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“Where Fillmore County News Comes First” Weekly Edition
Spring Car Care pages
7-11
Kingsland OKs new plan
Monday, April 25, 2016
Volume 31 Issue 31
Ask a Trooper
Local dairy farmers honored
Harmony approves audit
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Canton • Chatfield • Fountain • Harmony • Houston • Lanesboro • Mabel • Ostrander • Peterson • Preston • Rushford • Rushford Village • Spring Valley • Whalan • Wykoff
Cropp celebrates 25 years at Commonweal By Barb Jeffers barb@fillmorecountyjournal.com
For 25 years, Hal Cropp has lived the life of his dreams at the Commonweal Theatre Company in Lanesboro, Minn. While growing up in Hornell, N.Y., Cropp first acquired the acting bug at 14 years old, when he was cast as the Tin Man in a summer camp production of the Wizard of Oz. He was very sick the day of the play and actually got out of a hospital bed to perform. And he hasn’t stopped since. After graduating high school, Cropp attended Brown University in Providence, R.I., where he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Theater in 1973. Cropp lived in the Bay Area of California for 18 years, working in the psychiatric health care field. Although his employment at a chronic children’s hospital was rewarding, he remained active in the theatre as an avoca-
Hal Cropp sits on stage of the Commonweal Theatre during his 25th season of acting and directing plays, enjoyed by area residents and tourists alike. Photo by Barb Jeffers
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Preston Historical Society president Sheila Craig and Tourism director Sarah Wangen proposed sponsorship levels to raise money for renovation of the former Dairy and Farm building at the city council’s April 18 meeting. The city council appears to be in agreement, contingent on environmental clean up, that the city will likely purchase the property for $100,000 payable over 10 years. City Administrator Joe Hoffman reported that a Phase II study which will involve
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a more comprehensive soil investigation should be completed in May. The soil study will determine how much soil will have to be removed. The cost for the clean up is Dairy and Farm’s responsibility. Wangen said all three entities, including Tourism, the Historical Society, and the National Trout Center have committed to moving forward with the project. A kick-off event for the fund raising is planned for Friday, May 20, during Trout Days. She added that we need to reassure people that the city is on board. Councilman David Collett stated, “I think we’ve
been on board from the beginning.” There are plans to have an open house at the Dairy and Farm/Riverside Center on May 20 from 5 to 8 p.m. The public can view the interior of the building and the plans to remake it. The sponsorship plan identifies different levels for both corporate and individual sponsors. Sponsors will be recognized on plaques. Large sponsors will have a specific item that will recognize that sponsor. Craig explained that any funds raised will be kept in a special account, so they can be See PRESTON Page 15
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Water tower projects in Canton
Fund-raising plans for Riverside Center By K aren R eisner
tion. After receiving his M.B.A. in 1983 from Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, Calif., Cropp decided it was time to live his true passion and pursue theatre full-time. While living in the Bay area, Cropp worked with various theatre companies including the Magic Theatre in San Francisco, where he appeared in the longest running production in its history, A Moon for the Misbegotten by Eugene O’Nen. In 1990, he moved to Denver, Colo., to pursue a Master of Fine Arts in Acting at the National Theatre Conservatory. When asked what brought him to Lanesboro, Cropp answered in two words: Eric Bunge. Bunge started the Commonweal Theatre Company in 1989, and after he and Cropp performed together in Denver in 1992, Bunge told him about the
By Liz Giese liz@fillmorecountyjournal.com
Projects involving the water tower were up for discussion at the regular meeting of the Canton City Council on April 13. Jon Nordsving, lead city maintenance employee, reported that there is still a water leak. He was able to locate the leak, however he was not comfortable digging in the area because it was very close to a footing for one of the water tower’s legs. He noted that digging near the footing could compromise the strength and stability of the support leg. Canton’s water tower was built
in 1914, and in the last hundred years all sorts of utilities have been put into the ground around it. There is water piping about 7-8 feet underground and over that at about 3 feet underground are gas lines, telephone lines and three phase electrical lines. To further complicate digging, the shape of the footing is unknown and, of course, there is a possibility of other surprises that may be encountered after digging has started. Considering these difficulties, Nordsving consulted with an engineer about the best way See CANTON Page 12
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