The Polk County Board of Commissioners met in the county boardroom at the Polk County Government Center on Tuesday.
YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL APPOINTMENTS
Polk County Public Health Director Sarah Reese presented the commissioners a list of recommended students to serve a two-year term on the Youth Advisory Board (YAB). Commissioners approved all recommended students:
- Brynn Bolstad, Fertile-Beltrami
- Dustin Carl, Climax-Shelly
- Peyton Hoffman, Climax-Shelly
- Alexis Illies, Fosston
- Olivia Martinson, Fosston
- Griffin Roragen, Fertile-Beltrami
Reese was proud that most of the new board members were in attendance and appreciated the work that these high school students put into providing valuable feedback to the health department on very important topics. “A lot of the work that we do at Polk County Public Health is with our community and in our communities, and so having the youth voice present to inform us and provide feedback has been just invaluable,” said Reese. “And every year, I look forward to coming to the board to reappoint or appoint new members to our youth advisory board. We have members from all of our school districts as well as Sacred Heart, and students are typically in grades 10 through 12.”
Following the presentation, Reese introduced a health (RN) and nutrition consultant service contract renewal with the Inter-County Community Council Head Start. The contract is reviewed annually, and the pay rate will be $69 per hour for 2026 and $83 per hour beginning in January 2027. Reese also presented a memorandum of agreement with the Minnesota Oral Health Coalition for $15,000 to help pay for dental coordinator services in 2026. Both items were approved.
Reese’s last presentation was a request to accept Medica County Innovation funding in the amount of $5,000 to pay for a human mile donation depot in the county. The equipment would include a freezer to store the milk until it could be picked up by the Minnesota Milk Bank and processed at its facilities. The milk is then distributed to hospitals across the state to help nourish medically compromised babies. When asked whether the milk depot could be a place where local mothers in need of milk could come to get it, Reese said the milk would still need to be processed by the Minnesota Milk Bank. All donors would be tested first before their donations could be accepted. Reese has wanted to establish a local donation depot for years and appreciates Medica County’s help in funding this project. “This is a request that we’ve had from community members for several years, as well as it’s a best practice for supporting family health and long-term health,” Reese explained. “And so we want to help families be able to donate breast milk if that is something that they would like to do, and for children who are medically fragile or vulnerable to be able to access that breast milk as well.”
POLK COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY APPROPRIATIONS REQUEST
Polk County Historical Society President Jerry Wentzel and other PCHS representatives were in attendance and submitted an appropriations request to the county, seeking $20,000 to cover operating expenses. The historical society noted in their report that their appropriations requests have been reduced in recent years from $15,000 to $10,000, which can help cover one project each year. On top of the increase in utilities like heat, electricity, and water, the organization is having to dip into their investments to help with funding. Board Chair Joan Lee thanked Wentzel and the other PCHS representatives for coming in and presenting their request to the board. The board will continue discussions on appropriations during the budget discussions later this year.
CSAH 1 CULVERT REPLACEMENT
Polk County Engineer Richard Sanders introduced two maintenance requests for County Ditch 19 near Vineland Township and County Ditch 122 near Liberty Township. The first request was to replace a culvert with a new one, and the other was to survey and clean the ditch. The board approved the requests and named Sanders to oversee the projects.
Sanders also presented a resolution for a centerline culvert replacement west of the intersection of County State Highway (CSAH) 1 and CSAH 8, west of Fosston. Two bids were received for the project, with Knife River Materials of Bemidji having the low bid of $99,372.50. Sanders told the board the intersection has had issues due to the aging culvert and advised that it be replaced before any serious damage is done to the highways. Sanders explained, “The culverts were salvaged and installed when the road project was done back in the 80s, and now the culverts are separating, causing holes to form between the pavement and the culverts, and so maintenance is out there constantly trying to fix it. And now we’re to a point where we just need to replace the culvert.”
In a separate resolution, the replacement culvert would be purchased from Rinker Materials of Hawley for $19,634.80. Both resolutions were passed unanimously.
