TOWER—Residents here will likely be reliant on the St. Louis County Sheriff’s Office for emergency law enforcement response for the foreseeable future, as officials in both Breitung Township and the city of Tower appear reluctant to re-establish a local police department in the wake of the resignation of former chief Dan Nylund.
Last week, Breitung supervisors said liability and expense were two key factors behind their preference to hand over local law enforcement responsibility to either St. Louis County or the city of Tower. Having Tower assume responsibility for establishing local police was Option Two on a list of five alternatives developed during last week’s meeting in Breitung.
But members of the city council, who met here on Monday, expressed little appetite for taking on the task. “Option Two is not an option,” said council member Sheldon Majerle. “We do not want that liability and neither does Breitung. It’s a big thing and someday something’s going to happen.”
No one on the council spoke up to challenge Majerle and the discussion quickly turned to the two most likely options— contracting with the sheriff’s office for some level of local patrolling or relying on the sheriff’s office on an emergency basis, as is already the case for rural townships in the region.
Council member Dave Setterberg said using the sheriff for local patrolling would cost $70 an hour, which would put the cost of even half-time patrol coverage at $305,760, or about $35,000 more than it cost to operate the Breitung department in 2020. If that cost were split between the two communities, the city of Tower would see an approximately $35,000 increase in its annual police costs. In recent years, the city has paid nearly a third of its local levy for police coverage.
Quarter-time coverage from the county would cost $152,880, which would save the two communities approximately $120,000 over current spending levels.
The final option that Breitung officials had proposed was to separate the two communities and let each determine its own law enforcement solution. But Mayor Orlyn Kringstad said he didn’t like that option. “I like to see close cooperation with Breitung, rather than separating the services,” he said.
Majerle urged more discussion with Breitung officials and he motioned to request a special meeting between the town board and the city council, a motion that the council approved. The council set no date for the meeting, as councilors wanted more information and more public input before holding a joint session. Town supervisor Greg Dostert, who attended Monday’s meeting, told the council that township officials were also waiting to hear from residents at Tuesday’s annual meeting, where the police department was expected to be a major topic of discussion. “We should know more about how the citizens feel about it after that,” he said.
Council members said they’ve heard from residents on both sides of the issue, although many seemed to see an advantage in having a local police department.
Kringstad said he agrees. “I really feel like community policing is important, however the public needs to understand that the police contract is the largest expense, other than payroll, for the city,” he said. The city’s police contract with Breitung was set at $115,000 this year, out of a total local levy of $394,000. In addition, the city was expected to purchase a new police vehicle this year, an expense the city may now not have to incur.
Ambulance
business plan
In other emergency services business, the council agreed to a temporary pause on completion of a business plan for the ambulance service while the city works with the Emergency Medical Services Regulatory Board, or EMSRB, on a rural ambulance service assessment. Clerk-Treasurer Victoria Ranua told the council that the assessment will take about 3-4 months and would provide an in-depth analysis by individuals with considerable knowledge about rural ambulance operations. “This similar level of analysis would have cost us $20,000-$30,000,” said Ranua, reminding the council of the price tag from private consultants that the city had solicited last year.
Ranua described it as a rare opportunity, since the EMSRB typically only does five such assessments annually, which are paid for by the state.
Setterberg said the assessment would delay completion of the business plan. “But it will make it more robust,” he added.
Councilor Kevin Norby asked if the city could request some comparison data between Tower’s ambulance service and other rural services in the state. “I think that would be very helpful,” he said.
In other action, the council:
• Tabled action on a citizen suggestion that the city purchase a generator for the civic center to use as an emergency shelter location. The council will seek more information on the request.
• Voted to cancel a lot lease on N. Third Street that had been in the name of James Frazee, who recently died. The council tabled action on a neighbor’s request to acquire the lease lot from Frazee. But council members wanted to get a valuation on the lot and consider whether it makes sense to continue leasing city lots, rather than selling them to residents.
• Approved allocating $2,500 toward the completion of a master trail plan for the community. Nancy Larson has advocated for the plan as a valuable tool to obtain additional funding for various trail connections and hiking opportunities in Tower. The Arrowhead Regional Development Commission has agreed to undertake the planning effort for $10,000. Larson said she expects the Department of Iron Range Resources and Rehabilitation will fund half of that cost, while the Tower Economic Development Authority has already agreed to fund $2,500.
• Approved seeking a St. Louis County COVID grant for a floor cleaner and sanitizer for the civic center. The equipment would cost about $3,000.
• Gave the clerk-treasurer additional clarification of what they would like to see from various department reports.