Scott County Fair Has New Manager
BPHS Boys’ Basketball Team On A Roll Page 15
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Scott West Wins in Farmington, Loses at Home Page 15
ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-SECOND YEAR
75¢ SINGLE COPY
BELLE PLAINE, MINNESOTA, JANUARY 30, 2013
NUMBER 5
Council Orders Advertisement of Bids for 2013 Street Work; Okays Purchase of New Fire Chief Truck
Belle Plaine Wins Subsection One-Act Play Title Will Compete for Section Crown Saturday at Le Sueur Belle Plaine High School is one act away from qualifying for the Minnesota State High School League One-Act Play Festival for the 10th time in the last 20 years after winning the subsection championship Saturday at Jordan High School. Belle Plaine will attempt to punch its 2013 ticket to St. Paul when it competes in this
Saturday’s Section 2A competition at Le Sueur-Henderson High School. Performances are scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. No school-by-school performance start time was available prior to Tuesday’s press time. Glencoe-Silver Lake placed second at Saturday’s subsection contest and will join Belle Plaine in Le Sueur on Saturday.
Former Belle Plaine Woman to Get $3.5 Million to Leave Her Job A Belle Plaine High School graduate is among four toplevel executives leaving Minnesota-based Super Valu who will share some $23 million in “golden parachutes,” according to the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal. A golden parachute is defined as an agreement between a company and an employee (usually upper executive) specifying that the employee will receive certain significant benefits if employment is terminated. Most definitions specify the employment termination is as a result of a merger or takeover, also known as “change-in-control benefits.” Sherry (Stier) Smith, a 1979 graduate of BPHS, the company’s CFO, will receive $3.51 million upon leaving her job. Wayne Sales (CEO) will get $8.1 million, while other company executives – Janel Haugarth and J. Andrew Herring, will receive $3.65 million and $2.82 million, respectively. News of the payouts came about two weeks after Super Valu announced that it had sold five of its grocery chains (877 stores) in a $3.3 billion deal. According to Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal, the buyer is Cerberus Capital Management, which bought the stores for $100 million and acquired almost $3.2 billion in debt.
Other schools competing will be St. Peter, Le Sueur, Maple River, Mankato Loyola, Maple Lake and Annandale. Only the top-judged play will advance to the state Class 1A festival, which will take place Feb. 8 at O’Shaughnessy Auditorium on the campus of St. Catherine University. Last year marked the fifth time in the last six years that Belle Plaine has won the section championship and starred at state (the highest honor achievable). The other four most recent were in 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2011. Belle Plaine also won section championships and received starred performance ratings at state in 1993, 1997, 1999 and 2000. This year’s production is B.
One-Act
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by Dan Ruud With very little chitchat, the Belle Plaine City Council breezed through its agenda in 32 minutes last Tuesday night, and in the process unanimously accepted the final plans and ordered the advertisement of bids for the city’s 2013 street and utility improvement project. This year’s project includes street reconstruction and utility improvements at: – West Main Street between Willow Street and Buffalo Street. – Eagle Street between Park Street and Main Street. – 100 block of North Buffalo Street. During the public hearing that
was held in September, City Engineer Joe Duncan reported that the total estimated cost of the project is $1,963,850, of which $1,416,416 (approximately 70 percent) would be paid for by the city. The rest would be assessed to benefitting property owners. Duncan added that streets in much of the project area will be narrowed by several feet, which will significantly increase the size of a number of lawns and right-of-way in the project area. The advertisement of bids began Jan. 28 and the bid opening is scheduled for Feb. 21. The project is expected to begin this spring with substantial completion in late August. Substantial completion in this case means
that all streets in the project area will be ready for use. Other minor, punch-list type work will be completed the following spring. In other business last Tuesday night, the council unanimously authorized the purchase of a 2013 Chevy Silverado halfton pickup for the Belle Plaine Fire Department. Fire Chief Todd Otto reported that the department uses a 1984 chevy pickup as the chief’s vehicle, which was scheduled for replacement on this year’s capital improvement plan and the old vehicle will be sold at
City Council
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Board OKs Security Upgrades at B.P. Schools Steinhagen ‘Disgusted’ Upgrades Necessary Six weeks after a lone gunman killed 20 children and six adults at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn., the Belle Plaine School Board took steps to try to keep students safer in its schools. Monday evening, the board unanimously approved a series of security upgrades to Chatfield and Oak Crest elementary schools and Belle Plaine Junior-Senior High School. The
upgrades should control who enters schools and the points of access. The upgrades include an improved video security system in the junior-senior high school, one that’s accessible via the Internet. It allows police to see who is in the building and where the person is from their patrol cars or other remote locations. Lt. Col. David Grossman (U.S. Army, retired) recommended the upgrades after speaking to local and regional police in Belle Plaine and local and area teachers in Jordan. An expert on school violence and security, Grossman assessed the security shortcomings during a tour of Belle Plaine school
facilities during his visit earlier this month. The board approved the installation of electronic locks on the front exterior doors at the three school buildings. The other exterior doors in each building will remain locked throughout the school day, requiring visitors to enter buildings through the front door. Using cameras aimed at the front door of each building and an audio system, visitors will have to call into the front office to request access to the building, said Superintendent Kelly Smith. A staff person will scan
School Board
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Super Valu reported that it will hold on to its Cub Foods and other smaller chains. Smith was named CFO for Super Valu in late 2010. She had held the position on an interim basis since Pamela Knous stepped down from the job in July of 2010. Smith, the daughter of Mary and the late Donald Stier of Belle Plaine, joined Super Valu in 1987. She held a variety of positions in the corporate accounting and financial reporting areas of the company, including vice president, corporate controller and treasurer. Prior to serving as the interim CFO, Smith was the company’s senior vice president of finance for eight years.
Pat and Bonnie Skelley to Lead St. Patrick’s Parade The Belle Plaine St. Patrick’s Committee has selected Pat and Bonnie Skelley to lead this year’s St. Patrick’s Parade. The committee will hold its next planning meeting for the 2013 celebration this Thursday at Johan’s downtown. All committee members and bar/restaurant owners are asked to attend.
It begins at 5:30 p.m. This year’s celebration will take place on Saturday, March 16.
Queen Candidates Sought
High School senior girls of Irish descent interested in becoming a candidate for Miss Shamrock are asked to contact the school office. For more information, call Jeanette Gloege at 952-873-6684.
Trying On for the Big Day Sunday’s Belle Plaine Chamber of Commerce-sponsored “From Me to You” Wedding Expo and Bridal Consignment at Oak Crest Elementary School gave dozens of brides-to-be an opportunity to try on various wedding dresses. One of those bridesto-be was Morgan Peterson of Jordan. Pictured with her are mom Debi Peterson and sister Lauren Peterson. More wedding expo photos appear on page 16.