With the state making another quick push to get more funding to help create more beds for the state veterans home project in Fillmore County, the time crunch has some Mower County officials concerned.

During Tuesday’s Mower County Board session, officials addressed the letter that was sent to them by the City of Preston. It was regarding a request for a potential pledge of $50,000 from Mower County to put toward the estimated $38.5 million state veterans home in Fillmore County, according to Craig Oscarson, Mower County coordinator.

However, there was still some hesitation to make a financial pledge with little information. Mower County commissioners had tabled the item until they’re able to convene for a special session. The Minnesota Department of Veterans Affairs (MDVA) had set a fast deadline for Aug. 24 to get the necessary funding that could potentially increase the number of beds at the Preston site.

The pledge would be a one-time donation, and the federal government would match the amount Mower County would donate to put help offset the construction expenses. Although Mower County can pledge any amount for this project, the hard deadline to make a payment was set for March 1, 2019. Mower County Veterans Services Officer Wayne Madson said that the fast-track for the request of pledges from area counties for the facilities came from the intensive, short timeframe that the MDVA set.

“There’s this currentplan for 74 beds,” Madson said. “They have 11 that would be tagged for the Alzheimer’s unit. They’re going for a 100-bed veterans home.”

Mower County has 2,739 veterans and would be eligible to be placed at the state veterans home in Preston, according to Madson, which some officials lauded as being more accessible for those living in southeast Minnesota. The closest state veterans home is in Luverne, which is about a two-hour drive.

“It’s a very good project,” Madson said. “When the MDVA put something this fast on you, the county does have to think about their constituents in the county. Our county commissioners have been very supportive on veterans issues.”

Around 46,000 veterans live in the region. However, the needs are pressing for veterans to find a place where they can be cared for.

Madson reported that there was a 100 percent occupancy at all the state veterans homes, with 1,898 applicants that are on waiting lists to get into homes and 1,000 of those applications still being actively worked on statewide.

With around 46,000 veterans who live in southeast Minnesota, there aren’t a lot of beds to accommodate the demand.

“There is a need,” he added.

Gov. Mark Dayton had approved a $32 million bill that would get divided up among three project sites: Montevideo, Bemidji and Preston. Fillmore County had received about $10.2 million from the state to put toward construction expenses, and various coalitions came together to raise $30.6 million for the funding of the state veterans home in Preston. Final plans for the 74-bed facility need to be submitted to the state by April 2019, and the projected groundbreaking was aimed to happen sometime in fall 2019, according to Madson.

“These facilities will make a world of a difference,” he said. “It’ll be good for the families and they can drive over there. This is fantastic for southeast Minnesota, and there’s nothing like this here. Southeast Minnesota doesn’t have anything like this. It’s going to be a fantastic addition for the care of our veterans.”

Other matters

The Mower County Board set a hearing for the appeal of a dangerous dog designation for Aug. 21 at 3 p.m. This comes after an alleged incident where two dogs got loose in a rural Mower County farm and had allegedly killed multiple Manchurian pheasants belonging to a resident, according to Oscarson. One of the dogs was shot and killed, and the remaining dog was deemed to be “dangerous.” This designation comes with a hefty $300,000 insurance taken out on the dog, getting the dog chipped and requiring it to be kept in an approved enclosed area. If let out, the dog must have a muzzle on at all times. Multiple incidents could result in the euthanasia of a dog.