Hand County Board of Commissioners

415 West 1st Avenue, Suite 203 , Mailbox 7

Miller, South Dakota 57362

Contact Information:

605-853-2182 (Auditor’s Office) & 605-853-2769 (Auditor’s Fax)

(this one email forwards to all five commissioners)

Emails to this account, depending on protected content, may become a matter of public record unless specifically exempted by state or federal law.

MEMBERS of the COMMISSION

Commissioner District Map (Rural)

Commissioner District Map (City of Miller)

Gilbert “Gib” Rodgers, Commissioner, District 1 (Re-elected in 2018)

2020 Vice-Chairman
20713 371st Avenue, Wessington, South Dakota 57381
Home Phone: (605) 458-2378
direct email: [email protected]
2020 Committee Appointments: Weed & Pest Board
2020 Department Liaison: Treasurer’s Office & Weed & Pest

Jim Jones, Commissioner, District 2 (Elected in 2016)

2020 Chairman
218 East 8th Street, Miller, South Dakota 57362
Mobile: (605) 204-1018
direct email: [email protected]
2020 Committee Appointments: Library Board & Domestic Violence
2020 Department Liaison: Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Management & States Attorney

Greg Palmer, Commissioner, District 3 (Elected in 2018)

412 West 4th Avenue, Miller, South Dakota 57362
(605) 870-0505)
direct email: [email protected]
2020 Committee Appointments: Northeast Council of Governments (1 of 2) & Health Advisory Board, Railroad Authority Board
2020 Department Liaison: Custodian and Register of Deeds

Jim Eschenbaum, Commissioner, District 4 (Appointed in 2020)

35834 209th Street, Miller, South Dakota 57362
Mobile Phone: 605-204-0373
direct email: [email protected]
2020 Committee Appointments: Northeast Council of Governments (2 of 2)
2020 Department Liaison: Auditor’s Office, Assessor’s Office & Library

Luke Wernsmann, Commissioner, District 5 (Re-elected in 2018)

2018 Chairman
18790 354th Avenue, Miller, South Dakota 57362
Home Phone: (605) 853-3848
Mobile: (605) 204-0022
family email: [email protected]
2020 Committee Appointments: On Hand Economic Development Corporation, Railroad Authority Board
2020 Department Liaison: 4-H Office & Veteran’s Service Office

LINKS:

Legislative Audit Report for Years 2017 & 2018

Hand County Regional Railroad Authority for Years 2011 through 2014

2005 Attorney General Document on Drainage

South Dakota Association of County Commissioners

South Dakota County Commissioner’s Handbook 2nd Ed.

Secondary / Specific Webpages

Upcoming Meetings

April 7, 2020 meeting will start the summer schedule of meeting at 9:00 A.M.

Proposed Agenda for the April 7, 2020 meeting can be downloaded here.

December 30, 2019 – Special Year-End business meeting. 12p

The agenda published on 12/24/19 (4:30p) is available by clicking HERE. (Revised the date in the header to MONDAY, not TUESDAY)

Items submitted or acted upon at the meeting, not provided by link in the agenda:

Bridge Project on 365th Avenue, South of 216th Street (Rhonda Ford’s) Added 01-07-2020
Bridge Project on 365th Property Donation Docs
Bridge Project on 365th Avenue (Plans and Diagrams)

December 3, 2019 – Regular monthly business meeting. 1 P.M.

December 3, 2019 – Unapproved Minutes (Posted 12-12-19)

Please, if you have year end business with the commission, this is your last opportunity for a “regular meeting”.
Submission of materials, bills / claims, and requests to attend will due on November 26.
The county offices will be closed November 11 for Veterans’ Day and November 28 and 29 for the Thanksgiving Holiday.

Items submitted or acted upon at the meeting, not provided by link in the agenda:

Quick Claim Deed of the Ree Heights highway department garage
Degelman 15′ Mower referenced during meeting.

November 5, 2019 – Zoning Board of Adjustment – Conditional Use Permits for Sweetland Wind Farm 1 P.M.

November 5, 2019 – Regular monthly business meeting. 1:30 P.M.

The agenda for both meetings can be downloaded by clicking this text. (10-31-2019 at 9:00 P.M.)

The revised agenda (additions made on Friday November 1, 2019) and fixed some links to documents is found HERE.

Documents are hyperlinked on the agenda for review.
- Executed Conditional Use Permit for Ratio, LLC (executed during the meeting)

October 1, 2019 – Regular monthly commissioner meeting. 9:30 Commission Chambers

The agenda for this meeting will be published on September 28, 2019.

Draft Agenda for October 1, 2019 (URL links do not work, will correct on Sunday)

Final / Completed Agenda for the October 1, 2019 Meeting

Unapproved Minutes from the October 1, 2019 meeting (as sent to the Miller Press)

Executed Engagement Letter with South Dakota Department of Legislative Auditor (signed at meeting, loaded 10/3/19)
Executed Agreement Letter with South Dakota Department of Transportation (signed at meeting, loaded 10/3/19)
2019 Statute and Administrative Rule Changes (Provided by the Sec. of State Office & provided at meeting, loaded 10/04/19)

September 24, 2019

Unapproved minutes of the joint County Commission and zoning Board of Adjustment meeting(s) from September 24, 2019

Agenda for the combination meeting of Commissioners and Board of Adjustment (posted 09-20-19 @ 10:00a)

