This bridge, located on 165th Street south of Huntley, is set to open soon once the grading approaching the bridge is complete. The bridge has been closed to traffic for three years because an inspection revealed a safety concern with some parts of the old bridge. Another bridge, located on 190th Street, has been replaced and is now open.

The County Board met for their regular meeting on Oct. 3 and had a lengthy discussion on proposed maintenance projects which could be paid for by remaining ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) or CARES (Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act) funds.

“We cannot use those dollars to offset the tax levy,” commissioner Bill Groskreutz reminded the board. “But, we can use the money to fix some of the stuff that would require levy dollars in the future.”

With that thought in mind, Buildings and Grounds supervisor Saxon Warmka presented the County Board with a list of projects to consider which could utilize the federal funds.

“We currently have $822,635 in ARPA money and another $100,000 in CARES funds,” board chairman Bruce Anderson added. “So that is over $922,000 total.”

The first project Warmka asked the commissioners to consider was new air conditioner units for the Annex building.

“The current units are original to the 1974 building,” Warmka explained. “We are planning to complete the roof repairs on that building in 2024 and it would be a good time to install the two new rooftop units.”

Two bids were provided and the board approved the lower bid of $89,919 provided by Harty Mechanical.

Next, the board discussed replacing the old florescent lights in the Annex building.

“You have seen what a difference new lighting has made in the courthouse,” Warmka said. “I would like to upgrade the lights to LED flat panels and also install some automatic lighting controls with occupancy sensors to ensure lights will be turned off in hallways, stairs and cubicles and will turn on with motion.”

The low bid of $22,486 by Anderson Electric was approved.

“Next on the list is the courthouse retaining wall. It was installed in the 1930s and is showing its age. It was repaired on the south side in the 1980s but still has a lot of damage,” Warmka commented. “I would like to have the old wall removed and install a new wall or remove the wall completely and slope the side hill to a reasonable grade that could be mowed.”

The bids varied greatly for this project. The cheapest option by far was to remove the wall and slope the hill but the cost of having to redo the steps was not included in the bid.

Concern was also raised about the number of trees that might have to be taken down.

It was pointed out that some of the trees were oak and could be susceptible to oak wilt anyway.

The board decided to take no action on the retaining wall at this time and directed Warmka to gather more information on projected costs.

Another project the commissioners approved was to handle the moisture problem in the courthouse basement.

All Star Basements was awarded the project at a cost of $21,760.

“The work will be done inside by cutting the floor out around the wall and installing a drain line with a sump pump in each room. They will also cover the walls with a moisture barrier,” Warmka said. “The downside to this is we are limited to doing rooms without finished floors and walls. In addition, we will have multiple sump pumps.”

The board also approved a bid in the amount of $83,200, by Neilson Blacktopping Inc., for work to be done at the Law Enforcement Center.

The project will include removing five ‘islands’ and some curbing to aid in snow removal and lawn care. Some standard curbs will also be removed and replaced with drive-over curbs to help minimize the damage to the snowplows and mowers.

Also at the meeting, the commissioners welcomed a new employee and honored a retiring long-time employee.

The board welcomed Brian Hov as the new coordinator for the county which will allow interim coordinator, Mark Daly, to return to his full-time duties with the Public Works Department.

The board also expressed their appreciation to Steve Robbins, who is retiring after serving the county since 1981 in the county assessor’s office.

“I took the job thinking I would stay here until I found something I liked better,” Robbins said. “But, I found I really liked my job here, so I stayed.”

Robbins also expressed his appreciation for his relationship with the commissioners.

“You always listened,” Robbins commented. “We did not always agree, but you listened and we stayed friends.”

Commissioner Greg Young, on behalf of the board, thanked Robbins for all of his years of service.

Daly then proceeded to provide an update on the bridge construction projects near Winnebago and Huntley.

“The bridge on 190th Street is open and just needs some special finish work,” Daly told the commissioners. “The work on the bridge on 165th Street is complete. It is not open yet because the grading has to be completed first.”

Daly also had an update on the remaining bridge project for 2023.

“They are finally starting work on the bridge on 40th Street and County Road 106,” he said. “This is a Federal Aid Bridge and the construction is with double box culverts.”

Daly reminded the board that full-depth reclamation work would still take place this fall on County Roads 11, 17 and 23.

“We are also doing some work on CR 19 and CR 20 which had some seal coat issues,” he explained. “It should make the roads better to drive on until they are resurfaced.”

Casey Westhoff, the new CEO (Chief Executive Officer) of MRCI in Mankato, attended the meeting to provide the board members with an update on the work being done by the organization.

“I came here from Iowa and have been active in social services my whole life,” he commented. “Our mission is to create innovative and genuine opportunities for people with disabilities or disadvantages at home, at work and in the community.”

Westhoff shared the nonprofit organization has been able to get people working in their own communities.

“They are paid a minimum wage or more,” he said. “Right now our biggest challenge is getting the amount of funding we need for our disability services.”

The board also:

• Approved the request of Megan Cook of the Extension office to attend the Southeastern Minnesota Extension County Support Staff Professional Development Day.

• Voted to grant the request of Amy Huber of the county auditor’s office to attend the Regional Meeting of the Minnesota Association of County Auditors, Treasurers and Financial Officers (MACATFO).

• Approved the hiring of Kevin White as a full-time dispatch/jailer.

• Voted to approve a property tax abatement for Jeff and Stacy Miller for a new house they are building in Wells.