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Bruce Martinson
Bruce Martinson is running against incumbent Ginny Storlie to see who will represent District 5 as county commissioner. Ginny suffered an accident and her response to these questions will run next week.
Please tell us a little bit about yourself.
After 29 years of managing Superior Ridge Resort Motel and raising our family in Schroeder, my wife, Sheryl, and I are selling the business looking at a May closing with a buyer. We will remain in Cook County residing on land across from Sugarloaf Cove in Schroeder. We have three children: Kyle (27) an actuary analyst with Securian in St. Paul and Alyssa (22) a Disaster Relief Specialist with the Red Cross in St. Paul and Ryan (30) self-employed software developer. My education includes a B.A. degree in Business Administration minoring in Biology and Economics. Prior to moving to Cook County in 1993. My passions include traveling, canoeing in the BWCA and scuba diving.
Both of you have been or are currently county commissioners. How do you feel your experience will guide you going forward if you are elected?
My experience as Cook County Commissioner for 12 years (2003-2014), Schroeder Township Supervisor for 14 years, manager/owner of Superior Ridge Resort Motel for 29 years, Customer Banking Representative for 7 years in a large bank and EEO Coordinator in Human Resources will provide the tools to make decisions in the best interests of my constituents if elected. While commissioner, I learned how to research the issues and what pertinent questions to ask; voting no if I thought the best interest of the county and my constituents weren’t being served. I learned the intricacies of the budget along with how to eliminate unnecessary spending.
Cook County Public Health and Human Services continues to expand and outgrow the space they are in at the courthouse. Should the county build them a separate office building? Or what other options are available?
With the Public Health and Human Services budget 2018 expenditures going from 3.36 million in 2018 to the proposed 5.08 million along with the current 32.75 full- time equivalent employees, no wonder the dept. has outgrown the space. The county should not build a separate office building but consider the following two alternatives: First, the county should keep allowing employees to work from home. Second, the county should send a request for proposals (RFP) to property managers and realtors for office space to lease in renovated structures.
Should the county consider a moratorium on new Airbnb’s? If so, why, or why not?
Even though I support a limit on licenses, a moratorium would not be effective now with new requirements coming into effect after Jan. 1st. Proposed rules include rental operators must maintain a current certificate of compliance for their septic system, license not transferable upon sale to the new owner and a pressurized water system must be filtered or purified for drinking purposes. The county should approve the recommendations of the vacation home rental review committee to have the county form another committee by Jan. 2, 2024 or sooner to limit the licenses given if more than 393 permits are reached.
Do you back the request from Lutsen Mountains to expand their ski hill on public lands?
Being the winter economy is dependent on the success of the Lutsen Mountains’ operations and the current skier capacity is maxed out on busy weekends, I support their request with caveats. First, the Grand Portage Tribe should meet with Lutsen Mountains representatives to discuss the 1854 Treaty Rights. Second, to minimize the impact, the buildout should be 25% to 30% on the requested acreage which is only .00014% of the managed Superior National Forest. Third, to mitigate the impact of development on the Rollins Creek watershed, best management practices should be used including building berms to divert and retain water on the slopes and bottom of the ski runs.
The Minnesota Power plant is still shuttered. Are there steps to open the plant in some form? And what about the property owned by the company? Any plans for housing or other uses for that property in Schroeder? Would you as a county commissioner work with Minnesota Power to create a better use for those assets if the company requested help?
Even though the plant ceased producing electricity about 9 years ago, MN Power was paid to keep the facility on standby until 2020. MN Power has had staff, without success, look for other users of their facility. The bigger issues are how to decommission the current facility and responsibly develop the surrounding 3300 acres owned by MN Power (ALLETE) and Cleveland Cliffs which includes the only deep-water harbor, commercial dock and rail line in Cook County. In 2021, legislation passed to form an Energy Transition Advisory Committee to study issues and determine needed aid to nine coal-fired electric plants that have closed or are anticipated to be closed. Recommendations will be given to the legislature by the end of the year. MN Power and the Schroeder board have been disappointed that our current County Commissioners and EDA Board have not been involved from the start on this critical committee. If elected, I will work with MN Power and MN Dept. of Economic Development to find the best use of their assets, including getting rid of unnecessary structures.
What do you see as the biggest challenge for the county in the next four years?
The biggest challenge will be to keep the levy at a level acceptable to the taxpayers. If not for use of fund balances ($560,000 in the Public Health and Human Services fund, $449,873 in the Hwy fund and $165,000 in the general fund) and the American Rescue Plan funds (ARPA), the levy would have been close to 14% for the coming year. Part of the 1.06 million in the ARPA grant was paid for Human Services staffing which must be continued with levy funds in the future. $360,000 was recently approved for a proposed wage subsidy ($5.00 hr.) for public and private daycare providers and coordinator must also be supported in the future by the levy. In 2023, the county board plans on hiring a Parks & Trails Services Person which was viewed as unnecessary to fill since 2019. At the surface, a 3.5% negotiated cost of living salary increase seems to indicate the county board is keeping costs down. However, this is not the case. Forty hours of paid time off were added with the option to roll over unused days into a deferred compensation plan. In addition, another paid holiday, Juneteenth was given to the employees. The County Board directed wage and compensation study could give employees a boost in wages outside the union negotiations. Following the current direction in spending, Cook County taxpayers can expect a high levy increase in the future without cuts and changes. The west end needs a strong voice to address this. I, Bruce Martinson, am the one best up to the challenge.
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