Bert Dahl strives to untangle a puzzle with another student during a Region 8A leadership training seminar at Sanford Center in Bemidji.
Leading the way
Indus students attend leadership seminar
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Arrowhead Library System Executive Director Jim Weikum addresses the Koochiching County Board Tuesday regarding new services the system is providing.
The Koochiching County Board Tuesday approved a plan to prevent the spread of aquatic invasive species in area waters.
The board approved a motion adopting a plan to curb the spread of AIS in county waters, using funding from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
According to information from the Association of Minnesota Counties, the county will receive $48,963 in AIS prevention aid in 2014, and $108,805 in 2015. The funding comes from a bill passed in the last legislative session, and is distributed to all counties based on the amount of boat launches in each county.
According to House File 3167, a county must use the AIS prevention aid to prevent the introduction or limit the spread of AIS at all access sites within the county. There are 29 public water accesses in northern Koochiching County, according to the DNR.
In August, the county board established a committee to come up with a plan for the funding. The plan needed to be approved by the end of December in order to retain the funding, and was approved Tuesday.
Board Chairman Rob Ecklund served on the committee that developed the plan, and he said he was satisfied with it. County Environmental Services Director Dale Olson said the plan will be reworked next year to account for the increase in funding.
The highlights of the current plan include:
- Mapping current AIS in county waters.
- Training people working with AIS.
- Educating the public on stopping AIS.
- Developing a monitoring program for existing AIS.
- Collaborating with surrounding groups outside Koochiching County.
- Creating cleaning stations for boaters traveling from one body of water to another.
- Enforcing current best practices for reducing AIS.
The plan doesn't call for hiring any additional staff, which is a stipulation Ecklund said he brought up when the plan was being developed.
“The county board would be against this becoming any kind of permanent county position, so we'll figure out how to do it with contracted employees,” Ecklund said.
Commissioner Wayne Skoe said county commissioners from Lake of the Woods County had mentioned to him the possibility of collaborating on the issue, with Rainy River running through both counties, and feeding from Rainy Lake and into Lake of the Woods.
Ecklund said the collaboration was brought up during plan development, and committee members decided to get the education aspect of the plan implemented first, and revisit collaboration next year when both counties receive additional funding.
“I was an advocate for focusing on the river part of it just because we have such an influx of out-of-staters that come for a brief blast in the spring,” Ecklund said.
In other business, the board approved the 2015 tax levy and 2015 county budget.
The 2015 tax levy is set at $3.95 million, which represents no increase from 2014. The overall 2015 county budget is set at $27.93 million.
The board held a public hearing Dec. 2 to take input on the levy. County Administrative Director Teresa Briggs said no comment was received on the levy.
According to the budget outline, an increase in the county's tax base will result in a slight decrease in individual tax from 2014, unless there was a change in the value or classification of an individual property.
In other business, Arrowhead Library System Executive Director Jim Weikum met with the board Tuesday to provide an update on various services the system offers, as well looking forward to the future.
System officials are considering purchasing a new bookmobile in the next year, Weikum said. Depending on the amount of funding in reserves, he said supplemental funding for the new vehicle may be requested from the different county boards in the system.
“I'm fairly confident that our reserves are good, but never say never,” Weikum said. “I just like to make sure that I can say I did tell you that.”
The last time the system requested funding from the counties to purchase a bookmobile was in 1990 or 1991, Weikum said.
“We've always tried to save towards the next vehicle,” Weikum said. “And I think we're in pretty good shape.”
From the left, International Falls Police Capt. Tom Lynch, officer Mitch Lessard and DARE Officer Dane Olson listen as sixth-grade student Ella Bahr-Jefferis reads her essay on what she learned during the DARE program. The 10-week program concluded Wednesday with a graduation ceremony at Backus Community Center.
DARE Officer Dane Olson presents Ashley Davis with a certificate acknowledging she graduated from the DARE program.
Elizabeth Amiot gives DARE Officer Dane Olson a hug during Wednesday’s graduation ceremony.
West End Elementary sixth-grade students took a pledge to say “no” to drugs, alcohol and tobacco this week.
After 10 weeks, the group graduated from the local Drug Abuse Resistance Education program, known as DARE, at Backus Community Center Wednesday.
International Falls Police Officer Dane Olson, who serves as the DARE officer, said he was approached this year by the sixth grade teachers about bringing the graduation ceremony back to conclude the program. The ceremony had experienced a hiatus since former DARE Officer Darrell Waller was involved in the program.
