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Interesting.

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I call the September 8th County Board meeting to order and ask you to join me in

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the pledge of allegiance.

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I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America, and to the

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Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and

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justice for all.

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I don't think there's any additions or corrections to the agenda. Board's wishes.

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Sir, I make a motion to approve the agenda as presented.

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I'll second that.

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Motion and a second. Any discussion?

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Seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying aye.

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Aye.

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Opposed same sign. Motion carries. Next is public comment.

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If you wish to share your thoughts, please provide your name and address after

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being acknowledged by the board chair.

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Each speaker has two minutes to express their remarks.

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Steele County promotes respect in both its work environment and boardroom.

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Speakers should maintain dignity and show respect towards others.

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Comments should be directed to the entire board, not an individual commissioner,

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official, or staff. The board chair may limit comments if they are argumentative,

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disrespectful, or redundant. Please avoid name-calling or abusive language, as

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this may result in being asked to return to your seat or to leave the boardroom.

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No action will be taken on items presented during the public comment period unless

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they are on the agenda. The board may refer some inquiries to the county

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administrator for follow-up. Is there any public comment at this time?

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Any public comment at this time?

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Seeing none, we'll move to the consent agenda. Board's wishes.

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Motion to approve consent agenda as presented.

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Second.

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Motion and second. Any discussion?

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Seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying aye.

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Aye.

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Opposed same sign. Motion carries.

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Presentation and action items. We have the Steele County's 2025 audit report and

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financial statements and supplementary presentation.

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Sorry.

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No, you're good.

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Thank you.

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This evening, we have joining us virtually is Sheanne from Baker Tilly, and she's

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going to provide the presentation in regards to the

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county's 2025 audit. We've had a few little technical difficulties,

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so you can see her on the screen, and she is looking at you guys because we have to

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use my camera off my laptop. So anyway, if you have

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questions, our mic is off, and feel free to ask her questions, and we are ready

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whenever you are.

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Can you hear us?

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I can hear you and see you.

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We can't hear you.

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You got to get your volume up.

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The volume is very low. Just a second. So sorry.

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That's what I thought. She was going to be on the quiet side.

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Well, earlier it was a little louder.

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Excuse me.

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Maybe it was something...

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Can you try again?

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Yep, and you're back.

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There we go. Thank you.

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Thank you. Sorry.

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All right. Well, thank you very much for having me virtually this evening.

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See some familiar faces. So again, I'm Sheanne Hediger, the principal with Baker

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Tilly, overseeing Steele County's annual audit process.

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Can you guys see the presentation on the screen that I'm sharing?

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Yeah. Yes, we can.

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Okay. All right. Sounds great.

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Well, tonight, I just wanted to go over, so as mentioned, we've done our audit

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field work for 2025 year-end.

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Mainly, we worked with Ashley and Madison through the process, and I really wanted

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to say thank you to them and the other staff.

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I know it's not a lone job there, but everybody's very responsive,

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cooperative with all of our questions.

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And I know you've had some turnover and people moving into new roles, which can

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obviously cause disruption, but from our perspective, things ultimately went very

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smoothly, and we're here today presenting to you.

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So tonight, I'm going to cover the three reports that we issued last week.

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The independent auditor's report, which is encompassed in the financial statements.

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So that's going to be number three here.

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We don't have to report on federal awards this year.

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We have an alternative examination that I'll cover as the reporting and insights

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letter. Also go through some financial highlights from 2025.

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Feel free to interrupt throughout if you have questions, or if you want to save

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them until the end. I'm fine either way.

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So we'll kick off with the independent auditor's report.

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This is the three pages within the financial statement document that is ours as the

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auditor.

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So the remainder of the financial statement document is that of the county's.

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So for 2025, we did issue an unmodified opinion.

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Also known as a clean opinion, so that is the highest level that the county can

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receive. That means we found that the financial statements are fairly presented in

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all material aspects in accordance with US GAAP.

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Within the auditor's report, then there's a few paragraphs that distinguish the

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responsibilities for the financial statements.

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So the first being management's responsibility.

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As I mentioned, the financial statement document is that of Steele County.

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So management is responsible for the preparation and fair presentation of that

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report.

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They also design and implement and maintain internal controls over that financial

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reporting, and then evaluating whether there are any conditions or events that

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raise substantial doubt about the county's ability to continue into the future.

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The auditor's responsibility. So

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our objective is to obtain a reasonable assurance that the financial statements are

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free from material misstatement.

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That reasonable assurance is a high-level assurance. It's not absolute.

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We are sampling transactions

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through our risk assessment process, determining what needs to be looked at.

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We're not looking at every transaction. We would be there all year round.

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You wouldn't want to pay us for that.

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So, that is ultimately the purpose of an audit is a high level of assurance.

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Misstatements, we talk about that they're free from material misstatements.

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A misstatement would be considered material

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if it had substantial likelihood to influence the judgment of your users.

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And then through our audit,

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we exercise professional judgment, maintaining our professional skepticism.

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We identify and assess those material misstatements,

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design and perform our procedures to respond to those risks.

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We obtain an understanding of the controls of the county and evaluate the

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accounting policies and estimates, and ultimately conclude as well if we feel there

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are any conditions or events that cause substantial doubt about the ability to

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continue.

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So now jumping into some of the numbers of the financial statements for 2025.

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Start out with the general fund fund balance.

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This is one of the most important metrics within your financial statements.

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Really helps to assess the health of the county overall.

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Having a good, strong fund balance allows for adequate cash flows to

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offset timing of when revenue come in.

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It also allows flexibility to respond to unplanned needs or budget needs.

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Things don't always come in as you budget for them, so having that fund balance

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reserve is good.

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The fund balance for the general fund is within these five categories listed.

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They are in order of liquidity and restriction, the top being the least liquid and

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the bottom being the least restrictive.

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So the non-spendable category, as the name alludes, is in a not spendable form.

