Chairman Dewey Severson call the November 14 meeting to order at 9 a.m. and lead the board and the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance. The board unanimously approved the meeting agenda and the minutes from the November 7 regular commission meeting.
All five commissioners were in attendance: Chairman Severson, Eric Johnson, Robert (Bob) Burns, Bob Schuldt, and Greg Myhre.
The board unanimously approved the consent agenda, including the resignation of Home and Community Based Social Worker Rebecca Wilhelmson and initiating a competitive search for her replacement. On behalf of Houston County, Chairman Severson and Interim Auditor-Treasurer Polly Heberlein were authorized to sign the Minnesota contract for the 2024 snowmobile grant-in-aid program for maintaining and grooming the trails for Gopherland Trail – $47,681.62, La Crescent Trail – $17,519.70, Money Creek and TH 76 Trail – $22,845.69, and Viking Ridge Spring Grove – $19,650.10, for a grand total of $107,697.11.
Commissioners unanimously approved the Public Health Documentation System (PH-Doc) software maintenance and support agreement, a three-year contract (2024-2026). “We are one of 37 counties that use PH-Doc for our case management for a variety of things in the public health division,” explained Houston County Human Services Director John Pugleasa. “It is part of the Minnesota Computer Cooperative and they contract with an organization called Avenu Insights & Analytics. The main contract goes to the Minnesota Computer Cooperative and then we have a portion of it. Our portion of that for the maintenance and support of the program over the next three years. For 2024, the first year of it is $21,754.00 and we did budget for it. We budget for it every year.”
MCCC amendment 8 through 2024 and MCCC amendment 8 through 2025 to provide tax support for the Avenue property tax system was unanimously approved. Carol Lapham explained, “It is pretty much the same as the PH-Doc. This is our annual support, where they help us with problems. They update our tax system due to legislative changes.” She emphasized that this support is necessary as the county transitions to a windows-based system.
The board unanimously approved the transfer of funds from the highway fund to the capital projects fund. As explained on the agenda, “This transfer was processed to eliminate a negative cash balance, August 2022, but was not presented to the board.” Lapham explained, “It is basically a cleanup item.”
In other business, the board:
• Approved the 2024-2025 delegation agreement work plan with the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) feedlot program.
• Accepted the additional changes to the county’s fee schedule including jail fees (out-of-county rate, per day rate, and the per-day supervision rate) which will go into effective immediately and the new 2024 Wildcat Park fees effective January 1, 2024.
• Approved the 2024 the board’s meeting schedule as presented by Board Clerk, Allison Wagner.
• Accepted a donation in the amount of $4,470 from the Houston County Posse for the Houston County Sheriff’s Office. The funds will be used to cover the cost of installing electricity in the sheriff’s office shed.
• The meeting was adjourned at 9:59 a.m.
The next regularly scheduled meeting of the Houston County Commission is Tuesday, November 28 at 9 a.m. in the County Commission Board Room 222, located on the second floor in the historic county courthouse, Caledonia, or via the county conference call line (312) 626-6700 enter ID: 994-7297-7175 and password 368422. Public attendees are requested to mute their line until addressed.
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