Bakk, Ecklund visit during busy meeting of the county board

There was a meeting of the Cook County Board of Commissioners Tuesday, Oct. 23. The following discussion and action items occurred during Tuesday’s meeting.
 
Public Comment
There was one resident who spoke during the public comment period of Tuesday’s meeting. Local resident Mike Carlson reminded Cook County residents that mail-in ballots are being sent from the county and received locally. Carlson said he was not there to tell people how to vote, or who to vote for, but rather just encouraging everyone to vote in Cook County.
 
Communication Towers
Moving into the agenda during Tuesday’s meeting, the county’s IT Director, Rena Rogers, shared an update with the board Tuesday regarding the county’s radio communication program. Rogers discussed a contract between the county and this radio station, WTIP.

The county is analyzing, or managing, the space it offers to local, regional and national agencies and organizations. A primary focus of making a comprehensive plan for managing tower space is any potential liabilities, Rogers said, as well as understanding why the towers are placed throughout the county. The primary purpose of the towers, Rogers added, is public safety.

Rogers made a request for three separate, five-year tower contracts with WTIP. The contract is valid for 25 years and would be reassessed every five years. Each contract would be structured for three different towers placed throughout the county. The value of the tower space, which could be considered the value of renting the space on the tower for WTIP, was determined to be approximately $10,400 per year.

The other sanction of the request from Rogers was to waive rental contract fees in lieu of services the community radio station provides. However, WTIP will pay utilities for the towers it uses.  A letter from Cook County Sheriff Pat Eliasen and Communications Director Valerie Marasco supported the notion to offset the tower rental costs for WTIP due to the value the radio station provides during emergency events. However, Rogers again noted that WTIP will continue to cover some of the operational expenses involved with the radio’s placement on county-owned towers.

In addition, County Administrator Jeff Cadwell said it is worth noting that WTIP is agreeing to an increased financial commitment under this contract, including additional utilities on the varying towers.

Before taking a vote on the WTIP tower arrangement, Commissioner Heidi Doo-Kirk asked about the specifics of the contract. Doo-Kirk questioned why a dollar amount needed to be listed, or if it would be worthwhile to add that payments are deferred in exchange for services WTIP provides the county.

Doo-Kirk also said residents in her district contacted her regarding the WTIP arrangement and the fact taxes went up in Cook County last year and will again this year. The resident questioned the rationale behind waving any fees for local entities. Doo-Kirk said she understood the sentiments of the local resident, but after giving it further attention and thought, she decided the value of the community radio station more than offsets any amount WTIP would owe the county for rental space on a tower.

Rogers said if WTIP did not exist in Cook County there would be a major gap in response to emergency services and communication throughout the county.

The commissioners agreed to the contract with WTIP on a 5-0 vote.
 
Land Services
Lisa Kerr from the county’s land services department shared several announcements with the board Tuesday. Kerr shared an update on a re-route of the Superior Hiking Trail on Pincushion here in Cook County. Also speaking on this topic was Denny Caneff, the executive director of the Superior Hiking Trail Association.

For many years, Caneff explained, hikers using the SHT shared a portion of a ski trail at Pincushion. Caneff said winter hikers on the SHT continue to trample groomed-ski trails. To offset any frustrations between winter hikers and those who enjoy groomed cross-country ski trails, Caneff is requesting to modify the route of the SHT on a year-round basis. As reported on WTIP in the past, the U.S. Forest Service supports this plan.

A total of 2 miles of newly constructed trail is required to complete the project. Approximately 0.3 miles of the new trail will be on land owned by Cook County. And while the plan improves the situation dramatically, Caneff did acknowledge that the rerouted SHT will still cross the ski trail twice, and therefore will impact the groomed ski trail in some capacity.

Commissioner Myron Bursheim praised the collaboration between local and federal government bodies, as well as regional non-profits to make this project possible.

The commissioners approved the re-route of the Superior Hiking Trail near Pincushion Mountain on a 5-0 vote.  

