At the February 28 meeting of the Planning Commission, proposed language for an ordinance regulating accessory solar energy systems and solar energy farms was introduced. This was the first time the planning commission met in 2019. Gary Ruskell was reelected as chairman and Steve Duxbury as vice-chairman. The commission has been considering a broader ordinance for renewal … [Read more...]
Access to county land for CWD disease management control granted
The March 5 county board meeting was dominated by the citizens input section of the agenda. Several came forward urging the board to reconsider last week’s action. At the February 26 board meeting a request from the DNR to have access to county land was denied. In the minutes it stated the chair was authorized to “share the board’s wishes for no hunting, no access onto the … [Read more...]
Ostrander mulls feed lot ordinance
March 5, the Ostrander City Council held a regular meeting, with all members in attendance (Stephanie Start, Dan Hellerud, DJ Start, Vernon Thompson, Mayor Pam Kunert, and City Clerk Wendy Brincks). The council heard from several parties regarding the Farm Animal Ordinance and related concerns. City Attorney Jennifer Gumbel stated, “Just to give a report from yesterday’s … [Read more...]
What to do with all that snow? Fountain tackles issue
Like many area cities, Fountain has recently found their streets dwarfed by mountains of snow. This has led to a surge in workload for Public Works and complaints by residents of unclear sidewalks. At the March 6 meeting, the council debated where to go with the snow and how best to remedy the situation. Councilor Dave Gudmundson noted he’d been receiving calls. “Do we go … [Read more...]
Chatfield Highway 52 Project
At the February 25 meeting of the Chatfield City Council, a construction agreement with MnDOT was approved pertaining to the in-city construction of Highway 52. MnDOT’s agreement with the city lays out the city’s responsibility for the cost of lighting, utility adjustments, and roadway striping construction on Highway 52 within the city limits. The city’s estimated share of … [Read more...]
2018 Project of the Year
Wayne Sandberg, president of the Minnesota County Engineers Association, was present to recognize the county’s outstanding achievement at the board’s February 26 meeting. At a recent annual meeting of the Engineers Association, Fillmore County was selected for the 2018 Project of the Year award for its CSAH 1 project. He noted this is the busiest road in the county. The … [Read more...]
Rushford approves new library director, preps for project assessments
The Rushford City Council has voted to approve a recommendation from the Rushford Public Library board to hire Beth Nelson to fill the shoes of current Library Director Susan Hart, who gave notice of her retirement late last year. She has served in the position for 20 years. Nelson is a local resident currently who had worked as a library aide for Rushford-Peterson School … [Read more...]
Heidi Jones settling into new position as Fillmore County Auditor/Treasurer
When the opportunity arose to run for Fillmore County Auditor/Treasurer, the decision was easy for Heidi Jones. Jones, from Ostrander, had been working in the Auditor/Treasurer’s office for 11 years and was ready to throw her hat in the election ring. “A lot of time was invested in it, but it was worth it,” Jones said. A lot of her campaign was spent visiting council … [Read more...]
Preston exercises land purchase option for veterans home
At the February 20 city council meeting, the council unanimously approved exercising its option to buy property from Robert Doherty, which is expected to be the future home of a veterans home. City attorney Dwight Luhmann said Doherty was not crazy about extending the option for 30 days as authorized by the city council at its February 4 meeting. The extension to the option … [Read more...]
Peterson partners with WHKS & Co. for engineering
At the Wednesday, February 13 Peterson meeting, the Peterson Council voted to approve a standing contract with WHKS & Co., a full-service engineering firm in Rochester. Present to address the council were Tim Hruska and Scott Huneke. “We spent a lot of time, as a company, talking about what our passion is; what makes us all get up and come to work everyday,” said Hruska. … [Read more...]