At the request of County Board Chair Heidi Doo-Kirk, commissioners voted to have the county act as fiscal agent for Lutsen Township on its application for a $226,800 Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) grant that would be used to rehabilitate sub standard housing. The vote came at the board’s November 10 meeting.
In the application it states, “A survey of homes in Lutsen has shown that the physical need is substantial. Of the 46 substandard homes, 14 need to have roofs replaced, 12 need siding replaced, 23 need new doors, 20 need new windows and 24 need new steps or handrails.”
The report also notes, “The community of Lutsen has basically two segments to the population, the first being the well-to-do for which living in the area does not present a problem and the second being the low-to-moderate income populations which are typically working two to three jobs in their attempt to meet the high cost of living in the area.”
If the money were granted, eight of the 46 substandard houses would be rehabilitated. This, cites the report, would have a very substantial effect on the overall picture of housing within the community.
The median value of a home in Lutsen is $233,327 with the median value income $67,813. The median mortgage payment for homeowners with a mortgage is $1,215.
Tune-up approved for ARMER radios
The county board approved spending $51,167.56 to purchase a piece of equipment called a Service Monitor, which will be used to tune allied radio matrix emergency response (ARMER) radios and maintain other emergency equipment. Half of the money ($25,583.78) for the Service Monitor will be reimbursed to the county by a grant.
Information Technology Director Rena Rogers and IT staff member Rowan Watkins told the board there were almost 700 ARMER radios in the county. These radios are used by the Sheriff ’s Department and emergency workers (firefighters, EMTs, Search and Rescue, etc.). The ARMER radios need to be tuned every three years.
Watkins said it costs about $150 for each hand-held radio to be adjusted when it was sent out of county to be serviced, and it cost the county about $25,000 each year for radios to be updated.
When using a Service Monitor, “It’s easy to tune the radios,” Watkins said.
County engineer weighs in on calcium chloride
County Engineer Dave Betts was asked how important calcium chloride applications were for gravel roads. The board has been looking to make cuts to the 2016 levy, which currently stands at 11.2 percent, and was eying the $160,000 appropriation it allocated last year to the highway department for the chemical that when applied to gravel roads, keeps dust down.
“From an engineering standpoint, applying calcium chloride reduces the amount of grading we have to do,” Betts said. “It’s not dust abatement. It’s dust control. The rule of thumb is that you lose 1 inch of gravel per year. If you do nothing you end up with rocks and it feels like you are driving on marbles.
“We figure we can double the life of gravel by applying calcium chloride. It also helps with washouts. At the $160,000 mark, it allows us to get calcium chloride on the side roads.”
Commissioner Moe said he has a friend that has put together a document that shows calcium chloride can be bad for the environment and he will bring that document to a future meeting.
Betts said the county applied a minimal amount of calcium chloride— one gallon for every five yards— and didn’t apply chemicals close to the sides of the roads.
“We haven’t noticed any plant damage. We would notice that when we brush the ditches. They [the ditches] seem to grow brush very well.”
In other highway department business, final payment in the amount of $143,070 was authorized to KGM Contractors for its work on the Swamper Lake outlet replacement project.
Betts said there was an overrun of about 10 percent on the job. He said once the crew dug to replace a culvert they discovered they couldn’t use the dirt for backfill, and more class 5 gravel than was expected had to be used to complete the job.
Planned unit development footprint changes
Planning and Zoning Administrator Bill Lane said because of the slowdown in building that occurred after the 2008 recession, several planned unit developments (PUDs) were asking for changes to their original plans.
Temperance Landing in Schroeder and Surfside on Lake Superior in Tofte are asking to reduce the number of units on their properties. Terrace Point in Grand Marais asked for a supplemental common interest community (CIC) plat that would allow two residential units to be built instead of the three that were going to be built.
“The planning and zoning board is in favor of these changes,” said Lane. “There is nothing but common sense involved with these changes.”
“You mean there will be lower density, less environmental impact, less impact to neighbors and a higher volume in sales because of these changes?” Moe asked Lane.
Lane smiled and the board voted unanimously in favor of the three resolutions.
In other business
. The board approved three special event permits: for the Grand Marais Christmas Parade that will take place on Friday, November 27 from 4-5 p.m.; for the Superior Spring Races to be held Saturday, May 21, 2016; and one for the Rock Steady Fall September 9-10 trail races.
. The board also approved a two-year snowmobile grant from Minnesota Department of Natural Resources for the Cook County Sheriff’s Office which will use the money for snowmobile patrol and education. The county will receive $4,886 each year through 2017.
. Starting January 1, 2016, Colvill volunteer firefighters who have served five years or more will be given an increase to $800 per year of service to be paid to their PERA retirement fund. There are currently six members who are vested in the Colvill fire department.
. The county board approved $700 for one person from the Broadband Commission to attend the Blandin Broadband Conference in Minneapolis, November 18-20.
. The board approved an agreement with the Firewise Committee, which has contracted experienced wild land firefighters to burn brush piles in the Gust Lake area. They will also be responsible to cut all dead and living balsam fir less than 5 inches in diameter. For the services performed, the county will pay the contractor the rate of $85 per hour for a two-person crew. The total cost of work under this proposal will not exceed $10,000. The funding for the Firewise work comes from A USDA first service grant.
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