Feud breaks out over dirt-poor athletic fields in Washington County

When Bill Klein wanted topsoil for a youth athletic field in May Township, he asked Washington County to donate from "a mountain of black dirt" that was piled near a sand and gravel pit.

Klein, who chairs the township's park committee, said he thought his request was reasonable in light of the township's recent donation of lakefront property to the county's Big Marine Park Reserve. In exchange for land valued at $275,000, the township got from the county what Klein said was a "well-used" plow truck worth about $30,000.

He has been critical of the transaction, considering it unfair to the township, but also angry that the county in turn wouldn't honor his request for 500 cubic yards of topsoil. A combination of drought and sandy soil made it impossible to grow grass on the athletic fields -- formerly "a mined-out pit."

Plus, the township's kitty for park improvements was nearly empty.

"Dealing with the county has been a nightmare," Klein said. "When I got treated like dirt, literally, that just got to me."

But Wayne Sandberg, the county's assistant engineer who talked with Klein, said the black dirt and compost that Klein wanted is being saved to restore the sand and gravel pit 10 to 20 years from now. The county isn't "in the business of being a vendor of materials," he said he told Klein.

"I guess it wasn't what he wanted to hear," Sandberg said last week.

Bill Voedisch, who chairs the township board, said Klein's concerns about county-owned topsoil obscure the greater good that resulted in the completion of the athletic fields last month.

Klein did an "excellent job" in pulling together people to complete the project, Voedisch said. "This was a very positive thing that was done out here."

In 1983, the county sold the 11-acre site where the athletic fields now sit to the township for $1, Voedisch said. Residents in the township of 3,100 play baseball, softball, soccer and small-fry football at the fields at 13939 Norell Av. N., and the town hall is there, too.

"This surprises me that he's taken this particular view on this issue," said Voedisch, who said that May Township continues to have an excellent relationship with Washington County. He also said the land donated for Big Marine Park was a series of right-of-ways that had never been appraised.

The assessed value as identified on county tax records was $275,000, said Kevin Corbid, who oversees the county's assessments. He said the property was tax-exempt, because it was dedicated for public use in 1955.

Klein said he considers his request for topsoil a matter of fairness, and said that tons of compost at the county sand and gravel pit came from the city of Hugo -- donated to the county.

"What better use for material like that for the kids up and down the St. Croix valley?" said Klein, who is a friend of Voedisch and helps him with his horses.

Gary Kriesel, the county commissioner who represents May Township, said the 2008 park transaction is a separate issue from Klein's topsoil request. The land exchange was approved by both governing boards, Kriesel said, but he said that he thinks the topsoil request reeks of favoritism.

"We can't arbitrarily pick and choose who gets what for nothing," Kriesel said of the 33 cities and townships in Washington County. "You can't do for one what you're not willing to do for another."

Kriesel, like Sandberg, said county policy prohibits such donations except in emergencies. In addition, he said, giving away topsoil, road salt or any other materials could cost the county more to replace -- at additional taxpayer expense.

"We're certainly not going to give something away that we're then going to have to go out and purchase," he said.

Eventually, Raleigh Trucking donated about half of the needed topsoil, and the St. Croix Valley Athletic Association's president, Brennan Malanaphy, helped May Township with grass seed and a "huge" irrigation system, Klein said. Money from an anonymous donor to the association covered work costing about $22,000 on the fields, he said.

May Township's contribution, he said, involved upgrading the well pump on the fields and work by road crew member Marv Schroeder, for whom the fields are named, to level the topsoil.

Teams can play on the fields starting next spring, Klein said.

Kriesel said he has no hard feelings concerning Klein's criticism of the county, and applauded him and his wife, Linda, the township clerk, for their diligence.

"They're good people," Kriesel said. "They do a lot of work for May Township."

Kevin Giles • 612-673-4432