by Dennis Dalman
Jeff Bertram of Paynesville was chosen by his peers to be chairman of the Stearns County Board of Commissioners at its first meeting of the year, Jan. 6.
At that same meeting, Commissioner Steve Notch of Freeport, who represents District 5, was elected by fellow board members to be vice chairman. Notch was re-elected to another term on the board in the Nov. 5 general election.
Bertram, serving the third year of his four-year term, represents Commissioner District 3. It comprises a large part of central Stearns County, including Collegeville (precincts 1 and 2) and the cities of Clearwater, Cold Spring, Eden Valley, Kimball, Paynesville, Rockville, Roscoe and St. Augusta.
The townships in District 3 include Eden Lake, Fairhaven, Luxemburg, Lynden, Maine Prairie, Munson, Paynesville, Wakefield and Zion.
Vice Chairman Notch represents the western half of Stearns County. It includes the townships of Albany, Ashley, Avon, Crow Lake, Crow River, Farming, Getty, Grove, Holding, Krain, Lake George, Lake Henry, Melrose, Millwood, North Fork, Oak, Raymond, St. Martin, Sauk Centre and Spring Hill.
The cities in the district are Albany, Avon, Belgrade, Brooten, Elrosa, Freeport, Greenwald, Holdingford, Lake Henry, Meire Grove, Melrose, New Munich, St. Anthony, St. Martin, St. Rosa, Sauk Centre and Spring Hill.
The other members of the Stearns County Board of Commissioners, other than Bertram and Notch, are Tarryl Clark, District 1: Joe Perske, District 2; and Leigh Lenzmeier, District 4.
Perske and Notch were the only county-board candidates up for election in the Nov. 5 election; both won re-election.
The new chairman of the Stearns County Board of Commissioners is Jeff Bertram. He was appointed to that position by his peers at the first January board meeting of the new year.
