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School board conducts interviews, fills board seat BY SHANNON GRANHOLM MANAGING EDITOR
High school takes on challenge of ‘It’s a Wonderful Life’ SHANNON GRANHOLM | PRESS PUBLICATIONS
George Bailey (senior Peter Mundale) and Mary Hatch (senior Avery Emmer) do the Charleston at the school dance. BY SHANNON GRANHOLM MANAGING EDITOR
Later this week, 80 students from Centennial High School (CHS) will perform a classic, and it couldn’t be a better time. CHS Theater Director Eric Webster selected this year’s show — “It’s a Wonderful Life.” “I love this movie, and I’ve always wanted to do this show. It’s
always been a dream of mine and now is a perfect time,” Webster said. “I can’t think of a better time for a lot of reasons. We all need to hear the story and feel good and realize that we all matter, that everybody matters.” He added, “It’s the greatest story ever told.” “It’s a Wonderful Life” is a 1964, Academy Award-nominated fi lm that centers around George Bailey, a man who has given up his
personal dreams in order to help others in his community. Bailey’s suicide attempt on Christmas Eve brings about an intervention by his guardian angel, Clarence Odbody, who shows George how he has touched the lives of others and how different life would be for his wife Mary and his community if he had not been born. SEE ‘IT’S A WONDERFUL LIFE’, PAGE 10
After conducting interviews with the top four candidates, the Centennial School Board has now decided who will fi ll the one-year term until the special election next November. School Board Director Stephanie Carlson, whose term was supposed to run through 2024, submitted her resignation last month. The school board received nine applications and decided to interview four of those candidates at a special school board meeting last week. The candidates interviewed included: John Burns, Laura Gannon, Cindy Hansen and Robert (Bob) Vollbrecht. Each of the four candidates was asked the same questions, with the exception of the fi rst to be interviewed (Burns). All of the candidates were asked: • Please tell us something about yourself and your interest in serving on the Centennial School Board, including past exposure you and your family have had with the Centennial School District. • What previous experiences have you had working with or as a member of a SEE CENTENNIAL SCHOOL BOARD, PAGE 9
Lexington and Blaine can’t agree on interconnected water system BY SHANNON GRANHOLM MANAGING EDITOR
If the cities of Blaine and Lexington can’t come to an agreement soon, they may find themselves in a courtroom. The two cities have an interconnected water system that dates back to the ’70s, when there was a joint powers agreement (JPA) in place. The JPA has since been dissolved, but the cities still have a permit through the Minnesota Department of Natural
Resources (DNR) that requires both cities to use each other as a water resource. The city of Blaine just finished a long list of improvements to its water infrastructure, most recently this summer, with the completion of its fourth water treatment facility. Blaine Mayor Tim Sanders, who took office last January, said there is a concern about Lexington’s water, which is of poorer quality, mixing with Blaine’s water.
“We have invested over $40 million in the past several years to improve our water system infrastructure,” Sanders said in a phone interview. “Really, the goal of that was to provide the bestquality water and reliability for Blaine residents and businesses at a low cost.” Although the city of Blaine has voiced its concerns over the joint system, Lexington City Attorney Kurt Glaser told Press he is only aware of two “serious attempts” by
the city of Blaine to separate the systems back in the ’80s. About a year ago, the topic came up again. Attorneys are now involved on both sides, although both sides seem hopeful that a mutually beneficial resolution will be able to be worked out outside of the courtroom. “We are stuck in the middle of something here that is just bizarre,” Glaser said. “The city has basically exhausted its patience with this … This has been going on for a little over a
year.” Glaser said the city of Lexington should have been at the table for discussions when Blaine was planning its improvements. “What sucks about this is this really should have been regional water planning. If they didn’t like the quality of Lexington’s well, then when they were redoing their water systems, we all should have been joined in the planning together — and we SEE WATER SYSTEM, PAGE 15
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