MINUTES & AGENDAS
October, 2007
Special County Board Meeting
October 2, 2007
The Lake of the Woods County Board met in special session on Tuesday, October 2, 2007, in the Commissioners’ room of the Lake of the Woods County Government Center, with the following members present: Commissioners Arnesen, Patty Beckel, Todd Beckel, Bredeson and Moorman. Chair Todd Beckel called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. and led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Motion by Commissioner Moorman to approve the agenda with additions. Seconded by Commissioner Patty Beckel and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Joanne Kellner interviewed for the position of Human Resources Director.
After finishing with the interview at 10:00 a.m., the board discussed the position and the applicants interviewed.
Motion by Commissioner Bredeson to offer a contract for services for the Human Resources Director to Wade Johannesen. Seconded by Commissioner Patty Beckel and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried
The board discussed the following additional items: Letter to the Editor, AMC update, Sheriff law enforcement contract with City of Baudette, ANI grant amount and solid waste projections.
The board requested County Auditor, John W Hoscheid to send letters to the applicants notifying them of the Boards’ decision.
There being no further business before the Board, Chair Todd Beckel called the meeting in recess at 12:30 p.m.
Attest: Approved: October 9, 2007
_______________________________ __________________________________
John W Hoscheid Todd R Beckel
County Auditor Lake of the Woods County Board Chair
Commissioner Proceedings
October 9, 2007
The Lake of the Woods County Board met in regular session on Tuesday, October 9, 2007, in the Commissioners’ Room in the Lake of the Woods County Government Center with the following members present: Commissioners Bredeson, Patty Beckel, Todd Beckel, Arnesen and Moorman. Also present were: County Auditor John W. Hoscheid, Steve Wymore, David Wipple, Wade Johannesen, Sandy Williamson and John Oren. Chairman Todd Beckel called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. and led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to approve the agenda with the additions. Seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Motion by Commissioner Bredeson to approve the consent agenda as follows: travel for Nancy Wendler to Brainerd on October 10-12 for MACSSA Conference. Seconded by Commissioner Patty Beckel and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Motion by Commissioner Moorman to approve the minutes of September 25,2007 and September 27th as presented and October 2, 2007, with corrections. Seconded by Commissioner Bredeson and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler met with the board requesting approval of claims.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to approve the claims against the county as follows:
Commissioners’ Warrants $23,639.71
Seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler reviewed the 2008-2009 County MFIP/CCSA Biennial Service Agreement with the Board.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to approve the 2008-2009 County MFIP/CCSA Biennial Service Agreement as presented. Seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler informed the board that a social worker had been hired and that there would be introductions at the next board meeting.
The County Board requested the County Auditor, John W Hoscheid to send a letter to all department heads stating there will be no cell phone purchases until the cell phone inventory has been completed and the County board approves a cell phone policy.
County Auditor, John W. Hoscheid met with the board requesting approval of claims.
Motion by Commissioner Moorman to approve the claims against the county as follows:
Revenue $ 47,432.82
Road & Bridge $ 82,298.65
County Development $ 200.00
Joint Ditch $ 600.00
Solid Waste $ 27,235.59
$ 157,767.06
WARRANTS FOR PUBLICATION
WARRANTS APPROVED ON 10/09/2007 FOR PAYMENT 10/12/2007
AMOUNT VENDOR NAME AMOUNT VENDOR NAME
427.51 AMERI PRIDE LINEN & APPAREL SE 1411.00 AMERICAN SOLUTIONS FOR BUSINES
800.00 ASSN OF MN COUNTIES 533.28 AUTO VALUE
500.00 BAUERS COMMUNICATIONS & SECURI 481.75 WAYNE BENDICKSON
308.21 CANON FINANCIAL SERVICES 1683.88 CERES EQUIPMENT INC
2284.87 CO-OP SERVICES, INC. 8083.12 CONTECH CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTS
1944.14 DEAN’S HARDWARE 1765.78 DELL MARKETING, LP
611.02 DODDS LUMBER 447.00 GRAND VIEW LODGE
2640.00 LEE HANCOCK 1930.51 HOLTE IMPLEMENT, INC
860.15 HOWARD’S OIL COMPANY 667.48 LAKE ROAD DIESEL INC
8738.46 LOW HIGHWAY DEPT 9328.50 MAR-KIT LANDFILL
7375.00 MIDWEST CELLULAR CONCRETE INC 4279.14 MN COUNTIES COMPUTER CO-OP
