Benton County meeting summaries, agendas, and minutes

Benton County agendas: CSAH 29 eminent domain counsel, 2025 audit and ditch repairs on deck

Three Benton County bodies were listed to meet Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026 at 9:00 AM in the Benton County Board Room in Foley, with agendas covering ditch maintenance, a 2025 audit, a wage adjustment and a food-access contract. The supplied records for all three are agendas only — minutes have not been published — so they do not show what was approved, rejected or tabled. No dollar amounts or vote tallies appear in those records.

The next meeting on the calendar, Oct. 20, lists a request to appoint outside counsel for a potential eminent domain action to extend CSAH 29. That item is an agenda listing; no action has been recorded.

Board of Commissioners, Oct. 6

The board's consent agenda listed a 2027 General Wage Adjustment for non-union employees, a re-allocation of ARPA funding to Government Center virtual meeting technology, and Memorandums of Agreement with LELS for non-licensed supervisors and clerical employees covering health insurance and MN Paid Leave. The summary also lists several contracts and permits on the consent agenda without naming them.

County Administrator Montgomery Headley was listed to present a change order for Government Center parking lot and 5th Avenue re-paving, and the 2025 audit exit meeting. Human Services Director Sandi Shoberg was listed to present a child foster care recruitment video.

Ditch Authority, Oct. 6

The Benton County Ditch Authority, made up of the county commissioners, listed a consent item to approve or amend its Sept. 1, 2026 meeting minutes. The agenda also included an update on CD 14 and CD 9 maintenance, a discussion about CD 9 erosion, and a discussion about CD 12 repairs. The erosion and repair items are listed as discussions, not as votes on specific work.

Community Health Board, Oct. 6

The Community Health Board listed two action items: consideration of a contract to increase food access, and a resolution to accept a donation from Medica to the Community Health Board. It also listed approval or amendment of its Aug. 18, 2026 minutes. Commissioner Steve Heinen is listed as chairing as Community Health Board Chair.

Remote participation noted

For all three Oct. 6 meetings, all five commissioners are listed as eligible to participate remotely under MN Statutes §13D.02.

What the records do not show

The summaries do not state whether any item was voted on, what the terms of the proposed contracts are, or how much money is involved in the wage adjustment, the ARPA re-allocation, the parking lot change order or the Medica donation. Those details would appear in minutes or supporting documents that were not part of the supplied records.

Coming up

Board of Commissioners — Oct. 20. Agenda items listed:

• Appointment of outside counsel for a potential eminent domain action to extend CSAH 29
• Statement of Work with CliftonLarsonAllen for 2026 Financial Statement compilation and audit
• Non-Union Health Insurance for 2027
• Request for a letter of support to Elk River Landfill for a Certificate of Need
• Request to change the payroll pay date from Thursday to Friday

The CSAH 29 item is the only one on the upcoming list that concerns a potential legal action over property. The agenda does not identify the properties involved, the route of the extension, or the cost of outside counsel.

Benton County agendas: 2025 audit, wage adjustment, ditch repairs and food-access contract were scheduled; no minutes posted yet

Benton County boards and commissions had four meetings on the calendar in the past two weeks, but the records published so far are agendas only. No minutes have been posted for any of them, so what follows is what each body was scheduled to take up — not what it decided. No vote tallies and no dollar amounts appear in the supplied records.

Board of Commissioners, Oct. 6

The Benton County Board of Commissioners was scheduled to meet Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2026 at 9:00 AM in the Benton County Board Room in Foley. Its agenda listed a consent agenda covering union agreements, a 2027 General Wage Adjustment for non-union employees, re-allocation of ARPA funding to Government Center virtual meeting technology, and several contracts and permits.

County Administrator Montgomery Headley was listed to present a change order for Government Center parking lot and 5th Avenue re-paving, along with the 2025 Audit Exit Meeting. Human Services Director Sandi Shoberg was listed to present a child foster care recruitment video. The consent agenda also included Memorandums of Agreement with LELS for non-licensed supervisors and clerical employees on health insurance and MN Paid Leave.