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So that 620,000 or so is made up mostly of inventories and prepaid

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expenses, advances to other funds, and then long-term loan receivables

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The restricted balance is restricted for its use by external groups,

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creditors, grantors, laws, or regulations.

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So much of that is different grants or legislative or

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statute-based restrictions to what those balances.

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The committed fund balance is that which you as the board have set aside for

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specific purposes through resolutions.

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And that is about $500,000 of that balance is capital projects,

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and the remaining being for employee wellness programs.

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The assigned also which you as the company have set aside for specific

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purposes, but not as restrictive as a formal resolution.

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That $1.5 million is for future compensated absences,

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retiree payments.

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And then finally, the unassigned is just the residual left to be used for operation

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type things.

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And that is $30 million. So in total for 2025, the fund balance,

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just under $34 million, and that was a $4.3 million increase over prior year.

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And just for reference, page 37 of your financial statements does have the

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breakdown of each of these categories, of what they are, if you wanted to look

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further.

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Okay, so I gave you all the numbers, but what does that really mean?

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So this slide has a measure of adequacy.

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So looking at that fund balance

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in comparison to the general fund expenditures for the year.

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So we take those last two categories, the assigned and unassigned, which is the

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most flexible for spending uses.

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So your general fund expenditures for the year, just about $36.5 million.

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Compared to that available or those assigned and unassigned fund balance amounts of

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$31.5 million.

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What that translates to is you have about 86% of your expenditures for the year on

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hand.

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So if you were to get no revenues in the door for 2026, you essentially could

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operate for about 10 months.

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If you look on the graph here, we've had a rising trend the last three

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years of your actual percentage there.

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The green line is what the Minnesota Office of State Auditor recommends, a minimum

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of five months. It's 10, still counting as about 10 months.

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And then the Government Finance Officers Association recommended minimum is two

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months.

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So having above the five and really under a year's worth is the

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sweet spot to be in.

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The county does have a policy to have 45% to 55% of the subsequent

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year's budgeted expenditures in that fund balance.

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So at the end of 2025,

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that was about 80% above what our policy is stating.

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I guess from my perspective, it's not concerning to be above it.

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If you had years' worth of balances on hand, that would be

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probably too much, but you're also not too low here.

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Ultimately, you have a healthy adequate fund balance in your general fund.

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Anyway, so then leading to, I mentioned that about $4.3 million increase for the

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year.

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That is this middle column of the 2025 actual general fund revenues

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versus expenditures

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in comparison to your budget for the year.

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So you budgeted on a loss of $836,000,

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and your actual was $4.3 million. You can see that the biggest variance there is

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your revenues being about $5.5 million over your budget.

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A couple things that led to that investment income was about $3.7 million over

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budget.

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Again, not something you usually can plan for exactly what that number will be, and

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that's purely a positive if the market is performing better than your planned

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amounts.

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The other category that was

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quite a bit over budget was the miscellaneous income.

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That was about $1.2 million over budget, and two things lead to that.

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You have a $500,000 that came back from the MinnPrairie joint venture, and then

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about $612,000 that came back from the SCHA joint

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venture as well. So again, both of those payments that you probably didn't budget

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for and can be used for future purposes.

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All right.

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So that kind of wraps up my general fund specific topics.

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Now looking at some other metrics you want to point out on this slide.

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Now we switch to a three-year trend as the column headings.

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A little bit confusing if you had to work your way down.

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But the cash and investment totals for 2025,

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unrestricted cash was about $65.8 million.

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So that's almost a $5 million increase from the previous year.

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Much of that just being, like I mentioned, that investment income being better than

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planned, and then just overall fund balances increased.

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The restricted funds of about $3.1 million is your solid waste

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investment

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that are set aside for future remediation there.

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And then the fiduciary cash and investments are funds that the county holds on

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behalf of others. So other taxing districts,

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it may balance

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other state taxes and such. So not funds that the county can use, but just held at

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your end.

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Some of the other funds then of the county, they've got the four special revenue

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funds there. Northland Bridge, that fund balance will fluctuate depending

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on timing of projects and revenues coming in.

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The ditch fund, most of that is just special assessment activity, special

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assessments being received, and ditch projects going on.

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The opioid settlement, just continuing to receive those opioid payments through

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that settlement process.

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And then the homelessness and housing are state funds held for

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affordable housing purposes.

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Then we have the debt service fund,

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relatively breakeven for '24 to '25.

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As expected, you

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would love to aim for expected principal and interest there.

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And then finally, the capital projects fund.

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You see a decrease there from '24 to '25.

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Some significant projects in progress during 2025.

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Got the CCA building, the Four Seasons Center roof project, the Sheriff addition,

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and the Fairgrounds electrical upgrade. So all of that happening within that fund.

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All right. And we have the one enterprise fund of the county is the solid waste.

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There it did decrease from $2.5 million from '24 to '25.

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There is a statement of cash flows on page 12 of financial statements.

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You can see through that,

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the solid waste did have about $603,000 of increased cash through operations.

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But that was offset by $3.1 million of the landfill expansion costs

244
00:17:50,625 --> 00:17:54,165
and other capital assets that were purchased there.

245
00:17:55,335 --> 00:17:59,445
So essentially used reserves down to do those projects.

246
00:18:01,785 --> 00:18:06,270
Similar then, the working capital decreased down to $1.8 million, but

247
00:18:07,545 --> 00:18:11,415
still sufficient assets there to cover any current liabilities.

248
00:18:13,246 --> 00:18:17,415
And then finally, you can see the total net position.

249
00:18:18,195 --> 00:18:21,255
In total, it did decrease $192,000.

250
00:18:22,275 --> 00:18:26,625
But the bigger fluctuation is just within the categories with those

251
00:18:27,945 --> 00:18:32,475
Landfill expansion costs going into the net investment in capital asset and

252
00:18:32,505 --> 00:18:35,385
bringing down that unrestricted net position.

253
00:18:40,875 --> 00:18:41,445
Then our

254
00:18:42,975 --> 00:18:46,426
last financial highlight slide is a debt metric.

