The Bemidji City Council will hear a presentation from Minnesotans for Fair Lending. According to city documents, the group is requesting the council to create and pass an ordinance that would protect consumers from the high-interest rates of payday loans. According to the group’s data, more than $1 million dollars in these types of high-interest,…
The Bemidji School Board met for their regular meeting Monday night. Superintendent Tim Lutz says that as of last Friday, Beltrami County’s COVID-19 case rate per 10,000 people was 68.55, a number that is considered a high rate of transmission. Lutz said that once Beltrami County’s case rate gets to the moderate level, less than…
Hours before the Bemidji City Council set the preliminary levy increase at 8.5 percent, VenuWorks withdrew its offer of an incentive-based contract. VenuWorks CEO Bill Peters said that VenuWorks obliged their end of the contract and that the new terms of the contract were unlike any the company had ever undertaken. Peters said VenuWorks would…
The Beltrami County Board of Commissioners is set to meet for their work session and regular meeting tomorrow, beginning at 3 p.m. The board set the preliminary budget and levy increase for next year to 3.96 percent during their last meeting. County Administrator Tom Barry said in a memo that it was a favorably low…
The Bemidji School Board will hear an operating referendum update during their meeting this evening. The school board’s referendum last year failed by a considerable margin. The existing operating referendum for the district is $180 per pupil. On Nov. 2, the district will ask voters to increase that to $460 per pupil. The Bemidji School…
The Bemidji City Council and VenuWorks may negotiate a new contract during a special work session this afternoon. According to documents submitted in the city’s packet, VenuWorks would provide the same number of services for operating the Sanford Center, and the new contract would be in effect from Oct. 1 through the end of 2024….
The Red Lake Tribal Council recently passed a COVID-19 vaccine and testing mandate for tribal employees. According to a resolution passed unanimously on Sept. 14, the mandate affects all persons who enter the Red Lake Reservation for employment and business purposes. The mandate includes exemptions for pregnant women, those with documented medical conditions for which…
The Bemidji City Council will discuss possible re-negotiations with VenuWorks during a special session next week. After the council came to a consensus of setting the preliminary budget and levy next week at an 8.5 percent increase, VenuWorks CEO Bill Peters made an offer to work out some of the council’s issues with the contract….
The Bemidji City Council will discuss next year’s budget and the Sanford Center during tonight’s work session. Last week, the council voted 4-3 to move staff towards terminating their contract with VenuWorks, the management company that oversees the operation of the Sanford Center. A day later, longtime Ward 5 council member Nancy Erickson resigned. During…
Longtime Ward 5 councilmember Nancy Erickson submitted her resignation yesterday. In her letter to City Manager Nate Mathews, she said “the council is moving Bemidji in fundamental directions” she cannot support and that she is “no longer able to effectively represent citizens with confidence.” Her resignation is effective immediately, and it comes a day after…
