Posted: 9/4/07
Beyer will serve as consultant on proposed highway department site
 Mark Beyer of Johnson Controls, at left, and Houston County Highway Engineer Marcus Evan during the August 28 county board meeting. Photo by Charlie Warner |
By Charlie Warner
Argus Editor
Saying the Houston County Highway Department has been "a little busier" since the flash floods of August would be a gross understatement. According to Highway Engineer Marcus Evans, he and his crew put in more hours in one week than what most folks rack up in a two-week pay period.
While the floodwaters have long receded, the county highway department still has the monumental task of repairing and/or rebuilding the many roads and bridges damaged by the record-breaking rains. The county highway department will also be making a thorough inspection of every county and township bridge in the county.
At the same time Evans and company have been focusing copious amounts of energy on the countyís infrastructure, a very pressing issue has been put on the back burner. Evans brought that issue - the potential purchase of 22.5 acres for a new highway department facility - to the county board during its August 28 meeting.
"With all the urgent issues because of the floods, I havenít had the time required to make a site assessment. The county has signed a 90-day option to purchase the land, so this is something that needs to be completed. Iíd like to recommend Mark Beyer, of Johnson Controls, be the person to conduct the site assessment," Evans said.
Beyer is currently under contract with the county to serve as the project manager for the proposed county criminal justice center (CJC). Because he has been working with the county in that capacity, he has become familiar with much of the county staff, the community of Caledonia, and Houston County.
Had it not been for the August floods, Evans would be spearheading the site assessment on a tract of land located at the intersection of West Main Street and Gjere Avenue in Caledonia. Ma Cal Developers, Inc., which owns the property, offered the 22.5 acres to the county for $245,000.
"If we were to go out to find another consultant (other than Beyer) to make the site assessment, we would have to advertise for the position, go through the interview process, and then get someone on board," Evans noted. "We really donít have time for all of that. The 90 days would probably be up before weíd have someone else hired."
Beyer told the board he would work with the various areas within the highway department to get to know their operational needs. He would make an infrastructure assessment of the proposed location, look at drainage issues, work with the city on possible zoning issues, look at potential structure sizes to see how they would fit on the property, and also examine the potential costs. He figured he could have a report ready within four to five weeks.
A motion by Commissioner Dave Corcoran and seconded by Commissioner Larry Connery to have Mark Beyer of Johnson Controls conduct a site assessment was unanimously approved.
Some history
The county created a highway department building committee to review various sites in the county to either re-locate the highway department, or put up a new facility at the existing location near the county fair grounds in Caledonia.
After reviewing a number of sites, the committee made the recommendation to purchase the 22.5-acre site at the August 7 county board meeting.
Corcoran and Connery were the two board members on the committee. At the August 7 meeting Corcoran said he felt the site just west of Highways 44 and 76 would be an excellent location, which is near the Houston County Recycling Center.
"This is something we have been working on for the 15 years I have been a commissioner," Corcoran said. "Weíve looked at a number of locations, but were never able to find a suitable one, until now.
"This is the route to take," Corcoran continued. "The townships are having a harder time maintaining their roads and I feel we will be taking on more of their road maintenance. So we will need room to expand. Weíre land-locked at our present site. And with the government restrictions on storing salt, we just donít have the room near the fairgrounds."
Commissioner Tom Bjerke said he felt the proposed site would be an excellent location. "Our current building is shot, we donít have room to expand, and it is located in a residential area. We have large trucks moving in and out of that facility. I feel this would be a good move."
The building committee had drafted a purchase agreement, which included a number of issues that needed to be addressed. They included:
ï having soil borings conducted to make sure the site can handle such a facility;
ï checking to see if the access roads are rated at 10 tons;
ï receiving a change in zoning by the city of Caledonia;
ï making sure the existing ponds are adequate to handle the development and/or constructing additional ponds;
ï making sure the site had adequate utilities.
Those are all issues that Beyer will be addressing.
Caledonia Argus
314 West Lincoln St.
P.O. Box 227
Caledonia, MN 55921-0227
507/724-3475
E-Mail: editor.argus@ecm-inc.com