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HomeCommunityLake County Board of Commissioners Meeting; December 12, 2023

Lake County Board of Commissioners Meeting; December 12, 2023

Information Technology Director Dan Lackore presented the Lake County Board with an update on work that the I.T. department has been doing to replace outdated computer equipment and to make sure that security systems at county facilities are in peak working order. Upgrades include hard­ware that will make County computer sys­tems more efficient and will help protect the entire system from the ongoing threat of mal­ware and ransomware attacks. Conference rooms are getting fiber optic audio and video systems installed to make video conferencing and recording more efficient. Desktop com­puters are also being replaced with laptops.

Extreme weather events are becoming more common in Minnesota. The evidence of this can easily be seen in the instances of extreme heat, drought, flooding and erosion, the decline in air and water quality, and the threat of wildfires that have been experienced around the state. State legislators have initiated a Climate Resilience Plan in an effort to help communities prepare for, withstand, and recover from the impacts of climate change. Funding to assist with these measures comes from both State and Federal sources. The Legislative Citizen Commission on Min­nesota Resources (LCCMR) oversees these matters and the reason this is important at this time is because there is not currently a representative from our region to represent North Shore counties. Fortunately, there is a local official who is interested in taking this on and has asked for the Board’s support. Po­sitions on the LCCMR are by appointment of the Governor. With the County Board’s support, we will hopefully have a representative on the LCCMR soon.

Board Chair Rich Sve stated that Senator Grant Hauschild is working to set up a meeting with the DNR to see about resolving some of the concerns around the Knife River Marina. The 100-slip marina is an important part of both commerce and culture for Knife River. Readers will remember that the DNR has managed the marina for over 20 years. Mismanagement might be a more accurate description of what has happened there. Ex­tensive maintenance and repairs are needed to keep the marina a viable feature for both residents and tourists.

Commissioner Joe Baltich spoke about an issue that is perhaps becoming more com­mon in rural parts of the State. Ambulance services in some North Shore communities are lacking the funds to operate. There are several reasons for this, but part of this problem is driven by the fact that healthcare organizations, including ambulance services, often have to rely on payments from Medi­care. They are not fully reimbursed for their services and Medicare doesn’t pay out for 60 to 90 days. This becomes a big problem when operating on a tight budget. State officials have taken notice of this issue and Baliich has suggested that a State fund be set up to allocate money specifically for rural ambu­lance services. “Medicare reimbursement is killing this in our area,” Baltich said. Clearly, things will need to change at both the State and Federal level so that people in rural communities have access to the care and services that they need and deserve.

Upcoming meetings include a Board of Commissioners meeting at 2:00 PM on De­cember 19th and a Public Meeting concerning the Knife River Stormwater Plan, to be held on December 20th at 5:00 PM, at the Knife River Recreation Building.

Rick Evans
Rick Evans
My wife, Marsha Kinzer (a proud DEHS Greyhound, class of ‘77) introduced me to the North Shore on vacation in 2012. It became our regular escape when the stress of our careers in education became overwhelming, and it didn’t take me long to fall in love with the breathtaking scenery, the nice people, and “salad” containing Jell-o and marshmallows. So you can either blame or thank my loving wife for my being here, because when we needed to choose a retirement hometown, Marsha advocated hard for her beloved Duluth, and here we are, six months later. Yes, this will be my first northern Minnesota winter. Yes, I welcome thoughts and prayers. Government, public policy, and social justice weighed heavily in the curriculums I taught at the high school level over a thirty-eight year career. In addition, we were a laboratory school focused on critical thinking in conjunction with technical and scientific writing. So when I found myself adrift on the great ocean of retirement and spied a raft, I jumped at the chance to take up what I’d left behind…minus the bad teachers’ lounge coffee. My position at the NSJ allows me to combine my passions for government and writing, and it’s helping me to feel less out of touch in new surroundings. When I’m not being “Cubby” (Marsha’s favorite new nickname for this green reporter) I enjoy pointing at eagles and saying, “Look, honey. There’s an eagle.” I’ve had an active side hustle as a professional musician for almost as many years as Charlie Parr. As a guitarist/singer/songwriter, I graced the stages of clubs and festivals around southern Wisconsin, including an appearance on A Prairie Home Companion. Should I even mention A Prairie Home Companion, or am I the only one here old enough to remember what that is? Look! An eagle!
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