255
00:18:47,746 --> 00:18:52,034
If you look at the outstanding general obligation debt, so the debt that is levy

256
00:18:52,095 --> 00:18:52,515
funded,

257
00:18:54,555 --> 00:18:58,604
in balance, almost 2.7 million at the end of the year.

258
00:18:58,996 --> 00:19:04,665
There was no new debt issued in 2025, and principal and interest payments were

259
00:19:04,725 --> 00:19:09,285
made per the prepayment schedules.

260
00:19:09,345 --> 00:19:15,285
Compare that to your GO debt capacity of 206 million, which is calculated as

261
00:19:15,315 --> 00:19:19,140
3% of the market value of the taxable property in the county.

262
00:19:20,625 --> 00:19:24,540
So you can see that row was from '24 to '25, meaning your tax base is

263
00:19:24,645 --> 00:19:29,700
increasing. But the county has used

264
00:19:30,105 --> 00:19:35,715
1.3% of the debt capacity, so plenty of capacity there if needed.

265
00:19:36,736 --> 00:19:41,775
It also shows that the borrowing is not over-leveraged by any means.

266
00:19:43,785 --> 00:19:49,065
One of the metrics that bond rating agencies use is looking at what

267
00:19:49,125 --> 00:19:54,255
your debt service, your principal interest payments, in comparison to expenditures

268
00:19:54,315 --> 00:19:54,810
as a whole,

269
00:19:56,115 --> 00:20:01,335
how much are you debt leveraged. So for 2025, the county was at

270
00:20:03,045 --> 00:20:08,595
3.76% of your principal and interest made up your total

271
00:20:08,655 --> 00:20:09,285
expenses.

272
00:20:11,115 --> 00:20:15,045
You can see on the graph here that red line shows the bond rating agency's maximum

273
00:20:15,075 --> 00:20:20,940
on these, 20%. They don't want to see your debt service exceeding 20% of your total

274
00:20:21,015 --> 00:20:21,645
expenditures.

275
00:20:22,875 --> 00:20:28,155
So yeah, well below that max. That's a really good metric to hold as well.

276
00:20:31,455 --> 00:20:31,905
All right.

277
00:20:33,135 --> 00:20:34,844
The second report then that we had...

278
00:20:37,365 --> 00:20:42,315
Actually, back up. So we have these two reports, the report on Minnesota legal

279
00:20:42,375 --> 00:20:44,865
compliance and then the ARPA examination.

280
00:20:45,645 --> 00:20:51,285
So the report on Minnesota legal compliance, the last few years, we've had a

281
00:20:51,855 --> 00:20:55,665
report on federal awards. It's been encompassed within that report.

282
00:20:56,835 --> 00:21:02,580
This year, a separate single audit was not needed for the county, and so you'll

283
00:21:02,625 --> 00:21:07,095
find this report just at the back of the financial statement document.

284
00:21:07,486 --> 00:21:13,290
So this is a report over the financial reporting and compliance, and

285
00:21:13,335 --> 00:21:17,236
then the Minnesota Legal Compliance Guide that we need to follow.

286
00:21:19,545 --> 00:21:25,170
So similar or same as of last year, we did identify one material weakness, which is

287
00:21:25,185 --> 00:21:27,525
the internal control over financial reporting.

288
00:21:28,365 --> 00:21:33,150
We, as your auditors, are preparing the financial statements, and we did identify

289
00:21:34,486 --> 00:21:38,490
a material audit entry through the process which was corrected and went through the

290
00:21:38,505 --> 00:21:42,945
financial statements. So that is reported to you in that report.

291
00:21:43,246 --> 00:21:49,199
We did not find any instances of non-compliance over financial reporting, and

292
00:21:49,246 --> 00:21:53,520
through our work with the Minnesota Legal Compliance Audit Guide, we did not find

293
00:21:53,535 --> 00:21:56,655
that the county had any compliance findings there either.

294
00:21:58,305 --> 00:22:00,975
So overall, a fairly clean report there.

295
00:22:02,145 --> 00:22:05,955
I will just make mention that material weakness over financial reporting

296
00:22:07,215 --> 00:22:13,095
is in probably close to 90% of the local government reports that I issue.

297
00:22:13,185 --> 00:22:19,005
So it's typical to see that, unless you have CPAs on staff that can keep

298
00:22:19,065 --> 00:22:20,865
up with all of the new standards and

299
00:22:22,755 --> 00:22:24,945
disclosures and how to report things.

300
00:22:25,005 --> 00:22:28,486
So mostly rely on their auditors for that service.

301
00:22:32,176 --> 00:22:37,755
All right. Then the second report this year, this is new for the county and will be

302
00:22:37,815 --> 00:22:42,375
a one-time report. But the

303
00:22:43,605 --> 00:22:48,225
federal single audit threshold for 2025 was a million dollars.

304
00:22:49,365 --> 00:22:52,965
And the ARPA awards, the

305
00:22:55,305 --> 00:22:58,965
coronavirus State and Local Fiscal Recovery Fund dollars,

306
00:23:01,395 --> 00:23:04,965
how much you spent there is what caused the county to be over a million dollars in

307
00:23:05,025 --> 00:23:10,065
federal expenditures. That program has a special exemption that if that's the

308
00:23:10,095 --> 00:23:15,480
program that does it, you only need to do this alternative examination rather than

309
00:23:15,525 --> 00:23:20,595
a full single audit. So the county exercised that option for twenty twenty-five,

310
00:23:20,685 --> 00:23:26,565
and we did our testing and issued our two-page report on that and noted that we had

311
00:23:26,595 --> 00:23:29,490
no compliance findings for all those federal dollars.

312
00:23:30,885 --> 00:23:32,025
So a clean report there.

313
00:23:34,875 --> 00:23:39,736
All right. And the final report is the reporting and insights letter , the one that

314
00:23:39,765 --> 00:23:42,585
the cover kind of matches this color that's on the slide.

