North/East Metro news briefs: Karla Bigham is named Washington County Board chairwoman

The Washington County Board's gavel has gone to Commissioner Karla Bigham, but whether she wields it for long depends on the outcome of her February bid for a state Senate seat.

Bigham's election as County Board chairwoman was a formality, since the position rotates among commissioners. She inherited the gavel from Lisa Weik, who chaired the board in 2017.

Bigham, who represents Cottage Grove and surrounding cities on the five-person board, is campaigning on the DFL Party ticket against Republican Denny McNamara of Hastings, a former legislator whose family owns a nursery in the area.

Bigham, who has served in the state House of Representatives and on the Cottage Grove City Council, was elected to the County Board in November 2014.

Gary Kriesel, the board's current longest-serving commissioner, was elected vice chairman.

Kevin Giles

A $5 million state grant has brought the city of Anoka one step closer to squaring away needed funding for a road project that's estimated to cost nearly $86 million.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation this month announced that Anoka's project had been one of seven state highway projects selected for the Transportation Economic Development Program, which offered a total of $18 million in grants.

City officials say the work will clear up safety and traffic issues on a stretch of highway that sees mile-long backups and more than 100 crashes each year.

The city so far has collected more $30 million in funding from various sources and now awaits decisions on three more grant applications. Construction is expected to begin in 2021.

Hannah Covington

Habitat and shore land restoration work that is years in the making is underway at Mill Pond in Champlin, aiming to restore the 42-acre lake in an effort to protect fish populations and migratory and resident wildlife.

Champlin officials voted to award the project contract to Rachel Contracting in November, and kicked off the project at a December groundbreaking ceremony.

The city has secured $6.3 million in grants, local funds and state bonding for the restoration effort. Much of the work is expected to be completed by June.

Hannah Covington

Citing fire code and occupancy violations, Newport officials have closed a bar owned by former Washington County Commissioner Autumn Lehrke and her husband, former Cottage Grove City Council Member Derrick Lehrke.

Opinion Brewery lost its liquor license on Dec. 31, according to a city letter issued to the Lehrkes. The city fire marshal posted a "building unsafe" notice at the business and no public use will be allowed there until the owners correct the violations, said City Administrator Deb Hill.

Autumn Lehrke said last week that she and her husband had spent "tens of thousands" making improvements and meeting the city's conditions. She said they had applied three times for an occupancy certificate, "but the city denied or rejected it without even reviewing it. They have been running us around for over a year, adding things and changing the target every time."

The Lehrkes bought the former Red Rock Saloon, a few blocks from a new transit station, while Autumn Lehrke was the County Board chairwoman in 2013. Both lost re-election bids in 2014.

Kevin Giles

In its winter newsletter, the city of Mahtomedi shows the difficulty of how to best attack icy roads.

On one page, residents were told that the city has stopped using sand because only salt melts ice, and sand eventually washes into nearby waterways. On another page, residents are encouraged to "halt the salt" because "it can cause irreversible damage as it washes into our lakes and streams."