On Tuesday, April 28, the Cook County commissioners spent more than an hour discussing the Minnesota Department of Transportations (MnDOT’s) plans to detour traffic off of Highway 61 once the work on the Fall River Bridge replacement begins.
MnDOT originally proposed routing traffic off of Highway 61 onto County Road 7 with all of the vehicles— including trucks— ending at the new Gunflint Trail by the Cook County Law Enforcement building. However, based on information they had gleaned from meeting with the public, MnDOT asked that trucks be routed up 5th Ave West to the new Gunflint Trail, where there would be a four-way stop sign.
Commissioner Bobby Deschampe wasn’t in favor of the new plan. As a long time truck driver, Deschampe worried about brakes heating up on fully loaded trucks coming down the Gunflint as they came to the new stop.
“There is a reason there is a runaway truck stop,” about three hundred yards up the hill from the proposed stop sign, he said, adding that when he saw the new plan, “It became a safety issue in my eyes and MnDOT should know that.”
Commissioner Heidi Doo-Kirk agreed with Deschampe that a four-way stop could cause problems. She said that when trucks were going up the hill on 5th West to the current stop at the Gunflint Trail, vehicles were passing those trucks because of how slowly they moved. With more trucks on the route, she worried more people would be trying to get around them, causing more danger.
After much discussion where the pros and cons of the detour were hashed over, commissioner Dave Mills motioned for the traffic to be routed along County Road 7. There was a second and Mills, Doo- Kirk, Deschampe, and Ginny Storlie voted for the motion with Myron Bursheim abstaining. Bursheim said he wasn’t against the motion, but he didn’t like the fact that vehicles were going to be routed past the Y.M.C.A., and the two schools, C.C.H.S., and Great Expectations. Doo- Kirk noted that the highway work was taking place in the summer and not when the schools would be in session.
Truck route detour
Any day now, the state will begin the Highway 61 roadwork. During this two year project, the state will perform grading, bituminous milling, bituminous surfacing, A.D.A. improvements, signal, lighting, retaining wall, and bridge construction on Highway 61 from 1.8 miles north of Cutface Creek to .01 miles north of County State Aid Highway (C.S.A.H.) 14.
The 2020 and 2021 truck route detour will run from County Road 7 to the Gunflint Trail entrance, a total of 9.2 miles.
The county will permit 10-ton axle loads on the detour route, while over-dimension loads will be allowed by the MnDOT permit.
Modifications of the detour route may also occur with the state adding additional roadways to the detour route, but the state will request an agreement from the county on such changes.
The state will do any necessary bituminous patching and ordinary maintenance on the roadway or shoulder of the county roads used for the detour with no cost to the county. Bituminous patching is defined as “any work, including continuous full-width overlays, less than 100 feet in length. State expenditures beyond those required for bituminous patching and ordinary maintenance will be credited against the road life consumed reimbursement due to the county.
The state has agreed to pay the county $12,930.68 for the estimated cost for the road-life consumed by the detours.
Motions approved by the board
In other news, commissioners approved the annual grant given to the Sheriff ’s office from the United States Forest Service to assist in patrolling the National Forest campgrounds.
The $16,912.62 grant was approved at the board’s April 28 meeting.
The money is used to help pay for the county’s deputies to respond to calls for service in the national forest from about May 1 to September 30.
Cook County Law Enforcement provides a variety of services to the U.S.F.S., including but not limited to vehicle patrol, water patrol, air patrol, search and rescue, fire response and campground patrol.
* Mikala Schliep was hired as a dispatcher/jailer. Mikala will start on June 7, 2020.
* Commissioners approved a permit for application for lawful gambling (bingo) hosted at Zoar Lutheran Church on July 4. The proceeds will be used for charitable purposes. Zoar was charged $5 to pay for the special permit.
* Nine seasonal liquor license applications were approved: Clearwater Lodge, Gunflint Hills Golf Course, Seagull Canoe Outfitters, Big Bear Lodge, Loon Lake Lodge, Trails End Café, Voyageur Canoe Outfitters, Tuscarora Lodge, and Sawbill Canoe Outfitters. All approvals are subject to approvals by town boards, county sheriff, county attorney, and proof of insurance and workers’ compensation compliance.
* Commissioners approved a resolution so the county can act as the legal sponsor for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources Snowmobile Trails Assistance Program for the fiscal year 2021.
Snowmobile clubs from the Gunflint Trail, Lutsen and Tofte, provide snowmobile trail maintenance and receive grants from this program so they can perform the work on the trails.
The county will also act as the legal sponsor for an application to the Minnesota Trail Assistance Program for the fiscal year 2021. The State of Minnesota Trail assistance program provides trail maintenance funds for the Banadad Trail Association, Bally Creek Ski Trails, Norpine Trail Association, Pincushion/ North Shore Ski and Run Club, and the Sugar Bush Trail Association.
* Candace Danielson was awarded the annual contract to clean the Clearwater and Leo Lake public access areas.
* Cook County Highway Engineer Krysten Foster presented a request from the consultant for a design contract amendment due to changes in the County Road 45 project since the contract was first agreed to in 2017.
LHB requested an increase from $557,097 to $630,153.02 for engineering services. Foster said the project is funded by a combination of 2018 bond funds and transportation sales tax (T.S.T.) revenues. Commissioners approved the request.
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