Board elects Brenner as 2009 chairman

Talk about it

Commissioner Dick Brenner was elected 2009 chairman of the Carlton County Board at its annual session on Tuesday. Brenner has served on the board for 16 years, representing District 1 in the area west of Cloquet.

Elected to serve as vice chairman was Commissioner Marvin Bodie of District 2 in the Thomson Township area. Bodie will also serve as chair of the Committee of the Whole. Commissioner Gordon Aanerud was elected to serve as vice chair of the committee, which is comprised of board members and county department heads, as well as township and road and bridge representatives.

In a unanimous vote, the board elected to maintain the current meeting dates and times, with the regular board meeting slated for 8:30 a.m. on the second Tuesday of each month and the adjourned session set for 4 p.m. on the fourth Monday of each month in the board room of the Carlton County Courthouse. The board also voted to maintain the current meeting time and location of the Committee of the Whole, to be held at 4 p.m. the first Tuesday of the month at the Carlton County Transportation Building.

The Star-Gazette of Moose Lake submitted the low bid of $4 per column inch to publish the county’s commissioner proceedings, other legal publications, and notices and lists of delinquent real estate taxes for 2009.

In other business to come before the board, commissioners authorized the land and building department to enter into a joint powers agreement with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to negotiate a lease with Peatrex Ltd. of Cromwell for the extraction of peat in Beseman Township.

The board agreed to serve as fiscal agent for the Sno-Sharks Snowmobile Club for a grant that will allow them to build a bridge across a river to facilitate crossing by snowmobiles. The board also agreed to serve as fiscal agent for a grant available to the Kettle River Snowmobile Club that would allow the club to purchase a vehicle for grooming trails.

Commissioner Ted Pihlman discussed the possibility of imposing a county hiring freeze in light of the current downturn in the economy.

“I think we should take a real good look at hiring,” stated Pihlman. “I would rather not hire than to have to lay people off six months from now.”

Upon further discussion, the board decided not to take any formal action at this time, since several departments have already embarked on reorganization and/or downsizing to accommodate reduced budget allowances.

Prior to Tuesday’s annual session, new board member Tom Proulx was sworn into office, along with reelected board members Brenner and Pihlman.

Tags: carlton, county, board