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The Freeborn County Board of Commissioners on Tuesday approved a shared services agreement that will allow county employees and their dependents on the county’s medical plan to utilize the Well@Work clinic through HealthPartners at Brookside Education Center starting in January.

The clinic, which has been used by Albert Lea school district employees and dependents for about seven years, can be used for primary and occupational health services, as well as laboratory services and medication dispensing, according to the agreement.

Services include diagnosis of minor medical symptoms or problems such as cold and flu, bronchitis, strep throat, ear infections, minor skin infection, joint and back pain and female primary care services, among others.

It can also provide medicine screenings and disease prevention on issues including cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar, tobacco use and immunizations, as well as drug and alcohol testing and assessment and evaluation of minor workplace accidents.

The county will pay annual fees of $123,000 to be a part of the clinic, including a practitioner fee and a clinic administration fee, and some other variable costs as outlined in the agreement.

The agreement is for six months, after which time it will automatically renew for additional one-year terms unless canceled by either party.

The school district after its first two years of participation in the clinic said it was seeing savings by being a part of the clinic.

Services are provided free for employees and their dependents.

The school board on Monday approved an amendment to its agreement with HealthPartners to accommodate the addition of the county to the clinic.

School Finance Director Jennifer Walsh said the school district’s share will be reduced by 38%.

Moving forward this year, the district will be responsible for 61% of fees, while the county will pick up the other percent, based on the number of people from each entity that will utilize the services.

The cost breakdown will be reviewed each year before renewal.

Walsh said they plan to conduct a request for proposals for the clinic in the future, where other entities will have the ability to bid on running the clinic at the site.

In other action, the county commissioners:

• Heard a presentation from Albert Lea City Planner Megan Boeck about proposed tax abatement for a developer rehabbing the former VFW building on Clark Street and turning it into 20 to 22 market rate rental housing units.

The abatement would be on new taxes generated from the increase in value, not an abatement on the existing value, she said. The abatement would be for 10 years.

Boeck said the project is not eligible for other incentive programs such as tax-increment financing because it will have strictly market-rate units.

The issue will come before the board for a formal vote at a later time.

• Heard a presentation by Albert Lea City Manager Ian Rigg about possible changes in the city’s housing tax abatement policy, which in the past has also been adopted by the county board.

The current policy allows 100% of taxes abated for five years for new single family or duplex homes in the city.

Rigg said over the last five years, the city has seen about eight to 10 applications a year.

The city is considering changes in the policy and also encouraging other kinds of incentives.

It is looking to reduce the abatement for new construction down to three years, but additional time could get added for other factors, he said.

The city is also considering abatements for people who make significant improvements to rehab existing residential properties, and for efforts to make a property more green, or eco-friendly, to build on a vacant or underused lot between existing homes, to provide multi-family housing or to provide housing for low- to moderate- income households.

Commissioner Brad Edwin credited Rigg for thinking outside of the box on the ideas.

Further information will be brought to a later meeting.

• Approved a grant agreement with the Minnesota Department of Health for $160,000 to go toward the Women, Infants and Children program and $40,000 to go toward the peer breastfeeding support program.

• Approved a grant agreement with the Minnesota Department of Human Services for about $56,000 for Freeborn County Public Health to connect with families on medical assistance with children up to age 20 to encourage them to get their children in for their well child checkups.

Public Health Director Sue Yost said last year, the department received about $110,000 for the full year and noted the Legislature is making some changes with how the state Department of Human Services does child and teen checkup outreach starting in July. The funds allotted will be for the first six months of the year.

• Approved ditch assessments for 2022 totaling $1.62 million.

Auditor-Treasurer Pat Martinson said assessments were up about $100,000.

• Approved 3.2 beer and wine on-sale licenses for Three Oak Vineyard & Winery.

• Approved the final payment of about $11,000 for the replacement of centerline culverts on Freeborn County Road 26 to Freeborn Construction Inc. The total project cost was about $225,000.

• Approved the final payment of about $7,600 for road striping on Freeborn County roads to Sir Lines-A-Lot LLC of Edina. The total project cost was about $153,000.

County Engineer Phil Wacholz said there was trouble receiving the paint shipment for the project because of the resin shortage across the country. Due to that, the company was almost unable to get the roads painted, but was able to get it done.

• Motioned to table action on the 2022 solid waste fees until Nov. 30.

• Approved tax abatement for five years for a new home being constructed in Wedgewood Cove Estates in Albert Lea.

• Placed Krista Walton, License Center specialist, on regular full-time status.