The December 12 meeting of the county board was dominated by personnel matters.
Fillmore County has requested to withdraw from the Minnesota Merit System, effective January 1, 2025. Lindsi Engle, human resources officer, said all documents will be submitted as part of the certification process. The state has a year to review the documents before granting approval.
DDA Human Resources, Inc. reviewed several job positions for reclassification. Step increases were recommended and approved by the county board for veterans service officer, county engineer, registered dietician, county administrator, home care coordinator, county recorder, merit support specialist, Sr. and assistant county attorney. The changes will keep classifications in line with the market in comparable counties.
The resignation of Gretchen Schwichtenberg, accounting technician, effective January 18 after five years of service was accepted with thanks.
Erin Doering, case aide, was promoted to case aide lead, effective January 19. Advertisement for a replacement case aide was approved.
The resignation of Brittany Theuer, eligibility worker, was approved after two years of service effective December 29. Aimee Stettler, accounting technician, will be hired as a replacement eligibility worker, effective January 2.
Kayla Pierce, property appraiser, will be transferred to assessors accounting technician, effective January 2. Advertisement for a replacement property appraiser was approved.
The resignation of Julia McCaslin, recorder’s accounting technician, was approved after two years of service with thanks, effective December 15. The transfer of Shannon Smidt, accounting technician, from auditor/treasurer’s office to recorder’s office was approved, effective January 1. Advertisement for a replacement auditor/treasurer accounting technician was approved.
Approval was granted to hire Madison Henry, as a replacement RN/PHN, effective January 2.
Approval was granted to hire Linda Logsdon as a replacement intermittent RN/PHN, effective February 1.
The first reading of draft changes to the Paid Time Off policy was presented. Draft changes include Earned Time Sick and Safe Time.
Citizens Input
Stephanie Drinkall, representing her family, requested a name change on the road where her family farm is located for safety reasons. The farm is located on 341st Ave. north of Lanesboro. Emergency services went south instead of north of Lanesboro on a recent call. Drinkall said it could have been life threatening due to the increased time to get to the correct address. She requested the name of the road the family farm is located on be changed to Farm Rd.
County Administrator Bobbie Hillery agreed it is a public safety issue and staff has been working on the problem over the last few weeks. The problem will continue to be looked into as there are some other roads in the county that are split facing the same issue. Google is not consistent on these roads.
Other Business in Brief
• County Attorney Brett Corson reviewed the accomplishments/challenges and goals the attorney’s office has dealt with over the last year. Corson has been the county’s attorney since 2003. As county attorney he is the chief legal officer for the county and deals with everything from criminal justice and public safety, zoning enforcement, contracts/agreements, child support, civil commitments, child protection, and civil litigation. The county attorney is also the legal advisor for the county. He added he likes working for the county and believes in what his office does to protect people/kids.
As part of his presentation, he made his salary request for 2024 in the amount of $145,000 which represents an approximate 10% increase.
Fillmore County has prosecutor agreements with the cities of Mabel, Harmony, Canton, Fountain and Peterson. The rates for the service have been increased. Each of the cities will need to decide if they want to sign the agreement at the increased rate.
• City Engineer Ron Gregg reviewed the bids for the LOST (local option sales tax) bridge replacement project on CR 107 in Norway Township. The lowest bid submitted by ICON Constructors, LLC in the amount of $450,261 was approved. The engineers estimate for the project was $630,429.50.
• The final payment to Midwest Contracting LLC in the amount of $68,023.22 for three bridge replacement projects (Newburg, Bristol and Sumner Townships) was approved. The total value of work for the three bridges was $1,308,214.30.
• The final payment to Rochester Sand & Gravel in the amount of $61,345.54 for the surface reconditioning on West CR 118 from CSAH 5 to the Forestville State Park bridge was approved. The total value of the work was $1,226,910.75.
• The Minnesota Counties Intergovernmental Trust’s (MCIT) 2023 dividend to the county in the amount of $32,896 was attributed solely to the county’s workers’ compensation coverage.
• Land Use and Feedlot fee schedule updates for 2024 were accepted as presented. Fees for a variance, conditional use permit, subsurface sewage treatment systems, a new address, rock quarry renewal, and 20,000-gallon manure pits were all increased by $100.
• An access permit to widen two existing field drives along CR 25 for Johnson Rolling Acres, section 17 of Norway Township was approved.
An access permit to CR 38 for property access for a new dwelling for LeRoy and Laura Borntrager, section 11 of Spring Valley Township, was approved.
• Land Use Director Blake Lea produced a quote from Frontier Precision in the amount of $3,151.53 for the purchase of GPS equipment and the annual subscription. The equipment will be used measuring for feedlots, septic boundaries, and soil borings for septic systems. The purchase was approved.
• The next meeting of the county board will be held on December 19.
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