4538.02 MN DEPT OF TRANSP 10400.00 MN MUNICIPAL UTILITIES ASSOC
300.00 MN OFFICE OF ENTERPRISE TECHNO 15843.70 MN STATE DEPT-CORRECTION
1834.40 MONITOR TIRE DISPOSAL, INC 1417.46 KENNETH MOORMAN
5295.85 LAW MOREN 629.84 NORTHWEST MECHANICAL SERVICE I
324.92 PITNEY BOWES INC. 1324.86 R & Q TRUCKING, INC
823.18 RODERICK RONE JR 1750.00 SJOBERG’S INC
322.70 SOFTWARE HOUSE INTERNATIONAL, 846.78 SORENSON CHEV-OLDS
585.99 STRATA CORP, INC 401.99 GEORGE SWENTIK
20711.40 TRAFFIC MARKING SERVICE, INC. 2640.00 VOYAGEURS COMTRONICS, INC
350.00 WAYNE’S BODY SHOP-DBA 625.00 WIDSETH SMITH NOLTING&ASST INC
3502.35 WOODY’S SERVICE 20821.80 ZIEGLER, INC
55 PAYMENTS LESS THAN $300 5,376.02
**** FINAL TOTAL……. $157,767.06 ****
Further moved to authorize the payment of auditor’s warrants as follows:
September 25, 2007 61,223.33
October 2, 2007 350.50
October 2, 2007 8,073.26
Motion was seconded by Commissioner Bredeson. Discussion was had and at 9:30 a.m., motion by Commissioner Arnesen to table the approval of claims until later in the meeting. Seconded by Commissioner Patty Beckel and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
At 2:00 p.m., Chair Todd Beckel brought forward the motion to approve the claims against the county and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
County Auditor, John W. Hoscheid met with the board requesting approval of affidavit of lost warrants.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to approve the application and affidavit for lost warrant for Michael Schulz, dated August 29, 2007, in the amount of $ 600.00, without furnishing an indemnifying bond. Seconded by Commissioner Arnesen and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Motion by Commissioner Moorman to approve the application and affidavit for lost warrant for Joan Pearson, dated May 23, 2007, in the amount of $ 64.00, without furnishing an indemnifying bond. Seconded by Commissioner Bredeson and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
County Auditor, John W Hoscheid, reviewed the Revenue and Expenditure Guidelines as of September, 2007, with the Board. He stated that in the event they have any questions, to feel free to discuss them with him at their convenience.
The County Board reviewed documents received from Lee Meier, from Northwest Minnesota Multi-County Housing & Redevelopment Authority (HRA). The documents were for setting up the loan pool program, housing loan pool application procedures and copies of program parameters from participating counties.
Commissioner Bredeson updated the Board explaining various conversations he has had in regards to this program. He mentioned a set up cost of $5000 and an interest rate of 3% at 10 years per applicant to be used for closing costs. The consensus of the Board was to ask Lee Meier to leverage grant funds available. Commissioner Bredeson will contact Lee to draw up a contract that will be given to Interim County Attorney, Michelle Moren for review. The funding for this project will be taken out of the current reserves for loan rehabilitation.
The Law Enforcement Committee gave an update on the law enforcement contract with the City of Baudette. They reported that County Auditor, John W Hoscheid is working on a new formula to present to the law enforcement committee for negotiating with the City, by November 1, 2007.
Commissioner Patty Beckel gave a report from the department head meeting held Monday, October 8, 2007, as follows: cell phone update, the need for a policy on same, survey sent to employees regarding the Christmas party and employee recognition award, meeting minutes, goals and mission statement and department head facilitator for 2008.
Chair Todd Beckel discussed the current status of the Oberstar bill and a letter sent to Oberstar inviting him to meet with the Northern Counties Land Use Coordinating Board (NCLUCB).
Discussion was had regarding the Goals and Mission Statement.
Motion by Commissioner Moorman to approve the Goals and Mission Statement as follows:
“Lake of the Woods County is committed to ensure high quality services in a cost effective manner for all its citizens”
This Mission Statement will be included on all agenda letterhead for the Lake of the Woods County Board. Seconded by Commissioner Patty Beckel and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Bruce Biggins met with the County Board to present an offer to fill the remainder of the County Attorney’s term. The Board thanked him for taking his time to come to the meeting.
The Board continued with discussing the County Attorney position. The County Board requested the County Auditor, John W Hoscheid to write a letter to the potential candidates advising them that at this time, no action will be taken.
