By Tim Douglass

tdouglass@pctribune.com

The city of Glenwood and the Pope County Soil and Water Conservation District (PSWCD) are partnering again on a contract agreement which allows PSWCD to manage a grant it sought and received to target and treat buckthorn in Barsness Park in Glenwood.  

The $50,000 Partners Legacy grant from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) will target another 32.5 acres in the park and will allow various methods of treatment to help eliminate buckthorn, which is an invasive plant.  The city commission unanimously agreed to the enter the contract for services with PSWCD, which will manage the overall grant including all hiring the contractor, providing documentation and reports needed by the DNR.  This is one of other grants sought and received for buckthorn treatment in the park and the city plans to work with PSWCD to apply for the grants on an on-going schedule.   The ongoing grants are necessary because is difficult to fully eliminate buckthorn but possible to minimize its growth with myriad of treatment methods.

“Again, this is a great project for the city and partnership with Pope Soil and Water and we recommend you approve it as presented,” said Glenwood City Administrator Dave Iverson.

Barsness Park, a 250-acre public park, located in the City of Glenwood is a valued natural resource in the community. Many of the remnant oak savanna, prairie areas in this park have been invaded by an invasive species, buckthorn. This area of the park has been classified by the DNR in the Minnesota Biological Survey as Minnesota Native Plant and Prairie Community. Further this specific area is ranked for biodiversity of significance as moderate indicating that this site has a strong potential for recovery of the native plant community and characteristics for ecological processes, according to the grant document.  Based on surveys the city along with a concerned group of private citizens called the “Buckthorn Brigade” and local resource professionals including the Pope County Ag Inspector has determined that approximately 100 acres of the park are infested with buckthorn. The buckthorn is preventing native grasses and plant communities from thriving. The buckthorn has also created access concerns because of its invasive characteristics. Treatment will be completed on 32.5 acres with the funding. Public usage will increase as the park is restored. The City of Glenwood Commissioners and the Park Board are supportive of this project and have committed $2,907 in an in-kind match toward the project, it was stated.

In other business, the commission:

• Approved a conditional-use permit for McMahon Oil, Inc. allowing the local company to add a 30,000-gallon propane storage tank to their Glenwood site.  The request was for “expansion of the existing use of the site” and was recommended for approval from the Glenwood Planning Commission.  McMahon Oil, Inc. has other fuel tanks on the site consistent with the conditional-use permit approved in May, 2021, according to the planning commission recommendation.  The city commission unanimously approved the permit after it conducted a public hearing on the matter.

•Approved a contract between the State of Minnesota and the city in which the state will provide financial assistance ( a grant) to the airport for maintenance and operation activities.

•Approved a consulting agreement with Ken McDonald and the city of Waite park for background checks for potential new police officers.  As of June 1 of this year, police departments can no longer do in-house background checks for potential new officers.  The motion was approved to use McDonald’s consulting service for those background checks.

•Amended a lease for the Glenwood Gun Club changing the name of the lessee to Minnewaska Trap Club.