Rock County Commissioners meet Dec. 12
Herreid Board Room 5:00 P.M.
Rock County Courthouse December 12
The meeting was called to order by Chair Thompson with all Commissioners
present. Also in attendance were County Administrator Kyle Oldre, County Attorney
Jeff Haubrich and Star-Herald Reporter Mavis Fodness.
The Pledge of Allegiance was recited by those in attendance.
Motion by Overgaard, seconded by Williamson to approve the December 12,
2023, County Board agenda, declared carried on a voice vote.
Motion by Burger, seconded by Reisch, to approve the November 21, 2023,
County Board minutes, declared carried on a voice vote.
Motion by Burger, seconded by Reisch, to recess and call to order a Public Hearing at 5:02 p.m. for the purposed of allowing public comment on a Rock Home Initiative
application for Austin and Hannah Christensen, declared carried on a voice vote.
No written or public comment was received, motion by Overgaard, seconded by Williamson, to close the Public Hearing at 5:04 p.m., declared carried on a voice vote.
Ashley Kurtz, Auditor/Treasurer presented the claims, with additional claim for Falls Architecture for $1,650 along with $1,650 in Per Diems; motion by Reisch, seconded by Burger, to approve the claims and Per Diems, declared carried on a voice vote. A complete listing of the claims is available upon request at the Auditor/Treasurer's office.
DECEMBER 12, 2023 CLAIMS OVER $2,000
A & B BUSINESS INC $4,571.25
BRYAN ROCK PRODUCTS INC 3,244.25
BUFFALO RIDGE CONCRETE 9,587.18
CENTRALSQUARE TECHNOLOGIES 31,731.55
CHS INC 9,711.79
CLIFTON LARSON ALLEN LLP 58,343.25
COUNTIES PROVIDING TECHNOLOGY 7,025.00
DAKOTA FLUID POWER INC 3,643.38
FLEET SERVICES DIVISION-ADMIN FMR 6,491.45
GRAHAM TIRE-WORTHINGTON 6,765.90
LYON COUNTY LANDFILL 18,495.54
NOBLES COUNTY AUDITOR-TREASURER 11,280.00
POWERPLAN 15,747.35
QUADIENT FINANCE USA INC 4,039.00
ROCK COUNTY AUDITOR-TREASURER 3,924.80
SANDERS INC 2,489.44
SCHNEIDER GEOSPATIAL 2,300.00
STAPLES ENTERPRISES INC 4,296.07
TOLLEFSON PUBLISHING 2,419.45
ZIEGLER INC 1,022,867.19
82 PAYMENTS LESS THAN $2,000 30,462.25
TOTAL $1,259,436.09
The County Board was in receipt of the Fund Balance report; motion by Williamson, seconded by Reisch, to approve, declared carried on a voice vote.
Motion by Overgaard, seconded by Burger, to approve Resolution No.
22-23, approving Rock Home Initiative tax abatement for Austin and Hannah
Christensen, declared carried on a voice vote.
Tom Karas, Senior Developer for National Grid Renewables, presented and
overview and timeline for the Elk Creek Solar project. Currently, the permits are
awaiting approval from the Public Utilities Commission, and when approve,
construction will begin in the spring of 2025 with a project completion in 2026. The
project will produce 160 mega-watts of solar power and the footprint of the project would
be in Magnolia and Vienna Townships. The County Board thanked Mr. Karas for the
update and look forward to the project moving forward.
Mark Sehr, Engineer, requested approval to purchase a new ATV. The unit
would be used by RCHD Maintenance, RCHD Engineering, and Rock County
Building Maintenance personnel. The following quotes were presented:
•John Deere Gator/Luverne John Deere - $31,150.00
•Polaris Ranger Trail Boss/Lake Area Powersports - $35,063.87
•Polaris Ranger Trail Boss/Action Sports - $35,648.00
Sehr requested to keep Unit #228, a 2011 Kawasaki Mule, for use by all staff as the trade-in value is very low. Motion by Williamson, seconded by Reisch, to approve the quote from John Deere for the JD Gator for $31,150.00, declared carried on a voice vote.
The Engineer informed the County Board that the Highway Department needs
to replace (4) Handheld and (2) Vehicle radios. The radio quote of $16,465.04 from
Alpha-Wireless was developed with the assistance of Evan Verbrugge; the RCHD
requests the Board’s approval to purchase the replacement radio units. Motion by
Burger, seconded by Overgaard, to approve the purchase of (6) radios at the Highway
Department, declared carried on a voice vote.
The Engineer presented the County State Aid Highway Maintenance Agreement
(CSAH) with the City of Luverne; the 4-year contract has been updated to reflect
changes in the number CSAH miles maintained by the city; motion by Reisch, seconded
by Williamson, to approve Resolution No. 23-23, the City/County CSAH Maintenance
agreement, declared carried on a voice vote.
The Chair led a discussion regarding the Performance Reviews of the Engineer
and Administrator stating that both reviews received satisfactory results.
The Administrator presented a follow up of the Annual Township meeting and
stated no issues regarding county services were identified.
The County Board and Administrator discussed details of the AMC Annual
Conference of December 4-6 and again congratulated Kyle Oldre, Rock County
Administrator for his AMC Outstanding Service Award.
Motion by Reisch, seconded by Burger to approve the 2024 Pay Plan for
non-union employees, declared carried on a voice vote. The 2024 Pay Plan
reflects a 5% cost of living adjustment.
Commissioner Reisch stated that he attended the following meetings/events:
Annual Township meeting, City/County Liaison, Armory Ribbon Cutting Ceremony,
Building and Budget Committee meetings.
Commissioner Williamson stated that he attended the following meetings/events: Extension, One Watershed One Plan, Annual Township meeting, AMC
Conference, Rural Water, Armory Ribbon Cutting Ceremony and Building
Commissioner Overgaard stated that he attended the following meetings/
events: Extension, Solid Waste, Rural Energy, City/County Liaison, Annual Township
meeting and AMC Conference.
Commissioner Burger stated that he attended the following meetings/events:
SWHHS Union negotiations, Annual Township meeting, Southwest Mental Health
Consortium, Budget and Armory Ribbon Cutting ceremony.
Commissioner Thompson stated that she attended the following meetings/
events: AMC Annual Conference and Armory Ribbon Cutting ceremony.
With no further business to come before the County Board the meeting was
declared adjourned. The Truth and Taxation Public Hearing followed the adjourn-
ment at 6:00 p.m.
(01-11)
