In 2024, the Stevens County Board of Commissioners approved an expansion to Fresha’s existing Conditional Use Permit (CUP) for the construction of an addition to its facility.
That approval was given with the stipulation that Fresha, a Morris-based carrot producer, would provide an engineered plan to address odor complaints associated with its existing facility.
Last week, Fresha Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Dan Schaefer went before the county board to update it on Fresha’s odor mitigation efforts.
Just after the granting of the CUP, Fresha submitted two engineered plans as options for odor mitigation, while also stating that the long-term goal was to eventually send all wastewater to the City of Morris municipal wastewater treatment plant.
Nearly one year ago, Schaefer said that Fresha wasn’t confident that it would be possible to obtain a municipal connection from the City of Morris before the construction of the addition, but last week, he said that Fresha was able to recently execute a signed agreement with the City of Morris to provide full water and wastewater services.
“This development, combined with the fact that the south addition was not constructed in 2025, has led us to pursue a different approach to addressing the odor concerns,” Schaefer wrote in a letter to the county board dated the first of this year. “While the city connection will cost significantly more than installing a pond cover, we believe it is a far better long-term solution and addresses multiple areas of concern.”
The letter also stated that Fresha is currently in the design and engineering phase, with construction planned for this spring, pending approvals from the Stevens County Highway Department and the Minnesota Department of Transportation.
“The scope of the project will include limited pretreatment of our wastewater and continued use of the existing pond to meet City wastewater treatment plant requirements. The pond will be used solely as a pretreatment pond and will be completely turned over multiple times throughout the season,” the letter said.
“Our engineers, working in conjunction with the city’s engineers, are confident that this approach will greatly reduce odor. I have personally raised this concern repeatedly throughout the process and have been consistently assured that this solution is highly effective for odor mitigation.”
The letter went on to say that a benefit of this approach is the opportunity to conduct a “test run” before any construction of the addition, which would provide clarity and assurance that Fresha will meet the condition placed by the county board.
“Utilizing the existing municipal infrastructure in Morris creates benefits on several fronts. The city can better utilize its new water treatment plant, its existing wastewater ponds provide adequate capacity, and Fresha will generate a significant revenue stream for the city, helping to offset service costs and hold rates down for the broader community,” the letter continued.
Schaefer added that he has spoken directly with all adjacent neighbors to Fresha and addressed questions, along with providing them an opportunity to connect to city utilities on their own private properties. “It appears that several neighbors may pursue connection now, with other potential doing so in the future,” he said.
