Needs abound as county starts budget talks

The Carlton County board of commissioners is deep in the throes of budget talks again, as they prepare to adopt a preliminary 2021 budget sometime in September and a final budget in December.

Two budget sessions on July 27 and Aug. 4 spanned six hours and included presentations from county departments and budget support for publicly used groups such as the Bookmobile and the Carlton County fair. Many focused on the COVID-19 impact and the annual issue of needed revenues and increased costs.

Following is a taste of the ongoing budget discussions:

• The Arrowhead Bookmobile started operations ag...