The Clay County Commission has set aside almost $2.8 million of its remaining CARES Act funds for “infrastructure purchase due to COVID mitigation.” That includes the $2.2 million purchase price of the RDO Equipment offices at 3510 12th Ave. S., which will house many county offices to comply with social distancing practices. (Photo/Nancy Hanson)

Nancy Edmonds Hanson

Relief funds for the COVID-19 pandemic have proven to have a silver lining for Clay County. The county commission Tuesday carved out a seventh category of expenditures specifically for its relocation of most county offices – a pair of moves designed to permit county departments to meet social distancing guidelines for both residents and staff conducting county business.
The category “infrastructure purchase due to Covid mitigation” covers $2.768 million in funds that remain after completion of business resiliency grants to businesses and care facilities, purchase of equipment, public health needs and other priorities. It includes about $570,000 for leasing and refitting space in the Center Mall to relocate the Department of Motor Vehicles, as well as $2.2 million to purchase the office building at 3510 12th Ave. S. now occupied by RDO Equipment.
While both fit squarely within the concerns addressed by the federal C.A.R.E.S. Act, county administrator Steve Larson said after the meeting that the office project in particular fits well with the county’s existing master plan. That plan calls for the cramped Clay County Courthouse to be re-envisioned as the county’s justice center, primarily accommodating the courts and the county attorney’s office.
After a minimal amount of remodeling approved at this week’s meeting, most of the county departments now housed in the courthouse will move to the one-story strip-mall-style Offutt structure. The 18,851-square-foot building, constructed nine years ago, consists of 28 offices along with conference rooms and encompasses 78 cubicles. The commission approved a $10,000 contract with Klein McCarthy Architects to review plans and design necessary changes, including installation of walls and service windows.
While many county employees have been working from home for the past seven months, Larson says the new quarters will meet Minnesota Department of Health guidelines for distancing and separation when they return after the governor’s emergency order is no longer in force. “Most of these departments do business face to face with the public,” he points out. “We’ve made some adjustments by putting some forms and applications online in the meantime, but we expect they’ll continue to work directly with the public when things return to normal.”
The move will affect the county auditor’s and treasurer’s offices, along with planning and zoning, land records, the county assessor and recorder, human services and administrative offices. The information technology department will remain in the courthouse. Larson hopes most will be in the new building by the end of December.
Meanwhile, work on the DMV office is right on schedule, with its opening scheduled for Nov. 16. The opening coincides with the state’s introduction of a new computer processing system dubbed MnDrive. It replaces the problem-plagued, much-criticized MnLARS system of recent years.
“Government has the reputation of working fairly slow,” Larson quips. “The C.A.R.E.S. Covid has required us to move much faster than we normally would. We can do it when we have to!”