Commissioner Fritz Sobanja at his desk in the Commissioners’ Room at the Cook County Courthouse. He has a sample of a desk lamp in front of him, but it is not plugged in because he does not intend to use the new lamp that will soon sit there at county board meetings. Nine new LED desk lamps are being ordered after the board agreed to stop using the overhead compact fluorescent lights because Commissioner Sobanja has severe negative reactions to them. He has provided the board with information regarding research into the health ramifications of electronic devices and certain types of lighting.
People living along Devil’s Track Road (County Road 8) are complaining. Their tires are going flat when they drive through the construction zone near the airport. And since the project was delayed by the state shutdown in July, the completion date will not be anytime soon. Cook County Highway Engineer David Betts and Maintenance Supervisor Russell Klegstad know what can be done about it, however.
Drive the speed limit.
At the September 27, 2011 county board meeting, Betts and Klegstad told commissioners that residents are driving at regular speeds as if the road still had pavement on it. “It’s a construction zone,” said Klegstad. “We need to have law enforcement up there giving local people tickets.”
Commissioner Fritz Sobanja concurred. “Locals are driving 50, 60 miles per hour,” he said, explaining that he has been up there observing the traffic. People have the attitude that it’s their road and no one should be messing with it, he said, and they are also not driving safely around the construction workers.
So if they adhere to the speed limit – 35 miles per hour – they won’t get flat tires? Commissioner Sue Hakes asked.
Affirmative, according to Klegstad.
Betts admitted that for awhile, the road had shale on it that could have caused some flat tires, but now they have Class 5 gravel on it which shouldn’t hurt tires at slow speeds.
Calcium chloride has been applied to the road in this area, keeping the dust down and preventing washboarding. But the downside of calcium chloride is that it increases the incidence of potholes, and it makes the road so hard that grading out the potholes can be impossible.
Maintenance on the road is not his department right now, Klegstad said, because it’s a construction zone and in the hands of the contractor, KGM Contractors Inc. of Angora, MN. Under its contract with the county, KGM has agreed to maintain the road and respond to requests from the Highway Department within 24 hours.
In other news:
. The board authorized its financial consultant, Ehlers Inc., to solicit bids for general obligation capital improvement bonds and general obligation sales tax revenue bonds.
The first (a maximum of $1.42 million paid over four years) will enable the county to refinance bonds taken out for the construction of the courthouse addition and the Law Enforcement Center. The bonds will be at a lower interest rate, saving the county money.
The second ($8.5 million paid over 20 years) will be used for projects being undertaken with the county’s 1 percent sales and use tax enacted last year and will be paid for solely through collection of the tax.
A presale report by Ehlers says the county has an A1 rating from Moody’s Investor Services, and they expect a similar or potentially higher AA rating from Moody’s or Standard & Poor’s for these transactions.
“The demand for municipal bonds is really strong right now,” said Carolyn Drude of Ehlers, “probably because of what’s going on in the stock market.”
Minnesota statute requires counties to limit their debt to within 3 percent of total market value. In 2011, Cook County’s property has a market value of approximately $1.8 billion, so its current debt limit is about $54.6 million. With the sale of these bonds, the county will still be well within that limit.
The board will consider bids on October 25.
. Two sample desk lamps were used by commissioners during the meeting. One, favored by Commissioner Bruce Martinson, cost $70. The other, favored by commissioners Sue Hakes and Jan Hall, cost $50 and was recommended by John Schloot, owner of Cross River Lodge up the Gunflint Trail. He also owns a furniture company, Mulnix Industries Inc. in Hallsville, Missouri, and when he heard about the board’s desire for good lighting at a good price, he offered Commissioner Hakes the opportunity to try out the “Littlite” that he sells through his company. The LED light, which according to Schloot offers “super white, crisp, efficient light,” was designed for reading in dark places.
The board authorized Maintenance Director Brian Silence to order eight more desk lamps from Schloot so that each seat at the front of the Commissioners’ Room has a desk lamp. Commissioner Jim Johnson was not at the meeting, and Commissioner Fritz Sobanja has stated that he will not be using a desk lamp.
The lamps will be used instead of the ceiling lighting over the commissioners’ desks because Commissioner Sobanja has negative reactions to the compact fluorescent lighting in the ceiling.
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