When the National Weather Service issued a Blizzard Warning for the Fergus Falls area, conditions weren’t looking favorable. Just a week ago, the Fergus Falls area was enjoying temperatures in the low-to-mid thirties. That changed over night.
This storm not only canceled schools, but businesses were forced to close as well. For instance, the Fergus Falls Medical Group closed at noon, and the West Ridge Mall closed at 5:00PM.
Conditions only worsened when the day continued. Eventually, the Otter Tail County Sheriff’s Department issued a statement advising no travel throughout Otter Tail County.
LOOKING FORWARD
While temperatures this week will be considerably cooler than a week ago, we shouldn’t have to worry about any winter storms making their way into our area. Highs for this week will be in the low teens, with lows being just below zero.
Forget the economic downturn. Perham, a short drive north-east of Fergus Falls, is currently reviewing a 5-year-plan, which includes a dozen capital improvement projects, that totals $13.7 million.
The capital improvement plan was reviewed by the Perham City Council on January 11th, along with one of the city engineers, Jade Berube.
The largest project on the list is a two-phase expansion of the City’s waste-water treatment facility, which will cost roughly $5.6 million. The first phase of that expansion will include upgrades of the current facility, as well as equipment, sometime in 2011, which will cost just over $2.1 million. In 2012, a new aeration pond is set to be put in with an estimated cost of nearly $3.5 million.
Replacement of Fifth Avenue is another one of the big projects in Perham’s 5-year-plan. That will include total replacement of Fifth Avenue, as well as curb and gutters, sidewalks, a water main, and a storm sewer. That project has a price tag of $731,000.
With downtown areas being the heart of many smaller community’s retail scene, it’s no surprise that the City of Perham also has plans for improvement in their downtown area. Concrete gutters will be installed and improved parking lots, which are used for parking and delivery of goods, are included in Perham’s downtown improvement plans, which will cost the City roughly $215,000. The City would pay just over half of that, with $105,000 being assessed to property owners.
In addition, Perham’s airport is set to benefit from $350,000 in state funding. The City is planning on reconstructing the runway, which will be a complete upgrade of the 16-year-old runway. That is scheduled for 2011. Total costs for the airport upgrades are $550,000, with the City covering the remaining $200,000.
In addition to the projects listed above, Perham is also planning on the following:
Improvement of Second Avenue Southwest
Utility upgrades on Third Avenue Southwest
Various improvements to Third Street Southwest (Hospital) Street
Northeast Industrial Park Utility and Street Improvements
City sewer upgrades on Fifth Street Northwest
Reconstruction of Fourth Street and Fifth Avenue Northwest
Perham is also looking past its 5-year-plan, and into 2015 to 2019. In those upcoming years, industrial park additions, street and utility improvements, as well as airport enhancements are all in the horizon for the growing community, of just under 3,000.
Keith Urban, Kid Rock, and Kenny Chesney will be headlining this years WE Fest country music festival in Detroit Lakes, Minn. this year.
32 Below, based out of Fargo, will kick off the event on August 5th, and Rand Houser, Gloriana, Montgomery Gentry, and Urban will follow.
On August 6th, the group Troubadour starts, and then will be followed by Eric Church, Blake Shelton, Jason Aldean, and Kid Rock.
The final day of the country music festival, August 7th, will begin with Hitchville, who will be followed by Joe Nichols, Gretchen Wilson, Dierks Bentley, and then Kenny Chesney.
Single-day tickets are available for $49, while they last, or three day tickets are available for $99 as well. Festival and camping tickets cost up to $1,000, but includes elevated seating with hospitality. More information about purchasing tickets, or the event in general, is available on wefest.com, or by calling (800) 493-3378.
The first WE Fest was held in 1983, and on average, over 50,000 people attend over the duration of the event. In 2007, a record attendance record was set, with over 83,000 people.
With temperatures in the 30′s this past week, Fergus Falls residents surely have enjoyed the weather. However, reality will kick back in this weekend after we welcome winter back from its short vacation.
According to the National Weather Service of Grand Forks, a major snow and freezing rain storm will makes its way into the area late Friday night, and early Saturday morning. The storm will move from the southern Red River Valley into Minnesota, and will mainly effect west central/north west Minnesota.