The meeting was called to recess at 10:27 a.m. and reconvened at 10:35 p.m. as follows:
County Recorder, Sue Ney met with the board regarding the final plat for Morris Point Estates.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to approve the final plat of Morris Point Estates and authorize the Chairman and the County Auditor to sign the same. Seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
ANI Pharmaceutical discussion was had. Wyatt Johnson met with the County Board regarding ANI Pharmaceutical financial incentive package. Commissioner Bredeson informed the Board that Headwater Regional Finance Committee (HRFC) would perform a due diligence report at an hourly rate. The Board discussed various options regarding a loan and grant to ANI Pharmaceutical.
Motion by Commissioner Bredeson to authorize the County Board Chair to sign a memorandum of understanding with ANI Pharmaceutical with the following expansion incentives:
Ø A $200,000 loan plus $150,000 grant from the Economic Development Fund, contingent on due diligence and collateralization done by HRFC at 3% interest and an annual payment amortized at 30 years;
Ø Said loan to have a three year balloon and to be reviewed for extension;
Ø One year from date of loan closing; an audit of new jobs created, jobs and retention of same;
¨ ANI will be awarded a cash incentive of $3,000 per job created/retained with a $50,000 per year cap; also contingent on the overall salary of ANI employees having increased;
¨ Annual loan payment due in the amount of $10,116;
Ø Two years from date of loan closing; audit of new jobs created, jobs and retention of same;
¨ ANI will be awarded a cash incentive of $3,000 per job created/retained with a $50,000 per year cap; also contingent on the overall salary of ANI employees having increased;
¨ Annual loan payment due in the amount of $10,116;
Ø Three years from date of loan closing; audit of new jobs created, jobs and retention of same;
¨ ANI will be awarded a cash incentive of $3,000 per job created/retained with a $50,000 per year cap; also contingent on the overall salary of ANI employees having increased;
¨ Annual loan payment due in the amount of $10,116;
Ø Four years from date of loan closing; audit of new jobs created, jobs and retention of same;
¨ ANI will be awarded any remaining cash incentives of $3,000 per job created/retained; also contingent of the overall salary of ANI employees having increased;
¨ Balloon payment due in the amount of $169,652 plus interest.
Seconded by Commissioner Todd Beckel. Chair Todd Beckel called for a roll call vote: In Favor: Commissioners Patty Beckel, Todd Beckel, Bredeson and Moorman; Against: Commissioner Arnesen. The motion carried.
Public Works Director, Bruce Hasbargen met with the board regarding county ownership of the School Access Road. Steve Wymore, with the Lake of the Woods School also attended the meeting. Bruce stated that the School Access Road does meet and exceeds township standards. It was the consensus of the County Board to have Bruce move forward with the easement, signs and to report back to the Board.
Public Works Director, Bruce Hasbargen met with the Board to discuss engineering positions within the Public Works Department. Bruce mentioned a potential of 3 individuals retiring in the next coming years and wanted some direction from the Board for future planning in his department.
Public Works Director, Bruce Hasbargen informed the Board that the permanent part-time office assistant has completed her 6 months probation.
Motion by Commissioner Moorman to certify the permanent part-time office assistant off probation effective October 2, 2007, and to approve a step increase from Grade 6, Step 1 to Grade 6, Step 2. Seconded by Commissioner Arnesen and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Public Works Director, Bruce Hasbargen discussed the maximum weight restriction on minimum maintenance roads. He explained that all the roads are marked accordingly.
The meeting was called to recess at 12:30 p.m. and reconvened at 1:16 p.m. as follows:
Interim County Attorney, Michelle Moren met with the Board to discuss the Human Resource Contract. A draft copy of the contract was presented and discussed. Michelle gave the Board updates on pending cases and an overview of the past few weeks in the attorney office.
Veterans Service Officer, Rick Rone and Bud Hanson met with the board regarding a community storage building. Discussion was had and it was the consensus of the Board to be in support of this project. The Board referred this to the building committee and will give an update to Bud Hanson in a month.
Commissioner Moorman suggested having a County Booth at Potato Day in Williams this year to answer any county related questions. Commissioner Arnesen stated we would be available to assist with this booth. It was the consensus of the board to move forward with this idea.
Commissioner Moorman gave an update on the Transportation Advisory Committee.
Correspondence regarding a letter from an attorney interested in the county attorney position was read and discussed.
With no further business before the board, Chairman Todd Beckel called the meeting to recess at 2:45p.m.
