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News
By Allison Joy
CRYSTAL FALLS — At its Sept. 14 general meeting, the Iron County Board of Commissioners voted to allocate more than $300,000 in funds from the American Rescue Plan Act, signed by President Biden last March, to the Sheriff’s Office.
The county was allocated $2.15 million in total, as part of a massive influx of federal funding to local governments throughout the country. It received the first half of the allocated funds in June.
The most recent allocation of funding for the Sheriff’s Office is broken into two pots of money. The first, for $264,000, will go toward a new jail control system, to be installed by Johnson Controls. The second, for $39,655, will go toward the purchase of a patrol car.
“We’ve been trying to replace our jail control panel board since 2012,” said Sheriff Mark Valesano. “...It’s been something we’ve needed; it’s critical that we get this project done for the purpose of liability and the safety of our employees and the safety of the inmates.”
This brings the amount of ARPA funds going to the Sheriff’s Office up to just over $363,000. The office was previously approved to receive $60,000 in ARPA dollars to pay for a new computer server. (The server would potentially also be used by the Register of Deeds office.)
The recent approval also brings the amount of ARPA funding paid out to Johnson Controls up to $506,000. In May, the board approved a bid from the company for $242,000 to replace HVAC and boiler systems, also to be paid with using ARPA funds.
The board also allocated an additional $20,000 of ARPA funds to the Iron County Fair Association to mitigate the effects of $47,000 in lost revenue for 2020, when covid-19 pandemic canceled social gatherings throughout the country.
That brings the county’s total allocation of ARPA funds to roughly $586,000. Local governments have until the end of 2024 to spend their funds, with the second half of funding to be received no sooner than June 2022.
In August, the board voted to hire Public Sector Consultants to help oversee the allocation of funding and ensure its use fell within state and federal guidelines. Those fees range from $100-$340 hour, depending on the type of services rendered.
The board also addressed the following matters at its September general meeting:
• Scott Sternhagen, a certified accountant with Clifton Larson Allen, gave the 2020 audit presentation.
“Our audit went really well,” Sternhagen said. “We had to spend some more time with health department this year because of all the Covid money they got, but, from our standpoint, the audit went really well for the county.”
Sternhagen noted the general fund balance increased from $2.8 million to $3.1 million, though the difference can be attributed to additional Covid-19 grant funds the county had received.
• The following individuals were appointed to the Iron County Housing Commission Board: Dona Heikkinen will serve a partial term, effective Sept. 14 through Dec. 31, 2023; Kim Flood will serve a partial term, effective Sept. 14 through Dec. 31, 2022; and Greg Hall will serve a partial term, effective Oct. 1 through Dec. 31 of this year.
• The board unanimously approved the Iron County GIS (Geographic Information System) Municipal Participation Proposal, while noting that some municipalities who had already invested money in their own GIS mapping.
• The board unanimously approved a request from Prosecuting Attorney Chad DeRouin for $3,700 to cover the cost of a new printer/copier/scanner for the Prosecuting Attorney’s office.
• The board unanimously approved appointing DeRouin to the Building Authority, replacing former prosecuting attorney Melissa Powell, who left the position in June.
• The board unanimously approved a postage meter contract from Pitney Bowes, as well as an insurance quote from Blue Cross/Blue Shield that would bring no changes to the current plan.
• The board heard concerns expressed by local resident Christine Perry during public comment regarding the abrupt termination of the Iron County Medical Care Facility’s new administrator, Craig Jestila. Perry also expressed concern for how the facility is managed and asked the county board to dismantle the ICMCF board.
The Iron County Board of Commissioners meets the second Tuesday of each month at 4 p.m. at the Iron County Courthouse in Crystal Falls. The next meeting will be held Oct. 12.