County board wants Cuyuna Range water bill paid

The Cuyuna Range Water District asked the Crow Wing County Board Tuesday to dismiss the proceedings for the wastewater system project and the water district.

The county board did not agree to the termination because it wanted the bills paid before it dismissed the proceedings.

John Kolb, attorney for the water district, said the county is not obligated to pay any fees for the water district and that the cities involved in the project are responsible.

The county board approved the establishment of the water district in May 2001 at no cost to the county, involving the cities of Crosby, Ironton, Cuyuna and Deerwood and portions of Deerwood and Irondale townships.

The commissioners followed the advice of Mark Liedl, assistant county attorney. He advised the board that the preferred route to dismiss the proceedings would be to have 60 percent or four of the six municipalities drop out of the project and the water district and to have it in writing.

This action is one way where the water district could be terminated, according to the district's agreement. Another reason for dismissal would be if the engineering firm found that the project was no longer feasible.

In July, the city of Crosby asked to withdraw from the proceedings for the establishment of a water system within the district. The county board then was advised to hold off on the termination until the county attorney came up with a way to dissolve the water district in the easiest fashion.

The county board directed Kolb and the county attorney to discuss the matter and to come up with a proper solution to terminate the water district.

The water district wastewater system was proposed primarily for residential and commercial areas that surround Serpent Lake. The estimated cost of the project was $11.5 million.