315
00:23:44,265 --> 00:23:49,845
This really just is a summary of the whole audit process, any findings and our

316
00:23:50,655 --> 00:23:52,785
required communications to you as the board.

317
00:23:54,075 --> 00:23:56,025
So I'll have some highlights of that report.

318
00:23:56,685 --> 00:24:00,405
The required audit communications can be found on pages five through 10.

319
00:24:04,215 --> 00:24:07,426
Go through somewhat of our audit approach as well.

320
00:24:08,835 --> 00:24:14,430
So what we've identified as significant estimates for 2025 within the financials

321
00:24:14,535 --> 00:24:18,855
are the OPEB liability, the net pension liabilities, your PERA

322
00:24:20,055 --> 00:24:25,185
participation, and then the landfill closure, post-closure, and then the

323
00:24:25,426 --> 00:24:27,465
depreciation over your fixed assets.

324
00:24:29,145 --> 00:24:34,619
If we had found any difficulties in the process, any disagreements with management,

325
00:24:35,085 --> 00:24:39,600
had we had any significant or unusual transactions that may have

326
00:24:40,905 --> 00:24:45,195
required consultations outside of our audit team, any of those matters would be

327
00:24:45,225 --> 00:24:50,325
disclosed to you. If you look through the letter, we've noted that none of those

328
00:24:50,385 --> 00:24:54,824
situations happened. So again, very cooperative team.

329
00:24:56,054 --> 00:24:58,874
Nothing significant or unusual found for the year.

330
00:25:01,125 --> 00:25:04,575
There's a section talking about the corrected and uncorrected misstatements.

331
00:25:06,795 --> 00:25:10,426
There is a heading called that, and it's a little misleading because there were no

332
00:25:10,545 --> 00:25:12,915
uncorrected misstatements in 2025.

333
00:25:13,035 --> 00:25:17,355
So does discuss the audit entries that we

334
00:25:17,415 --> 00:25:23,236
made. And then finally at the last two or last three pages of the

335
00:25:23,265 --> 00:25:28,395
report is the two-way communication looking ahead to the 2026 audit.

336
00:25:29,670 --> 00:25:32,205
And that goes over the nature, scope, and timing of the audit.

337
00:25:32,775 --> 00:25:38,145
There's also a list of questions and things to get you thinking if there's anything

338
00:25:38,205 --> 00:25:43,051
that we as the auditors should know going into our audit to help us plan our

339
00:25:43,051 --> 00:25:48,226
procedures. We are open to hearing those questions anytime throughout the year.

340
00:25:49,035 --> 00:25:51,226
Nothing has to wait till these formal meetings.

341
00:25:52,935 --> 00:25:58,785
And my contact information is on the inside first page of that letter and at the

342
00:25:58,801 --> 00:26:00,525
end of the slide deck if ever needed.

343
00:26:02,685 --> 00:26:06,075
All right. And then we've got the upcoming GASB standards

344
00:26:07,545 --> 00:26:13,455
listed within the report. So there are three, two of them effective for 2026.

345
00:26:14,866 --> 00:26:19,185
We will work with management to make sure these are correctly implemented.

346
00:26:20,085 --> 00:26:24,510
A lot of reporting type things, especially that

347
00:26:24,676 --> 00:26:29,835
GASB 93, will move some things around in the financial statements for next year.

348
00:26:29,926 --> 00:26:34,635
So we will work with Ashley and Madison and others to make sure that's all

349
00:26:35,145 --> 00:26:36,315
appropriately recorded.

350
00:26:38,955 --> 00:26:42,676
All right. So that is the end of my prepared remarks at this time.

351
00:26:44,159 --> 00:26:46,726
Again, just want to give a big thank you to the staff.

352
00:26:47,565 --> 00:26:53,295
Audit is no small undertaking. We're very disruptive to the day-to-day county

353
00:26:53,355 --> 00:26:57,105
operations, so we do appreciate all the help with that.

354
00:26:58,515 --> 00:27:03,045
And I mentioned at the beginning some of the transition of people within the

355
00:27:03,075 --> 00:27:03,525
county.

356
00:27:05,655 --> 00:27:11,625
Things went fairly smooth, so really that's a testament to the good policies and

357
00:27:11,685 --> 00:27:16,995
procedures that the county also has that the staff turnover doesn't cause too much

358
00:27:17,055 --> 00:27:18,315
disruption in

359
00:27:20,355 --> 00:27:24,525
performing these good audit results at the end of the day. Thank you.

360
00:27:26,236 --> 00:27:27,946
Any questions for Sheehan?

361
00:27:30,676 --> 00:27:31,426
Clean report.

362
00:27:32,205 --> 00:27:32,460
Mm-hmm.

363
00:27:32,655 --> 00:27:33,946
Just wanted to let you know that. Thank you.

364
00:27:35,625 --> 00:27:36,196
Those are great.

365
00:27:38,505 --> 00:27:39,676
All right. Thank you.

366
00:27:39,720 --> 00:27:40,335
Good job, Ashley.

367
00:27:40,395 --> 00:27:40,875
Thank you.

368
00:27:41,236 --> 00:27:42,524
Thank you.

369
00:27:42,585 --> 00:27:43,815
Okay. Thank you.

370
00:27:45,226 --> 00:27:45,616
Bye.

371
00:27:47,400 --> 00:27:49,575
Ooh, there goes my sunglasses.

372
00:27:53,265 --> 00:27:58,335
We had the presentation, now next on the agenda is accept Steele County's 2025

373
00:27:58,351 --> 00:28:02,851
audit report, and financial statements and supplementary information.

374
00:28:03,750 --> 00:28:04,486
Board's wishes?

375
00:28:05,715 --> 00:28:09,930
Mr. Chair, I'll move acceptance of the Steele County's 2025 audit report and

376
00:28:10,005 --> 00:28:13,605
financial statements, and supplementary information as presented.

