Members present: Larry Main, Eldon Freese, Norm Bickford, Ro Endresen, Ed Peterson, Phil Lindeman, Jerry Pardun, Dave Alderman, and Mary Falk

Members absent: None

Others present: Mike Kornmann and Karen Pavlicek

Press: None

CALL TO ORDER:

Larry Main called the meeting to order at 1:00 p.m. in the Board Room at The Lodge at Crooked Lake on August 15, 2005.

APPROVAL OF JULY 28, 2005 MEETING MINUTES:

Motion made by Eldon Freese and seconded by Ro Endresen. Motion carried.

STRATEGY DEVELOPMENT

Mike suggested we try to wrap up the strategies during the next two meetings in order to prepare a draft to present to the public and the Board of Supervisors so they can review by October. It was suggested that we go back and select strategies and brainstorm on other issues.

Drug and rehab - The consensus was to create a task force to bring in people that have a stake in this issue and to seek funding.

Preserve ag land -
The following six strategies were discussed by committee members:

· Purchase development rights

Farmer can reinvest

· Encourage cluster development around villages

Direct developments around existing structures
There is a potential conflict with anti-ag people with regard to ag odors, etc.

· Conservation of subdivisions

Preserve 50% of developable land

· Enforce zoning code -- don't rezone ag zones

Be more stable

· Change ag zoning to "green belt" zoning

Open space should be preserved
There is pressure to get around zoning
Example of this is Dewey Township, which is exclusively ag zoned and building can be negated.
One-time split on a 40-acre parcel
How to get around A-4 zoning
Is it enforceable?

· Promote value-added farming

Add niche farming (small or large) i.e. truck farming, cherry tomatoes, berries, etc.

Mike then asked members to prioritize which of the plans they deemed to be the most practical. What is the most effective alternative to pursue? Mention was made that sand is a good growing medium for strawberries and that ag land is a very generic term. Using soil type could be a means by which to classify land.

Cluster development and conservation subdivisions were discussed regarding relevance to ag land. Committee was asked if they wanted to keep these for consideration or throw out. Private funding was discussed and Mike told committee members that presently we are experiencing the largest transfer of generational wealth and that private funding might be the best way to go.

Members were asked by Mike to come up and put two stars on alternatives each thought were the best way the County could resolve the issue. This is the way the committee members prioritized the alternatives:

Grouping the strategies was suggested. All agreed that purchasing development rights and value-added farming should be grouped together.

Cluster development and conservation of subdivisions was grouped together

All concluded that zoning is the most important issue. There are 21 townships and of that, 10 are not zoned. All townships are presently working on programs and zoning should be encouraged. It's not possible to have only one recommendation; suggestion was made to supply three recommendations. The extension and other organizations should be involved in this. Enforcing the zoning code, purchasing development rights, and promoting value-added farming were considered to be the most important recommendations. Too many topics would tend to be shelved and not considered, three topics were recommended.

Ag is an important issue and its solution is equally important. How do we ensure that zoning takes place? We should take a look at good models. Comprehensive planning should come before zoning - what goes where? We need long-range plans.

A summary ensued on topics of:

· Business development
· Natural resource preservation
· Create a partnership with the Tribe to create a task force - drug and rehab
· Infrastructure
· Communication

We should be trying to meet once or twice a month with the Tribe. A discussion ensued regarding difficulties in setting up meetings with the Tribe. Tribe may show up for first meeting and then never attend after the initial meeting. There is no reservation zoning. They have sovereign rights on their own land. The Tribe is the largest employer in Burnett County. Discussion followed on how we can develop common goals with the St. Croix Tribe. A task force was suggested, consisting of the Board of Supervisors and Tribal Council. A primary person (County Board Chair) should be appointed to approach one person in the Tribe, e.g. Ken Johnson or Gloria Benjamin, as they are both open to discussion. A dialogue should be initiated with the Tribe and the dialogue should be kept operative. "It's a marathon, not a sprint." We must communicate with the public without offending the Tribe regarding drugs, Meth, etc. We should accentuate the fact that it's a mutual problem, not a problem exclusively with the Tribe.

At this time we have the following issues with rearrangement required. We could have issues with action items indicated under the issue. For example:

· Natural resource preservation

Ag -- Forestry -- Open space -- Comprehensive planning

· Business development

Tourism -- Ag business

· Infrastructure

Line item -- Capital improvements -- Planning -- Capital budgeting

· Communication

Review of today's meeting: It was resolved that we have regressed in our advancement. We should have narrowed the issues down earlier in the game. Committee wants to reorganize issues. Suggestion was made to reorganize and put action items under the issues, as shown above.

FUTURE MEETINGS
August 30, 2005, 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 noon - tentatively scheduled at the Lodge.

Meeting was adjourned at 3:30 p.m.