Councilors discussed the future of the city’s garbage collection and recycling system at the city councils May 9 meeting. Pros and cons were debated on the continued use of the bag system or a change to a cart system. The existing contract with William Hanson Waste Removal is good for another three years. If the city goes to the cart system, the current contract will be … [Read more...]
Fillmore County Community Corrections to be established
The Fillmore County Board at their May 10 meeting took a step forward to implement Fillmore County Community Corrections within the Community Services Model. The board has been discussing this move for a number of years. A resolution was unanimously approved to withdraw from the Dodge-Fillmore-Olmsted Community Corrections (DFO) and the Joint Powers Agreement, effective … [Read more...]
Preston seats two new council members
The Preston City Council now has five members seated. Two new members were appointed at the May 3 meeting. Three residents had offered their services through letters of interest. Flossie Schultz and Steve Hall were appointed to fill the seats, until the end of 2022. The seats were left vacant by the passing of David Collett and the resignation of Robert Maust. Jon Ebner had … [Read more...]
Fillmore County to search for Social Services manager
At the April 26 meeting of the Fillmore County Board, commissioners accepted the resignation of Social Services Manager Kevin Olson with thanks for his service, effective July 21, after four years of service. Approval was given to advertise for his replacement. County Attorney Brett Corson asked the board to consider a request to retire from Debbie Jeffers, paralegal, … [Read more...]
Chatfield approves TIF proposal
At the April 25 meeting of the Chatfield City Council, a public hearing was held prior to the adoption of a tax increment financing plan for TIF district 3-5. The new TIF district is requested in part due to rising construction costs for site improvements for a new athletic club. It is to be located on vacant property along Highway 52 south of Chatfield. Plans include the … [Read more...]
Fillmore County declares state of emergency
Emergency Manager/Deputy Don Kullot described the damage resulting from the April 12 storm at a special meeting of the Fillmore County Board held on April 19. Already, damage estimates that qualify for public assistance have exceeded the necessary threshold of $43,500 required by the state. Preliminary numbers from MiEnergy are at least $50,000. MiEnergy and other damages in … [Read more...]
Preston approves infrastructure construction and repairs
Several agenda items to be considered at the April 18 Preston City Council meeting were related to upgrades of city infrastructure. The first infrastructure improvement considered was the street storm sewer project. City Engineer Brett Grabau reported that he has now received verbal commitments from three property owners (Wood, Amdahl, and Johnston) to allow stormwater … [Read more...]
Chatfield improvements for parks and pool
Brian Burkholder, Public Works, requested approval for park and recreation maintenance and improvement items at the April 11 meeting of the Chatfield city council. The Aqua zip line at the swimming pool has been a popular feature, but there have been issues with the current retractor style system. Burkholder explained there is a new design that is gravity fed and does not … [Read more...]
Fillmore County commissioner districts remain unchanged
At the April 12 meeting of the Fillmore County Board, commissioners decided unanimously to leave the commissioner districts unchanged. Auditor/Treasurer Christy Smith had reached out to cities and townships to see if any of them were going to have any boundary line changes. No city or township reported any boundary changes due to the 2020 census. Commissioners had discussed … [Read more...]
Preston City Council has two open seats
Councilman Robert Maust submitted his resignation, due his health and age, effective April 30. At the April 4 meeting two resolutions each declaring a vacancy on the city council were approved, one for councilman David Collett who passed on March 14 and the other for Maust. City hall is accepting letters of application from city residents who are interested in serving as a … [Read more...]