377
00:28:13,726 --> 00:28:14,895
I'll second it now.

378
00:28:14,910 --> 00:28:17,085
There's a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion?

379
00:28:18,105 --> 00:28:20,729
Seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye.

380
00:28:20,775 --> 00:28:21,165
Aye.

381
00:28:21,736 --> 00:28:23,595
Opposed same sign. Motion carries.

382
00:28:24,285 --> 00:28:27,105
There's no additional action items from the work session.

383
00:28:27,255 --> 00:28:32,355
Mr. Chair? If I might, I asked Mr. Svatinka to step out in the hall, which means he

384
00:28:32,446 --> 00:28:36,946
missed public comment. I don't know, did you still want to make public comment to

385
00:28:36,976 --> 00:28:37,455
the board?

386
00:28:38,176 --> 00:28:41,205
No, I'll talk to him later. We're going to do it.

387
00:28:43,635 --> 00:28:43,995
Okay.

388
00:28:47,205 --> 00:28:50,385
Next is September employee anniversaries.

389
00:28:51,105 --> 00:28:51,465
Gina,

390
00:28:53,265 --> 00:28:53,685
welcome.

391
00:28:54,375 --> 00:28:55,605
Thank you. Good evening.

392
00:28:55,755 --> 00:28:57,616
I noticed you had a print out smaller.

393
00:28:57,705 --> 00:28:57,885
Yeah.

394
00:28:59,236 --> 00:29:03,525
I'm here to present the September employee anniversaries to the board.

395
00:29:04,080 --> 00:29:07,950
I would like to start off with Jared Robinson, highway maintenance technician,

396
00:29:08,414 --> 00:29:14,325
completed 10 years of service. Sean Witter, foreman in the highway department, 10

397
00:29:14,355 --> 00:29:19,815
years of service. Taylor Cureton, patrol deputy, one year of service.

398
00:29:20,295 --> 00:29:24,105
Josh Horacy, patrol deputy, 11 years of service.

399
00:29:24,585 --> 00:29:29,176
Michelle Bromley, sergeant at the detention center, nine years of service.

400
00:29:29,866 --> 00:29:34,426
Julia Svatinka, legal admin assistant, with three years of service.

401
00:29:35,085 --> 00:29:38,476
Mike Witter, correctional officer, eight years.

402
00:29:39,345 --> 00:29:43,845
Jennifer Sue, adult probation officer, 19 years.

403
00:29:44,625 --> 00:29:48,736
Brianna Robran, care coordinator, finishing up her first year.

404
00:29:49,605 --> 00:29:53,265
Aaron Edel, accounting supervisor, 20 years.

405
00:29:53,955 --> 00:29:58,215
Dave Stenzel, environmental specialist, with five years of service.

406
00:29:59,055 --> 00:30:04,185
Tyler Severson, building inspector, coming up on his first year anniversary.

407
00:30:04,935 --> 00:30:09,465
John Anderson, correctional corporal, with seven years of service.

408
00:30:10,215 --> 00:30:13,635
Emma Johnson, health educator, two years of service.

409
00:30:14,176 --> 00:30:18,676
Kindra Gasner, our records supervisor, with three years of service.

410
00:30:19,245 --> 00:30:23,835
Mark Flowers, network support specialist, 12 years of service.

411
00:30:24,495 --> 00:30:29,025
Rihanna Reese, correctional officer, with three years of service.

412
00:30:29,565 --> 00:30:33,616
Brian Anderson, county assessor, 10 years of service.

413
00:30:34,305 --> 00:30:38,986
Amber Osef, public health director, 28 years of service.

414
00:30:39,855 --> 00:30:44,055
Mark Radu, maintenance, 35 years of service.

415
00:30:44,595 --> 00:30:47,745
Bobby Herzog, HR coordinator, seven years.

416
00:30:48,226 --> 00:30:53,325
And then Amy Berg, office support specialist in public health, with four years of

417
00:30:53,415 --> 00:30:57,226
service. Lots of 10-year anniversaries in September.

418
00:30:58,335 --> 00:31:02,476
Thank you, Gina, and thanks to the employees for their years of continued service.

419
00:31:03,885 --> 00:31:09,495
Next on the agenda is authorizing the solicitation of proposals

420
00:31:09,525 --> 00:31:14,715
for the sale of the former county highway shop location at

421
00:31:14,926 --> 00:31:17,835
828 Hoffman Drive. Jake?

422
00:31:18,105 --> 00:31:22,469
I think Jake and I can tag team this, but the board obviously reviewed proposals at

423
00:31:22,486 --> 00:31:25,696
your last regular meeting, chose not to accept any of them.

424
00:31:25,755 --> 00:31:29,415
We did talk about this at the last property and maintenance committee meeting

425
00:31:29,895 --> 00:31:34,815
because subsequent to this proposal process, Jake actually did hear from at least

426
00:31:34,935 --> 00:31:38,295
one other individual or organization that might be interested.

427
00:31:38,835 --> 00:31:42,676
So the committee is recommending to the full board that you reauthorize for

428
00:31:42,736 --> 00:31:46,799
proposals. It would be a new request for proposal, so none of the previous

429
00:31:47,565 --> 00:31:49,950
proposals would be in running, so to speak.

430
00:31:50,071 --> 00:31:52,125
They would have to resubmit if they choose to do so.

431
00:31:53,055 --> 00:31:56,116
And then we would probably put together, again, another three to four-week period

432
00:31:56,145 --> 00:31:59,895
of time for the proposers to assemble their information, and we would bring it back

433
00:31:59,926 --> 00:32:01,635
to the board at one of your October meetings.

434
00:32:02,325 --> 00:32:04,741
And we actually had two reach out now.

435
00:32:05,835 --> 00:32:06,719
Since I brought it up.

436
00:32:06,765 --> 00:32:07,605
Yep.

437
00:32:07,635 --> 00:32:08,866
Is that right?