Attest: Approved: October 23, 2007
____________________________ _____________________________
John W. Hoscheid, County Auditor Todd Beckel, Chairman
Commissioner Proceedings
October 23, 2007
The Lake of the Woods County Board met in regular session on Tuesday, October 23, 2007, in the Commissioners’ Room in the Lake of the Woods County Government Center with the following members present: Commissioners Bredeson, Patty Beckel, Todd Beckel, Arnesen and Moorman. Also present were: County Auditor John W. Hoscheid, Deputy Auditor Janet Rudd, Wade Johannesen, Sandy Williamson and John Oren. Chairman Todd Beckel called the meeting to order at 9:00 a.m. and led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Motion by Commissioner Bredeson to approve the agenda with the following addition: Community Seconds. Seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to approve the consent agenda as follows: travel for Ron Norquist to Thief River Falls on October 30-31 for Property Value Course; Holly House to Thief River Falls on October 24-25 for RACC and Northwest Region quarterly meeting; Dale Boretski to Clearwater on November 12-13 for Manatron Tax Group meeting. Seconded by Commissioner Bredeson and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Motion by Commissioner Moorman to approve the minutes of October 9, 2007 as presented. Seconded by Commissioner Bredeson and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Wade Johannesen met with the board to discuss the Professional Services Contract for the Human Resource Director.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to approve the Professional Service Contract for Human Resource Director as presented, effective October 23, 2007 and to authorize the County Board Chairman, Interim County Attorney and County Auditor to sign. Seconded by Commissioner Arnesen and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler met with the board requesting approval of claims.
Motion by Commissioner Bredeson to approve the claims against the county as follows:
Commissioners’ Warrants $28,354.87
Seconded by Commissioner Patty Beckel and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler reviewed the 2008-2010 TriMin Systems, Inc. professional services contract with the board.
Motion by Commissioner Arnesen to approve the contract between TriMin Systems, Inc. and Lake of the Woods County Social Services for 2008-2010, for the provision of professional services to obtain computer programming, technical assistance, and related services to support and maintain the IFS, ACS, & SWS computer systems and to authorize Chairman Todd Beckel and Lake of the Woods County Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler, to sign same. Seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Social Services Director, Nancy Wendler requested a leave of absence of Heidi Olson for six months. After discussion, the consensus of the board was that they would grant a one-month leave and requested Nancy to come back later in the day to see if the employee accepted or declined the one-month leave.
County Auditor, John W. Hoscheid met with the board requesting approval of claims.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to approve the claims against the county as follows:
Revenue $ 37,661.90
Road & Bridge $ 101,591.42
Solid Waste $ 3,641.78
$ 142,895.10
WARRANTS FOR PUBLICATION
WARRANTS APPROVED ON 10/23/2007 FOR PAYMENT 10/26/2007
AMOUNT VENDOR NAME AMOUNT VENDOR NAME
1390.14 ANDY’S GARAGE, INC. 1120.00 ARM REGISTRATION OFFICE
675.00 ASSN OF MN COUNTIES 525.00 BREEZY POINT RESORT
981.20 CATCO 8856.02 CO-OP SERVICES, INC.
3018.82 DYNAMIC IMAGING SYSTEMS, INC 37228.15 HANSON SILO COMPANY
2103.46 HOWARD’S OIL COMPANY 725.00 LAKE SUPERIOR COLLEGE
600.00 LOW MASTER GARDENER 1829.94 LOW SOIL & WATER CONS. DIST.
345.38 REED MCFARLANE 600.00 MIDWEST MONITORING & SURVEILLA
372.70 MN COUNTIES COMPUTER CO-OP 688.01 JEROME MOLINE
758.07 THE NORTHERN LIGHT 1688.03 NORTHWEST ANGLE&ISLAND FREIGHT
586.41 NW MN HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS 1841.61 PRO ACTION UNIFORMS
732.43 QUILL CORPORATION 336.54 RUTTGER’S BAY LAKE LODGE
673.28 SIMPLEX 727.40 SOFTWARE HOUSE INTERNATIONAL,
316.32 JOSH STROMLUND 49500.00 T & M SALES DBA
379.43 DAVID THOMAS 344.56 UNIFORMS UNLIMITED
17281.76 VOYAGEURS COMMUNICATIONS, INC 1261.28 VOYAGEURS COMTRONICS, INC
545.89 WEST GROUP 500.00 CITY WILLIAMS
35 PAYMENTS LESS THAN $300 4,363.27
**** FINAL TOTAL……. $142,895.10 ****
Further moved to authorize the payment of auditor’s warrants as follows:
September 26, 2007 44,768.37
October 9, 2007 44,143.73
October 10, 2007 76,110.95
Seconded by Commissioner Bredeson and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
County Auditor, John W. Hoscheid met with the board requesting approval of a gambling permit for the Northwest Minnesota Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #8.
