Commissioners urge caution for back-to-school drivers, discuss ditch hearing timing and data-request tracking

Several commissioners used the commissioner-items portion of the meeting to raise short announcements and concerns. Commissioner Casa urged drivers to slow down and watch for bikes and school buses as school resumes. Commissioner Schauff recommended scheduling a ditch hearing during a county meeting time, noting farmers’ schedules and the potential need for written comments for those who cannot attend.

Commissioner Ekstrom raised broader concerns about proposed levies reported in the Star Tribune, supported staff handling of data-request workload tracking, and suggested the board consider a summary of staff hours spent on data requests using recently installed software. He also said the board is preparing a letter supporting the Blazing Star Trail. Ekstrom and others expressed frustration with what they described as repeated negative newspaper coverage of county staff; the chair responded that some numbers in the recent article were "not factual" and said administration and IT will work on data-retention policy and staffing guidance. The chair then adjourned the meeting.