• The Koochiching Economic Development Authority Board directed KEDA Director Paul Nevanen to bring back more information about two choices of companies that are expected to assist in providing a brand for Koochiching County.
• The board was also given an update on KEDA’s former administrative assistant Brenda Long after an audience member asked about the situation.
Long admitted in 2007 to forging the signatures of KEDA officers on checks payable to herself and depositing the money in her personal checking account. The amount totaled $341,742, according to a state auditor’s report. Long was sentenced to jail time and restitution. She has since been released from the Koochiching County Jail, according to Nevanen.
The KEDA Board in December agreed to join the Minnesota League of Cities Insurance Trust in filing a civil suit against Long to recover the money taken. The board also accepted a check in the amount of $300,000 from the insurance provider.
The KEDA is in an ongoing effort to recover the money, KEDA Board Chairman Tim “Chopper” McBride said.
Board member Wade Pavleck said that there is little chance of getting money from Long. As far as he’s concerned, the “taxpayers are out $42,000,” and the issue is “far from being taken care of.”