Community Action will better serve Freeborn County as a non-profit organization than as a county agency, members told the Freeborn County board Tuesday.

Wednesday, May 16, 2001

Community Action will better serve Freeborn County as a non-profit organization than as a county agency, members told the Freeborn County board Tuesday. They hope to sever ties with the county by July 1.

Their affiliation with the county has made Community Action ineligible for many funding sources, and the problem is only getting worse, said Director Collette Turcotte.

&uot;It is an economic trend that non profits are getting funds over government entities because government has the ability to levy taxes,&uot; Turcotte said. &uot;We were being told, ‘If you are a government entity, you need not apply.’&uot;

By becoming an independent non-profit organization, Community Action will be better able to compete with other programs for housing and self-sufficiency grants, she said.

The county board has never given Community Action a budget, but have given them support in insurance, negotiations, and other services. Freeborn is the only county besides Olmsted that does not have an independent program.

The board is expected to pass the proposal at its June 19 meeting.

&uot;The more grants they can get, the less people in our community are going to have to pay for it,&uot; Commissioner Dan Springborg said. &uot;That will serve all of us better.&uot;

In other county action Tuesday:

n Freeborn County officials are hoping for federal disaster declaration to help repair damage sustained in Glenville and rural Freeborn County during a May 1 tornado.

Commissioners requested that Freeborn County be declared a major disaster area by President George Bush, and receive public infrastructure support.

Gov. Jesse Ventura has already petitioned the president for Freeborn County, amending a request for flood damage to include Freeborn County tornado damage, said Highway Engineer Sue Miller. The request is a procedural formality.

n Commissioners voted to deny the Rev. George Marin’s request to abate taxes owed on a property his church hopes to turn into a parking lot because it would set a precedent they might not be able to uphold in the future. But commissioners dug into their own pockets to fork out the county’s $64.81 in taxes owed.

Commissioners said they would feel obligated to offer the same deal to other non-profits if they granted Grace Lutheran’s request, and would be open to criticism for not offering abatement to churches in the past.

&uot;How would you justify giving this church, and not that church?&uot; Chairman Dave Mullenbach asked.

n Building maintenance staff will update Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) signage in the north annex of the courthouse building, Mullenbach said.

The signs will be written in English, Spanish and Braille, and cost under $1,000, he said.

n Commissioners voted to have a structural engineer examine the old Western Grocery/Stevens Hardware building south of the courthouse, to determine whether they will consider renovating the building.

&uot;It the structure’s not sound, fine,&uot; said Commissioner Glen Mathiason. &uot;But if it is, then it’s something we should consider.&uot;

Commissioner Mark Behrends voted against commissioning the study, saying he did not feel the building was salvageable.