Grassroots politics and local decision making will be on the agenda Tuesday night at Township Halls across Sherburne County, as local elections and annual meetings will be held at many locations.

Local township government is perhaps the best example of direct democracy in America’s republic system of governance, as these meetings are the place where citizens can have the greatest amount of input into items such as local expenditures and budgets.

Annual meetings are places where citizens can play a direct role in shaping the direction of their local governments on policy decisions. Here’s a look at a few of the issues expected to be topics of conversation at  many annual meetings.

Several townships have elections from 10 a.m. until 8 p.m., with the annual meetings to follow.

Santiago

Polls will be open at the Santiago Town Hall, as Supervisor Dave Jehoich and Clerk Kathy Woolard are on the ballot running unopposed for their respective seats.

Chairman Stuart Nelson also called on residents recently to come to the annual meeting to discuss the issue of broadband within the township. Sherburne County and Midco have proposed that the supervisors consider spending a significant sum of their ARPA money to extend broadband to a few, select areas within the township. In response, the supervisors have asked for more public input to determine if the expenditures are worth the return, as only a small number of households will be served by the fiber extensions.

Palmer

Current board chair Mike Ganz is on the ballot in Palmer, as he is also running unopposed for the supervisor seat. Water quality on the area lakes, as well as transportation issues continue to dominate the recent agendas in the township.

Recently, the board also has discussed a land acquisition to possibly establish a yard waste compost facility that would also be able to accept weeds that are commercially harvested from the lakes. The board does plan to hold a public hearing on the issue in the future.

Becker

Meanwhile, in Becker Twp., supervisor and Planning Board Chair Brad Wilkening is the lone candidate on the ballot, as he seeks re-election.

The board plans to undertake an ordinance review in the near future, including a public hearing, on loosening the restrictions on home based businesses.

Just this week, Clerk Lucinda Messman noted at the township will be looking for public input into the ordinance draft language.

Orrock

The Orrock Twp. meeting will take place at 7 p.m. March 8. There will be no election that day, as board supervisors are elected in the fall, during general elections. 

Some of the hot topics during the meeting will include the renovation of town hall, making it larger to accommodate Orrock’s growing population during election days. There will also be an update on the past year in the township.

Big Lake

The Big Lake Twp. meeting will take place at 6:00 p.m. No elections will be held for the township, as supervisors are elected during general elections. 

Big Lake is somewhat unique in that they usually prefer to have the voters elect to reconvene the meeting in September. This gives the treasurer more time to work on the budget. A preliminary budget will be presented at the March 8 meeting, and township residents may choose to accept the budget and set the tax levy at that time.

The township usually welcomes some guest speakers to share information from around the community during this meeting, as well. 

Lynden

Mark your calendar and plan to attend Lynden Twp.’s annual meeting Tuesday, March 8--meeting begins promptly at 8:15 p.m. after the polls close for the annual township election. Be sure to vote for candidates for the township treasurer and for the township supervisor. Residents can vote at township hall between 2-8 p.m.

The annual meeting will include highlights of the past year’s business in Lynden Twp. including general ordinance updates, road reports, and a review of township spending in 2021. The most important agenda item is the opportunity to vote on the proposed 2023 operating levy, i.e. the township portion of your 2023 taxes payable. The levy directly impacts the township portion of your property taxes. Whether you are new to the area, or have lived here for years, the annual meeting is a great way to stay informed. 

The election results will be announced at the end of the meeting. Plan to vote and to attend this important once a year meeting.