The Stutsman County Commission approved Tuesday terminating an agreement the county has with South Central Dakota Regional Council that would have updated the county's multi-hazard mitigation plan.
Jerry Bergquist, Stutsman County emergency manager, said the county received a $37,000 Federal Emergency Management Agency grant to revise the county's multi-hazard mitigation plan in 2012. Bergquist said in 2013 the county contracted with the Regional Council to provide consulting and advisory services to revise the plan.
Bergquist said the Regional Council missed a June 1 deadline to complete the plan, which would then be submitted to state and federal officials for approval.
Casey Bradley, county auditor/chief operating officer, said he was told by Deb Kantrud, Regional Council executive director, that the plan is only 70 percent complete.
"In our eyes, that is cause (for terminating the agreement)," Bradley said.
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Kantrud, contacted after Tuesday afternoon, said she received a letter from the county that afternoon informing the Regional Council of the County Commission's decision. She said the South Central Dakota Regional Council Executive Board is meeting today and the matter may be discussed.
Kantrud said the Regional Council could have completed the multi-hazard mitigation plan in the next few weeks, possibly a month.
Bergquist said the problem for the county began when Kantrud fired Daniel Schwartz, who had been the regional council's planner, on May 18. Schwartz had been working on the county's multi-hazard mitigation plan.
"Daniel (Schwartz) has been doing a great job for us," he said.
Bergquist, Bradley and Sarah Van De Velde, assistant county emergency manager, attended the Regional Council executive board's May 20 meeting to ask the Regional Council to rehire Schwartz under contract to complete the plan. Bergquist said Schwartz told him that the regional council offered him a personal services contract, but he chose not to accept that contract.
Bergquist said Schwartz was hired by Wenck Associates, an engineering firm with an office in Mandan, N.D. Bergquist said he would like the county to hire Wenck and have Schwartz complete the mitigation plan.
"He (Schwartz) estimated it will take him about 140 hours to complete the plan," he said.
Bergquist said the county and regional council will negotiate how much the regional council will be paid for the work it has completed on the plan. He said whatever money is left in the grant will be used to pay for completing the plan.
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Bradley said he has also talked with other local engineering firms about completing the plan. He said KLJ, an engineering firm with a Valley City office, did one of these plans for another county and completed it in nine months.
Bergquist said he would like to have Schwartz complete the plan if possible because Schwartz has developed good working relationships with many of the smaller towns and communities involved in the mitigation plan.
"Once you start this project, it's a long-term commitment," he said. "To change out the person who is writing it (the plan) in the middle is an almost impossible task."
In other business, the commission approved the sale of three lots in the I-94 Business Park from the Jamestown/Stutsman Development Corp. to Magnum LTL for $221,000. Magnum is planning to build a freight terminal on the property, according to Jim Johannesson, Magnum LTL vice president.
