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   BACKUS — Cass County Sheriff Bryan Welk delivered his annual report Tuesday, Feb. 18, to the Cass County Board. During the annual report, Sheriff Welk stated 19,198 calls for service were handled which was lower than the 2023 calls but average compared to previous years. The trend of calls received from cellular phones continues to increase with 43,436 being received in that manner and only 1,672 received from a landline. Weekends continue to be the busiest day and Wednesdays being the slowest day for calls, Sheriff Welk said. The most calls continue to be between 3-9 p.m. with 5-8 p.m. being the peak, with weekdays continuing to be just as busy as weekends.

   The processing of gun permits continued to rise during 2024, with the department processing 428 permit to purchase applications and 634 new permit to carry applications. Sadly, Sheriff Welk reported 2024 saw five fatality crashes, with seven total fatalities. This was a stark contrast to zero fatalities during 2023.

   Overdose-related medical calls and deaths, mainly due to use of fentanyl, is continuing to be seen across the region. Sheriff Welk shared that narcan was used/administered on a total of 39 calls during 2024.

   Commissioner Neal Gaalswyk asked for an update on the jail house sharing with Itasca County, with Sheriff Welk stating it was going extremely well. However, currently the county is not utilizing all of the contracted beds but they still have to pay for them. Therefore, the Sheriff’s department is going to begin working on tracking down high risk offenders with warrants for their arrest. It was also asked if the county could reduce costs and save money if they were to spend the money into staffing their own jail house. Currently the Walker jail house can hold 48 inmates per day, and the county has been averaging 20 - 24 inmates. 

   Sheriff Welk mentioned this is something he is going to look into, but the housing of mentally unstable inmates is a concern due to having to staff a full time nurse and no local hospital. Currently the county is paying a low rate and if they were to renegotiate for a lower number of beds the rate may significantly increase. 

   For a complete list of calls and to learn more about the sheriff’s programs, see the full sheriff’s report at www.casscountymn.gov. 

   North Memorial Health EMS Relationship Specialist Kevin Lee was on hand to report the Longville ambulance fourth quarter report. Lee stated volumes were higher than the budgeted amount with 357 patients needing medical assistance. Therefore, fourth quarter revenues were favorable by $32,457, however the expenses also increased during the quarter due to salary expenses and increased vehicle maintenance. It was also noted Brainerd was the location where most patients choose to be transported during 2024 with Crosby being the second highest choice. Lee also mentioned the Central EMS Region will be sponsoring EMT classes in Pine River and Maple Lake during 2025. Anyone can attend the class free of charge with commitment to work for North Memorial Health.

   In other business, the county board:

   • Approved a letter to the City of Hackensack formally denying the request to participate in the proposed tax abatement derived from the parcels associated with the City’s 2025 street and utility project.

   • Adopted a resolution approving the proposed state land acquisition located in the northwest corner of Wabedo Lake for aquatic management area purposes.

   • Held a public hearing regarding the 2025 Fee Schedule, with no comments from the public the updated fee schedule was approved unanimously.

   • Approved a Memorandum of Agreement for the Upper Mississippi Grand Rapids Watershed Collaboration and the Implementation Funding Workplan.

   • Awarded the Facility Condition Assessment to Kraus-Anderson Construction Company in the amount of $26,000.

   • Approved a grant application from Northern Minnesota Addiction Wellness Center for the amount of $23,158 with opioid settlement funding.

   The next meetings are as follows: AMC Legislative Conference, Wednesday, Feb. 26 through Thursday, Feb. 27 at The Intercontinental Hotel, 11 East Kellogg Boulevard, St. Paul and 2025 NACO Legislative Conference, Saturday, Mar. 1 through Tuesday, Mar. 4 at Washington Hilton, 1919 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington, DC; commissioner’s board meeting, 9 a.m. Tuesday, Mar. 4 at the boardroom in the courthouse annex in Walker and commissioner’s board meeting, 9 a.m. Tuesday, Mar. 18 at the Land Department meeting room in Backus.

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