SOUDAN- At the Breitung annual meeting, residents approved a 2026 levy of $773,000, a $33,000, or 4.46 percent, increase over last year. The town board recommended the levy increase to pay for higher costs for maintenance worker benefits and matching funds for roadwork on Echo Point Rd. Most other spending is projected to remain at 2025 levels.
Only 15 citizens attended the meeting and only one voted against raising the levy increase.
The township still owes $282,142 on a loan for building renovations completed in 2019. The township has reserve funds of $228,710, operating funds of $448,075, and $118,809 in savings certificates. The township ended the year with a ledger balance of $445,248.
Steve Tekautz and Teresa Dolinar easily won their respective elections, both were running unopposed. Tekautz will take supervisor Tim Tomsich’s seat on the board and Dolinar will take treasurer Jorgine Gornick’s position.
The citizens took time to honor Jim Hill who passed away last August. Hill generously gave his time to the community, serving as the Breitung Police Chief, on the Tower Housing Authority, water commission board, town board, and Breitung Fire Department. Residents unanimously voted to honor him by purchasing a name plate to place on a bench in town.
Citizens voted to continue supporting annual events at the same rate as in years past including $2,000 for the Fourth of July, $300 for food for the Tower-Soudan Elementary Early Childhood Program’s Big Truck Night, $200 for the Old Settlers Picnic, $3,000 for the Tower Cemetery plus $273 additional for software, and $300 for the Joint Powers Recreation Board. Residents will also continue to support the Tower-Soudan Historical Society at $500.
Residents lauded community efforts to lower water usage and the township’s time and money spent to reduce inflow and infiltration. Rainwater and leakage that gets into the sanitary sewer system must be treated, costing the township a lot of extra dollars. Flow into the wastewater ponds has been reduced from a high of 56.268 million gallons in 2019 to 41.242 million gallons in 2024.
McKinley Park increased its revenue by $11,175 in 2024 compared to 2023. The total end-of-year revenue was $201,093.
Tim Tomsich, who served as the meeting moderator, noted several accomplishments of the township in the past year, including prompt road repairs after the June flood, completing the trail upgrade from Soudan to McKinley Park, blacktopping of Spring St., sewer work on Poplar St., rebuilding the bottom of Church St., reducing inflow and infiltration on Church St. and First Ave., upgrades to the Stuntz Bay Rd., and a new playground at McKinley Park. Tomsich will be leaving the board after 45 years, being first elected in 1980. Tomsich offered thanks to his family, citizens, and colleagues. “It’s been my honor to have earned your respect and trust, thank you.”
Fire Report
In 2024, Breitung Fire and Rescue responded to nine structure fires, seven auto accidents, five alarms that were canceled while on route, four fire alarms, two medicals, two public service or assistance, two power line incidents, one snowmobile accident, one hazardous condition, one vehicle fire, one uncontrolled permit burn, one water rescue, one wildland fire, zero unattended or unauthorized burning, and zero auto extractions. There were 36 emergency calls in 2024 as compared to 26 in 2023.
The department finished the year with sixteen members, one retirement and two resignations.
Police Report
Police Chief Dan Reing gave a report of the department’s activities over the past year. The department responded to 274 traffic stops, 242 business checks, 68 assists to other agencies, 67 traffic citations, 61 residential checks, 55 medicals, 46 informational calls, 42 public assistance, 42 community engagements, 22 disturbances, 22 welfare checks, 21 civil cases, 19 parking complaints, 19 check hazards, 17 animal, 14 suspicious activities, 13 total arrests, 13 blight complaints, 13 thefts, 12 traffic accidents, 11 firearms permits, 11 mental health crises, nine 911 disconnects, eight damage to property, six DWI arrests, six alarms, five motorist assists, five fire calls, four tobacco checks, four frauds, three non-traffic citations, two drug calls, two deaths, two assaults, one burglary, and one civil paper service.
In the provided data from 2021-2024, assaults were down from a high of six in 2023 to two this year. Drug calls have been reduced from a high of six in 2023 to two in 2024. Mental health crisis calls have been steadily increasing from three in 2021 to four in 2022, nine in 2023, and 11 in 2024.
Reing said understaffing has been a challenge for the department. All of the township’s officers, aside from Reing, work full-time at other agencies, he said. Reing hopes to be able to hire more officers in the future but acknowledges that the shortage in officers is a nationwide epidemic.
Reing ceremoniously retired two officer badge numbers in 2024. Badge #155 was retired in honor of Officer Jim Battin who retired in 2024 after ten years of service to the department. Former Police Chief Jim Hill also had his badge number, #136, permanently retired after serving the department for over 30 years.