During the recent Sherburne County Association of Townships (SCAT) meeting, the townships discussed what to do with their emergency notice sirens. 

Xcel Energy used to be required to have emergency sirens and maintain them due to the nuclear plant, but they no longer have that requirement, thanks to more modern means of emergency warning systems. So Xcel is looking to no longer care for the emergency sirens they have in the county. The company told the county they could take over control, and the county has told the cities and townships they would pass control down to them. 

The sirens cost quite a bit of money to maintain every year, so townships and cities in the county are apprehensive about taking them. Fortunately for the townships and cities, the county has agreed to maintain them through 2026 in order to give the townships time to figure out their game plan. SCAT will bring the topic back at the October meeting for further consideration. 

Haven Township

Haven Township was spotlighted at the beginning of the meeting. Board Supervisor Kari Watkins noted the town was formed in 1872 and was named after a state legislator. Their latest population count showed a population of 2,610 with 720 households. 

Some of the township has been annexed into St. Cloud, and so the township is working on creating an orderly annexation agreement with the city. 

Haven is the home of the St. Cloud Airport and the correctional facility. The correctional facility actually has the longest granite wall in the world. It was built mainly by inmates. 

MAT Update

Tammy Carlson, Sherburne County’s representative to the Minnesota Association of Townships (MAT), gave her update. 

She said township financial reporting forms were due to the state on March 31. There is a bill in the senate now to withhold funding from townships who forget to submit these reports in the future. Townships who perform outside auditing get an extension until June. 

There will be a MAT district meeting in August. Townships can ask MAT to looby on their behalf at this meeting. Anyone can submit a topic of interest, and all the members will vote on the topics they would like to have lobbied. The top four or five will be made priorities by MAT lobbyists.

MAT was impacted by a phishing scam. The scammers would hack into emails of businesses and ask for a payment on behalf of the business, then route payments to their own accounts. It is estimated this group of scammers stole over $100 million from 800 different individuals and organizations. This scam was particularly insidious because the scammers would ask for payments for real goods and services in the expected amounts, so the victims were completely unaware they were being scammed until they were asked for the same payment again. Carlson encouraged everyone to remain vigilant and confirm where payments are going. 

Minnesota’s new paid leave law will be going into effect in January 2026. Carlson stated that a lot of the legislation on the matter was pushed through committee without being thoroughly reviewed, so there will be details to iron out. As of now, townships should plan to report elected officials as well as staff members for paid leave. Hopefully, it will be clarified in the future that elected officials do not count towards this program, as with the safe and sick leave of 2024. 

MAT would like to increase their annual dues for the first time in a decade, and they would like to continue to increase the dues by 1% annually. Townships will be able to vote on this next year at the spring training courses. 

MAT has been the subject of a lawsuit for some time now. The nature of the case wasn’t discussed, but Carlson stated that a federal judge dismissed all charges against MAT but the prosecution decided to appeal and file another case at the state level. 

SNWR

Sherburne National Wildlife Refuge (SNWR) President Bill Peterson noted that the refuge amphitheater is complete, thanks to the Friends of the Refuge organization. The refuge has been partnering with local schools in Princeton and Zimmerman to get kids out to the amphitheater and the refuge to learn about local wildlife. 

The refuge is also working on research projects with the University of Minnesota. They are working on researching a few local animals, including coyotes, weasels, and Bigmouth Buffalo fish. 

The refuge has burned about 3,000 acres of land so far this year in prescribed burns. They are going to try an experiment to see if bringing in grazing animals, like goats or cattle, can help to restore the habitat. 

Finally, SNWR is looking at possibly completing a bike trail project north of Orrock Township which would cut through the Refuge. 

County Reports

The accessory dwelling unit ordinance that the county had been working on passed earlier this month. Commissioner Raeanne Danielowski said the new ordinance will greatly help those who wish to care for family members by allowing the family member to have their own space but still be close. 

Progress is being made towards building a new bridge over the Mississippi. The project is currently in an ecological study. 

County Attorney Kathleen Heaney is retiring. She introduced her successor, Dawn Nyhus, who has been with the attorney’s office since 2008.

County Administrator Bruce Messelt noted the Northstar shut down came as a surprise to the county. Local governments have put millions of dollars into making it work, but it was not working. Messelt said he believed the community should be compensated for all the money they put into the project.