By Melanie Stegner

news@pctribune.com 

Last week’s meeting of the Pope County board of commissioners began with a moment of silence to honor the tragic death of Deputy Josh Owen. The board meeting room was filled with county employees as heads were bowed and hands were folded to pay respects. Commissioner Gordy Wagner gave a short speech about Deputy Owen to thank him for his service to the community and country and for his ultimate sacrifice.  See related story elsewhere in this issue.

Following the speech, the meeting was called to order and started with a request from the Grove Lake Lakeshore Association for funds from the county aquatic invasive species fund for watercraft inspections. The total project cost is estimated at $7,072 and the association requested a grant of $6,772. The board approved the grant unanimously.

For 2023, Pope County will receive $85,464 from the state for AIS prevention aid funds. One grant has been approved for this year for $14,320. The current fund balance is $398,598. 

The Minnewaska Lake Association made a request for grant funds for two projects. The first is for Starry Stonewort Control in the channel outside of the Starbuck Marina. MLA is requesting $7,917 in grant funding for the five-acre area. This includes a general survey, pre-treatment survey and post-treatment survey as well as a meandering survey to test around the area for any spread. 

The second request is to aid in the prevention of Eurasian watermilfoil. The total project cost is $13,888 and the request is for a $5,000 grant. This will cover a survey and treatment for an 18-acre area. Mike Stai, president of MLA, was at the meeting and commented on the eradication of the weed. “Two years ago, we treated 18.4 acres, last year in June we couldn’t find any Eurasian watermilfoil due to cold water and water height. In August, 5.27 acres were found. We may not need to use the whole grant as water temps remain cold,” he stated.

The final contract payment for tree removal on CSAH 17 was approved in the amount of $20,000. The final amount excludes three of the planned trees around Peters Sunset Beach that will be determined once the horizontal road alignment is approved.

The probation department put in requests to the state for two grants. The first is for $2,500 for 2024 and 2025 to aid in using the Remote Electronic Alcohol Monitoring program. The second is for the Caseload/Workload Grant. This grant is used to pay for a portion of the case aid’s salary. Amounts for this grant are $4,660 for 2024 and 2025.

After a review of the bills and budget, the commission gave their updates. Neil Nelson, County Attorney, referred to the death of Deputy Owen. “We’ve had discussions with the MNBCA during the investigation. Once they are done, they will turn everything over to my office within 60 days and we will do what we need to do, but it’s too soon at this point,” he stated. “If there is one thing Josh would want to see happen is for us to do everything we can to take care of his family going forward. We need to honor his legacy and ensure that we think about them and their needs as time goes on and things die down.”

“I want to make sure to thank Tina Lindquist from Grant County Emergency Management. She has been a real asset to everyone through this and deserves a major thanks for her help. A big thanks to other law enforcement agencies from outside the jurisdiction for stepping up to cover patrols,” County Administrator Kersten Kappmeyer said.