Belle Plaine Schools Expecting More Students Page 6
Section 2AA Individual Tourney This Week
BPHS Cagers Zero in on Postseason Pages 16, 17
Page 17
ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-SECOND YEAR
BELLE PLAINE, MINNESOTA, FEBRUARY 20, 2013
75¢ SINGLE COPY
NUMBER 8
Area Man Killed in Rollover Crash Saturday in Blakeley
This year’s BPHS FFA officers are, from left, President Jacob Schaffer, Secretary Corey Krautkremer, Vice President Kelly Morrison, Reporter Mallory Glisczinski, Treasurer Alexia VonBank and Sentinel Levi VonBank.
Pancake Feed Just One Layer in Stack of FFA Week Activities Several dozen Belle Plaine junior and senior high school students and 550,000 elsewhere in the U.S. are observing National FFA Week. This year’s theme is “GROW,” and celebrates more than 80 years of FFA traditions while eagerly anticipating the organization’s future. FFA members are preparing for more than 300 career opportunities in the food, fiber and natural resources industries. FFA Week activities at BPHS got underway Tuesday when chapter members met with third-grade students to discuss how plants grow from seeds. Today (Wednesday) members will meet with fifth-grade stu-
dents to talk about horticulture and how to make mini-greenhouses. On Thursday they will talk to fourth-graders about food science and the fruit and vegetable industry. Friday they will meet with sixth-graders to talk about the dairy industry and make ice cream. There will also be a barnyard petting zoo set up in the school’s Ag Department area, which students in grades K-2 will tour. Among those heading up this week’s events at BPHS are FAA advisor/teacher Bruce Mathiowetz and the chapter’s six officers. They are President Jacob Schaffer, Vice President Kelly Morrison, Secretary Corey
Krautkremer, Treasurer Alexia VonBank, Reporter Mallory Glisczinski and Sentinel Levi VonBank.
Pancake Breakfast Starts at 8:30 a.m.
The Belle Plaine FFA Chapter’s annual pancake breakfast fund-raiser will take place in the high school commons area from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. this Sunday. The cost is $7 for adults and $4 for kids ages 512. Ages 4 and under eat free. Proceeds will benefit Camp
FFA
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Study Would Double-Check Future of School Enrollments If Contract for Study OK’d, Results May Determine Need, Timing of Next School Building Before it dives too deep into discussion on when its next building will be needed, the school board wants a more exact study of how many students the district will serve in the years to come. Monday (Feb. 25), directors will consider hiring a firm to formally study in the district’s demographics and anticipated enrollment in the years to come. “The results of this study will help the board and administra-
tion determine a clearer path with regard to timing of future building projects,” said Superintendent Kelly Smith. “We believe the high school project is on the horizon and this study will help us more clearly determine when the need will really be here.” The board will consider a contract for a demographic study of the district with SchoolFinances.Com, a Lakeville-based firm. The contract will cost either $4,000 or $6,000 depending on the depth of information the board wants. The district is expecting 145 kindergartners, maybe 150, next year, the largest class in its history. It will follow two classes that were the largest the district had seen. Superintendent Kelly Smith said the district is confident in the prediction of 145 to 150 kindergarten students next year, but is less than certain
City Plans to Utilize Hockey Rink for Dog Park This Year The city of Belle Plaine is planning to open the hockey rink on the 200 block of South Market Street for use as a dog park during the non-skating months. The city council was expected to approve the proposal at Tuesday night’s regular meeting, which took place after this edition of the Herald went to press. According to Belle Plaine Community Development Director Trisha Rosenfeld, the park board has been researching the proposal for some time. “The school district has indicated they are amenable to the city utilizing this property for a temporary dog park during the spring and summer months while the ice rink is not functional,” stated Rosenfeld in her report. She added that Public Works
Superintendent Al Fahey said there is an available dog waste receptacle as well as a picnic table to utilize at the park. Rosenfeld said estimates have been received from local sign companies to purchase two signs. One sign will indicate the dog park location, while the other will illustrate the rules of the park. The park board requested funds not to exceed $400 to purchase the signs from Earl F. Anderson. Public works will install the signs prior to an open house for the dog park, which is tentatively scheduled for 6 p.m. Monday, April 22. Park board members plan to have dog treats and hot dogs available for the public at the open house. Local businesses such as the Belle Plaine Vet Clinic, Prairie Farm Supply and The Country Store will be invited to attend and possibly have display tables available. It’s also possible that representatives from the police department will be there to provide licensing services for dogs.
about the incoming classes beyond 2013-14. Smith and Chuck Keller, the district’s business director, performed the current enrollment prediction. Smith said, “there are as many (enrollment-study) models as days of the month,” but SchoolFinances.com uses the model that best fits Belle Plaine. Smith wondered aloud during the workshops Feb. 11 workshop if 145 kindergartners is the peak of incoming classes or an uptick in anticipated larger class sizes in the years to come. He noted the incoming class arrives five years after the housing market “slammed shut” in Belle Plaine.
