Commissioners Dewey Severson, Eric Johnson, Robert Burns, Teresa Walter, and Greg Myhre were all present via Zoom at the April 13 regular meeting of the Houston County Commission. The Chairman called the meeting to order at 9 a.m.
COVID-19 update
For the first time, Houston County Public Health did not fill all the Moderna appointments last week. There was much interest in the Johnson & Johnson vaccine. It was the first time Houston County had it to offer, and the clinic filled up. In the news, there has been concern about Johnson & Johnson and being paused. Houston County does not have a Johnson & Johnson clinic scheduled this week. It will be some time before the county sees a Johnson & Johnson clinic. Once again, residents are reminded to take the first vaccine offered.
John Pugleasa, Houston County Public Health Director, shared that the county has been “pretty nimble in responding to changing situations.” Public health needs to adapt to changes.
The county’s goal is to reach a level that is considered herd immunity. The county is consistently in the top 10 Minnesota counties, and 93% of Houston County residents age 65-plus are vaccinated.
For the first time, there were no questions from the commissioners, meaning that Public Health is “doing a good job.” Commissioners continue to hear that the community appreciates the work that Public Health is doing and that the clinics are a smooth run operation.
The request to conduct a competitive search for an appraiser trainee was approved, as was the contract with Vanguard to conduct quintile review and staff training.
Terry Ranzenberger was hired as a recycling center lead, effective April 28.
Brian Pogodzinski, County Engineer, was reappointed to a four-year term effective May 1, 2021, through April 30, 2025.
The board also approved submitting a letter to the Minnesota Department of Agriculture regarding the gypsy moth project.
Action items
The council unanimously approved the settlement agreement with Kruckow Companies, LLC. It was confirmed that Kruckow Companies, LLC had signed the agreement.
The Airport Coronavirus Response Grant Program agreement was approved. Brian Pogodzinski was authorized as the Sponsor’s Official Representative to sign the grant agreement. At this time, it has not been determined how the grant will be spent. The county has four years to spend it and did not have to apply for the grant. Costs are 100% covered by the grant.
Councilmembers approved awarding low bidder Zenke, Inc. in the amount of $75,434.50 for the 2021 water main improvements. It was noted that the bid does not include engineering costs which will run around $100,000.
Allison Wagner, EDA director, asked the commissioners to approve a letter from the Clean Chickens Company allowing them to slaughter chickens in Houston County. Houston County is in short supply of meat processing facilities, especially chickens. There are no chicken slaughtering facilities in Minnesota that are USDA certified. If a facility is not USDA certified, the farmer cannot sell chickens across state lines. Clean Chickens Company is a mobile slaughtering system and is USDA certified; therefore, the farmers can sell across the state line. There are about five different farms that will be using Clean Chickens Company, and the truck will spend a day or two at each farm. It was noted that if it does not happen, the farmers will slaughter the chickens on their farms, and it will happen anyway. Commissioners approved 4-1.
At 9:30 a.m., the commissioners when into closed session for labor negotiations according to Minnesota Statute 13D.03, Subd. 1 (b) to discuss labor negotiations and the DDA compensation work. The commissioners returned at 10:51 a.m. and went back into regular session. No action was taken during the closed session.
Commissioners tabled the proposed non-represented pay grid until the next commission meeting.
The Houston County Commission’s next meeting is Tuesday, April 27, 2021, at 9 a.m. The public is invited to dial in. Contact Donna Trehus, (507) 725-5803 to be included in remote meetings.