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WALKER-Road easements across county land for access to private property are fairly common, but a request for a private airstrip approach is not.

Thursday, Jeff Snell obtained board approval for such an easement in Birch Lake Township on the west side of Webb Lake, east of Hackensack.

The late Ray Olson first obtained county planning commission and board of adjustment approval for conditional use permit to allow an airstrip on his property west of Webb Lake 45 years ago.

Ray's widow, Carolyn, eventually sold the airstrip to John Justad, who used it until selling to Snell in December 2015.

In July 2016, Minnesota Department of Transportation advised Snell by letter of steps he would have to take to obtain a private airport license in his name.

He was advised to cut trees to the north of the airstrip, so they would rise to only 1 foot for every 15 feet from the end of the runway. The county owns the wooded property north of Snell's airstrip.

The board's action Thursday calls for Snell to pay the county standard easement fees that would include compensation for timber value of trees cut. It requires him to leave a tree buffer at the end of an adjoining road.

A final board vote on the easement will be required once the easement fees have been paid.

One neighbor requested the tree buffer, so he would not see the airstrip from his home, which is about 500 feet away.

Another neighbor expressed concern over the fact the easement area where the trees would be cut is close to a gravel road and could lead to visual confusion over whether a plane leaving the airstrip was traveling on the airstrip or road.

Land Commissioner Kirk Titus reported the county's project to replace eight culverts and repair washout damage on the Soo Line all-terrain vehicle and snowmobile trail Cass County segment was finished on time and under budget.

Polaris and the National Forest Foundation provided a $46,500 grant for the project. Titus said Cass was able to return $2,345.90 to the National Forest Foundation, because the project cost less than expected.

The county board accepted a lowest of three bids from Lawrence Valuations Services for $4,350 to appraise three parcels the county is considering purchasing with Lessard Sams Outdoor Heritage state funding. They are located in Bull Moose, Fairview and Birch Lake Townships.

The county purchases parcels to gain access to currently inaccessible existing county owned or managed land.

Cass sold $117,817 worth of timber on five of six tracts offered for sale at a Nov. 23 auction. Loggers paid $41.39 per cord for aspen and $37.88 per cord for red oak. They paid the least for basswood, which sold for $10.65 per cord..

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