There will be no election by Mower County voters on whether bonds should be issued to fund a new jail.

The Mower County Board of Commissioners was presented with a petition Monday afternoon, asking that a bond referendum be held.

That was the day, the county commissioners were set to award bids to construct the new jail and justice center.

The petition was ruled “unnecessary,” and the commissioners proceeded to award bids to build the new jail and justice center facilities.

“I think we’ve come a lone way, and it’s time to put it to an end,” Dave Tollefson, 5th District county commissioner and chairman of the county board said of the last-ditch effort for another review of the project’s finances.

Tollefson said, “The time is right” and the project — $30.7 million — will be a “boon for all of Mower County’

“The bids are low and 72 percent of the work will be done by local firms from southern Minnesota,” Tollefson said.

Dick Lang, 4th District, made the motion to reject the petition and David Hillier, 3rd District, seconded it.

All four commissioners (Lang, Hillier, Tollefson and Tim Gabrielson, 1st District) voted “aye” and the measure passed. (Second District commissioner remains hospitalized.)

With the help of the city of Austin, Mower County is acquiring two blocks of downtown city property where it plans to build a new two-story, 128-bed jail and justice center.

The county has also acquired a third block (the Robbins block), where it plans to have a geothermal well field drilled to heat the new facilities across Second Avenue Northeast.

Eight years ago, then-Mower County Sheriff Barry J. Simonson first brought to the attention of the county board jail overcrowding issues.

A jail study committee was appointed to examine jail needs. When it concluded six months of deliberations, its recommendation was to build a new (then-90 beds) jail and address court security and efficiency issues.

After countless public meetings, studies, and pubic and private debates, the commissioners decided two years ago by a 3-2 decision to build the new jail and justice center facilities.

However, the last two years has seen the nation’s economy collapse. Locally, the city of Austin is preparing to react to anticipated deep cuts in Local Government Aid from the state of Minnesota.

In addition, Mower County expects deep cuts in County Program Aid monies due to the $4.86 billion state budget deficit.

Both units of government are expected to reduce programs and services and quite likely lay off workers.

Building a new jail and justice center in downtown Austin has been called by Tollefson an “economic stimulus package.”

Some residents disagree and say the new facilities will be an unwelcome expenditure and not an asset.

Tony Bennett, an Austin businessman, addressed the commissioners Monday afternoon about the petition. “Voters are not happy,” Bennett said, adding copies of the petition first circulated last Thursday are still in circulation gathering signatures around the county.

Tollefson asked finance director Donna Welsh to explain how the county is funding the jail/justice center projects. Welsh said the commissioners chose the general obligation jail bonds, which do not require the voters’ prior referendum approval.

The county also sold $10-million in lease revenue bonds to fund the justice center portion of the project, according to Welsh.

The finance director said the county expects wind energy tax revenues to cover annual bond expenses.

When a spectator asked the commissioners if they were “legally obligated,” to spend the wind energy tax revenues on the jail and justice center funding, Tollefson abruptly recessed the meeting to ask Mower County Attorney Kristen Nelsen to review the validity of the petition.

When the meeting reconvened five minutes later, Nelsen ruled choosing the general obligation jail bonds did not require a voter referendum of approval.

The audience comments grew more heated. “Are the commissioners willing to ignore the petitioners?” a citizen asked. “How many votes would it take to get your attention?” asked another.

Tollefson said the commissioners have spent the last 2 1/2 years examining the costs of the new facilities and how they would be funded.

Another audience member, Julie Guckeen, said the county’s deepening recession, expected cuts in programs and services by the city and Mower County and apparent doubts expressed by the petition-signers call for a review before awarding the bids.

“We need to take another look at this,” Guckeen said.

The taxpayer pointed to Freeborn County’s new jail that officials there say is only “half full.”

Also Monday, Minnesota Public Radio reported dozens of Minnesota counties built new jails or added on to existing facilities only to see a decline in the need for jail space and a proliferation of half-empty jails.

But the economy registered the biggest impact in Guckeen’s thinking about the prospect of higher property taxes because of the jail and justice center.

“We did not know the United States would be in the predicament that it is today,” she said. “I just think we need to step back.”

After 40 minutes of discussion, the motion was taken to reject the petition.

In other action Monday, the commissioners unanimously voted to accept bids for the new jail/justice center project.

The contracts awarded total $16,733,932 and represent 27 of 31 bid packages for the proposed $30.7 million project.

The remaining bids will be open at 2 p.m. Thursday.

No rescinding of increases

Acting on a legal opinion from the Mower County attorney, the commissioners did not rescind their salary increases.

According to Nelsen, Minnesota statute does not allow that to be done.

The commissioners did ask Nelsen to examine if they could “donate” their salary increases back to the county. That request will be reviewed.

In January, the Mower County Board was the only county board to adjust their salaries upward.

Their 2008 salary was $24,200. With a 3 percent pay hike, it became $24,926 in 2009.

To be sure, the commissioners’ annual pay is less than one-half that of the next lowest paid elected official and only one-third of the highest paid officials.

The officials announced Second District Commissioner Tucker will remain hospitalized for at least another four weeks.

Tucker suffered a brain aneurysm and had surgery, but it recovering.

Also, Tollefson will take medical leave for at least four weeks beginning this week to have surgery of his own.

That leaves the county board with the minimum three-commissioner quorum.

The commissioners appointed Hillier to fill the chairman’s position and Lang to fill the vice-chairman’s position while Tollefson and Tucker are absent due to medical reasons.