Board Chair and District 5 County Commissioner Rich Sve started the February 10th meeting of the Board on a light note, discussing various anniversaries of the day, such as National Home Warranty Day and the birthday of stuntman Ronnie Rondell Jr., “probably best known as the man on fire on the album cover: Pink Floyd’s Wish You Were Here.”
The meeting’s first public hearing, however, took a more serious turn with the appearance of Breakwall Indivisible, the local Two Harbors branch of the grassroots American political movement Indivisible. The day before, the group had asked the Two Harbors City Council to consider a formal statement on protections for residents in the face of potential violent incursions on both human and Constitutional rights by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents. They politely repeated their request at the February 10th meeting, this time directed at the Lake County Board, including the same hope for a two week timeframe for a reply. “The right to free speech, to peacefully assemble, to petition our government for redress of grievances, and the right to be treated with basic human dignity and respect regardless of citizenship status is not a partisan issue. They underscore the very meaning of what it means to live in our country, where the rule of law matters and laws are applied equally to everyone. The actions of ICE and Border Patrol agents in Minnesota are clearly a betrayal of norms.” The speaker added that “they are not the actions of a professionally trained and equipped law enforcement agency.” Two Harbors Breakwall Indivisible planned to follow up with the Board at their next Action Meeting on February 24th to hear any responses.
County Administrator Huddleston went over agenda issues, starting with some progress on recruiting needed staff, such as a Senior Engineering Technician and Environmental Services Director. Several positions are currently open for new staff, and interested parties can view the listings on the Lake County website. Helium is a big up-and-coming commodity for the region with the recent discovery of large, high-quality wells in Lake County, roughly between Ely, Babbitt, and Silver Bay. The project is still in the preliminary assessment phase, and so far, the county has been keeping a close eye on possibilities for the area, meeting with various companies and resources, as well as St. Louis County and Duluth officials, to figure out the process for eventually moving forward with site accessibility and extraction. One of the main points of discussion at the moment involves infrastructure and roads for the site to allow increased access while considering cost and the traffic the site would incur. Despite helium’s humble, best-known use being for filling balloons and making funny voices, it is a relatively rare element that is vital for many industries, from aerospace to computers to the medical field. As such, a reservoir as bountiful as Lake County’s could be a great economic resource for the region.
Also on the agenda were possible amendments to ordinances involving shoreland and lockouts. Lockouts are limitations that are defined under the current ordinance as total units you can have per acreage, with the issue at hand being that there is no regulation on what square footage those units could be, whether 400 square feet or 40,000. The amendment would be more precise by looking at square footage rather than just acres: the bigger the units are, the fewer units you can have. Another ordinance being discussed involves cannabis, particularly the selling of low-potency edibles as well as manufacturing adult-use cannabis. A meeting with the Planning Commission is scheduled for Feb. 26 to discuss both issues. The County is hoping to get both ordinance changes in place before summer. A public hearing is tentatively scheduled for the Planning Commission meeting in March, with potential Board action at the end of March/beginning of April.
The County Board earlier approved funding for website improvements and has made good progress on the issue. They have interviewed vendors, made a possible selection, and are currently going over possible services and costs. The website came under scrutiny after the fires in 2025, and the board wants to be ready for the next emergency so residents have access to up-to-date information and can easily navigate to what services they need from the County. Huddleston noted that “we’re all kind of at a spot where there’s just a lot of great things that we can do, it just comes down to costs.” Although the board would like the website redesign ready for this year, the time frame for the project could be nine months to a year. “We want to make sure it’s done right,” Huddleston stated.
Following a brief recess, the second portion of the public hearing involved a dispute between parties over three adjoining parcels of land. After some heated debate, the parties eventually agreed to settle the matter privately without the Board’s formal intervention.
The largest issue left on the agenda involved a request from the Interim County Auditor/Treasurer regarding the future of the offices of County Recorder and County Auditor/Treasurer. This is especially pertinent as the County Auditor/Treasurer position is currently vacant and the County Recorder recently announced she would not be seeking reelection after her current term expires at the end of the year. According to MN statute 375A.1205, created in 2019, a County Board may appoint, rather than elect, a county auditor, county treasurer, or county recorder under specific circumstances, given that they follow the process as outlined in the statute. As the County Recorder and County Auditor/Treasurer positions currently fall under the circumstances outlined in the statute, the Board was asked to consider transitioning from having the recorder and auditor elected to having them appointed. The County Auditor gave two reasons she thought it might be a good decision: First, an appointee would provide more effective oversight as they would be a person more likely to already have the experience and knowledge needed for handling county finances, programs, and funding sources. Second, because of Lake County’s smaller size, there are not as many administrative positions and overhead; an appointee would be more efficient within the current system. District 3 County Commissioner Rick Hogenson said he believed that, if they did move from elected to appointed, it would be in the County’s best interest to post the positions to the public. This would ensure a wider pool of candidates, thus increasing the possibility of finding the best person for the job. District 5 County Commissioner and Board Chair Sve noted in response that “it shows transparency in our process.” District 2 County Commissioner Goutermont stated, “My position has always been that we get the best person possible for the job. And the only way you’re gonna find that out is you gotta cast the net out there.” District 1 County Commissioner Baltich agreed it would be prudent, especially considering the limited pool of candidates who qualify for the jobs. Currently in Minnesota, around 56 recorders and 55 auditor/treasurers have been appointed. The practice has become increasingly common, given the technical experience and specialized knowledge needed for the jobs in modern governments. According to a statement given by County Administrator Huddleston, “The County Board’s objective is to maintain uninterrupted service, strengthen operations, and ensure these critical roles are filled through a structured, merit-based selection process consistent with Minnesota law.” In accordance with the statute, the board agreed to bring forward a motion at the end of February, after notifying the public of their intent via the official publication of the county for two consecutive weeks, of their intent to start the process of changing the positions from elected to appointed. A public hearing would follow, after which the Board will make its final decision.
Lake Superior North One Watershed One Plan, a partnership between Lake County, Cook County, Cook County Soil and Water Conservation District, and Lake County Soil and Water Conservation District, met recently to go over plans for 2026-2027 and funding, including a WBIF (Watershed Based Implementation Funding) grant from the state. Collaboration between the two counties and districts has been successful in allowing the grant to be used efficiently.
