By Joanne Bergman The Murray County Board of Commissioners met in the first session of the year. The oath of office was administered to newly elected commissioner Jackie Meyer and to reelected commissioner Dennis Welgraven. Newly elected Sheriff Heath Landsman along with reelected County officials Heidi Winter and Karen Brown were sworn into their positions.
The first item of business was the election of board chair and vice chair. There will be no change in 2023 with Molly Malone remaining as Chair and Dennis Welgraven as Vice Chair. A resolution was passed to authorize the Auditor-Treasurer to pay claims with a due date prior to a scheduled meeting. A resolution was also passed to allow the use of the County’s website as primary posting location for the annual audit. This will be a savings in publication costs. The availability of the audit will be published.
A lengthy list of Appropriations and Dues in the total amount of $486,212.05 was perused and approved. ACE of SW MN at $14,980, Murray County Ag Society at $34,000, Murray Soil & Water at $196,279.00, Plum Creek Library System at $70,550, and SW Health & Human Services at $116,551 were the largest recipients of the appropriations.
Murray County Medical CEO Luke Schryvers presented the monthly report of activities. The new ambulance has arrived, a new vascular service begins on the 18th, and behavioral health services begin on the 10th. Cash increased by $650,000 in November. Hospital patient numbers increased by 69 over 2021; ER visits increased by 170 year to date and Clinic visits are up by 491. Orthopedic surgeries have decreased over 2021 numbers. There was a positive net income for the month of November.
Two donations were received. One was made to the Sheriff Department in appreciation of being pulled from the ditch. The second was $1050 from the Slayton Drift Breakers Snowmobile Club for a snowmobile bridge access.
Sheriff Landsman received approval to move Bryan Bose to the position of Chief Deputy. Bose has been serving as Sergeant, a position no longer included in staffing of the department.
Much of the meeting time was devoted to appointments to Commissioner and Citizen Committee Appointments. The make up of the Hospital Board will change with the addition of Jackie Meyer and citizen Laurie Jensen. Bill Wassenaar did not receive approval for return to the board.
The Commissioners will be using portions of their meeting times as Work Sessions on various topics for which they want additional discussion before making decisions. A list was formed for the next six months.
