The Beltrami County Board of Commissioners reviewed the proceeds of tax forfeited properties within the county during their meeting Tuesday. Richard Moore with Natural Resources reported over $772,000 in apportionment proceeds. According to statute, these proceeds must be invested in areas such as county economic development, timber development, acquiring and maintaining county parks, with funds…
Featured photo: Sanford Health officials at a Bemidji testing site. Submitted. Beltrami County Public Health is reporting a positive trend in the local COVID-19 situation. During the County Board work session Tuesday, Public Health Director Cynthia Borgen says cases have remained largely flat at around 40 cases per week, the same level the county was…
The Highway 197 project is continuing through its community review panel phase. According to a release, the volunteer, community-based committee will review the final segment of the corridor, east of Ridgeway Avenue to Bemidji Avenue, this month. MnDOT conducted a corridor study in 2019 and proposed a series of roundabouts along the business-heavy stretch of…
The Bemidji City Council welcomed the seventh and final member of the Council after a year of vacancies. At-large member Dan Jourdain, a member of the Red Lake Nation, was sworn in Monday, with a brief drum ceremony that followed. The council now has two Indigenous members, as Jourdain joins Ward 1 member Audrey Thayer,…
The Bemidji City Council will welcome its seventh member this evening. The council has not been a full seven-member body in over a year, with two resignations in 2020. Newly-elected at-large member Dan Jourdain will be sworn in tonight. Other items on the council agenda include an update from directors of the Sanford Center. The…
The Bemidji City Council discussed the future of the Neilson Reise arena and where user groups will skate in the summertime. The Bemidji Community Arena Corporation plans to keep the Sanford “Power Rink” ice on through the summer, in what board member Ben Wangberg calls a “leap of faith.” The BCAC is seeking some support…
The Bemidji School District will continue to look at the cost saving measures of reconfiguring three district buildings. The board passed a resolution unanimously that would direct staff to examine the school boundaries for neighborhood schools as the district plans to move students and most teachers out of Central Elementary, the district’s longest-running school. The…
The Bemidji Area School Board will once again look at more ways to cut the district’s budget, and once again there are petitions circulating to stop the cuts. A proposal included in the school board packet includes closing Central Elementary School, the district’s oldest school, and moving these students into other K-3 neighborhood schools. In…
The Bemidji City Council will discuss the future of the Neilson Reise Arena during their work session this evening. While no formal action is typically taken during work sessions, City Manager Nate Mathews says staff is seeking council input after receiving word that the Bemidji Community Arena plans to open their new “Sanford Power” ice…
During the Beltrami County Board of Commissioners’ Work Session, commissioners discussed a potential meeting, tentatively planned for next month, with leaders of the county seat, Bemidji. Commissioner Jim Lucachick said they would need plenty of time for the meeting, with five commissioners and seven council members, he anticipated a meeting like this lasting at least…
