In split vote, city keeps engineer

In a 3-2 vote on Monday, the Fairmont City Council decided to go with its current engineer, Bolton & Menk, after considering two other firms. While discussion and even debate is healthy, the city council has an infamous history of split votes. More concerning in this case though, was some of the language thrown at the local firm as words like ‘complacent’ were used. It’s been said in the community, and even by some councilors, that Fairmont isn’t a business friendly community and the way that some councilors spoke about Bolton & Menk exacerbated that. Interim City Administrator Jeff O’Neill even admitted that it’s possible there hasn’t always been enough communication between the city and Bolton & Menk. I hope in the future that any dissatisfaction on the council’s part can be properly communicated and that relations can improve because just as we like to see residents supporting local businesses, it’s nice to see the city support them, too.

County OKs contract suspension

The Martin County Commissioners on Tuesday faced a $300,000 bill from pulling out of a contract with ICS for “convenience” when the majority of the board voted to end work on the Justice Center project last month. ICS had been working with the county on the project for several years and while the firm, and no doubt some county staff, were frustrated to abruptly have the work they’ve put in come to a halt, it’s nice that they’re willing to waive the fee in order to maintain a good relationship with the county. It’s also encouraging that all board members voted in favor of suspending the contract so as to avoid paying the unbilled fees.

Range of issues discussed at town hall

State Representatives Bjorn Olson and Marj Fogelman and Senator Rich Draheim were in Fairmont this week for a town hall meeting. It’s nice the three made time to stop and provide an update to the community here, as well as answer questions and address concerns and it was also nice to see so many people, more than 100, turn out for it. As it’s being discussed at the national level, people in this community are concerned about proposed cuts to education, disability services, museums and libraries. People in this community are also concerned about what’s happening surrounding the deportation of immigrants. I think we can expect to see more community members join together to voice their thoughts on the current administration in the near future.