The Tri-County Regional Community Corrections Board of Directors met on Monday morning at the Polk County Justice Center in Crookston.
The agenda included a Red River Valley Juvenile Center update, a Mahnomen County inmate housing contract agreement review, and a Coronavirus Emergency Supplemental Funding (CESF) Criminal Justice System COVID-19 Response Grant Agreement. The agenda also had a few other personnel issues and miscellaneous items.
RED RIVER VALLEY JUVENILE CENTER UPDATE
Director of the Polk County Facilities Management Department Mark Dietz gave a Red River Valley Juvenile Center update regarding the fix-up of the building and timeline of hiring a contractor and completing the project. “The desire is to get the secure side operational quickly, as that was not affected by the water,” said Dietz. “We have to get the secure side of the building compliment so that it will meet all the codes. We have air conditioning and heating, having a few issues with electric, but otherwise, everything is moving along nicely.
Dietz says the next step is to get a contractor and start designing what the rest of the building will look like. “Will get into the design phase of what the secure side of the building will look like, and then we can move forward with the project,” said Dietz.
The timeline is to hire a contractor sometime this fall and have the project finished in the upcoming spring.
MAHNOMEN COUNTY INMATE HOUSING CONTRACT AGREEMENT
The board reviewed the Mahnomen County inmate housing contract agreement, and the different options to proceed forward were presented. The agreement is for the use of jail beds being purchased for inmates. The different options would be for Mahnomen County to lock into a three-year agreement or pay year to year. A letter will be drafted to give Mahnomen County a heads up on the different options moving forward.
Executive Director of Tri-County Community Corrections Andrew Larson gave insight into what the process will look like. “I hope to get a letter drafted by the end of the month so that we can get something to Mahnomen County,” said Larson. “With the initial contract, we had kept in mind having a three-year agreement would give us more financial stability, but it would also give them more financial stability as well. I won’t speak for Mahnomen County, but I’m hoping the relationship that we’ve established and the services that we’ve provided for them will allow this to go off without a hitch.”
(CESF) COVID-19 RESPONSE GRANT AGREEMENT
The (CESF) grant must be spent by the end of the year, and the money came from the state as a federal fund. The amount of money received is just over $207,000, and Larson said a couple of routes could be taken with the funds. “This was something that we applied for in March, and we were notified in June that we received it,” said Larson. “Will be able to use the funding to help cover additional nursing time, personal protective equipment, as well as sanitation equipment.” Other options discussed included using additional technology to utilize distance programming options for the kids at the Juvenile Center.
PERSONNEL ISSUES
There were several different personnel issues discussed and brought before the board. Larson says they are looking for a few positions to fill, with the change-over in recent years continuing to be more than usual. “Unfortunately, we have struggled with this in recent years, especially over the last couple,” said Larson. “I wish we had a firm timeline on when to get these positions filled, but oftentimes what happens is will get them filled and then receive another resignation,” Larson said this is the worst personnel issue he’s ever seen not only in Tri-County but other counties as well. They will continuously be working to be fully staffed again.
OTHER ITEMS
An overview of all the departments’ monthly statistics reports review was held. Numbers for all departments are back to pre-pandemic standards, for the most part; however, operations are still running with restrictions from the pandemic in place.
The board also discussed a Literacy Minnesota Adult Basic Education Technology Services Agreement, and there was also a brief discussion on the Pemberton Law Legal Expenses.