Ditch Authority, Oct. 6

The Benton County Ditch Authority, made up of the county commissioners, was scheduled to meet the same day at 9:00 AM in the same room. Its agenda listed approving or amending the Ditch Authority minutes of Sept. 1, 2026; an update on CD 14 and CD 9 maintenance; a discussion about CD 9 erosion; and a discussion about CD 12 repairs. All five commissioners were listed as eligible to participate remotely under MN Statutes §13D.02.

Community Health Board, Oct. 6

The Benton County Community Health Board was also scheduled for Oct. 6 at 9:00 AM in the Benton County Board Room in Foley. Its agenda listed considering a contract to increase food access, considering a resolution to accept a donation from Medica to the Community Health Board, and approving or amending its Aug. 18, 2026 meeting minutes. Commissioner Steve Heinen is listed as Community Health Board Chair. All five commissioners were listed as eligible to attend remotely under MN Statutes §13D.02.

Planning Commission, Oct. 1

The Planning Commission was scheduled to hold a regular meeting at 7:00 PM on Oct. 1, 2026. The agenda text supplied contains only the meeting time and a link to an agenda packet PDF. No specific items, decisions, or discussions are described in the text provided, and the packet contents were not included. Because of that, this roundup cannot report what the Commission considered.

What is and is not established here

Every item above is drawn from published agendas. An agenda listing means an item was set to come before the body; it does not establish that the item was discussed, voted on, approved, denied, or amended. The 2025 audit item is described as an exit meeting, and the parking lot item as a change order — the records do not state any amount, scope, or outcome for either. The ARPA item is described as a re-allocation of funding to Government Center virtual meeting technology; no figure is given. The wage adjustment is described as covering 2027 and applying to non-union employees; no percentage or amount is given.

Coming up

No upcoming meetings were listed in the records provided for the next 14 days, Oct. 13 through Oct. 27, 2026. That does not mean none are scheduled — it means the supplied data contains no upcoming meeting entries. Residents who want to attend or track an item should check the county's official meeting calendar and posted agendas and packets, which are the authoritative source for dates, times, and materials.

Benton County boards hold meetings on ditches, road extension, health agreement

Benton County officials held a series of meetings last week covering county drainage systems, a road extension project, and a public health agreement. The agendas included several proposals, but minutes have not yet been published, so no decisions have been reported.

Ditch Authority public hearing

On Aug. 17, the Benton County Ditch Authority held a public hearing at Foley High School Auditorium, 621 Penn Street, Foley, to present information and take comment on County Ditches 3, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, and 15. Attorney John Kolb of Rinke Noonan explained the purpose of the hearing, and Ditch Inspector Adam Ritsche gave a general presentation of the county ditches. After the presentations and comments, the Authority was scheduled to consider ordering assessments for repair and maintenance levies.

Ditch Authority removal petition

On Aug. 18, the Ditch Authority held a public hearing on a petition to remove property from County Ditch 10. The agenda also included approving or amending the minutes from the authority's July 7, 2026 meeting.

County Board

The Benton County Board of Commissioners met Aug. 18 with an agenda that included a resolution authorizing acquisition for the CSAH 29 extension project and approval of a road use agreement with Benton Solar LLC. The board also held a closed session to consider offers for real property. The consent agenda included a 2026-2027 PATH grant contract for Human Services, an exception to the comp time bank for an exempt Auditor-Treasurer employee, and a public health request.

Community Health Board

Also on Aug. 18, the Benton County Community Health Board met to consider an agreement with the Minnesota Oral Health Coalition and to approve or amend the minutes from its Aug. 4 special meeting. The meeting was open to the public and available remotely.

Coming up

No upcoming meetings are listed in the next 14 days.