The immediate Fergus Falls area is expected to get anywhere between 6 to 12 inches of snow. When the snow is over with, blowing and drifting snow will also several impact any travel Sunday night and well into the day on Monday.
While it’s too early to determine exact measurements, due to fluctuating temperature forecasts, Fergus Falls could get up to a half-inch layer of ice as well.
As always you can trust Fergus Forum to have the latest weather information, as well as up-to-the-minute weather-related delays and cancellations.
Conan O’Brien is considering everything from a talk show on Jewish Life TV to starring in a Pink Visual porno dubbed “Conan the Bangbarian”. Jokes aside, he is also considering working at a Fargo hip-hop radio station, Y94.
As soon as word got out that Conan O’Brien and NBC were in argument over the “Tonight Show”, the comedian started to get job offers from around the country.
If O’Brien accepts Y94′s position, he would be a sidekick to hosts Rat, Zero, and Megan on the station’s “Morning Playhouse” program.
The Fargo pop station offered him a position on its “Morning Playhouse” program as a sidekick to hosts Rat, Zero and Megan.
On the Monday night episode of the “Tonight Show”, O’Brien said “I could do that”, when he was talking about the Y94 job offer.
Fans of O’Brien can vote on which job offer he should pursue on the the Tonight Show’s website at www.tonightshowwithconanobrien.com.
Fans can vote on which offer he should pursue on www.tonightshowwithconanobrien.com.
At 4:00 PM on Tuesday, Y94′s job offer was second to Pink Visual’s “Conan the Bangbarian” movie.
Former Fergus Falls teacher and coach, Phil Link, has resigned a position in Chaska after allegations of financial wrong-doing.
According to a search warrant filed by Chaska Police in Carver County Court, the district alleges that between June 14 and Dec. 15, 2009, Link, head football coach and administrative dean, “made claims for reimbursement to the school district for costs he did not incur and were eventually paid for by another party that did not know he already had received compensation for those costs.”
The financial scope of the allegations is currently unclear. According to details in the search warrant, alleged financial improprieties appear to pertain to a summer football program.
According to the Jan. 14 school board packet, Link is resigning his position as head football coach and administrative dean effective Jan. 29. Link did not return two calls from the Herald for comment.
Chaska Police Chief Scott Knight said he could not comment on the case, but would “confirm we have an open investigation.” No charges have yet been filed against Link. At this time, the Carver County Attorney’s Office has no comment.
Nancy Kracke, director of communications and staff relations for District 112, acknowledged that the district had received Link’s resignation. “There were concerns brought to our attention about Coach Link,” she said.
Kracke noted that Link was put on paid administrative leave while the district conducted an investigation, though she could not say when that occurred. “Our investigation is over,” she said. “And he has resigned.”
Kracke said that until the school board takes action, the details of the investigation are “still a personnel issue” that she was not able to comment further on.
Although no charges have been filed yet against Link, a search warrant executed on Dec. 23 resulted in the confiscation of Link’s bank account records at Community Bank Chaska.
The search warrant indicates that on Dec. 3, James O’Connell, director of Administrative Services, told police he believed Link made claims for reimbursement through District 112 Community Education for expenses he did not pay for, and that had already been billed to the Chaska Touchdown Club football booster organization.
Reimbursement claims centered on expenses submitted for a summer football camp coached by Link. The search warrant alleges that Link requested reimbursement from both Community Education and the Chaska Touchdown Club.
The warrant also implies that Link did not pay assistant coaches their full salaries for the camp, stating that Link insisted on receiving the coaches’ salaries for the camp and distributing them himself. In one example, the search warrant stated that Link told Community Education Coordinator Susan Harberts that he planned to pay assistant coach Rodney Melton $1,000. Melton later said he was paid only $800.
Other coaches allegedly reported the same thing. According to the search warrant, $4,200 was given to Link for coaches’ salaries, but only $3,450 was paid out.
The warrant stated that Link allegedly believed the Touchdown Club would cover his expenses and he would keep the money given to him by Community Education as “assistance while he transitioned to his new job as football coach and dean.”
Link said he “needed the money because the school district had not paid him until September,” but according to the warrant, school district records show that Link received his first paycheck on July 15.