438
00:32:08,926 --> 00:32:09,840
Mr. Chair, a question?

439
00:32:10,486 --> 00:32:10,799
Yeah, Jim.

440
00:32:11,866 --> 00:32:16,785
So, if we go through this process and we're not satisfied with any of the

441
00:32:16,815 --> 00:32:18,795
proposals, we don't have to accept.

442
00:32:18,930 --> 00:32:18,930
Right.

443
00:32:19,095 --> 00:32:20,879
There's no commitment on our end, correct?

444
00:32:20,879 --> 00:32:24,135
Correct. You can accept or reject at the board's sole and exclusive discretion.

445
00:32:24,196 --> 00:32:26,145
Okay. Perfect. Thank you.

446
00:32:28,035 --> 00:32:28,726
Board's wishes?

447
00:32:31,575 --> 00:32:37,005
I'll make a motion to move forward with putting the property up for sale.

448
00:32:39,255 --> 00:32:39,765
I'll second.

449
00:32:40,005 --> 00:32:41,085
There's a motion and a second

450
00:32:43,245 --> 00:32:46,905
to authorize the proposals to sale the county shop location.

451
00:32:47,116 --> 00:32:48,209
Is there any other discussion?

452
00:32:49,575 --> 00:32:50,476
Seeing none, go ahead.

453
00:32:50,775 --> 00:32:53,145
I'll just add, I had one thing, Mr. Chair, here.

454
00:32:53,565 --> 00:32:58,995
This went through committee again, and we've got renewed interest from some other

455
00:32:59,085 --> 00:33:03,976
parties on this. And then I was down getting gas at Circle K down there that day,

456
00:33:03,991 --> 00:33:08,295
and this is after, and I thought, "Geez, I wonder if them businesses over there

457
00:33:08,385 --> 00:33:12,915
know it's going to be for sale." So I went over to the businesses right next door

458
00:33:12,946 --> 00:33:16,905
and I called them. It ain't happened yet, but it's probably going to be coming up.

459
00:33:17,205 --> 00:33:19,875
You can make an offer on it, and I told them to get ahold of the administrator

460
00:33:19,965 --> 00:33:21,375
because it's probably going to be coming up.

461
00:33:21,645 --> 00:33:26,866
I don't know if they did or not yet, but they didn't know nothing about it and was

462
00:33:26,926 --> 00:33:29,446
pretty interested in that way they could...

463
00:33:29,476 --> 00:33:32,955
That was that little slim right of way going along the railroad track.

464
00:33:33,315 --> 00:33:34,215
Where the road is.

465
00:33:34,366 --> 00:33:39,525
They could square that up and make their properties worth more.

466
00:33:39,540 --> 00:33:44,055
And so, I just thought open it up, they might be putting offers in too, but we'll

467
00:33:44,116 --> 00:33:45,285
see. Time will tell.

468
00:33:45,375 --> 00:33:46,635
Good thinking.

469
00:33:46,665 --> 00:33:50,866
Like I said, I'm not a realtor and I'm not getting commission. I'll let them know.

470
00:33:51,345 --> 00:33:54,584
And so far no one has contacted me, but if they do, I would certainly submit to

471
00:33:54,616 --> 00:33:56,821
them a proposal packet once it's approved by the board.

472
00:33:58,125 --> 00:34:00,720
Sounds great. There's a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion?

473
00:34:02,295 --> 00:34:05,220
Seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye.

474
00:34:05,220 --> 00:34:05,295
Aye.

475
00:34:06,105 --> 00:34:09,015
Opposed same sign. Motion carries. Thanks, Jake.

476
00:34:09,346 --> 00:34:10,185
Thank you, Commissioners.

477
00:34:10,815 --> 00:34:11,730
Next on the agenda

478
00:34:13,726 --> 00:34:16,245
is approved CUP number 447,

479
00:34:17,535 --> 00:34:20,325
WHKS Steele County, place fill

480
00:34:21,676 --> 00:34:25,305
in the floodplain with three conditions based on the findings of fact.

481
00:34:26,505 --> 00:34:27,075
Welcome, Amber.

482
00:34:27,525 --> 00:34:27,765
Hello.

483
00:34:29,910 --> 00:34:34,275
So WHKS and Steele County have requested a permit to place fill in a floodplain on

484
00:34:34,305 --> 00:34:36,466
Steele County property in Berlin Township.

485
00:34:36,855 --> 00:34:40,635
This work is part of the realignment of County State Aid Highway 28 to support the

486
00:34:40,696 --> 00:34:43,545
reconfigured boat launch and parking lot at Beaver Lake Park.

487
00:34:43,966 --> 00:34:48,255
The proposed development activities include earth moving, excavation, grading and

488
00:34:48,285 --> 00:34:52,395
fill, shoreline stabilization and restoration, road construction, and culvert

489
00:34:52,455 --> 00:34:56,986
installation. The planning commission recommends approval of CUP 447 with three

490
00:34:57,045 --> 00:34:58,875
conditions based on the findings of fact.

491
00:35:01,635 --> 00:35:07,515
We do have representation from WHKS and our public works team, if you have

492
00:35:07,575 --> 00:35:08,596
questions for any of them.

493
00:35:08,655 --> 00:35:09,855
Well, I can't remember your name.

494
00:35:10,215 --> 00:35:10,965
Oh, Brandon Chesley.

495
00:35:11,116 --> 00:35:12,616
That's right. Brandon, welcome.

496
00:35:13,440 --> 00:35:13,440
Thank you.

497
00:35:13,515 --> 00:35:14,866
Any questions from the board?

498
00:35:18,765 --> 00:35:22,335
Do you have anything to add to what Amber has said?

499
00:35:23,175 --> 00:35:28,215
Just as a follow-up from the planning and zoning committee a couple weeks ago, WHKS

500
00:35:28,275 --> 00:35:32,385
did send a survey crew at the property owner's request to stake the right of way

501
00:35:32,445 --> 00:35:36,991
limits and to pre-limit the project, unless there's any statement you could make at

502
00:35:37,035 --> 00:35:38,415
the very bottom of the copy as well.

