At the May 6 county board meeting, Sheriff John DeGeorge received approval to house inmates temporarily in Winona County, when necessary to keep the jail project on track.
The new jail facility is ready to go except for the phone system migration which is being held up by Lumen Tech. Lumen plans to do the project by September. The Motorola portion of the project is pushed back until Lumen does their work. DeGeorge said the state has approved the use of a backup alternative phone system temporarily working with Houston County, which will hopefully allow inmates to be transitioned to the new facility by the middle of July.
A wall has been placed in the old jail to allow work to continue on its remodel. In order to keep work on the old facility on track during the next two months, it may be necessary to house inmates elsewhere. This will only include five or six inmates. It will cost $65 per day for each inmate and $100 a day for special management of an inmate. There will also be transport costs and paperwork. Jamie Fenske said they will minimize the number inmates that need to be housed during this period with public safety in mind.
There can be some savings to offset some of the cost as staff can be trained during this period on the new system, saving some overtime. The board approved the temporary housing of inmates in Winona County as needed.
The Sheriff’s Office policy on assigned squad cars was discussed. DeGeorge said they are looking at expanding the current policy to attract and retain employees. A written policy which will allow deputies to reside up to 10 miles outside of Fillmore County, taking home their assigned squads, was approved.
The purchase of Sheriff’s Department rugged laptops and docking stations for the entire department was approved using Public Safety funds. The total cost for the updated rugged laptops is $137,580.80.
Paybook #26 for the Jail Project in the total amount of $148,674.85 was approved.
Other Business in Brief
- Coranda Whalen, University of Minnesota student working on her Occupational Therapy Doctorate, asked to conduct her Capstone Project in Fillmore County in the summer of 2026. She is in the third year of the OT doctorate program. She would work full time for the county for 14 weeks at no cost to the county. Whalen said she grew up in Fillmore County. The definition of OT is anything one does on a daily basis, to help people do the things they want to do. She wants to concentrate on work and industry. The board approved her proposal. She will work directly with Lindsi Engle.
- Jessica Erickson, director of nursing, presented items to be purchased for the Opioid Work Group (24 LifeVac at $69.95 each, hidden in plain sight supplies at a total cost of $302, and a drug identification guide at a cost of $599). LifeVac is an anti-choking device; they will be with Sheriff kits and in county buildings. Hidden in plain sight items demonstrate to parents where drugs can be hidden. The purchases were approved as presented. There was some discussion as to whether the anti-choking devices should be made available for restaurants, along with training to use them.
- Erickson discussed possible COVID grant purchases contingent on access to COVID funding and Minnesota Department of Health approval. A motion was approved to give permission for Erickson to make purchases contingent on the funding being available.
- A three-year contract with Lexis Nexis for legal research access was approved. The cost will be $269 per month for the first year, $283 per month for the second year, and $297 per month for the third year.
- A maturing CD at First Southeast Bank in the amount of $500,000 will be reinvested at the same bank for 12 months at an interest rate of 4.35%.
- The final payment to Minnowa Construction, Inc. in the amount of $13,340.21 was approved for the CSAH 7 project in Chatfield Township. The total value of the work was $266,804.13.
- An amendment to the Detour Agreement with MnDot was approved for using part of CSAH 1 and 14. The detour route was extended longer than originally anticipated. The maximum payment to the county for road use is now $17,649.26.
- Aggregate rock bids were approved for Orval Sorum & Sons, Bruening Rock Products, and Milestone Materials.
- An access permit for Daniel and Vernie Detweiler to expand an existing driveway access (to accommodate semi-trucks) to a new building site on CR 30 in section 28, Bristol Township was approved.
- An access permit for Lynn Staupe to expand an existing driveway access (to accommodate semi-trucks and large equipment) to CR 12 in section 1, Carimona Township was approved.
- Undersized wire was found at the county office building when looking to install a new A/C unit. Two bids were received to install a larger/appropriately sized wire and larger conduit. The low bid submitted by Morem Electric, Inc. in the amount of $15,000 was approved.
- A request for a right-of-way easement agreement for Chatfield Shop land with North Fountain Broadband, LLC D/B/A MiBroadband was approved.