The Sherburne County Board Tuesday granted a request by the Big Lake School District to have an additional access to Liberty Elementary School on 205th Ave.
The school district had been granted an interim use permit (IUP) in the past to develop a parcel for sports fields and parking east of the school. One of the conditions of that IUP restricted all direct access to the parcel from 205th Ave.
Tuesday, the board had to decide whether to accept the recommendation of the planning advisory commission and grant modifications to the existing IUP and allow a new access.
The school district is currently improving an existing driveway close to the east end of the property for that purpose.
The neighbor to the east of the property has expressed concern over how the new access would affect his property and traffic. He recommended denying the school’s request. Or at least impose restrictions if the request was granted.
In a letter to the county, Tim Truebenbach, Superintendent of the Big Lake School District, stated that “the school faces significant challenges related to parking availability and traffic flow for parent pickup and drop-off. The current layout of the building and parking lot configuration limits space for queuing vehicles, resulting in frequent traffic backups on 205th Ave. and Co. Rd. 43.”
He said the new access would enhance traffic management, help improve bus operations and make it safer for students and drivers by extending the School Zone speed of 30 MPH to the access and adding 4,200 linear feet of on-site queuing.
When the board was considering the request, Commissioner Raeanne Danielowski asked that two of the conditions of the IUP be removed - requesting a speed study and constructing a chain link fence along the east border.
“The school is not the authority to ask for a speed study. That is the local road authority of the township. That would be on them to bring that forward,” she said. “In regards to the fencing, that’s a $50,000 expense to taxpayers and I don’t think at this time it warrants the fencing. There’s a very good buffer zone (20’) from the neighbor to the road.”
After a few more comments from members of the board, they voted to modify the IUP to allow road access and eliminate the conditions for a speed study and a fence.
Well Sampling
The board approved the sampling of drinking water at 11 wells downgradient of the Vonco I Big Lake Landfill. Since 2012, planning and zoning department staff have arranged for sampling and analysis of residential drinking water wells on an annual basis. To date, none of the residential wells sampled have shown degradation in water quality attributable to the Vonco I landfill.
The cost for taking the samples by Houston Engineering is $6,100. The lab testing of the samples is $5,900 for a total of $12,000.
Sheriff’s Dept. Donation
The board approved a request from the Sheriff’s Office to donate boating equipment no longer needed to the Wright County Sheriff’s Office.
The equipment is a Minntonka Talon, which includes a 12’ talon, Bluetooth remote, tilt mount, mounting plate for the RiverPro and a power cable.
Grant Request
The board passed a resolution in support of a Railroad Crossing Elimination Grant Submittal in the amount of $1.75 million. The grant will help with the planning and design of a grade-separated railroad crossing at Hwy. 10 and Co. Rd. 11.
Other Business
In other actions the board:
• Approved a conditional use permit (CUP) for a Cellular Tower on 37.22 acres on 211th Ave. NW in Big Lake Twp. The new CUP replaces a previous permit due to platting a 2.5-acre parcel on the property;
• Approved a CUP for a 40’x30’ personal storage structure on 2.03 acres in the Shoreland Overlay District of Big Elk Lake off 69th Street in Clear Lake Twp.;
• Approved amending language in the zoning ordinance regarding the Subsurface Sewage Treatment System Program to be consistent with MN Rules;
• Approved the final contract payment to Surface Preparation Technologies, LLC for the 2024 HSIP Mumble Strips. The final contract amount is $27,298.56;
• Approved increasing the hours of part-time Public Service Specialist Position in Veterans Services to full-time. The anticipated expenses associated with the transition are expected to be approximately $25,000 annually;
• Approved the extension of the Arvig Elk River Round #1 ARPA Broadband Access Grant Program agreement through Dec. 31, 2025 due to delays caused by a road construction project on Co. Rd. 33;
• Approved a MnDOT Technical Assistance Grant Agreement in the amount of $1.05 million for project design and engineering for the Zimmerman Interchange;
• Passed a resolution requesting MnDOT to conduct an engineering speed zone study)on the portion of Co. Rd. No. 40 located within the City of Elk River;
• Accepted a Community Energy Transition Grant in the amount of $1 million from the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) to assist in the completion of the Hwy. 25 TIER I Environmental Review;
• Proclaimed August, 2024 as Child Support Awareness Month in Sherburne County.
