Covid mitigation strategies and expenditures continued to dominate the agenda Tuesday morning during the Sherburne County Board of Commissioners meeting.

Jail administrator Pat Carr appeared before the board, seeking approval for a variety of initiatives aimed at helping the jail lessen the impact of the pandemic.

The board approved $65,710 for the purchase of seven different UV-C sterilization units, which will come in several sizes and will be able to purify items as small as a computer, as well as large pod living areas that are approximately 7,000 square feet.  Carr noted, for instance, that the medium sized machines would be able to sterilize a standard inmate cell in as little as five minutes.

Other projects approved included applying an epoxy paint to cover porous surfaces and an air ionization and purification system retro-fitted into the HVAC system.  This system changes the polarity of the air and attracts and dissolves micro-organisms such as viruses.

Commissioner Tim Dolan noted that these system upgrades are not only expenditures for the safety of inmates, but will have a beneficial impact on the many staff that work in the jail system.  They could also produce a cost savings in terms of health and wellness even once the pandemic is no longer a threat to the jail.

The final piece to the jail upgrades was an approval of $361,350 towards increasing the digital capabilities within the facility that will allow staff to restrict the movement of inmates.  The total includes nearly $120,000 in low voltage and fiber optic cabling and $90,000 in tablets, both of which allow inmates to utilize their cells for a variety of mandated visits instead of having to be shuttled between housing areas and other jail functions.

In other CARES Act funding news, Assistant Administrator Dan Weber announced to the board that 25 applications had been received for the business relief fund for a total request of $638,000.  Weber noted that the vast majority of applications have been approved and checks should start going out next week.

Commissioner Dolan asked Weber about the businesses that did not qualify and what the county could do to capture those business names.  Dolan’s goal was to review that data and use it to inform future policy decisions to help as many businesses as possible.

Weber agreed to look into the IT side of the online application in order to accomplish that task.  He also noted that there is still time for businesses to submit their funding requests.

The final CARES funding requests approved included the placement of permanent shields at all the public facing counters, as well as a 50-50 cost share with Health and Human Services for the purchase of a wellness van.  To meet the requirements of public health, staff often needs to venture into the communities to perform a variety of tasks.  The van could also help with testing, tracing and isolation efforts, as well as the distribution of vaccines and other public health care.

Public Works

Andrew Witter appeared before the board with several requests relating to the public works department. 

The board agreed to an authorization for the Farm Friends Barn to enter into an agreement with the Soil and Water District for prairie restoration on approximately three acres of land surrounding the barn structure.  Witter stated that this use is consistent with the conservation easement on the property and will help with the elimination of invasive species on the site.

Witter also received approval to move ahead with the purchase of a grooming apparatus for the maintenance of cross-country ski trails within the county.  In the past, the City of Becker owned the machine and maintained county trails on a per hour charge basis.  Because Becker’s machinery is antiquated and in need of replacement, it was felt that the county and city could flip spots in the agreement, allowing the county to purchase the machinery needed and utilize it on other trails it has hoped to expand in the past.

Commissioner Raeanne Danielowski said she approves of the concept, but was concerned about how the move would play out financially.  Witter responded that the move will be cost neutral to the county and it could result in a cost savings if other municipalities were to contract with the county to groom additional trails.

HHS Covid Update

Amanda Larson updated the board on the current covid situation within the county.  Current trends include the virus infecting younger residents, including nine new infections in the age 6-19 range within the last week. The county has now registered eleven deaths total and community spread is causing 48% of infections (excluding the prison numbers) locally.

Larson also noted that trend data is dependent upon testing, with the number of tests trending downward in the last week.

Commissioner Dolan followed this up with a question concerning testing data and whether or not MDH releases this information on a county level?  If so, he would like to see that added to the dashboard on the website.

Larson explained that the state recently started releasing county-wide data on a weekly basis and she would investigate how to have it reflected on the dashboard.

In other business, the board:

• Recognized Gina Hugo for being named the MN Community Forestry Leadership Award winner;

• Heard a legislative update from Senator Mary Kiffmeyer;

• Designated Commissioner Barbara Burandt to serve on MnDOT’s Policy Advisory Committee of the Northwest Mississippi River Crossing Feasibility Study.  Commissioner Felix Schmiesing talked about the need to keep on top of the many river crossing initiatives that could have an impact on the entire county;

• Designated Commissioner Lisa Fobbe to be the county’s representative on the United Way’s Empathy and Equity Committee;

• Approved an employee restructuring proposal for County Auditor staff to be cross trained with driver’s licensing certification, as well as serving as election judges;

• Held a closed meeting for the annual performance review of Administrator Bruce Messelt;

• Held its ditch authority meeting and accepted the 2020 special assessments, as well as the drainage technician’s report.