Look into the Future
A demographic study will also
Enrollments
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City Community Development Director to Resign
A Blakeley Township resident died in a single-car crash Saturday afternoon just before 5:30 when he lost control of his vehicle and crashed into a ditch less than a half mile from his home in Blakeley village. Paris Edward Young Jr., 38, was driving westbound on County Road 6 (the Blakeley road) when the 2001 Mitsubishi Diamante left the road, slid into the north ditch, hit a tree and rolled. According to Sheriff Kevin Studnicka, Young was ejected from the vehicle when it rolled. Another motorist came upon the crash and called for help. Sheriff’s deputies investigating the crash are looking at whether road conditions, excess speed and possibly alcohol played a role in the crash. Monday, Sheila Norring, Young’s girlfriend, said he was on his way home from a friend’s house where he was playing video games and having a few beers. The Scott County medical examiner pronounced Young dead at the scene. He was alone in Norring’s passenger car.
Sorrow . . .
News of Young’s death drew
quick reaction to the Herald’s Facebook page. A handful of readers expressed sorrow at his untimely passing. “Paris was a good man,” wrote Julia Metz, a Belle Plaine resident. “He will be dearly missed.” Young moved to the area five years ago with Norring. He originally came to Minnesota seeking a better life for himself and his children compared to the south side of Chicago. He is best known locally for his upbeat, positive approach to life. He believed there was always a life lesson to be learned from most every situation, Nor-
ring said. He was also known for his music production company, Trigg Productions. Specializing primarily in rap and hip-hop music, Young ran the company out of the couple’s home in Blakeley. He was known to give unknown artists a venue to share their music. “If you wanted to be heard, he’d give you the time,” Norring said. Friends on the production company’s Facebook page expressed their sympathies as well. “He was truly a positive individual,” a friend, Shauntay Frazier, posted on the page. A friend, Nicole Dietz-Brandtner of Jordan wrote, “He will be missed and was a wonderful person. He was an inspiration.” Funeral services for Young will be in his hometown, Chicago March 2. A memorial service in Belle Plaine is planned for sometime in March, Norring said. The time, date and location of the service were not yet finalized when the Herald went to press. He is survived by his girlfriend, Sheila Norring, his father, nine children and two stepchildren.
Belle Plaine Barn Fire Not Forgotten During Valentine’s Wedding in Bahamas by Dan Ruud Lee and Mary (Halquist) Muehlenhardt were on a beach in the Bahamas Valentine’s Day for the wedding of friends Gabe Zurn and Jennifer Capaul, the former of whom is from Belle Plaine. But not even that setting and occasion could detract from the news they had received from wintry Minnesota two days earlier. The Muehlenhardts, who live on what is known as the Halquist family farm on 182nd Street in rural Belle Plaine, were just beginning the third day of their seven-day trip to the Bahamas when they received news early last Tuesday morning that their calf/cattle barn had burned to the ground, killing approximately 80 calves and cows. It was the second such tragedy on the farm in 13 years. On Jan. 8, 2000, a barn on the same exact location was also destroyed by fire, killing over 100 calves. That fire was believed to have been started as a result of hot work (welding) that was taking place by workers shortly before the blaze started.
Thirteen years, one month and four days later, the approximately 36- by 160-square-foot barn that was built in its place met the same fate. It’s believed the fire originated from a heat lamp inside the barn. A worker arriving at the farm to begin chores called the fire in at approximately 3:45 a.m. Belle Plaine and other fire department crews arrived at the scene a short time later but most of the damage had already been done. Total damage, including livestock, structural and equipment, could run into the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Lee Muehlenhardt, who with Mary had just returned from the Bahamas on Sunday, was on the scene Monday morning making plans with a contractor for the construction of a new barn, which could begin next week. The barn, which was fully insured, was the only structure on the property that was damaged. Muehlenhardt said he and Mary strongly considered returning home right after learning about the fire last Tuesday. Among those joining them in
the Bahamas were their daughter Shari and her husband Nate Gerdes. It was Nate who received the initial news that the barn was on fire, having received a text from Lee’s son, Scott, at about 5 a.m. Bahamas time. “It’s a text I’ll never forget,” Nate said. “We thought about coming back right away but then we found out we wouldn’t be able to get a flight out until Wednesday,” said Lee Muehlenhardt, adding that by that time Scott, along with family and friends, were taking care of business with the cleanup and insurance agents back home on the frozen tundra. “We decided to stay and have as much fun as possible the rest of the trip, but we couldn’t stop thinking about the farm,” Lee Muehlenhardt said. “The trip was fun but we didn’t expect this . . . We’re just thankful for all the family and friends that helped with everything while we were gone.” And the Bahamian beach Valentine’s Day wedding took place with all invitees in attendance.
Belle Plaine Community Development Director Trisha Rosenfeld has submitted her letter of resignation to the city. Her resignation does not take effect until March 1, but because she has approved vacation time from Feb. 25 through March 1, her last day in the office will be this Friday, Rosenfeld, who began her job with the city in 2006, is going to work for Xcel Energy’s Mankato office as community relations manager. City Administrator David Lee Muehlenhardt, left, met with an area builder Monday morning to discuss plans for the Murphy said the city will adnew barn that will be built soon on the site of the old barn, where this photo was taken. Muevertise for a replacement for hlenhardt had just returned home from a week-long trip to the Bahamas, during which his Rosenfeld. barn and some 80 calves and cattle were destroyed.