By Watertown Current - June 25, 2026 in Official Proceedings
County of Codington
Codington County Court House
14 1st Ave SE
Watertown, SD 57201
June 09, 2026
The Codington County Commissioners met in regular session at 9:00 a.m., Tuesday, June 09, 2026, at the Codington County Court House. Commission members present were: Lee Gabel, Tyler McElhany, Myron Johnson, Randall Schweer (via ZOOM at 9:06 a.m.), and Troy VanDusen; Chair VanDusen, presiding. The pledge of allegiance was led by Commissioner Gabel.
CALLS FOR PUBLIC COMMENT AND CONFLICT OF INTEREST ITEMS
Chair VanDusen called for public comments to be taken up during the open portion of the meeting; none were offered. There were no conflict-of-interest items to note.
AGENDA APPROVED
Motion by McElhany, second by Gabel, to approve the agenda for June 09, 2026, as posted; all voted aye; motion carried.
MINUTES APPROVED
Motion by Johnson, second by McElhany, to approve the minutes of June 04, 2026; all voted aye; motion carried.
JUVENILE DIVERSION ALTERNATIVE INITIATIVE UPDATE
Louis Canfield, Director of Youth Diversion, Watertown Boys and Girls Club, updated the Board regarding the JDAI program. Mr. Canfield provided the Board with information including, diversion caseload, juvenile diversion growth, top juvenile diversion referrals, tobacco/vape being the top referral listed, previously simple assault was the top referral but due to HSA creating an emotional regulation group program for youth that are dealing with simple assault cases that number has decreased; for every successful diversion the County will receive $750.00.
DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS R/ED Grant
Louis Canfield, Director of Youth Diversion Program, Boys and Girls Club, presented the Board with information to apply for and request the County’s support and authorize Chair to sign the Department of Corrections R/ED Grant in the amount of $19,450, the grant dollars will be used to help youth of color/native ethnic individuals with needs in the criminal justice system; motion by Johnson, second by McElhany, to approve the Chair to sign the grant application for the Department of Corrections R/ED Grant; all voted aye; motion carried.
GRAVEL PIT IN ELMIRA TOWNSHIP
Travis Paulson, South Dakota Towns & Township representative and concerned citizen of Codington County, appeared before the Board and mentioned that he has been working with Elmira Township related to the gravel pit owned by J&J Earthworks, he has concerns with their long history of violations, he also wanted to know if the ordinances have enough bite to it to address these violations or does the ordinance need to be changed to address these issues; Luke Muller, Codington County Zoning Officer, informed everyone that the violations get submitted to the Codington County States Attorney’s office and she decides what happens from there; there was also discussion about a haul road agreement for the portion of Elmira Townships road that Elmira Township has with the City of Watertown which isn’t included in the MOU, J&J Earthworks is going through the process of being annexed into the City.
MONTHLY REPORTS
Veterans Service Officer, Jay Roberts, updated the Board: metrics for the month, 133 open claims (working claims) 45 pending action from VA, 133 completed (YTD), Hamlin 16 open (working claims) 7 pending from VA, 15 completed (YTD), currently working for 11 veterans and have completed 5 claims for veterans from outside our county; $22,362 for the month May 2026, increase in monthly compensation for veterans or their dependents YTD monthly increase $82,066; $137,078 for the month of May 2026, retro-payment to bring a claim current to monthly compensation YTD retro-payments $464,999; 2 veteran DAV transports in May, 1currently scheduled for June, currently 3 drivers with 1 application being processed to become a driver; CURRENT – mentioned the fact that there may be a possible early move if Landlord rents current space prior to Sept. 1, 2026; budget worksheet is turned into the Auditor’s Office and will go over it in July 2026, finishing the performance appraisals and personnel change sheets for July step increase; spoke at the Kiwanis Club meeting on June 1, 2026 at the Elks Club as a 2nd Quarter outreach event over the lunch hour; continue to advertise for Volunteer Drivers to drive the DAV van; FUTURE – meeting with Codington County Vets Council commanders on June 2, 2026, at the VFW; radio shows KWAT – 8:30 and KXLG – 9:05 on June 4th, 2026, Eric will cover both locations; looking to plan a 2nd Quarter Outreach event either at Edgewood Assisted Living or Estelline Care Center to inform the veteran residents and family members of possible pension benefits; will be attending the annual Benefits School.
NOTICE TO BIDDERS FOR CODINGTON COUNTY ROADS 7 & 10 RESTORATION PROJECT
Motion by Gabel, second by McElhany, to authorize to advertise a notice to bidders for Codington County Roads 7 & 10 Restoration project, Highway Supt., Randy Falvey and Waylon Blasius, PE Transportation Dept. Head with Banner Associates, Inc., provided the Board with information relating to timelines and project details; all voted aye; motion carried. Bids will be opened and announced at the Board’s meeting on Tuesday, June 23rd, 2026.