Motion by Commissioner Arnesen to approve the application for exempt gambling for Northwest Minnesota Fraternal Order of Police Lodge #8 for a raffle, which will be held at Sportsman’s Lodge on February 25, 2008. Seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
County Auditor, John W Hoscheid, reviewed the Lake of the Woods Aggregate Tax as of September, 2007, with the board. As of the 3rd quarter, $7,027.32 had been collected, and $30,000 was budgeted for FY2007.
Jeff Poolman, representing the Depot Preservation Alliance (DPA) met with the board informing them that the MN Historical Society indicated that the Grants Review Committee has recommended the approval of the DPA grant application for a gas-fired furnace. Jeff requested the $2,500 that was approved in August of 2007, be released in late 2007 or early in 2008 to the DPA so they can purchase the furnace.
Motion by Commissioner Bredeson to advance the 2008 Con-Con funds in the amount of $2,500 to the Depot Preservation Alliance. Seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
County Sheriff, Dallas Block met with the board to discuss the adoption of administrative civil penalty tickets which would consist of the following: failure to obey traffic signals, speeding, improper lane use, improper turns, failure to yield right of way, stopping or parking on a roadway, other parking violation, littering, equipment violations, failure to use passenger restraints for children, seat belt, trespass, disorderly conduct, public nuisance, unlawful deposit of garbage, loud exhaust, exhibition driving, reckless or careless, off-road vehicle and snowmobile violations and others. The ticket fees would remain within the county and not sent to the state. Dallas informed the board that he will meet with them at the next meeting for the board to consider adopting an Ordinance for Administrative Tickets.
Commissioner Bredeson informed the board that the Headwaters Regional Development Commission has approved the pre-application to Northwest Minnesota Foundation (NWMF) and has requested a motion from Lake of the Woods County board to submit a full application to the NWMF for assistance in funding the amendments to the county ordinances. He also thanked County Auditor, John W. Hoscheid for his assistance in getting the deeds for the two city lots in Baudette.
Motion by Commissioner Moorman that Lake of the Woods County Commissioners requests that the Headwaters Regional Development Commission submit the full application to the Northwest Minnesota Foundation for $12,000 for assistance in funding the amendments of the Lake of the Woods County Ordinances and to authorize Chairman Todd Beckel to sign. Seconded by Commissioner Bredeson and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Commissioner Bredeson discussed the Community Seconds program which allows a borrower to obtain a second lien mortgage that typically is funded by a federal, state, or local government agency and the process of setting up a board by appointment of citizens or the county board themselves. The board requested that Commissioner Bredeson ask Lee Meier, from Northwest Minnesota Multi-County Housing & Redevelopment Authority (HRA) to meet with them to discuss how the board should proceed.
Land and Water Planning Director, Josh Stromlund met with the board and discussed the FY 2008 Clean Water Legacy grant application.
Public Works Director, Bruce Hasbargen met with the board requesting approval for the purchase of a skid steer and sander.
Motion by Commissioner Arnesen to authorize the Public Works Director to purchase a skid steer and a sander this year, as budgeted in the 2008 capital expenditure budget for the highway department. Seconded by Commissioner Bredeson and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Public Works Administrative Assistant, Jodi Bauers met with the board to discuss county cell phones and the possibility of changing to the MN Government Plan. Discussion also included personal calls on county owned cell phones, Canadian home charges, pricing of new phones, switching to a 434 number (no charge for local calls). The board requested this to be placed on the Department Heads agenda for their input and requested that Jodi attend the Department Heads meeting to present the cell phone plan.
The meeting was called to recess at 11:45 a.m. and reconvened at 1:02 p.m. as follows:
County Surveyor, Donn Rasmussen and Interim County Attorney, Michelle Moren met with the board and the following property owners: Walt Coninx, Russ Baron, Benita Baron, Rodney Gubbels, Judy Gubbels, Linda Roberts, Marinie Korpie, Arvid Olson and David Norquist to discuss the survey issue regarding discrepancies between the deed lines and the occupied lines west of Clementson in Government Lot 5, Section 12, Gudrid Township to see what the property owners want to do about the discrepancies. Donn explained that they could go through a process called Establishment of Boundary Commission pursuant MN Statues 465.79, which allows the county board to appoint a Boundary Commission or the Quit Claim Deed process. The property owners requested an estimated cost of the two options to help in their decision. The board requested that Donn determine the estimated cost and send out letters to the property owners.