503
00:35:43,575 --> 00:35:44,295
Board's wishes?

504
00:35:52,425 --> 00:35:52,995
Mr. Chair,

505
00:35:54,825 --> 00:35:55,995
make a motion to approve

506
00:35:57,195 --> 00:35:57,915
CUP

507
00:35:59,295 --> 00:36:04,905
number 447, WHKS Steele County, place fill in floodplain with the three conditions

508
00:36:04,965 --> 00:36:06,255
based on the findings of fact.

509
00:36:08,655 --> 00:36:09,346
I'll second.

510
00:36:09,616 --> 00:36:12,435
There's a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion?

511
00:36:13,815 --> 00:36:16,605
Seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye.

512
00:36:16,620 --> 00:36:16,620
Aye.

513
00:36:17,415 --> 00:36:19,096
Opposed same sign. Motion carries.

514
00:36:21,465 --> 00:36:27,315
Next is approve renewal of IUP 2021-04, Ulam

515
00:36:27,346 --> 00:36:31,905
Brothers, Berglund Pit in 18 conditions based on the findings of fact.

516
00:36:35,337 --> 00:36:40,587
Ueland Brothers is requesting renewal of IUP 2021-04 for a sand and gravel pit

517
00:36:40,647 --> 00:36:44,817
located on the property owned by Brad Berglund in Berlin Township.

518
00:36:45,147 --> 00:36:50,637
A total of 5,864 tons of material have been removed over the past five years.

519
00:36:51,117 --> 00:36:54,357
The planning commission recommends approval with 18 conditions, including an

520
00:36:54,387 --> 00:36:59,337
amendment to condition number three, updating the financial assurance language, and

521
00:36:59,518 --> 00:37:03,852
condition number 18, establishing the next renewal date of June 2031, based on the

522
00:37:03,867 --> 00:37:04,677
findings of fact.

523
00:37:08,487 --> 00:37:09,237
Board wishes.

524
00:37:11,518 --> 00:37:17,217
Mr. Chair, I make a motion to approve the renewal of IUP 2021-04, Ueland Brothers

525
00:37:17,277 --> 00:37:20,277
Berglund Pit with 18 conditions based on findings of fact.

526
00:37:22,018 --> 00:37:22,827
I'll second that.

527
00:37:22,887 --> 00:37:24,972
There's a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion?

528
00:37:27,117 --> 00:37:29,562
Seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye.

529
00:37:29,562 --> 00:37:29,562
Aye.

530
00:37:30,537 --> 00:37:32,337
Opposed same sign. Motion carries.

531
00:37:33,807 --> 00:37:38,127
Next is number 20 on our agenda. Approve renewal of IUP

532
00:37:38,877 --> 00:37:40,737
2026-01,

533
00:37:41,998 --> 00:37:47,907
Integrity Materials, Von Ruden Pit with 19 conditions based on the findings

534
00:37:47,967 --> 00:37:50,217
of fact. Amber.

535
00:37:50,307 --> 00:37:53,998
So on this one, it is a new pit, it's not a renewal.

536
00:37:54,207 --> 00:38:00,102
So just fix that there. Integrity Material Sales is requesting a permit

537
00:38:00,147 --> 00:38:05,577
to mine sand and gravel on property owned by George and Zach Von Ruden in Havana

538
00:38:05,637 --> 00:38:10,782
Township. At this time, they propose to mine approximately eight acres and have

539
00:38:10,797 --> 00:38:13,947
submitted an engineered mining plan with their submittals.

540
00:38:14,007 --> 00:38:19,647
The area DNR hydrologist had no comments, and the applicants are coordinating with

541
00:38:19,797 --> 00:38:22,437
Steele County Soil and Water to ensure wetland protection.

542
00:38:23,547 --> 00:38:28,527
Additional concerns were received after the planning commission meeting and have

543
00:38:28,557 --> 00:38:30,207
been provided to you,

544
00:38:31,407 --> 00:38:37,362
and the planning commission recommends approval of IUP 2026-01 with 19 conditions

545
00:38:37,407 --> 00:38:38,637
based on the findings of fact.

546
00:38:41,007 --> 00:38:43,498
Board wishes. It's not a renewal, it's a new one.

547
00:38:46,857 --> 00:38:50,952
Mr. Chair, I will offer the IUP number

548
00:38:51,177 --> 00:38:56,577
2026-01, Integrity Materials Von Ruden Pit with the 19 conditions based on the

549
00:38:56,607 --> 00:38:57,387
findings of fact.

550
00:38:58,317 --> 00:38:58,887
I'll second.

551
00:38:59,367 --> 00:39:01,557
Motion and a second. Is there any further discussion?

552
00:39:02,127 --> 00:39:05,547
Mr. Chair, just a question. So you said we received additional information.

553
00:39:05,577 --> 00:39:07,707
Is this the handout you were referencing?

554
00:39:08,067 --> 00:39:11,397
Yeah. Mr. Chair, members of the board, this came after the public hearing was

555
00:39:11,457 --> 00:39:14,217
closed, and the board cannot consider those comments at this time.

556
00:39:15,297 --> 00:39:17,037
So that was going to be my question.

557
00:39:20,187 --> 00:39:23,337
I am working on a response to answer some of his questions as well.

558
00:39:25,317 --> 00:39:25,557
All right.

559
00:39:27,927 --> 00:39:30,057
There's a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion?

560
00:39:30,897 --> 00:39:34,556
That's the same individual that had the letter at the planning and zoning.

561
00:39:35,127 --> 00:39:35,292
Yeah.

562
00:39:35,397 --> 00:39:35,998
This is a different one?

563
00:39:36,177 --> 00:39:36,327
Yeah.

564
00:39:36,537 --> 00:39:36,897
Okay.

565
00:39:40,677 --> 00:39:41,893
Is there any further discussion?

