Root River Hardwoods came from humble beginnings in 1980 when Andy Bahl’s dad Richard Bahl and his partners, Mike Merritt and Jeff Wand, purchased a sawmill in Preston, Minn. In 1988, Andy started working with millwork, supplying kiln-dried lumber to furniture and cabinet makers. His next step included purchasing a Weinig molder, the Cadillac of molders; he hired additional … [Read more...]
Houston County EDA awards over one million dollars in CARES funding to county businesses
On February 2, 2021, Chairperson Robert Burns called the Houston County Board of Commissioners’ regular meeting to order at 9 a.m. Commissioners present included Dewey Severson, Eric Johnson, Robert Burns, Teresa Walter, and Greg Myhre. Commissioners approved the February 2, 2021, meeting agenda and the meeting minutes from January 26, 2021, regular meeting session. … [Read more...]
Journal earns seven awards
The 154th annual Minnesota Newspaper Association conference and trade show was not quite the same this year due to COVID-19 restrictions. However, that didn’t prevent the big show from coming together in a virtual presentation. Each year, hundreds of newspaper professionals from more than 200 daily and weekly newspapers throughout the state of Minnesota gather in … [Read more...]
Schultz takes on new role with Journal
In January of 2021, Sherry Hines retired as an advertising sales representative with the Fillmore County Journal after serving customers in Southeast Minnesota and Northeast Iowa for 35 years. With Hines retiring from the Journal, Sara Schultz has taken over her territory. Schultz started her career as a graphic designer with the newspaper in October of 2019. With … [Read more...]
Father and son committed to continuing personalized service at Harmony lumberyard
In 1975, a father and son, Jim and Joe Hahn, started Hahn Lumber in Harmony. At the end of 2020, another father and son joined forces to invest in that same lumberyard to continue a tradition of small-town service, offering a full range of building supplies. Gary Nolan and his son Will have purchased the lumberyard and have aptly named their new business Nolan Lumber. While … [Read more...]
2020 Business Person of the Year Jones receives award of excellence from Journal readers
The year 2020 became one that tested everyone in ways never imagined. For business leaders, they contended with circumstances they had never encountered before. There were issues with supply chain, facility capacity limitations, shutdowns, social distancing, mask mandates, COVID exposure protocol, staffing, sanitization, health, and safety – to name a few. Over the past few … [Read more...]
Spring Valley Economic Development Authority launches new website
The Spring Valley community has a new website to help promote life in Spring Valley and offer connections, tools, and resources for local businesses and organizations. The Spring Valley Economic Development Authority (EDA) announced the launch of its new EDA website, springvalleyeda.org, Monday, January 11, 2021. The new website offers a variety of tools and resources for both … [Read more...]
Minnesota’s unemployment rate falls to 4.4% in November
Minnesota’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate dropped again in November, down to 4.4% from 4.6% in October, according to numbers released today by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). This month, the unemployment rate decline in Minnesota was due to people moving into employment. November employment data were gathered before November 21, … [Read more...]
Diversified ingredients makes its whey to Preston
On November 18, Foremost Farm’s Preston facility was purchased equally by Diversified Ingredients and Johnson Farms. These companies are headquartered respectively out of Ballwin, Mo., and Lime Springs, Iowa. Preston Protein Products has two executive managers, Matt Collins from Diversified Ingredients and Mike Johnson from Johnson Farms. The facility in Preston is now named … [Read more...]
Gabby Kinneberg takes over as new Preston EDA director
When Gabby Kinneberg started her new job as the Preston Area Chamber of Commerce and Tourism Director just over three years ago, she never expected it to take her where she is today. On December 14, she added EDA Director to her existing titles. For the rest of December, she will spend time training with Cathy Enerson, the outgoing EDA director. Enerson, who has worked with the … [Read more...]