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Kerr also shared an update on the plans to develop Sawtooth Bluff on the hill and ridgeline above Grand Marais. The proposed Sawtooth Bluff Regional Park would be built on 640 acres already owned by the county and city. A steering committee consisting of representatives from Cook County and the city of Grand Marais, as well as recreational specialists and property owners from neighboring areas, collected public comments through an online survey as well as a public hearing in March 2018, Kerr said.

Some of the proposed ideas for the site include a facility that would serve as a hub for all of the park's trails and campsites with amenities; up to 20 miles of single-track mountain bike trails that connect to the Pincushion Mountain trail system; 3 miles of hiking trails, including a connection to the Superior Hiking Trail; a rock climbing area; a 2.5 acre dog park allowing for off-leash activities; a disc golf course; cart-in or bike-in campsites; and a bike-skills park that could include ramps and jumps.

The purpose of Tuesday’s presentation by Kerr was only to share an update on the final version of the plan to develop Sawtooth Bluffs.

“This master plan is not set in stone,” Kerr said. “It is basically a guide.”

Kerr will make a similar presentation to the Grand Marais City Council at their meeting next week. She will then talk with the county board again before they take a vote to support the project. 

Commissioner Bobby Deschampe asked who is going to fund the project. Kerr said there will be outside funding sources, a notion that Cadwell explained in detail, including the fact there would be no commitment from the county to directly fund the development of Sawtooth Bluffs.
 
Revolving Loan Fund
In more news from Tuesday’s meeting, Auditor-Treasurer Braidy Powers shared an update on the county’s revolving loan program. Powers said the Revolving Loan Fund Committee is working on a new plan with the owners of the Birch Terrace Supper Club in Grand Marais regarding payments they owe to the revolving loan fund.  Powers said the owners should have a new plan in place to repay the committee in approximately one month.

Also speaking during Tuesday’s meeting about the Revolving Loan Fund Committee was local resident Hal Greenwood. Citing numerous examples of how the revolving loan fund has helped many small, local businesses, Greenwood shared a history of the local entity. According to Greenwood, more than $6 million have been provided in low-interest loans to local projects and small businesses.

Assessor Update
In more news from Tuesday’s meeting of the Cook County Board of Commissioners, there was a discussion about the status of Cook County Assessor Todd Smith’s attempts to secure a Senior Accredited Minnesota Assessor license.

Smith was appointed as the county assessor on Sept. 27, 2016. This appointment was on a variance of sorts, as the official status of his position was contingent upon Smith obtaining his Senior Minnesota license. Smith had two years to obtain the license. The process of obtaining the senior credential for assessors in the state of Minnesota is done through either a standardized test or through an anecdotal study and thesis related to work done by a county assessor.

Smith had two years to complete one or both of these requirements. He took the test once and did not pass, though during Tuesday’s meeting Smith said he will take the test again within the next two months and has every intention of passing this time. Also, Smith is working on completing the other option to fulfill the requirement as a backup option.

Smith was given a 90-day continuance by the county, though that time period could be extended if the state department of revenue grants the request.

Bakk and Ecklund visit Cook County
At the end of the regular meeting of the county board, state Representative Rob Ecklund, Mark Phillips from IRRRB and state Senator Tom Bakk met with the county board and other community members to discuss a variety of local issues. Ecklund and Bakk were in Cook County for a number of local events and to take tours of facilities that received state or bonding funds for local projects. Among those tours was a visit to the Chik-Wauk Nature Center at the end of the Gunflint Trail and the new culinary arts facility in Grand Marais.

Bakk and Ecklund provided an update on state funding for the Legislature. In addition, they discussed, housing, transportation, taxes and childcare, among other topics relevant to Cook County and the State Capitol.

Following Tuesday’s meeting with the county board, Bakk and Ecklund met with community members at the Wunderbar in Grand Marais for further discussion on a variety of local issues. Topics addressed during that format include climate change, state funding sources and a bridge the state plans to build over the Fall River near Grand Marais.

The audio below is a report from WTIP’s Joe Friedrichs that features more on the recent visit from Bakk and Ecklund to Cook County.