Department

Motion

Motion was made by Commissioner Beckel to approve a one year contract with the Local 49 Union Solid Waste bargaining unit as follows:

The board agrees to pay a 0% increase during the one year contract.

The board agrees to pay union members back wages for longevity and 1 increment starting January 1, 2013.  The formula for computing longevity will be as specified in the 2012 compensation study.

The formula for computing comp and vacation time will remain unchanged.

The motion was seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote, was unanimously carreid.

Recess

With no further business before the board, Chairman Hanson called the meeting to recess at 12:40 p.m.

Attest:                                                                                     Approved: April 9, 2013

____________________________                                        _______________________________

Janet E. Rudd, Deputy Auditor                                             Thomas Hanson, Chairman of the Board