Chairman Todd Beckel thanked the property owners for attending and requested that they inform the board as to which option they would prefer.
Social Service Director, Nancy Wendler met with the board and informed them that Heidi Olson would accept the one-month leave of absence that was discussed earlier in the day.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to authorize a one-month leave of absence for Heidi Olson to start when accumulated vacation time has been exhausted. Seconded by Commissioner Moorman and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
The following correspondence was acknowledged: AMC transportation funding; Northern Counties Land Use Coordinating Board, Freeberg & Grund, Inc.; House of Representative house number 2421; Proper Economic Resource Management and MN Pollution Control Agency.
With no further business before the board, Chairman Todd Beckel called the meeting to recess at 2:06p.m.
Attest: Approved: November 13, 2007
____________________________ _____________________________
John W. Hoscheid, County Auditor Todd Beckel, Chairman
Special County Board Meeting
October 30, 2007
The Lake of the Woods County Board met in special session on Tuesday, October 30, 2007, in the Commissioners’ room of the Lake of the Woods County Government Center, with the following members present: Commissioners Arnesen, Patty Beckel, Todd Beckel, Bredeson and Moorman. Also present were: County Auditor John W Hoscheid, Lake of the Woods County residents and media. Chair Todd Beckel called the meeting to order at 8:00 a.m. and led the Pledge of Allegiance.
Motion by Commissioner Patty Beckel to approve the agenda with the following additions: Northwest Angle Island road and grant criteria. Seconded by Commissioner Arnesen and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.
Commissioner Arnesen voiced his concerns on the process with the ANI grant and loan Memorandum of Understanding. He stated he would like to see a business plan. Commissioner Bredeson commented on how Headwaters Regional Development Commission (HRDC) is a qualified agency to perform the due diligence, not the County Board.
Commissioner Arnesen also stated he wanted clarification and understanding of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). He indicated his concerns that we do not spend tax payers’ money without certain criteria being addressed. The consensus of the board was the same.
Economic Development Director, Wyatt Johnson gave the County Board and audience the latest update from ANI on the Memorandum of Understanding. He talked about JOBZ and where we were in potentially securing JOBZ exemptions.
Motion by Commissioner Arnesen to establish the minimum requirements for county funding:
Ø Credit report
Ø Project narrative and business plan
Ø Proposed financing
Ø Budget detail
Ø Financial statement and balance sheet for 3 years
Ø Projected income statement with supporting documents
Ø Ownership
Ø Permits
Ø Costs
Ø Reviewed by the Auditor’s Office
Motion seconded by Commissioner Todd Beckel.
The County Board of Commissioners discussed the motion details and various options. Commissioner Arnesen amended the motion as follows:
Lake of the Woods County will set a minimum requirement and standard application criteria policy for county funding expenditures over $20,000 a year. The motion was put to a vote and unanimously carried.
Motion by Commissioner Arnesen to set a $50,000 per year cap from the economic development fund with no one entity receiving more that $150,000 in aggregate. The motion died from a lack of a second.
Motion by Commissioner Bredeson authorizing the Board Chair to sign the Memorandum of Understanding of a maximum of a $200,000 loan and $150,000 cash grant incentives; contingent on due diligence by HRDC and subject to claw back provisions and county standards in case of non-performance. Motion was seconded by Commissioner Todd Beckel and was put to a vote and carried as follows: In favor: Commissioners Patty Beckel, Todd Beckel, Bredeson and Moorman; Against: Commissioner Arnesen.
Commissioner Arnesen discussed with Public Works Director, Bruce Hasbargen the Northwest Angle Island road conditions. Northwest Angle residents, Brian Sage and Gary Dietzler expressed their concerns about lack of gravel and/or additional gravel with the pot holing during recent rains.
Public Works Director, Bruce Hasbargen explained findings of road conditions on his visit to the Northwest Angle. He discussed various options with the board. It was the consensus of the Board of Commissioners to direct Public Works Director, Bruce Hasbargen to look at gravel crushing at the Northwest Angle.
There being no further business before the Board, Chair Todd Beckel called the meeting in recess at 10:40 a.m.
Attest: Approved: ________________________
___________________________________________ ________________________________________________
John W Hoscheid Todd R Beckel
County Auditor Lake of the Woods County Board Chair