566
00:39:47,457 --> 00:39:50,021
Seeing none, all those in favor signify by saying aye. Aye.

567
00:39:50,096 --> 00:39:50,907
Aye.

568
00:39:50,937 --> 00:39:52,498
Opposed same sign. Motion carries.

569
00:39:53,787 --> 00:39:54,327
Thanks, Amber.

570
00:39:55,062 --> 00:39:55,062
Mm-hmm.

571
00:39:55,107 --> 00:39:58,018
Informational items. The property and maintenance committee minutes

572
00:39:59,397 --> 00:40:03,027
are in the packet. Next is commissioner reports.

573
00:40:03,837 --> 00:40:05,441
Joe, do you have anything you want to tell us about?

574
00:40:06,687 --> 00:40:08,097
Nothing I can think of, Mr. Chairman.

575
00:40:09,567 --> 00:40:11,007
Thanks for coming. Greg?

576
00:40:11,787 --> 00:40:17,592
August 26th, I had a meeting with Representative

577
00:40:17,667 --> 00:40:18,852
Finstad in

578
00:40:20,637 --> 00:40:26,367
Rochester, and we discussed a railroad grant fund that the

579
00:40:26,397 --> 00:40:31,018
federal government has that may work out for one of our major projects coming up.

580
00:40:31,827 --> 00:40:34,947
September 1st, we had property meetings.

581
00:40:34,977 --> 00:40:38,727
September 4th had South Country Health Alliance quality meeting.

582
00:40:39,417 --> 00:40:44,817
Today, we had a budget session before the work session, and I'd like to call out

583
00:40:44,877 --> 00:40:49,587
the American Legion Women's Auxiliary for their gift cards for our veterans.

584
00:40:50,007 --> 00:40:50,907
And also,

585
00:40:52,197 --> 00:40:57,927
Public Health and the group that made several donations to them, Bundles of

586
00:40:57,957 --> 00:41:01,527
Love, Kiwanis Club, Capstone, and Hando

587
00:41:02,967 --> 00:41:07,317
Publications, and KOWZ Radio, and thank them for their contributions.

588
00:41:08,367 --> 00:41:09,837
Thank you, Greg. Jim, what do you got?

589
00:41:10,152 --> 00:41:15,537
Mr. Chair, I had planning and zoning August 31st, property maintenance the 1st of

590
00:41:15,597 --> 00:41:21,177
September, and a budget session today at 2 o'clock before this meeting.

591
00:41:22,227 --> 00:41:23,337
Thank you. Renee?

592
00:41:24,387 --> 00:41:26,248
Just first thing, an announcement.

593
00:41:26,262 --> 00:41:28,677
We have the fall policy meeting with AMC next week.

594
00:41:29,667 --> 00:41:32,967
So I will be out of the office for a good portion of the week attending, as well as

595
00:41:33,027 --> 00:41:34,077
a couple of board members.

596
00:41:34,887 --> 00:41:34,902
Okay.

597
00:41:34,947 --> 00:41:38,547
The second is just a reporter update to the full board.

598
00:41:38,577 --> 00:41:43,257
As you may be aware, one of the third-party consultants that we needed to select

599
00:41:43,407 --> 00:41:47,037
moving forward with our own human services was somebody to provide our workforce

600
00:41:47,217 --> 00:41:52,317
support. Ben and I, and other members of my leadership team, met with

601
00:41:52,377 --> 00:41:54,507
representatives from MRCI and WDI.

602
00:41:55,197 --> 00:42:00,837
We also consulted with HMA, and after several weeks of discussing, we chose to go

603
00:42:00,987 --> 00:42:03,987
forward with WDI as our workforce development partner.

604
00:42:04,498 --> 00:42:09,102
We did meet with MRCI to let them know they've done a great job for the last 10

605
00:42:09,117 --> 00:42:13,467
years. They have committed staff, but we really felt that WDI offered a broader

606
00:42:13,527 --> 00:42:16,257
selection of supports and services for our clients.

607
00:42:16,347 --> 00:42:21,701
They are willing to offer services on-premise to address the transportation issues

608
00:42:21,717 --> 00:42:25,992
or concerns that they might need. But if you do see the MRCI staff, let them know

609
00:42:26,007 --> 00:42:29,487
that we certainly appreciated the work that they did, and we encourage them to

610
00:42:29,547 --> 00:42:32,951
apply for positions with Steele County, if that was something that's of interest to

611
00:42:32,967 --> 00:42:33,117
them.

612
00:42:34,737 --> 00:42:35,427
Thank you. Jim?

613
00:42:35,877 --> 00:42:41,547
Mr. Chair, September 2nd, we had a Rice-Steele 911 Joint Powers Board meeting,

614
00:42:42,327 --> 00:42:45,357
and the 8th, today, our budget and work sessions.

615
00:42:45,748 --> 00:42:46,857
Thank you. Josh?

616
00:42:47,337 --> 00:42:51,281
On August 27th, I had the SEMCAC Executive Committee.

617
00:42:51,597 --> 00:42:54,012
On the 31st, I had planning and zoning.

618
00:42:55,137 --> 00:42:59,577
This morning we had the public works meeting, and then the budget work session

619
00:42:59,607 --> 00:43:02,816
before this, and the work session before this meeting.

620
00:43:02,937 --> 00:43:07,707
Thank you. I also attended the budget work session and the work session before this

621
00:43:07,768 --> 00:43:12,717
meeting. At this time, I'd entertain a motion to adjourn.

622
00:43:12,777 --> 00:43:13,167
So moved.

623
00:43:14,577 --> 00:43:14,592
Second.

624
00:43:14,607 --> 00:43:16,647
All those in favor signify by saying aye.

625
00:43:16,692 --> 00:43:16,692
Aye.

626
00:43:16,707 --> 00:43:17,097
Aye.

627
00:43:17,577 --> 00:43:21,776
Opposed same sign. Motion carries. Thank you all for coming.