Argus News Editor
The Houston County Board agreed with the County Land Use Committee and Zoning Administrator Bob Scanlan in requiring Milestone Materials complete an environmental assessment worksheet (EAW) and not the more involved environmental impact study (EIS).
Milestone Materials, which recently bought out Roverud Construction, plans to expand the Gengler Quarry in Mayville Township. A portion of the property they want to expand was not included in the original description of the quarry.
State laws require an environmental assessment be made when operations call for the excavation of 20 or more acres of forestland or other naturally vegetated land.
Milestone had already completed the EAW and submitted it to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. The EAW was reviewed by the MPCA and several water run-off and emissions issues were raised. Both the Land Use Committee and Scanlan felt those issues had been addressed by Milestone to their satisfaction.
Environmental Services Officer Rick Frank said the county had spent the past three years addressing the flood and run-off issues in the Gengler Quarry area before the EAW was brought up. He also felt those issues had been addressed and any run-off problems corrected.
A motion made by Commissioner Tom Bjerke and seconded by Commissioner Jack Miller to require the EAW and not the EIS was unanimously approved.
In other board action:
Change in CSAH 5 plans
County Highway Engineer Brian Pogodzinski informed the board that the plans for the CSAH 5 project south of Caledonia have been changed. The county has been attempting to secure property along the winding county road, through a federal safety program, to straighten out several “S” curves and make the road safer.
Unfortunately, one of the property owners along the route and the county could not come to terms as far as the price of the land the county needed to acquire. The county could have entered into imminent domain proceedings, but decided instead to bypass the property.
“We were forced to adjust the route a little, but in the long run, we feel this is a better way to go in order to keep this project on schedule,” Pogodzinski noted.
Public Health gets grant
Public Health Director Deb Rock reported that Houston and Fillmore counties received a joint grant through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act in the amount of $14,575. Houston County’s share is $6,799, while Fillmore County, with a slightly higher population will receive $7,776.
Houston County will use its share to zero in on immunizing the under insured and uninsured adolescent and adult populations. Rock said they also plan to purchase a freezer to store chicken pox and other vaccines and also a laptop computer and printer for staff to use when out in the field.
Township sign inventory
Highway Superintendent Tom Molling discussed the county-wide township sign improvement project that was recently completed.
He explained now that the program was completed, the county is required to do an inventory of all the signs in the county to make sure that there are not damaged or missing signs.
“It’s a liability to us if we don’t do an inventory and make sure there aren’t any damaged or missing signs,” Molling said.
Molling said the county will be sending letters out to all the townships informing them of the upcoming inventory and that the county will be maintaining them.
GIS upgrades approved
The board approved using $10,000 from the County Recorder’s compliance fund to purchase three computer software upgrades that will help with feedlot monitoring in the county. County E911 Coordinator Dan Krzoska made the request. He explained that the county had received a $3,000 grant from the state to help improve the monitoring of feedlots, but added the county needed several other software upgrades. The total bill for the upgrades was $13,000.
County Recorder Bev Bauer explained that the money does not come out of any county budget. Money from the compliance fund, which was established by the state to help improve record keeping through advanced technology, is derived by recording fees. For every $46 spent on recording fees, $11 goes into the compliance fund.
“This is the type of fund if we don’t use it, we’ll lose it,” Bauer said.
Just no fix to jail door
Chief Sheriff’s Deputy Scott Yeiter informed the board the front door on the 135-year-old Houston County Jail is shot.
“The door is falling off,” Yeiter said. “We’ve fixed and fixed on it. But we’ve been told there’s no more fix to it. We really don’t want to spend a lot of money on it right now, with the new Justice Center about to be built, but it’s becoming a liability issue. It’s going to fall off the hinges any day.”
Yeiter noted the Sheriff’s Department has had several carpenters take a look at the door molding and frame and they all came up with the same conclusion that the frame and all must be replaced.
Yeiter said they got a “rough quote” of $2,500 to have a new door and frame assembly installed. He said he didn’t think that included tax. The board approved a motion to allow the Sheriff’s Department to spend up to $3,000 to install a new door.
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