Trailblazer board meeting cancelled

By Amy Newsom
Arlington Enterprise
At the regular Sibley County Board meeting Tuesday, Jan. 24, Commissioner Jim Swanson updated the group on the continuing issues at Trailblazer Transit.  
Swanson said the Trailblazer Joint Powers Board meeting scheduled for Thursday, Jan. 26, was canceled by Chair Ron Shimanski because Wright County Area Transportation (WCAT) told him that it had other commitments.  
Swanson said that WCAT doesn’t want the Trailblazer board to conduct business because WCAT is afraid that the first order of business will be to fire Executive Director Gary Ludwig. Swanson said that it isn’t on the agenda, and that Sibley and McLeod counties still wanted to meet. Swanson also said that Shimanski is serving as the chairperson of a board in which he was not re-appointed. Shimanski feels that he is chairperson of the board until it has a meeting to elect new officers. Swanson said that per the joint powers agreement, one representative from each entity must be at the meeting to conduct business. WCAT is requesting to have a workshop to mediate differences before it will come to a board meeting. Swanson said WCAT is leaving the board with no choice but to wait for the mediation workshop in February.