The following actions were taken at the Nov. 7, 2023, Washington County Board of Commissioners meeting at the Government Center in Stillwater, Minnesota.

Davis named to Historic Courthouse Advisory Committee

Derick Davis, Woodbury, was appointed to the Washington County Historic Courthouse Advisory Committee by the County Board Nov. 7.

Davis will serve in a partial term expiring Dec. 31, 2024, as the District 5 representative on the committee.

Contact: Holly Hess, Administrative Assistant, 651-430-6015

County Board approves actions to transfer tax-forfeited land

The Washington County Board of Commissioners took several actions Nov. 7 to transfer tax-forfeited land from the county to other owners.

The County Board set a date for a public auction for a tax-forfeited property in Woodbury for Dec. 8.

The property, one-half of a twin home built in 1982 on a 0.17-acre lot in Woodbury, was forfeited July 19, 2021. The parcel has municipal approval for sale.

With consideration of the condition of the property, the county set an appraised value and a minimum sale price of $10,000, plus special assessments of $1,021.49.

The County Board also set a private auction for Dec. 15 for a tax-forfeited .03 acres land parcel in Stillwater, which will be offered to owners of adjacent land. It has been determined that the parcel cannot be improved, and the best use can be achieved by selling the parcel to an adjacent owner. A written notice of the date, time, and location of the private sale will be mailed to all adjacent owners at least 30 days before the date of the sale. With consideration of the condition of the property, a minimum sale price of $1 was set.

The County Board also approved a repurchase request for tax-forfeited land in Forest Lake by Hillsboro Inlet LLC. Several parcels in the King’s Forest Hills subdivision are involved. State law allows the owner at the time of forfeiture be allowed to repurchase a parcel of tax-forfeited land for the sum of all delinquent taxes and assessments, together with penalties, interest, and costs that accrued or would have accrued if the parcel of land had not forfeited to the state.

The repurchase amount is calculated as $13,497.80 for the parcels.

Contact: Amy Stenftenagel, Property Records and Taxpayer Services Director, 651-430-6182

County will receive natural resource grant to protect water resources

Washington County will receive a $200,665 grant from the Board of Water and Soil Resources to be used through 2025 to protect and improve water resources, after the County Board approved a grant agreement Nov. 7.

The grant is a composite of a number of grants to counties for water resource protection, including shoreland protection, wetland conservation, subsurface sewage treatment programs, and other conservation programs.

To be eligible for the grant, a county must have a locally adopted and Board of Water and Soil Resources approved comprehensive local water management plan, which is the county’s groundwater plan, and submit an annual report.

Contact: Jessica Collin-Pilarski, Senior Planner, 651-430-6703

County will continue to provide law enforcement to City of Scandia

The Washington County Sheriff’s Office will continue to provide law enforcement services to the City of Scandia after the County Board agreed to a renewal with the city Nov. 7.

The agreement with the city is an additional five years, and will renew Jan. 1, 2024. The county will furnish and supply all labor, administration, equipment, communication facilities, dispatching, and supplies necessary to provide the services.

The City of Scandia will pay the county on a semi-annual basis for the direct costs and expenses, including the salaries and fringe benefits of one full-time deputy, to be calculated no later than Aug. 1 of each year.

Contact: Laura Perkins, Law Enforcement Public Information Officer, 651-430-7994

County Board accepts donations to county for 2023 third quarter

The Washington County Board of Commissioners accepted donations that were made to the county during the third quarter of 2023 Nov. 7.

The Library received $736.53, including a Beverly Manship Roger Haukland Memorial donation and a Michael Rooney donation.

The Parks received $228.36 directed to the Parks and Trail Fund and the Milkweed for Monarchs fund, and a Living Forest donation.

The Sheriff’s Office received $5,300 from a number of people and organizations, which was used for the office’s Employee Appreciation Day, or the Shop With a Cop Back to School event. The Sheriff’s Office also received $8,861 of in-kind donations, also to support those events.

Community Corrections received gas gift cards totaling $100 to support its programs.

Contact: Yvonne Klinnert, Communication Specialist, 651-430-6026

County Board states support for veterans

The Washington County Board of Commissioners stated its support of Operation Green Light for Veterans Nov. 7, a program that invites people and entities to use green lights to show their support for veterans.

Counties in the United States have a long and proud history of serving the nation’s veterans, a legacy that continues to today as counties work with federal, state, and local partners to ensure that former service members have access to the resources they need to thrive.

Once again this Veterans Day, the National Association of Counties (NACo) and the National Association of County Veterans Service Officers (NACVSO) invite the nation’s 3,069 counties, parishes, and boroughs to join Operation Green Light and show support for veterans by lighting buildings green from Nov. 6-12. By shining a green light, county governments and residents will let veterans know that they are seen, appreciated, and supported.

Contact: Yvonne Klinnert, Communication Specialist, 651-430-6026

County Board recognizes communications awards

The Washington County Board of Commissioners Nov. 7 recognized awards that the county’s communication team received.

The county’s communication team received two awards from the Minnesota Association of Government Communications through its Northern Lights Awards program. The awards were a silver award for the county’s branded icon set and a bronze award for a sex trafficking awareness campaign.

The branded icons are used on both external and internal websites to assist users to navigate the proper pages and to provide visual cues for users. Judges’ comments stated “Icons are a great way to

visually share information and grab the viewer’s attention without having to read too much text. Great job being intentional with these.” Judges also noted that the icons were clean, professional, and eye-catching.

The bronze award was for a social media and website public information project on sex trafficking awareness, done in collaboration with the county Attorney’s Office. The judges’ comments stated, “This topic is so important. Thank you to the staff for doing a campaign on sex trafficking. The information (wording) was good, especially with the statistics shared on Jan. 4 via social media.” The judges also commented on how well the information was distributed, based on the reports from the communication platforms used.

Contact: Tina Elam, Communications Manager, 651-430-6004