Lake of the Woods County Board of Commissioners Proceedings

                                                                     August 26, 2025

CALL TO ORDER Chair Jon Waibel called the meeting to order at 9:00a.m. and the Pledge of Allegiance was recited with the following members present: Commissioners: Cody Hasbargen, Joe Grund and Jon Waibel. Joining by phone: Commissioner Ed Arnesen. Also present was County Auditor-Treasurer Lorene Hanson. Absent: Commissioner Buck Nordlof.

APPROVAL OF AGENDA Motion was made by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen, seconded by Commissioner Joe Grund and carried unanimously by roll call to approve the agenda with the following changes: Add: Closed Session, Fair Board Request, Auditor’s Office.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES Motion Motion was made by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen, seconded by Commissioner Joe Grund and carried unanimously by roll call to approve the official minutes of August 12, 2025.

SOCIAL SERVICES Claims Motion was made by Commissioner Joe Grund, seconded by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen and carried unanimously by roll call to approve the following claims: Commissioners Warrants $9,994.81; Commissioners Warrants $1,805.19; Commissioners Warrants $36,862.75.

WHEREAS: Carla Bailey has served the residents of Lake of the Woods County since July 16, 2018 as a Lake of the Woods County Eligibility Worker; WHEREAS: Carla Bailey has resigned from Lake of the Woods County service effective August 29, 2025 with 7 years of service; NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED: That Lake of the Woods County Board of Commissioners extends its deepest appreciation to Carla Bailey for her dedicated service and best wishes to her; The resolution was seconded by Commissioner Joe Grund and the same being put to a vote was unanimously carried.

Auditor/Treasurer Claims Motion was made by Commissioner Joe Grund, seconded by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen and carried unanimously by roll call to approve the claims against the County as follows: Revenue $24,992.50; Road & Bridge $7,042.26; County Development $150.00; Joint Ditch $2,889.60; Solid Waste $14,255.99.

Paid Medical Leave Act (PMLA)  Motion was made by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen, seconded by Commissioner Joe Grund and carried unanimously by roll call to approve a private insurance carrier through Integrity with Metlife for PMLA.

Motion was made by Commissioner Ed Arnesen, seconded by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen and carried unanimously by roll call to approve the purchase of a 3rd cryptr for Armer Radio Consol MCC7500e in the amount of $13,715.00 to be paid for out of the Emergency Management budget.

Sheriff Set Marijuana Application Fee Motion was made by Commissioner Joe Grund, seconded by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen and carried unanimously by roll call to set the marijuana application issuing fee at $500.00.

Squad Car Cameras Motion was made by Commissioner Joe Grund, seconded by Commissioner Ed Arnesen and carried unanimously by roll call to approve the upgrade and annual online subscription of the squad car cameras in the amount of $5,370.00 annually for online access to be paid for out of IT budget, and up to an additional 17,285.00 for camera installation to be paid for out of the Sheriff’s budget.

County Road Safety Plan Motion was made by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen, seconded by Commissioner Joe Grund and carried unanimously by roll call to approve the County Road Safety Plan in the amount of 20,860.81.

Ditch Authority Motion was made by Commissioner Joe Grund, seconded by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen and carried unanimously by roll call to close the regular meeting and open the Ditch Authority meeting.

JD 28 Bid Approval  Motion was made by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen, seconded by Commissioner Joe Grund and carried unanimously by roll call with Commissioner Jon Waibel abstaining to approve the bid from SW Farm Partnership in the amount of $21,535.00 for a project on Ditch 28.

Motion was made by Commissioner Joe Grund, seconded by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen and carried unanimously by roll call to close the Ditch Authority meeting and open the regular meeting.

Permission to Advertise, Interview, & Hire Motion was made by Commissioner Joe Grund, seconded by Commissioner Ed Arnesen and carried unanimously by roll call to approve the request to Advertise, Interview, & Hire a Deputy Auditor-Treasurer Fiscal Officer at Grade 15, Step 1, at 336 points and to appoint two Commissioners to be in the interview.

Add to Agenda Motion  was made by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen, seconded by Commissioner Ed Arnesen and carried unanimously by roll call to add Budget Meeting Date Change to the agenda.

WHEREAS, the Minnesota Open Meeting Law, Minn. Stat. § 13D.05, subd. 3(b) states that “meetings may be closed if the closure is expressly authorized by statute or permitted by the attorney-client privilege”; and

WHEREAS, Lake of the Woods County, has received complaints with implicit threats of litigation from Jared Martinson and R&E LOW LLC regarding land use decisions made by county employees; WHEREAS, the Lake of the Woods County Board seeks to meet with its attorney, to discuss the litigation threats; and

WHEREAS, it would be detrimental to the interests of the Lake of the Woods County Board to hold a public discussion with its attorney regarding the strengths and weaknesses of its legal position(s), strategy, and potential settlement position regarding the pending lawsuit where an opposing party or opposing attorney could listen to or be made aware of Lake of the Woods County’s positions; and WHEREAS, there is an absolute need for the Lake of the Woods County Board to obtain confidential legal advice regarding the potential settlement modifications in order to maintain the attorney-client privilege. BE IT RESOLVED by the Lake of the Woods County Board as follows:

Motion was made by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen, seconded by Commissioner Joe Grund and carried unanimously by roll call to close the closed session and open the regular meeting.

Adjourn Motion was made by Commissioner Cody Hasbargen, seconded by Commissioner Joe Grund and carried unanimously to adjourn the meeting at 11:30a.m.