Commissioner Bob Fenwick
Those who have been waiting to find out how long it would be before the county board started working on the projects authorized with the passage of last fall’s 1% sales tax referendum may be happy to know that the wait is over.
On Tuesday, March 16, 2010, Commissioner Bob Fenwick volunteered to spearhead planning for the community center/ pool facility to be located on county land on the corner of 5th Street and 4th Avenue West in Grand Marais, the site of the current Community Center, the log 4-H building, and the skate park.
Commissioner Fenwick said he thinks he will be very busy with the project and asked Commissioner Bruce Martinson to be the lead commissioner on the newly formed Cook County Fiber Optic Commission. Board chair Fritz Sobanja, the county board liaison to the Community Center board, said he thinks a fresh view will be good for the project. Therest of the board agreed and a motion was passed to that effect. Theyalso agreed to pick up other committee responsibilities as Fenwick gets busy with the community center project.
“I think it’s time we start to get things moving,” said Commissioner Jan Hall. “Bob would be an asset to work with that.”
Martinson turned to Sobanja and reminded him that last fall, Sobanja had told people to “hold their horses” on the community center project. We’re ready to let them go now, right? Martinson asked.
“We can get the whips out and go!” Sobanja replied.
Board approves ARMER system
With the federal government requiring emergency response agencies to switch to narrow bandwidths by 2013, the board passed a resolution to adopt ARMER— the Allied Radio Matrix for Emergency Response—recommended by the State of Minnesota.
The state is paying for a backbone of infrastructure that would allow different types of governmental agencies— county law enforcement, State Patrol, U.S. Forest Service, Minnesota DNR, Border Patrol—to communicate with one another.
The county will need to find funding to pay for its share of the new system, but Sheriff Mark Falk thinks funding sources can be found, and the county can back out of the resolution if funding cannot be found. Falk assumed the price of equipment would go down, as new technology tends to do over time.
Commissioner Jim Johnson pointed out that if the county didn’t adopt ARMER, it would still have to pay for other options to comply with the new federal regulation.
Highway Department
labor negotiations
The Highway Department crew agreed to no cost of living increase in its 2010 contract. It will get a $.25 an hour increase in 2011, however.
Commissioner Jan Hall participated in negotiations with the union. She said the department was very understanding of the county’s budget challenges. “We have to acknowledge that they made some considerable movement and changes,” she said.
The board approved the contract with the union.
The Highway Department union has been negotiating with the county board on
different schedule from the other departments, but the next negotiations will bring everyone into the same schedule.
Soil survey
The Minnesota Board of Water and Soil Resources will be reimbursing Cook County the $80,000 it will need to pay to complete a countywide soil survey, Conservation Technician Tristan Beaster reported to the board. The county’s only expense will be the administrative time involved in its participation in the project. Thework will be done by the USDA’s Natural Resource Conservation Service, Beaster said.
A soil survey provides a detailed description and mapping of soils. This information helps planners to make better land use decisions, Beaster said in a March 17 phone interview. Between one and five samples are taken for every 40 acres, depending on the type of landform.
Beaster said Cook County is one of the last counties in the country to get its soil survey completed.
TheU.S. Forest Service is doing its own surveying on Forest Service land, which comprises 70% of Cook County.
Septic ordinance
Planning and Zoning Director Tim Nelson updated the board on the statewide debate over MPCA septic system requirements which are in the process of change at the same time counties are being required to adopt ordinances supporting them. Some counties have postponed adoption of their own ordinances until they know what the MPCA’s final rules will be.
Even with its own proposed septic ordinance on hold, Cook County’s Planning and Zoning Department continues to uphold good standards, Nelson said. About 5% of the county’s septics are failing at any given time, but owners have 10 days to stop septage from surfacing to the ground after the county is aware of it, and the owners must correct the problem.
Commissioner Jim Johnson said he would like to see citizens get educated and be proactive in doing what’s best for the environment and for public health.
Environmental Health Specialist/ Sanitarian LeRoy Halberg will be retiring by summer, Nelson reported. The job has changed over time, and Nelson proposed changing the job title to Environmental Health Officer to avoid conflict with state statutes defining the original position.
The board accepted Halberg’s retirement with regrets and well wishes and passed a motion to change the job title.
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