The Morse Town Board doesn’t always have a lot of speakers at monthly meetings but the Oct. 8 meeting featured several.
The first was Nick Lonardo of K2 Towers who said his company acquired the township lease for land where a tower is located next to the Ely Golf Course.
He said the company has been losing money over the past year. Typically they would take it down and restore the area to its natural setting.
Lonardo said he would like to keep the infrastructure in place so they can market it to cell phone carriers. Once they have tenants they would propose to pay Morse 50 percent of the revenues.
Lonardo said K2 purchased this tower along with a group of other towers.
Clerk Nick Wognum said Treehouse Broadband would be willing to rent space on the tower. Lonardo said Treehouse had contacted K2 but they haven’t reached an agreement on the tower rental rate.
Board chair Bob Berrini said other tower land owners in the Ely area are being paid well.
Lonardo said if they can get a cell company to locate on the tower, they are looking at $2,600 a month with the township receiving $1,300.
Lonardo said the current lease with the township expires at the end of February in 2025. They would like to get a new lease in place so they can get a long term deal with a cell company.
Supervisor Terry Soderberg asked for a one month delay on the decision.
Lonardo said their goal is to keep the infrastructure there and assured there is no liability to the township.
Next up was Teresa Floberg who works for Dovetail and with Gloria Erickson on the Firewise program.
Floberg informed the board of an Oct. 12 pile burning workshop at the college. She also presented information on wildfires and other info for property owners.
Berrini asked about township roads where people live and there is a dead end. He would like to see brushing done on these roads.
Floberg said the action plan is still being developed. Berrini asked the $489,000 in funding that had been awarded to St. Louis County. Floberg said there are 285 acres to be treated including an area behind the hospital to create a firebreak.
Richard Stuart spoke to the board about his proposed cannabis project. He said he had investors in town that day.
Stuart said there were 1,818 applicants that were approved to put in social equity applications to the state. However, there has not been a date for the lottery.
Stuart said the original plan was by March of 2025 dispensaries should be open. He said it sounds like the cultivation facility will be in the Town of Morse specifically due to the need for air quality. They are going to be negotiating to purchase property in Morse.
Stuart plans to bring 60 livable wage jobs to the Town of Morse in 2025. In Ely there will be a smaller dispensary planned. In Morse it will be cultivation and processing and most won’t even know it’s there.
Berrini asked if anything will be given back. Stuart said they plan to give two percent and he is setting up a personal endowment to give another two percent.
Stuart said the state is building the plane as they are flying it. He said townships are deferring to counties to determine the zoning issues. A current moratorium in place sunsets at the end of this year.
Of the applicants, 56 percent are not from the state of Minnesota. He said lawsuits will start flying soon since less than 500 licenses will be issued. He said his investors have been very pleased with what they are seeing.
The board discussed a problem on Maple Street where a change in property ownership is impacting where snow can be plowed this winter.
St. Louis County employee Mike Velcheff said the plows all push to the right. He said they also need a place to turn around.
Soderberg said there is a problem on Moss Ridge as well. He will continue to work on finding a solution.
In other business the board:
• Approved selling a 1992 International 4700 Dump Truck for the high bid of $8,500.
• Wognum went over a letter from the school district where they weren’t able provide the breakdown of the number of students who live in the Town of Morse.
• Changed the next meeting to Nov. 6 at 6 p.m.
• Will attend a meeting at the hospital on October 18 at 2 p.m. on the Safe Tech ambulance plan.
• Approved a variance application from Gayle Beel for a septic system.
• Discussed that Gunnar Kind had contacted the township on a rejected variance for an island on Shagawa Lake. Soderberg talked with the owner who wants to make it a picnic island without a septic system. This may not require a variance but may require a conditional use permit.