Month: September 2020

The Northwest Regional Corrections Center announced the arrests of the following individuals:

Dana James Deiter, 32, for a gross misdemeanor for giving a peace officer a false name of another person. Released to another authority.

Polk County has published an application for Small Business Resiliency Grants up to $5,000.  The grants are available to any business in the county outside the cities of Crookston, East Grand Forks, and Fosston.

Polk County Administrator Chuck Whiting said the three cities will administer the $125,000 in available grants on behalf of the county. “Of the CARES money that the county received, we’ve set aside $125,000 for grants to small businesses that are feeling the effects of COVID-19,” said Whiting. “I’ve been working with the Cities of Crookston, East Grand Forks, and Fosston. They have economic development staff that does this sort of thing with their businesses and have been good enough to agree to facilitate the grants on behalf of the county.”

Information on the grants is available on the county website. “Businesses that are hearing this and want to know more, or fill out an application, can go to the county’s website,” said Whiting. “Keep in mind that the grant has to help the business pay for COVID-related expenses. And you can tell by what township or small city you’re in which of the three cities – Crookston, East Grand Forks, or Fosston – you’d submit your application to.”

Many businesses have been adversely affected by COVID-19 and the state-mandated closures earlier this year. “We were given this money by the state to get out into the community to deal with COVID-19 related expenses,” said Whiting. “We know our small businesses, in particular, are facing that, so whatever can be done to make it clear that the funds will be used for COVID-19 expenses, that’s great.”

Non-profits are also eligible to apply for funding if they have been affected by COVID-19. “Some of the non-profits organizations in the county, we’re dealing with directly,” said Whiting. “Nobody should be left out if they feel that they’re affected by COVID and are eligible they should go to the website, take a look at that application and go from there.”

The county has been split into thirds, with each Economic Development agency taking one part of the county.  Businesses that are located in small towns or townships in the southwestern third of the county will apply through the Crookston Housing and Economic Development Authority (CHEDA) said Executive Director Craig Hoiseth. “The Polk County government has more resiliency grants available for those smaller communities and businesses outside of city limits,” said Hoiseth. “Crookston is responsible for the southwestern third of the county. Those grants are capped at $5,000 but it is a grant, not a loan. Certainly, encourage any business within those southwestern townships of Polk County to apply. The Polk County website has the grant form, or they can contact our office, or the city office to get that application. They are due by October 9.”

Those include the towns of Climax, Fertile, Gentilly, and Nielsville along with the townships of Andover, Crookston, Fairfax, Garfield, Gentilly, Godfrey, Hammond, Hubbard, Kertsonville, Liberty, Lowell, Onstad, Reis, Roome, Russia, Scandia, Tilden/Grove Park, and Vineland,  Hoiseth said there are a lot of businesses that should be eligible to apply. “Some of the smaller communities, but also businesses that might be operating out of homes or farmsteads too,” said Hoiseth. “There’s a lot of small businesses, maybe sole proprietors that aren’t located within city limits. So,    the city will do our best to administer that portion of the county funding.”

With the Minnesota hunting season underway, it is important for waterfowl hunters to help prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species.

Invasive species such as purple loosestrife, zebra mussels, Eurasian watermilfoil and faucet snails can be transported in waterfowl hunters’ boats, decoys or blind material and other equipment without the proper precautions.

“Hunters should take a few minutes to clean plants and mud, and drain water from duck boats, decoys, decoy lines, waders and push poles,” said Eric Katzenmeyer, DNR invasive species specialist. “It’s the key to avoiding the spread of aquatic invasive species in waterfowl habitat.”

Invasive species can damage habitat for waterfowl, fish and other wildlife, and can even cause waterfowl die-offs. For example, faucet snails can carry parasites that kill ducks.

The DNR recommends the following to help slow the spread of aquatic invasive species:

• Use elliptical, bulb-shaped or strap decoy anchors
• Drain water and remove all plants and animals from boats and equipment
• Remove all plants and animals from anchor lines and blind materials
• Check compartments or storage in boats or kayaks that aren’t in use the rest of the year

Also, waterfowl hunters who want to use cattails or other plants for camouflage must cut them above the water line if they want to move them from lake to lake. They should not cut or move the seedheads of emergent non-native Phragmites, a restricted noxious weed in Minnesota also known as common reed.

To kill or remove invasive species seeds or young zebra mussels that are difficult to see, the DNR recommends that boaters use a high-pressure spray or a hot water rinse before launching into another water body (120 degrees F for at least two minutes or 140 degrees F for at least 10 seconds). Air drying can also be effective, but may require more time due to cooler weather.

The DNR has a short video that shows the various methods for preventing the spread of invasive species while hunting waterfowl.

Waterfowl hunters aren’t the only ones who should be vigilant about the spread of invasive species. Trappers also should clean their equipment before moving it to another body of water.

“Trappers of muskrats and other furbearers should also keep the ‘Clean in-Clean out’ mantra in mind,” said DNR invasive species specialist Tim Plude. “All traps, lines, boots and waders should be cleaned after each use to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species.”

More information is available at mndnr.gov/ais.

The Minnesota Department of Health released it’s COVID-19 Weekly Report (here) on Thursday.  All information is updated through 4 p.m. on Wednesday, September 23. Information on Polk County and the KROX listening area was pulled from the report and is below – 

**Positive number of tests and positivity calculations include only tests reported by labs that report both positive and negative results. Percent positive is the percent of positive tests from the total number of tests by county of residence.

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