County board acknowledges historical society ruling
The Le Sueur County Board of Commissioners acknowledged a court decision that there is now one valid Le Sueur County Historical Society (LSCHS) during its regular meeting Tuesday, Nov. 20. The society issue was not on the board agenda, but near the end of the session, County Administrator/Engineer Darrell Pettis mentioned the recent ruling. “You have all received a copy of the decision rendered by Honorable Thomas G. McCarthy in court proceedings at the Sibley County Courthouse in Gaylord,” said Pettis. Two opposing groups have long claimed to be the valid LSCHS, and the decision by Judge McCarthy brings some closure to the issue. In his summary, McCarthy stated that the facts in the case are well-established, but the parties’ interpretations of them are wildly different. He made his decision after studying the history and records of both groups. McCarthy’s decision gives validity to the group led by Clancy Mager, William Stangler, Ruth Vortherns, Bob Wertman, Becky Pollack and ex-official Society Coordinator Kathy Burns, that it is the rightful LSCHS. The other group had been led by Mick McGuire, Jim Hansen, Julaine Jacobson and Tim Sellner. The decision that there is now one LSCHS does not sit well with all members of the county board, including District 1 Commissioner John Grimm. “As I have said before, until the society is inclusive rather than exclusive and represents all residents of the county, I cannot support the organization,” he commented. The commissioners directed Pettis to continue paying society bills monthly, rather than releasing the balance ($30,000) which had been budgeted for 2011.
The board also: • Accepted the Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) for Unimin Corporation, Le Sueur, following a presentation by Environmental/ P&Z Director Kathy Brockway and Kirsten Pauley of Sunde Engineering. The FEIS provides information about the extent of the potential environmental impacts and how they can be avoided or minimized for the proposed expansion of silica sand mining of approximately 1,188.06 acres in Kasota Township.
• Scheduled the next board meeting for Tuesday, Dec. 11, at 5:30 p.m., with Truth In Taxation Hearing at 6:35 p.m. The board will not meet Tuesday, Dec. 4, because of the Association of Minnesota Counties (AMC) session being held that day.
