The Whalan City Council moved smoothly through their routine agenda items as well as beginning of the year tasks during the first city council meeting of 2026. Present at the January 12, 2026, regularly scheduled council meeting were Mayor David Hallum along with council members Sheila Higbe, Thore E. Johnson, Owen Lewis (via Zoom) and Kim Berekvam. City Clerk/Treasurer … [Read more...]
Students Honored as Hurricane Heroes
At the January 8 Houston School Board meeting, four high school students were recognized as Hurricane Heroes. Seniors Grayden Beckman and Avery Evenson are the AAA nominees; in order to qualify for the honor, the students needed to have a 3.0 or higher grade point average and be involved in both athletics and fine arts. AAA which stands for Academics, Arts and Athletics is an … [Read more...]
Mayor Expresses Optimism for Spring Valley’s Future
On Monday, January 12, 2026, the Spring Valley City Council kicked off their first meeting of the new year by reviewing their annual resolutions. The Fillmore County Journal was named the official newspaper. Security State Bank, Alerus Bank, First State Bank and First National Bank were designated as the official depository of city funds. A resolution appointing the Mayor, City … [Read more...]
Lanesboro Public Input on Semester Tests
Once again, the Lanesboro School Board heard concerns from the citizens about semester tests at the school at their regular board meeting January 14. Ollie Lepper addressed the board to share her opinion about the school’s semester test policy. Lepper commented that she felt the policy goes against the idea of staying home when you are sick. She gave the personal example of … [Read more...]
Wykoff Council Tackles Infrastructure, Emergency Services and City Operations
Infrastructure planning, emergency services funding, personnel policy changes and community improvement ideas filled the agenda at the January 12, 2026, Wykoff City Council meeting. Mayor Ryan Breckenridge presided over the meeting, joined by council members Jeff Hare, Barb Fate, Jane Baker and Missy Musel; along with City Administrator Becky Schmidt. During review of the … [Read more...]
Fillmore County District Court
On December 19, Bryce Aaron Reed, 40, of Stewartville, appeared before District Court Judge Jeremy Clinefelter. Reed is charged with Domestic Assault - By Strangulation, a felony with a maximum criminal penalty of three years in prison and/or a $5,000 fine. On or about December 18, a Fillmore County Sheriff’s Deputy was dispatched regarding a male victim alleging his (step) son … [Read more...]
Chatfield School Board Discusses Veterans’ Memorial Proposal
At the January 14, 2026 school board meeting, board members David Sovinski, Katie Priebe, Tom Keefe, Jill Harstad and Mark Johnsrud were present. Board member Josh Thompson was not present. Also present were Superintendent Ed Harris, elementary principal Shane McBroom and high school principal Eric Nelson. Student senate representatives Owen Schwanke and Mason Sulu-Mehus and … [Read more...]
Houston County Holds First Meeting of 2026
After several months of negotiations, a professional services contract with the City of Spring Grove for law enforcement services was unanimously approved by the Houston County Board of Commissioners at its regular board meeting on January 6. The board also recognized 16 employees for their service to the county. Sheriff Brian Swedberg informed the board that the Spring … [Read more...]
Lanesboro Library Searches for New Director/Assistant
A public hearing was held at the opening of the January 5 Lanesboro city council meeting to hear questions and comments about the proposed Ashburn Street East overlay project. Several members of the public asked questions about why the project was being done and where the funding for it would come from. During the public comment portion of the meeting, Lanesboro resident … [Read more...]
Quick Meeting Begins Fountain’s Year
At the January 6 Fountain City Council meeting, no news was good news. Only one actionable item of business, the approval of consent agenda items, was considered. This includes the monthly financial information and regularly occurring items, such as approval of previous meeting minutes, and the council approved it unanimously. The regular monthly Public Works’ report was … [Read more...]