Milaca won't get Extension office

By DAWN SLADE
Mille Lacs County Times
Posted 7/24/03

The Extension committee in Milaca and the Mille Lacs County Board applied jointly for a regional center to be located in either Milaca or Princeton. Neither were selected.

Mora and St. Cloud will each have a regional center. They will be two of 18 regional centers in the state.

The others will be located in Albert Lea, Andover, Brainerd, Cloquet, Crookston, Farmington, Fergus Falls, Grand Rapids, Hutchinson, Mankato, Marshall, Moorhead, Morris, Rochester, Roseau and Worthington.

"After careful consideration and significant consultation, we picked these communities as sites of regional centers because, across the state, they create network to ensure all Minnesotans have access to the Extension," said Chuck Casey, extension dean and director.

Currently, every county in Minnesota has an extension office. Some larger counties have two, said Aimee Viniard-Weidman, extension service spokesperson.

But starting in January, the 18 regional offices will replace more than 87 county extension offices.

It's estimated there will be five to 10 positions at every regional office.

The University of Minnesota has taken double digit budget cuts, Viniard-Weidman explained. Last year, the extension service cut about 43 positions, she said.

But some of the cuts were through retirements and other factors, she noted. And there was no reduction of field staff, she explained.

One strength of the new extension system is that it affords local counties to select the extension service services from a "menu" of service options, Viniard-Weidman said.

What does that mean for the Milaca Extension office?

While the regional facilities will be funded by state and federal tax dollars, counties may choose to fund local satellite offices (like Milaca) and staff them with educators specific to the community's needs.

The Extension office is currently in the budget negotiation process with the county board.

The county is looking to keep the office in Milaca open, but details, such as staffing, are still being worked out.

The 4-H program is of main concern and the Extension committee has made the 4-H program its number one priority. The Extension committee includes two county commissioners and township representatives from the county.

Note: ECM reporter Tim Budig contributed to this story.