Link was hired as head football coach for the high school in May after stints at Fergus Falls High School and in North Branch. He was a two-time finalist for Teacher of the Year in Fergus Falls and was named the Nike Football Coach of the year in 2002.
Under Link, the Hawk football team posted a 3-6 record in 2009, finishing with a 28-14 loss to Minnetonka in the Section 6-5A quarterfinals.
At the time of his hiring, Chaska High School Athletic Director Troy Stein said, “Phil completely impressed and inspired us with his enthusiasm and passion for coaching football. Phil comes with a strong football background and will serve as an outstanding leader of our football program.
“Phil exemplifies the leadership, knowledge and dedication we strive for in our football program, Chaska High School and the community of Chaska,” he said.
Link has patrolled the sidelines as a high school football coach for more than 20 seasons, since completing an All-American football playing career at Olivet University in Illinois.
He began as an assistant football coach at Kankakee High School in Kankakee, Ill., and was the head football coach at Underwood High School from 1989-98.
In 1999, Link was hired as the head football coach at Fergus Falls High School, and also served an assistant for the Minnesota State Community and Technical College football team in Fergus Falls.
Link was hired to coach the North Branch High School team in June, 2008 and led the Vikings to a 1-8 season.
School budget constraints cut Link’s physical education teaching position at the school in April, 2009.
North Branch football players, parents and fans took a liking to Link. An online petition was created to lobby the North Branch school board to keep Link on as coach, and consider him for the then-vacant athletic director position. More than 700 signatures were attached to the effort.
Rothsay, located just 20 minutes north-west of Fergus Falls, is planning to reduce electricity consumption by 10 to 15 percent over the next three to five years.
The community of around 500 people, was approached by Fergus Falls-based Otter Tail Power Company, participate in something called the Rothsay Energy Challenge. Otter Tail Power plans to spend $300,000 over two years on the energy conservation initative.
That cost amounts to a lifetime savings of 3 cents for every kilowatt hour saved, which would be cheaper than building new generating capacity. The City of Rothsay have completed energy audits of its city and school buildings.
School officials are considering geothermal and thermal storage, pending the availability of grants. In addition, students of the Rothsay Public School are going door-to-door asking residents to sign energy conservation pledges.
Andrew Leonard, a graduate student at UND in Grand Forks, has been named Outstanding Center of Excellence Student of the Year by the Federal Aviation Administration. This is the first time a UND student has won this award.
According to the Grand Forks Herald, Leonard was nominated for the award by Kim Kenville, the director of Aerospace graduate studies. In her nomination letter, Kenville stated that Leonard is committed to academic achievement, is willing to assist others, and is doing valuable and original research.
Leonard is from Dent, Minn., which is roughly 30 miles north-east of Fergus Falls, where he is part owner/operator of East Silent Resort, along with his family. Andrew also serves on the Otter Tail Country Tourism Board. In addition, Andrew carries a 4.0 grade point average at UND. He currently holds a private pilot license, something he’s had since 2007, and is working towards his commercial license. Andrew is also a graduate research assistant, in which he teaches undergraduate courses in long-range navigation, airline operations and management, among others.
Leonard will be recognized at an awards banquet when he ventures to Washington, D.C., on January 9th.
A Fergus Falls women has fallen victim to a counterfeit money scam, which was discovered at the Walmart in Fergus Falls on Monday. According to authorities, the Fergus Falls women had been communicating with a man from England on the popular social-networking website, Facebook, who sent her the fake money in the mail. This money was to be used to purchase a money order to help get his friend back to the United Kingdom from the United States. Fergus Falls police have forwarded their information on this incident to the Secret Service office in Fargo. The women who tried to purchase the money order is not suspected of being involved in the scam.
Six illegal aliens were discovered living and working in Perham on Wednesday. They are currently in the custody of the United States Border Patrol, located in Grand Forks, and are waiting deportation back to Guatemala, Mexico, and Nicaragua. The six illegal aliens were discovered after a wage dispute, which caused someone to notify the Otter Tail County Sheriff’s office. The employer in Perham has yet to be named. All six of the illegal aliens were men aged 20 to 33-years old.
