During their recent meeting, the Big Lake Town Board observed oaths of office of three re-elected board supervisors and held their reorganizational meeting.

Oaths of Office

Re-elected board supervisors Bruce Aubol, Laura Hayes, and Mark Hedstrom swore their oaths of office. Each of these supervisors will serve four year terms ending in December of 2029.

The other two supervisors on the board, Dean Brenteson and Larry Alfords, will be up for re-election in 2026.

Reorganizational Meeting

The reorganizational meeting takes place annually in January to determine appointments to committees.

Supervisor Bruce Aubol was once again elected as board chair. Supervisor Laura Hayes suggested it may be wise if the vice chair position was granted to someone interested in being board chair one day. Dean Brenteson, who had served as vice chair in 2024, said he was not interested in ever serving as chair. He said he would like to serve as vice chair still, but would be happy to step aside if another supervisor was interested. Supervisor Mark Hedstrom expressed interest and was thereafter appointed to the position.

All positions remained the same, except: Hedstrom joined the finance committee; and Deputy Clerk Debra Workman joined the buildings, park, and cemetery committee.

Town hall offices will be closed for several federal holidays. There was one change from last year, in that staff agreed to work on Indigenous Peoples’ Day (Columbus Day) and instead close the office on the Friday after Thanksgiving.

The gopher bounty was kept the same at three dollars per pair of gopher feet.

The Patriot Newspaper was named as the township’s official newspaper, where before the official newspapers were both Patriot News and Star News.

Sheriff’s Report

Sgt. Barrett of the Sherburne County Sheriff’s office reported two thefts during December, including a theft of construction material on 174th St. NW and a theft of tools from a worksite truck on 182nd Ave. NW.

Sgt. Barrett also spoke about a security alert local residents received on their phones earlier in the day. A dependent adult left their home on foot. They were located by law enforcement and transported to a safe location- Barrett believed it may have been the hospital.

Roads Update

There has not been a lot of need for road services so far in the winter season, with plows going out one time and sanding being done one time. Trimming and brushing services continue. The town road engineer is working on a packet of potential projects for 2025, and the board hopes to seek bids for the work in February.

In Other Business, the Board:

• Made a correction from a previous meeting, stating the Board of Appeal and Equalization will actually take place Thurs., April 10, at 9 a.m.

• Heard the treasurer’s presentation of the 2025 proposed budget, but decided not to approve until the next regular meeting after thorough review by each board member.