MAYOR’S COLUMN
Greetings from Mayor Gary Forcier W elcome to Hutchinson! As the mayor and a lifelong resident, I want to tell you about all of the positive things Hutchinson has happening that make it a destination worth exploring. Hutchinson has a rich history as a prairie area settled by a family of nationally acclaimed singing brothers. We are proud of history and celebrate our legacy. Today, our city is well known as a great and skilled manufacturing city, but it is also a destination city. Hutchinson is a regional hub for the surrounding area, attracting visitors from near and far. Whether you are here for one of our many events, tournaments or festivals, or just spending a day shopping and relaxing, we want
you to feel at home in Hutchinson. We o f f e r m a ny di f f e re n t activities for both young and old. We have a fantastic park and trail system featuring the paved Luce Line State Trail and Hutchinson Fa mily A quatic Center. O ur revitalized downtown offers many different shopping and dining experiences. Our arts community is thriving and can be experienced through things like the Hutchinson Sculpture Stroll and the Hutchinson Center for the Arts. We are very fortunate to host events like the Orange Spectacular, Minnesota Garlic Festival, the Jaycee Water Carnival, the McLeod County Fair and RiverSong Music Festival, just to name a few. The McLeod County Historical Society and
Museum recently completed the Steffel addition. The HarringtonMerrill House, which was built in 1858 and survived the U.S.-Dakota War of 1862, is one of the oldest wood framed structures in McLeod County. Hutchinson also has a solid and growing foundation when it comes to schools, churches, housing and business. Our schools have rated consistently high on state surveys and are in the process of facility upgrades for the next generation. Hutchinson has a strong faith-based community with many different options for worship. The amount of housing, accommodations and senior living options continue to increase. Businesses both large and small are establishing or expanding
MAYOR GARY FORCIER into our retail areas, industrial park and Hutchinson Enterprise Center. I encourage you to spend just a little more time exploring Hutchinson. I hope that you will see, like I have, that it is a beautiful area to live, work and play.
LIVING IN HUTCHINSON What I love most about Hutchinson is the community. I grew up here and I can’t picture raising a family anywhere else than here. I feel like everywhere you go you see familiar faces, and that’s always so nice”
It’s big enough that there are all kinds of things you can get here, but small enough that you can walk downtown and say hi to people, you know people, it’s a great small community with great people.”
COURTNEY ORWOLL
DAVE KRAMER
Everybody is so nice. Everybody here helps and does the best they can.”
I like that it’s a small town feel, but yet we have larger town amenities. I love the community support since I’m a small business owner. That’s been very nice and welcoming.”
GRACE NOLAN
JILL HASS
Since Hutchinson is so small, everyone knows everybody. We felt immediately plugged in and connected and really welcomed. ... If we need to get anything done, we already have a nice, established network of supportive people.”
I like all the parks and outdoor stuff the city has to offer.” MIKE CURWICK
ANDREW WEBSTER
2022 | Hutchinsonleader.com
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