SOUTH DAKOTA DOT PROJECT #BRF-B6127(10) PCN 09MA LETTING AUTHORIZATION
Motion by Johnson, second by McElhany, to authorize bid letting authorization to South Dakota Dept. of Transportation for Project #BRF – B6127(10) PCN 09MA, Highway Supt., Randy Falvey explained that this project is north of Highway 20 on County Road 11, there will be a 80/20 cost split and Codington County’s share will be $288,540.80; all voted aye; motion carried.
CANVASS OF 2026 PRIMARY ELECTION RESULTS
The Board conducted the canvass of the 2026 Primary Election results. Motion by McElhany, second by Schweer, to approve the canvass and vote totals as announced; all voted aye; motion carried.
DRAW FOR 2026 PRIMARY ELECTION POST ELECTION AUDIT PRECINCTS AND RACES
Auditor, Brenda Hanten, provided the Board with the 16 Precincts and 6 Races to draw for the 2026 Primary election Post Election Audit, one of which needs to be a Federal race and then one other race and also there needs to be at least 100 ballots to count in the respective races; the Federal race drawn was the US Representative race, the Precinct that was drawn was Fuller/Florence with only 92 ballots cast so another precinct was drawn to get to 100 ballots cast which was Dexter with 24 ballots cast; the other race that was drawn was the State Senator District 5 race; the Precincts that were drawn for this race is Graceland, Henry, Henry V. with only 80 ballots cast so another precinct was drawn to get to 100 ballots cast which was Dexter with 24 ballots cast.
NOTE 2026 PRIMARY ELECTION POST ELECTION AUDIT
Auditor, Brenda Hanten, informed the Board that the Post Election Audit will be conducted on Monday, June 15, 2026 @ 10:00 a.m. If a recount petition is filed a Post Election Audit does not need to be conducted per SDCL 12-17B-24.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
Motion by Johnson, second by McElhany, to enter executive session, per SDCL 1-25-2 (2) Consulting with legal counsel or reviewing communications from legal counsel about proposed or pending litigation or contractual matters (SDCL 1-25-2(3)) at 9:30 a.m.; all voted aye; motion carried. The Board returned to regular session at 10:10 a.m. and no action was taken. Human Resource Representative, Natalie Remund, SDPAA Attorney, Lisa Marso via phone call, and Auditor, Brenda Hanten, were present for executive session.
CLAIMS
Motion by Gabel, second by McElhany to approve the following new jail claims; all voted aye; motion carried. ARCHITECTURE INCORPORATED 26081.00 SVC, BECKENHAUER CONSTRUCTION INC 1137022.78 SVC, GEOTEK ENGINEERING 1638.40 SVC, THE TEGRA GROUP, INC 20843.15 SVC, WILD BUFFALO TECH & INNOVATION 198.77 SVC
Motion by Johnson, second by McElhany to approve the following claim; all voted aye; motion carried. SD STATE TREASURER 713,110.24
PERSONNEL CHANGES
Motion by McElhany, second by Schweer, to approve the following personnel changes: James Torstenson, EM On-Call in Emergency Management, $30/hour, effective 6-1-2026; Maxwell Lee Kurtenbach, new hire Park Custodian, Memorial Park, Step AA, $18.68/hour, effective 6-2-2026; Keegan Mix, new hire Park Custodian, Memorial Park, Step AA, $18.68/hour, effective 6-2-2026; all voted aye; motion carried.
OLD BUSINESS
Commissioner Gabel informed the Board that interviews for the pre-trial case manager are planned for Monday, June 8th, 2026, the individuals conducting the interviews are Sara Foust, Angie Collignon, Commissioner Gabel and HR Director, Natalie Remund.
EXECUTIVE SESSION
Motion by Johnson, second by Gabel, to enter executive session, per SDCL 1-25-2 (1) Discussion of personnel issues (SDCL 1-25-2(1)) at 10:17 a.m.; all voted aye; motion carried. The Board returned to regular session at 10:44 a.m. and no action was taken. Sheriff, Brad Howell, and State’s Attorney, Alison Bakken, were present for executive session.
ADJOURNMENT
Upon conclusion of all business to come before the Board, a motion was made by Gabel, second by McElhany to adjourn at 10:44 a.m., all voted aye; motion carried.
ATTEST:
Brenda Hanten
Codington County Auditor
Codington County does not discriminate on the basis of color, national origin, sex, religion, age, or disability in employment or the provision of service.
Published once on June 25, 2026, at the total approximate cost of $94.64 and may be viewed free of charge at www.sdpublicnotices.com and www.watertowncurrent.com.