PINE CITY
THURSDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2016 VOL. 131 NO. 40 www.pinecitymn.com $1.00
GRIDIRON GLORY: Dragon football breaks losing streak, beats Moose Lake/Willow River. P14
Sheriff seeks hitand-run witnesses STAFF REPORT NEWS@PINECITYMN.COM
The Pine County Sheriff’s Office is seeking eyewitnesses to a hit-and-run in Pine City on the night of Sunday, Oct. 2. According to the sheriff’s office, at about 10:25 p.m. dispatchers received a call about a hit-and-run in the 700 block of 2nd Street SE in Pine City.
A pickup had struck a parked car, pushed it almost a block and then fled the area. The suspect vehicle is described as a late 1990s to early 2000s model Chevrolet pickup, possibly silver in color.
TRAIL OF DEBRIS The truck involved in the SEE HIT-AND-RUN, PAGE 11
County preliminary levy up 6.5% next year BY HENRY FISCHER NEWS@PINECITYMN.COM
MIKE GAINOR | THE PIONEER
Fishing on a warm October weekend Young fisherman Henry Frazer made the most of a beautiful Sunday, Oct. 2 afternoon, casting off his dock on Pokegama Lake looking to pull in one or two more big ones before fall truly arrives.
The Pine County Board has approved a 2017 preliminary property tax levy of $16,982,878, up about $1 million from this year’s county levy of $15,942,799. In setting the preliminary levy, county officials noted that the preliminary budget is out of balance by approximately $1.6 million. Commissioners asked department heads to sharpen their pencils and come back with a prioritized list of needs in an ef-
fort to cut another $600,000 from the budget or figure out ways to increase revenue to fill the gap. The Pine County Board plans to have two more Budget Committee meetings in October and November, leading up to the county’s Truth in Taxation public hearing in December. At that time, the county board can approve a final levy that is equal to, or less than, the preliminary levy, but it cannot be more. In a sense, commissioners decided to hold the line, at least in SEE COUNTY, PAGE 11
Pheasant hunters prepare for season BY MIKE GAINOR EDITOR@PINECITYMN.COM
With the 2016 pheasant season ready to kick off on Oct. 15, area pheasant hunters are looking forward to heading out into the woods and fields of Pine County in search of the elusive bird. And Robert Musgrove of the East Central Spurs Chapter of Pheasants Forever, is no exception. “I most look forward to two things,” Musgrove said. “First, it is a chance to work as a true team with one of my dogs. Hunting behind a skilled dog is a
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true joy – experiencing the intensity of the dog but also working together in tandem to cover a field. Secondly, it is usually a group effort, and the camaraderie is rich and deep and immensely fun.” The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources reports that the mild winter, good nesting season conditions and a slight increase in grassland habitat in the pheasant range have increased Minnesota’s roadside pheasant index by nearly a third compared to last year. In warm winters more hens survive which means more nests in the spring. The 2016 hen index was 7.9 hens per 100
miles driven, up 31 percent from last year. “We’ve had two back-to-back mild winters and two relatively good springs and summers in a row,” said DNR research scientist Nicole Davros. “There’s no doubt that this has really helped our pheasant population rebound, especially when you consider the habitat losses we’ve been facing since 2007 in Minnesota,” Davros said. This has pheasant hunters particularly excited about this year’s hunt, though
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SEE PHEASANTS, PAGE 11
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