WALKER — The public will have its chance to weigh in on Cass County’s proposed 2023 capital improvement.
At the Cass County Board of Commissioners meeting Tuesday, May 2, Chief Financial Officer Sandra Norikane requested the Cass County Board establish a public hearing for the plan. The board set the public hearing at 9 a.m. June 6 in Walker at the courthouse annex during its regular board meeting.
Norikane said the beginning capital projects fund balance is higher than previously expected due to a rollover from the sheriff’s department and the inability to purchase vehicles as planned due to lack of availability. Another item Norikane noted was the amount for the Pine River Household Waste, Municipal Solid Waste and Recycling Campus construction. Norikane said the project keeps getting pushed to future years due to lack of funding from the state, but the project is ready to begin when that funding becomes available.
Kris Lyytinen, maintenance engineer, presented the results for the bids to perform bituminous crack sealing on approximately 46.6 miles of county state aid highways. The county state aid highways included are 1, 18, 20, 23, 24, 29, 58, 75 and 78. Lyytinen said three bids were received, with Northwest Asphalt & Maintenance the low bid at $280,430. The board unanimously approved awarding the contract to Northwest Asphalt & Maintenance.
Environmental Services Director Jeff Woodford requested the board open the public hearing for the third reading of the Cass County Land Use Ordinance. Woodford said Commissioner Neal Gaalswyk requested, at the previous public hearing, a few changes be considered to the ordinance by the Planning Commission. The Planning Commission met April 10 and altered the Land Use Ordinance with the noted changes from Gaalswyk regarding agricultural structures and activities in section 1104 A & B, land alterations related to agriculture in section 501 A and regarding additional fees charged in section 800 D.
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County Administrator Josh Stevenson said no written comments or phone calls were received concerning the public hearing. Therefore, the public hearing was closed and a motion was made to adopt the Cass County Land Ordinance, which is effective June 1, 2023, with all board members approving the motion.
The final item on the agenda was a request to approve a 4.5% solid waste tip fee increase for municipal solid waste at the Pine River Transfer Station. Woodford said with recent increases in expenses, it is necessary to also increase the tipping fee charged to haulers who drop off municipal solid waste at the Pine River Transfer Station. Currently, the tipping fee is $85.03 per ton and the proposed rate would be $88.86 per ton effective June 1, 2023. Board unanimously approved increasing the tipping fee.
The next meetings are as follows: commissioner’s board meeting 6 p.m. May 16 at Ottertail Peninsula Township Town Hall, 122325 W Shores Road NW, Cass Lake; commissioner’s board meeting 9 a.m. June 6 at the boardroom in the courthouse annex in Walker; and annual planning work session 9 a.m. June 16 at the Land Department meeting room in Backus.
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