At the December 6 Lanesboro City Council meeting, the council reviewed a pay request for a second bathroom for the emergency services building project. To bring the building plans up to code, a half bath with a toilet and sink needs to be added at an additional cost of $3,000. Council member Mindy Albrecht-Benson, who joined the meeting via Zoom, asked why the original plans … [Read more...]
Articles by Hannah Wingert
Reporter
hannah@fillmorecountyjournal.com
Solar panel installation delayed at Lanesboro school
At the November 18 Lanesboro School Board meeting, Superintendent Matt Schultz updated the board on the solar panels for the school. They were supposed to have been installed before the 2021-22 school year began, but that was pushed back to October. The installation didn’t happen then either and now is expected to be completed during the first quarter of 2022. Schultz explained … [Read more...]
Fillmore Central parent speaks out against Social Emotional Learning, or SEL
Chrissy Holets, parent of two Fillmore Central students, addressed the school board at their November 23 meeting. “I’m here on behalf of my kids,” she said. She explained that her third grade daughter repeatedly came home from school talking about putting her feelings in a bucket and then putting a lid on it. During conferences, Holets asked her daughter’s teacher about the … [Read more...]
Harmony Council hears suggestion for a gym refresh
Harmony resident Cindy Ofstedal addressed the city council at their November 9 meeting to ask them to consider the condition of the gymnasium at the Community Center. She is a member of an exercise group that meets there and the group has noticed that the gym could use new paint, deep cleaning, and some updating for the stage. If the council is going to tackle the project, they … [Read more...]
Lanesboro Housing Solution Group finishes program
At the November 1 Lanesboro City Council meeting, Phil Dybing gave an update on the Lanesboro Housing Solution Group which recently held a virtual summit to conclude its 18 month long program. The program addressed housing shortages in Lanesboro. In 2019, the Lanesboro EDA applied for and was accepted to participate in the Minnesota Housing Institute program to help identify … [Read more...]
Fillmore Central approves fee reductions for staff
The Fillmore Central School Board discussed the option of a fee reduction for school staff who have children in preschool, SAC, or daycare as an incentive for employment. Superintendent Heath Olstad suggested offering a 20% reduction in fees to any K-12 staff and a 40% reduction for employees of the forementioned programs. The numbers had been run and it was determined that the … [Read more...]
Harmony conducts study on city employee wages
The Harmony City Council met for their regular meeting on October 12. Three council members were absent so there was no quorum, however Domingo Kingsley agreed to attend when he returned from an ambulance call later that evening. Mark Goldberg from David Drown Associate gave a presentation to discuss the company’s wage and comp study while the council waited for Kingsley to … [Read more...]
Public hearing held to discuss proposed road improvements in Lanesboro
The October 4 Lanesboro City Council meeting opened with a public hearing to discuss the proposed 2022 street and utility improvement project. Several Lanesboro business owners questioned the need for some of the sidewalks that were included in the preliminary plans. “Sounds like an excess expense that may not be necessary,” Sylvan Brewery owner Karen Heimdahl stated. Cottage … [Read more...]
Fillmore Central board reviews COVID updates
The Fillmore Central school board met on September 28. Board members Deb Ristau, Shelly Topness, and Jim Love were absent. Fillmore Central parent and Harmony resident Michael Himlie addressed the board with his concerns regarding the district’s lack of a mask mandate. He asked what the procedures are if someone at the school were to test positive for COVID and how contact … [Read more...]
Chatfield Public Library undergoes renovations
It all started on February 15, 1911 when Chatfield resident Medora Morrill proposed to the Commercial Club that a public library be opened in Chatfield at the public Rest Room. She was given the go-ahead to form a committee which collected 1,000 donated books, allowing the library to open to the public less than a month later on March 9, 1911. Just two years later, the … [Read more...]
Lanesboro school staff adapt to record number of students
The Lanesboro School Board met on September 16. Board members Sarah Peterson and Steve Snyder were not present. Superintendent Matt Schultz reported that the 2021-22 school year was off to a good start. “It’s nice to be in a finished building,” he commented. Transportation is also going well with buses running at full capacity. The school is still in need of bus drivers though. … [Read more...]
Valley Design in Fountain celebrates 35 years of business
It started in 1986 as a small powder coating business run out of the old Fountain Body Shop building with less than 3,500 square feet of space. Thirty-five years later, Valley Design still operates out of Fountain, but has grown to a 100,000 square foot facility across the road from where it originally sat, that serves the entire United States into Canada. “Most people don’t … [Read more...]
Canton family loses everything in devastating house fire
“You hear about people having fires and getting out with just the clothes on their back. We didn’t even have that,” Jamie Knutson said. He and his family lost their home in Canton to a house fire in the early morning hours of September 10. As it happened around 3:30 a.m., the family members were still in their pajamas and didn’t have time to grab anything on the way out. Due … [Read more...]
#RhettStrong: Rural Preston boy fights cancer
“Rhett is proving to us that he is tough, he is loved, he is happy,” Kayla Carroll said about her son. “We are just doing our best to show him our support.” Rhett, an energetic, determined five-year-old, was recently diagnosed with a Malignant Rhabdoid Tumor or MRT which is a rare childhood tumor that starts in the kidney and other soft tissues. Only about 15 cases are … [Read more...]
Harmony council discuss sewer issues on Wickett Drive
The Harmony City Council met on September 14 with all council members present in person, except for Tony Webber who joined the meeting via telephone. Jay Jermier from Minnowa Construction addressed the council about the sewer line issues on Wickett Drive NW. At a June 17 special meeting, the council opened bids for the Dairyland Power Utility extension and accepted a bid from … [Read more...]