Otter Tail County welcomes new Deputy Administrator

By Tom Hintgen

Otter Tail County Correspondent

The new chairperson of the Otter Tail County Board of Commissioners for 2026 is Bob Lahman of Parkers Prairie, assuming duties from outgoing chairperson Wayne Johnson of Pelican Rapids. The new vice chair for 2026, approved at the first meeting of the new year, on Jan. 6, is Commissioner Dan Bucholz of Perham.

The other two county commissioners are Kurt Mortenson of rural Underwood and Sean Sullivan of Fergus Falls.

Otter Tail County is divided into five districts with one county commissioner from each district. Each board member is elected by the people in each district and serves a four-year term. The mission of the county board is to enrich the lives of county residents, provide innovative services for the betterment of Otter Tail County and protect area lakes and county resources.

  Otter Tail County, with 62 townships, is larger in size than the state of Rhode Island and paved roads total 1,062 miles.

“We oversee a budget of close to $127 million,” new board chairperson Lahman said. “We make every effort to spend county tax dollars wisely while at the same time provide necessary services to county residents.”

All county board meetings, usually the second and fourth Tuesday mornings of each month, are held at the Otter Tail County Government Services Center in northwest Fergus Falls. There is livestream available for county residents to watch the proceedings.

Agenda items addressed

County commissioners, holding their first meeting of 2026 on Jan. 6, discussed several agenda topics and approved several motions. One of those was county board approval for board appointments for the Community Development Agency as recommended by CDA Director Amy Baldwin.

The purpose of the Community Development Agency is to strengthen the communities of Otter Tail County by expanding housing opportunities, promoting business development and fostering the coordination of public and private resources. The CDA is a local government agency that is governed by a 9-member board.

County board member Kurt Mortenson of rural Underwood has pointed out that expanding the tax base improves the quality of life in Otter Tail County by supporting affordable housing, redevelopment, commercial rehabilitation and public infrastructure projects.

“We commend the CDA for taking the lead in expanding housing throughout Otter Tail County,” Mortenson added.

Landfill expansion

for ash requires EAW

Ash from the county refuse burner in Perham is taken to the Northeast Otter Tail County facility near New York Mills. The county’s landfill consultant, Foth, submitted a proposal to design an expansion to the ash monofil (specialized landfill designed to dispose of ash from municipal waste incinerators).

But before work takes place, Minnesota state statutes require completion and processing of an Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW) for any ash monofil expansion. This landfill near New York Mills receives combustor ash from the Prairie Lakes Municipal Solid Waste Authority (PLMSWA) which operates the waste-to-energy facility in Perham.

Speaking to county board members on this issue Jan. 6 was Otter Tail County Solid Waste Director Chris McConn. PLMSWA had previously been pursuing an ash reutilization program for future use of generated ash.