Students were awarded a certificate and a T-shirt for their involvement in the international education program that aims to prevent use of controlled drugs and violent behaviors.
As part of the program’s graduation requirements, students wrote a final essay describing what they learned during the 10 weeks of DARE training. Of more than 80 essays, nine were selected as winners.
Volunteers prepare gifts purchased through the angel tree program for distribution Thursday. According to Missy Trickel, Salvation Army employee, this year, 415 kids in Koochiching County filled out angel tree wish lists.
Elves at work
Angel tree gifts distributed
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Koochiching Economic Development Authority members Rob Ecklund, left, and Bob Anderson listen to a discussion on the local work force at Wednesday’s meeting.
The Koochiching Economic Development Authority Wednesday reviewed its work plan for 2015, which sparked a lively discussion on how the organization can improve the local business climate.
KEDA Director Paul Nevanen presented the work plan to the board, which guides the organization's efforts over the coming year.
The primary goals in the work plan include:
- Pursue projects that lead to job creation and investment.
- Work with outside consultants to develop an economic adjustment strategy for Koochiching County and the city of International Falls.
- Continue to work with other communities and entities to market assets to potential clients.
- Continue to oversee and work with internal KEDA functions or affiliate organizations.
“That's kind of where our focus areas are going to be for 2015, but a big one will be working with the consultants to develop a larger, county-wide plan,” Nevanen said.
The consultant, Newmark Grubb Knight Frank, is working with local economic response teams, known as ERTs, and the Arrowhead Regional Development Commission to develop a comprehensive county-wide economic development plan. Representatives of the firm will be in Koochiching County Jan. 7-9, KEDA member Rob Ecklund said, to tour sites, interview people, and get a feel for the area.
NGKF is a national consulting firm and its focus is on helping counties and cities develop economic plans, in order to spur growth, Nevanen said. The staff identify strengths and weaknesses and help market sites to potential businesses, he said.
Recent business closures throughout the county emphasize the need for the plan to evaluate the entire county, and not just International Falls, Nevanen said.
“We've been impacted throughout the county, so this isn't just going to be focused on one area,” Nevanen said. “It's going to look at the whole area, and what can be done in some of these smaller communities.”
The plan is the result of overwhelming community involvement in the face of recent layoffs, KEDA member Pete Kalar said. The ERTs were designed to get the community involved, he said, and have shown there is major interest in the long-term health of the community.
“They've really taken that charge and ran with it, which is very impressive and important to the whole strategy of this,” Kalar said.
The rail siding project involving Bergstrom Wood Products and Rainy Lake Oil, announced in August, has already led to some hiring at one of the firms, KEDA member Bob Anderson said.
“I think we need to give that all the priority that we can,” Anderson said. “We just need to continue to drive that one.”
Work force issues
Debbie Bowman, of Bowman Construction, said one issue that has come up in her discussions with other local business owners is the lack of skilled, qualified labor to fill positions. They have jobs available, she said, but can't find people with the correct skills to fill them. Bowman serves as an alternate member of the KEDA, but was not in that capacity at the meeting.
Bowman mentioned speaking with a man near Big Falls who recently decided to shut down his mink farm, because he couldn't find enough workers. While the job isn't glamorous, she said, it's still a steady, paying job.
“Young people aren't big on getting dirty or stinky anymore,” Bowman said. “Young people don't want to work hard.”
Nevanen said the KEDA staff work hard to define the local work force, and to figure out what its strengths and weaknesses are. There are quite a few jobs available locally,across a wide variety of skills, he said.
“Having a good stable work force, I think we've always used that as a selling point in the community,” Nevanen said. “But there are some gaps.”
Rainy River Community College does a good job of providing technical training programs for the local paper mill, Carl Bowman said. More programs like that would help employers like him fill vacancies, he said.
“We generally tend to hire more people that would be in the technical trades,” Carl Bowman said. “We have to hire truck drivers, and when we hire truck drivers, they have to have their (commercial drivers license.)”
If employees have natural skill and ability, they can take the time to train them, Carl Bowman said. But some jobs require a technical background or certificate they can't provide through on-the-job training.
Going forward, Nevanen said the KEDA staff can connect local employers with RRCC, so college staff can find out what programs or courses they could offer that would help train people in the skills businesses need.