MCINTOSH SCHOOL DEMOLITION UPDATE
Polk County Assistant Environment Services Administrator Jacob Snyder provided the board with an update on the McIntosh School demolition project. A request for proposals (RFP) was issued by the county for the demolition of the old McIntosh School property, which suffered a partial collapse in May. 11 bids were received by the July 30 deadline, and 8 were determined to be responsible. After a review and discussion, staff recommended the bid submitted by Rierson Construction, Inc. of Bemidji in the amount of $456,000. Snyder told the board Rierson will handle the demolition as part of their bid, but cleanup costs will be factored separately following completion of the project. The board approved Rierson’s bid and a motion declaring the property in need of an emergency demolition due in part to the building’s lack of structural integrity, which was determined through an evaluation from Widseth. Snyder is glad to see this process nearing its end, but is saddened by the fact that the building may have been saved at one point, but fell into tax forfeiture and became county property, at which point the building was getting worse and ultimately saw the need to demolish it. “This school building was a tax forfeit. It went through the tax forfeiture process, and now the county’s got to deal with it. So taxpayers are paying to tear down a building that otherwise maybe could have had a different use,” said Snyder. “There were a couple of individuals that owned it from the early 90s, mid 90s, until it finally went tax forfeit here three, four years ago, and so really it’s just been the headache and the thorn in everyone’s side all summer, just holding our breath and making sure it is roped off.”
VIKING GAS TRANSMISSION STORAGE PIPELINE CONDITIONAL USE
Snyder also brought forward a resolution authorizing a conditional use permit (CUP) to Viking Gas Transmission Company for an above-ground pipeline inspection gauge (PIG) receiver, hot-lap interconnect piping, and communication equipment. The PIG receiver would be located near Sullivan Township, which is where Viking plans to install a 9.9-mile, 12-inch pipeline running parallel to the current pipeline to East Grand Forks. Snyder told the board this is a smaller version of a pipeline interconnect project that Viking received approvals for but didn’t initially pursue in 2023. A new plan was developed and brought to the board, which Viking says will help meet the demands of its consumers on the western side of the county by increasing the amount of natural gas that can flow through the pipes with a line-loop piping system. “The request for conditional use was for an above-ground component, a control valve, and a control structure where they can actually stage that 10-mile line and then connect the site west of Euclid to a site just east of East Grand Forks, and that is a 12-inch pipeline project.” Snyder explained, “It’s very similar to rail cars sitting on the track, and they’re full of crude oil, and they’re just right outside of where the demand is needed, and that is the East Grand Forks area,”
The board approved the conditional use permit, waived the local CUP process for the installation of the parallel pipeline, and approved an interim use permit for a pipeline storage area and contractor yard on a commercial lot near East Grand Forks, with a three-year term.
2027 BUDGET STATUS/COUNTY ADMINISTRATOR UPDATES
Polk County Administrator Chuck Whiting and Finance Director Stacy Grover discussed the 2027 budget’s preliminary levy with the board. Whiting reminded the board that the preliminary levy must be set before September 30, which will help prepare the 2027 budget later this year. Whiting presented numbers that included a 5% preliminary levy, which is comparable to previous years, and told the board that things are looking good for budget discussions later this year and that this preliminary levy is more of a first step in considering where it could go for 2027. “I just gave them an example of what five percent (levy) would look like. We also pair that with our county program aid, which reduced from the legislature by $73,000, I believe, for 2027. Gives the board a little bit of a context looking down the road.”
The board then went into closed session to give Whiting his annual performance review. When the meeting reopened, Board Chair Joan Lee told Whiting that the board felt he had been doing a good job in his role and could always continue to improve. He appreciated the honest feedback he received during the review and the changes that have occurred over his 30-plus years in the position. “I like working here,” said Whiting. “It’s been a good board, always has been. It’s a job that I think professionally, you know, it’s challenging, but you can still get things done, and I think we’re moving in the right direction. And I was glad to hear the board felt the same way, and we continue on.”
The next Polk County Board of Commissioners meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, September 1, at 8:00 a.m. in the boardroom at the Polk County Government Center in Crookston.
Brynn Bolstad (Fertile-Beltrami), Commissioner Joan Lee, Olivia Martinson (Fosston),
Commissioner Warren Strandell, Griffin Roragen (Fertile-Beltrami), PCPH Wellness Coordinator
Taylor Lang, and Commissioner Paul Reese.
Not Pictured: Dustin Carl (Climax-Shelly), Peyton Hoffman (Climax-Shelly), and Alexis Illies
(Fosston).
