Following a review of the highway department’s entrance approach policy, commissioners approved an online permitting policy for entrance applications.
The decision came at the county board’s March 28 meeting.
“This policy has been prepared in the interest of public safety,” said Cook County Highway Engineer Dave Betts. “It ensures the right of access onto a county road and serves as an aid in preparing plans and applications for approach access to roads under Cook County jurisdiction.”
Andy Hubley, Arrowhead Regional Development Commission (ARDC) came before the board with a presentation and discussion about upcoming highway projects. He also discussed the State Highway Investment Plan (STIP), a four-year schedule of state and local transportation projects eligible for federal highway and transit funding.
ARDC facilitates the solicitation for Transportation Alternative funding on behalf of the Area Transportation Partnership (ATP), said Hubley. A set scoring system is used and reviewed by an independent task force to recommend which projects receive federal funds, which can be used for paved trails, streetscapes, and Safe Routes to School improvements.
Under the new system, Hubley said it is harder for Safe Routes to Schools to receive as much money as it did in the past because of the competitive nature of the process.
This year there were 13 applicants vying for $900,000 in federal funds distributed in the year 2021. Hubley said the Transportation Alternative Task Force met on February 9, 2017 to review and score the applicants and make funding recommendations to the ATP. Following that meeting ATP recommended that $600,000 be awarded to construct the Gitchi- Gami State Trail from the Lutsen Ski Hill Road to Lutsen Town Center. A project in Deer River received the remaining $300,000. Added up, Hubley said the 13 projects submitted to ATP were in the millions of dollars.
The Northeast Minnesota Area Transportation Partnership (ATP) represents District One, which has 1,561 miles of roadway covering the eight counties it serves. There are 19,466 square miles of land in District One, or about 24 percent of the state’s land.
MnDOT created ATP in the early 1990s to emphasize greater public involvement, enhance regional planning and increase cooperation development of Minnesota’s State Transportation Improvement Program (STIP). ATP also provides management guidance for program administration throughout the year and recommends area program policy.
District One counties include Aitkin, Carlton, Cook, Itaska, Koochiching, Lake, Pine, and Saint Louis. Tribal governments covered include the Boise Forte Band, Fond du Lac Band, Grand Portage Band and Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe.
The total value of highway projects in northeastern Minnesota is $145,430,585. New highway projects for 2017 will cost $83,680,585. Hubley said there is a $6 billion shortfall to accomplish all of the road work needed in the eight counties, and that shortfall is expected to grow into $20 billion by 2030.
Courthouse safety
The county is seeking $15,000 from a Safe and Secure Courthouse initiative grant. The money is administered by the Secure Courthouse Grant Advisor Panel, which was given $1 million to award this year by the Minnesota Legislature.
Total cost of the project will be $30,000, but the county will use in-kind matches for its $15,000. County staff will do much of the work to plan, build, and install security features.
Currently, doors to the courtroom can’t be locked from the inside, said Cook County Administrator Jeff Cadwell. Adding paddle locks to the interior doors of the courtroom allows those inside to keep out any threat that might come from common areas of the courthouse.
Cadwell said the building was designed for fire escape without considering security needs. He also said bathroom doors currently have paddle locks, which provide an opportunity for an assailant to take a person into a bathroom for an assault without being followed by law enforcement, and he recommended removing those locks.
A barrier should be created between common areas of the gallery of the courtroom and the litigant area to slow down threats, which might come from either direction. For this purpose, said Cadwell, “banker” type doors will be placed at barrier access points. Courthouse staff will build the doors.
Another area that needs to be made safer is the spaces between the galley of the courtroom and the counsel/ litigant area. Chairs in front of the litigant tables are affixed with casters, which allow an assailant sitting in a chair to quickly escape law enforcement or to use the rolling chair as a tool/weapon to impede law enforcement. Cadwell said chairs would be replaced with those recommended by the county’s security assessment.
Last but not least, in the event of a threat those who are now hiding in secured rooms to “shelter-in-place,” are visible by an assailant outside of the room, making the occupants potential targets. Cadwell said security screens or blinds would be added to cover the windows in the doors.
Following administrator Cadwell’s presentation commissioners approved of the grant application, which needed to be sent by March 31 to be considered for approval.
Cook County Auditor/Treasurer Braidy Powers presented the 2016 year-end General Fund quarterly budget report to the commissioners.
“The results appear to be very positive with revenues 6 percent higher than budgeted and expenses 4 percent less than budgeted,” said Powers. “These are cash based numbers and will change when year-end adjustments are made.”
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