Documents used in conjunctions with the September 24, 2019 Budget Adoption Meeting. (posted 09-28-19 @ 7:25p)

County Commission Meeting / Hearing for proposed 2020 budget (Legal Notice published in the Miller Press)

Documents Submitted:
- None as of 09-20-19 @ 10a

Planning and Zoning / Board of Adjustment continuation from August 6, 2019

Documents Submitted:
- Letter From US Fish and Wildlife Service (posted 09-18-19 @ 4:20p)
- Letter from On Hand Economic Development Corporation (posted 09-18-19 @ 4:20p)
- Ratio, LLC / Pipestone “South Dakota Odor Footprint Tool” (posted 09-20-19 @ 10:00a)
- South Dakota Odor Footprint Tool / SDOFT by Dick Nicolai
  - South Dakota State University, University of Nebraska & University of Minnesota (posted 09-20-19 @ 10:00a)
- Email from Matt Schwarz (USFWS) (posted 09-20-19 @ 10:45a)
  - Attachment / Letter submitted by Matt Schwarz (USFWS)
- Email from Kathy Tyler – Big Stone City, SD (posted 09-20-19 @ 12:45)
  - Photograph provided by Kathy Tyler (posted 09-20-19 @ 12:45)
- Documents received from Robert Thaler (SDSU)
- Email from Lester Moeller (posted 09-22-19 @ 5:09)
- Email from Marilyn Reimnitz (posted 09.23.19 @ 1:45p)
- Email from Eleanor Iverson (posted 09.23.19 @ 3:10p)
- Email from Nick Fitzgerald (Pipestone) (posted 09.23.19 @ 3:12p)
  - Email Attachment 1 from Nick Fitzgerald (posted 09.23.19 @ 3:13p
  - Email Attachment 2 from Nick Fitzgerald (posted 09.23.19 @ 3:14p)
- Email from Chuck Engelmann et al (posted 09.24.19 @ 8:15a)

September 4, 2019

From Terry Augspurger, Zoning Official.

“The Hand County Commissioners will meet as the Hand County Zoning Board to continue the conditional use hearing meeting of August 6, 2019 for the purposed hog production facility by Ratio, LLC in the NE & NW 1/4s section 32 – 111-67 (Pearl Township). The meeting will be held at the Hand County Courthouse on Tuesday, September 24, 2019 at 10:30 a.m.”
If you have questions in advance of the meeting, please call the office during business hours, 8-5, M-F. 605-853-2115
ddb for ta

* An agenda for this meeting will be posted on or about September 19th. Should you want to present and provide your data / handouts ahead of time, please provide them to the auditor’s office prior to September 18th (preferably before noon).

This is not a formal notice but a solid plan. The official notice will be published in the Miller Press.

On September 3rd, 2019 (at about 10:35) the commissioners will have a “work period” in which they work amongst themselves on pending issues. One topic will be two fold and about zoning. The public is more then welcome to listen to their discussion. The two topics will be the adoption of the Wind Energy Ordinance. The ordinance became law without referendum. The second will be about the proposed swine production facility. The length and format of this discussion rests solely on the commission’s needs for time and content.

On September 24, 2019 at 10 A.M. the commission will hold a statutorily required meeting for a public hearing on the county’s 2020 provisional budget. Again, the public is invited so they may be heard and offer comment.

Following the budget hearing, the zoning board will hold the continuation / conclusion of the August 6th public hearing regarding the conditional use permit for the Pipestone swine production facility. The two hearings are currently planned to take place in the commission chambers. If there is sufficient reason to believe the chambers is not large enough, the board reserves the right to move either of the meetings to the courtroom.

This information is being provided to avoid any misconceptions about when the board(s) will make a decision on the provisional budget for the county and the conditional use permit for the swine operation.

The published notice of meeting in the Miller Press will be the formal and official notice of the hearing and will supersede the contents of this message so please look to the Miller Press for the official notice. The first publication is currently scheduled for September 4.

Thank you in advance.

ddb

Next meeting is September 3rd, 2019 at 9:30 A.M., agenda items are due by August 28th.

Agenda for the September 3, 2019 meeting (subject to change on by the commissioner chair until Monday morning at 9:30a)

Agenda for the September 3, 2019 meeting (final)

Previous Meetings

Minutes of the August 6, 2019 Commission Meeting

Handouts from during meeting: Dice Financial Services (Avera Health Plans –Doc 1 & Doc 2)
Handout from Deb Bonebright during public comment.

Minutes of the August 6, 2019 Zoning / Conditional Use Permit meeting.

Notice of Regular County Commission Meeting (9:30 A.M.) (Agenda)
Notice of Zoning Board Meeting for August 6, 2019 (1 P.M.)

Minutes-July-25-2019-budget-prep-unapproved.pdf.

Notice of Special Commission Meeting for July 25, 2019 (10 A.M.) for Budget Review and possible adoption (Download Agenda with URL links)

Unapproved Minutes from the July 2, 2019 Commission Meeting (fixed date typo)

Unapproved Minutes from the July 2, 2019 Commission Meeting

Agenda July 2, 2019

Agenda July 2, 2019 Revision 2

Pipestone Vet Services (Hand-out provided during meeting)
Financial Documents for the proposed budget will be added after June financials are posted.
Links to the documents are included in the wording of the agenda instead of as separate items. This is to clean up the agenda.