County resolution prepares for Minneota road transfer
MARSHALL — The groundwork to exchange part of a current Lyon County highway with the city of Minneota took another step forward on Thursday. Lyon County commissioners approved a resolution laying out the terms for transferring a section of Lyon County Road 10 to Minneota, in exchange for Golf Course Road, a gravel road currently owned by the city.
Commissioner Rodney Stensrud said he and other county representatives met with representatives of Minneota to discuss the proposed transfer. Back in October, both county and Minneota municipal officials agreed it would be better for traffic safety to re-route County Road 10, which currently passes through a residential area and past parking for Minneota Public Schools, Minneota Manor Health Care Center and the city swimming pool. Golf Course Road, which runs between Minnesota Highway 68 and County Road 10, could be paved and made part of the county road instead, they said.
Under the new resolution, Lyon County would assume authority of Golf Course Road, on a timeline somewhere between 2022 and 2027. Minneota would also work on possibly getting state economic development funding to help with improvements along Golf Course Road, the resolution said.
• Commissioners and county staff recognized Stensrud in a short ceremony at Thursday’s board meeting. Stensrud has served on the Lyon County Board for 10 years. Stensrud received a plaque in recognition of his service.
“It’s been a real treat working with you guys,” Stensrud told commissioners and county staff. He said he would miss them.
Stensrud chose not to run for re-election to the county board this year. Starting in January, his seat in Commissioner District 4, representing northern Lyon County, will be filled by Gary Crowley.
• Commissioners approved contracts with the cities of Russell, Balaton and Cottonwood for law enforcement services from the Lyon County Sheriff’s Department. Sheriff Mark Mather presented the board with each of the contracts. Under the contracts each of the three cities will receive a set number of law enforcement hours in 2017, at a rate of $45.03 per hour. Under the contracts, Cottonwood will receive about 40 hours a week, Balaton will receive about 30 hours a week, and Russell will receive about 10 hours a week.
Mather said the Sheriff’s Department also has law enforcement contracts with the cities of Ghent and Lynd. However, he said, those were three-year contracts, approved in 2015.
• Commissioners approved an agreement with United Community Action Partnership for public transportation services in Lyon County in 2017. The county has had a partnership with UCAP for transportation in the past, Stomberg said, but the relationship wasn’t formalized like it was in the proposed agreement. Under the agreement, Lyon County will provide $15,800 in funding to help with the scheduled replacement of an area transit bus.
• Commissioners approved an agreement with Call2Recycle, a program that collects and recycles rechargeable batteries. Lyon County Environmental Administrator Roger Schroeder said the program provides reimbursements of up to 40 cents per pound for entities that collect shipments of more than 2,000 pounds of batteries a year. Schroeder said the Lyon County household hazardous waste program currently collects around 1,300 to 1,500 pounds of batteries a year, but other counties in the HHW collection could participate in the battery collection and help hit the 2,000-pound threshold.
• The county board held its first meeting in new chambers built as part of the ongoing renovations in the Lyon County Government Center. Stomberg said interior work will continue, while county offices and the Lyon County District Court move into the new addition at the government center. As offices move, there will also be renovation work done on parts of the older section of the building.