The Polk County Board of Commissioners met on Tuesday morning inside the Polk County Government Center. The agenda included Sheriff James Tadman giving an oath of office for four new deputies, a request from the city of Climax for the use of the county’s American Relief Program Funds, and Chuck Whiting providing a 2022 budget update.
SHERIFF TADMAN
Polk County Sheriff James Tadman introduced the board to new Deputies Sandy Cortez, Robert Haugen, Wyatt Beauchane, and Tyler Wills and swore them in. Tadman said all four are great additions to the department. “They’re all bringing great assets to the department,” said Tadman. “I think they bring new life. They’re eager and come to work with a smile, and are always ready to go. They want to make a statement and want to serve the county the best they can. I’m happy to have them here, and I think they’ll make a great asset to our department.”
Sandy Cortez has been working for the county for roughly four months now. She has four children and went back to school to become a Deputy. She said she is thrilled to be working in Polk County.
Robert Haugen has been working for the county for about four months now. He graduated from Fosston and said he might be biased, but he believes Polk County is the best county in the state of Minnesota.
Wyatt Beauchane started for the department roughly three months ago. He graduated from Fertile and was a part of the North Dakota National Guard before taking this position.
Tyler Wills is the newest Deputy, as he started only two weeks ago. He spent nine years in the Marine Core and is new to the area. He has a wife and two-year-old and is excited to be working for Polk County.
Tadman also gave a rundown on the Sheriff’s Office’s monthly numbers for September. Transportations were up in the month as there were a few out of state transports. Because of this, transportation miles were the highest in September of any month so far in 2021, with 9,356 miles being logged. Tadman also said the extra patrol was used during the Beet Harvest and that overall, things went well. According to Tadman, other numbers in the report were normal for this time of the year.
AMERICAN RELIEF PROGRAM FUNDS
The city of Climax is asking the Board of Commissioners to use American Relief Program Funds for a long-term water supply project. Members of the East Central Regional Water District out of North Dakota and Climax City Council Member Brian Evenson were present to discuss the need for the project and estimated cost. The project would supply clean water to the city while also improving fire safety concerns. The estimated cost of the project is $1,935,670. Climax is asking the county to cover 75% of the project with American Relief Program Funds, covering $1,451,759 of the project and leaving Climax to cover the remaining $483,911. No decision was made, and members of the East Central Regional Water District will return to the following Commissioners meeting with more information on the project.
Polk County Administrator Chuck Whiting discussed the project more and why it may be a good use of the American Relief Funds. “A number of the categories that the American Relief Funds can be used for have to do with drinking water improvements. So, it matches up,” said Whiting. “There is also a regional component to it that we will revisit next week. While we think this could be a good use of the American Relief Funding money, we’re a long way away from a decision, and we need some more time and more information on it.”
2022 BUDGET UPDATE
Whiting provided a 2022 Budget update and said they are continuing to work towards lowering the Tax Levy. There are still many unknowns with the budget, so the update was focused on providing more details about two more Collective Bargaining Agreements. “The status report I gave today really focused more on getting our Collective Bargaining Agreements settled,” said Whiting. “We have five that are now settled and approved by the county board, and we still have a few more to go. That has a big impact on the budget, and so once I can run the numbers on those contracts, we can have a better idea of where we are.”
Whiting also discussed the two bargaining agreements more in-depth. “We try to standardize our wage grid, and so far, all five groups have voted on the same wage grid,” said Whiting. “Today, the two groups we settled on agreements with were the AFSCME Government employees and Teamsters Sheriff Department groups. We still have a few more groups to negotiate with and will be doing that sometime in November. It’s all coming together at the same time, but at least it’s coming together while we still have time to make some budget adjustments.”
The board approved both Collective Bargaining Agreements unanimously.
OTHER ITEMS
Other items included Mark Dietz from facilities asking approval from the board to seek and refill an open Custodian Position after receiving a resignation. The board approved the request unanimously.
Michelle Cote then asked the board for approval to purchase seven Notebooks and Docking Stations in the amount of $12,027.81 for the assessment team. The board approved the request. Cote was also asking the board for approval of private sales to be had of forfeited parcels. The parcels for sale are 27.00198.01 for a minimum of $500 and 85.00497.00 for a minimum of $100. The board approved the request, and a private sale for adjacent landowners for the forfeited parcels will take place on November 29, at 2:00 p.m.
There were also several other forfeited properties the board approved for public sale. The public bidding on those forfeited properties will take place on December 9 at 10:00 a.m. inside the Polk County Government Center.
The next Board of Commissioners meeting will take place next week on Tuesday, November 2.
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