BPHS Girls’ Hoops Team Tops Bethlehem
Scott West Wrestlers Keep Winning
Community Holiday Event Photos
Page 13
Pages 2, 14
Page 13
ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-THIRD YEAR
BELLE PLAINE, MINNESOTA, DECEMBER 10, 2014
75¢ SINGLE COPY
NUMBER 50
City Reduces Asking Price for Property It Owns South of 169 During a workshop last Mon- Council Member Cary Coop ported marketing the land to enday night (Dec. 1), the Belle recommended that the city not courage development, whether Plaine City Council agreed reduce the price because of the it be at a reduced price or with to reduce its asking price for site’s future development po- financial incentives such as nearly six acres of industrial/ tential in that segment of the tax increment financing or tax commercial-zoned property it city. He indicated that he was abatement. owns near the public works fa- in no hurry to negotiate the sale Following further review since of the property and said that the that September workshop, the cility south of Highway 169. The city purchased the site land was still a good, long-term consensus of the council last (just west of the then Wester- investment, and he did not want week was to okay a comproman Lumber building) from to undercut the price of other mise with staff and the EDA and reduce the asking price to private property owners total- land in the area. ing $1,035,740 in 2008 to re- Council members Scott Sch- $3 per square foot, which based serve for a possible new public neider and Paul Chard con- on 5.7 acres of buildable propworks facility or perhaps sell it curred with Coop, saying the erty, comes to $744, 876. That’s to industrial/commercial inter- asking price should stay the about one-fourth less than what ests. Over a half-dozen years same but that they would be the city paid for the site in later, the property remains un- open to negotiations depending 2008. on the type of development. sold and vacant. The property is currently beDuring a workshop in Sep- Council Member Gary Trost ing marketed by Colliers InterBelle Plaine Fire Chief Todd Otto said a Sunday morning fire caused significant heat and tember, the council reviewed a also did not support a reduced national. For more information, smoke damage throughout the interior of this unoccupied home along West Forest Street (lot recommendation from staff and listing and suggested that the call Brian Netz at 952-89725). the city’s economic develop- city consider keeping the land 7736 or e-mail Brian.Netz@ ment authority (EDA) to lower for city use, such as for a future colliers.com. You can also contact Belle Plaine Community the price of the parcel from $4 fire hall. per square foot to $2 per square Mayor Mike Pingalore sup- Development Director Chelsea Alger at 952-873-5553 or calfoot. A fire that remains under in- Although the home, located the result of arson, only that the ger@ci.belleplaine.mn.us. vestigation severely damaged on lot 25 along West Forest state fire marshal’s office and or possibly totaled a mobile Street, was unoccupied, Otto Belle Plaine police are still inhome in Belle Plaine Sunday said there was some furniture vestigating. morning. and other belongings destroyed Otto said Belle Plaine fire- Letters to Santa Belle Plaine Fire Chief Todd in the fire. fighters were assisted by memOtto said no one was living Cindy Olson, a comanager of bers of the Jordan and Mdewa- Deadline Dec. 17 The University of Minnesota Kroells, a in the home at the time of the the mobile home park, said she kanton fire departments. Some The Herald will publish all the has announced that Thursday, 2012 gradublaze, which was reported by did not want to release any in- firefighters remained on the Letters to Santa it receives this Dec. 18 will be Belle Plaine ate of Belle neighbors at approximately 6 formation about the owner(s) of scene for several hours. year in its special Christmas isCommunity Day when the Plaine High a.m. Otto said the blaze caused the trailer until after the inves- Olson said RV Horizons Inc. sue. Gophers wrestling team takes S c h o o l , significant heat and smoke tigation. out of Cedaredge, Colo., purdamage throughout the interior Otto did not give any indica- chased the mobile home park Letters can be dropped off at on Northwestern 7 p.m. at the is the Gothe Herald office at 113 East Sports Pavilion. phers’ startof the trailer. tion that the fire may have been from Haefner Enterprises of Main Street downtown, or All Belle Plaine residents and ing heavyBelle Plaine in 2013. mailed to the same address at the family and friends of Go- weight this Post Office Box 7. You can also phers wrestler Michael Kroells season. He e-mail them to bpherald@fronwill be admitted to the dual was a twotiernet.net. time state match for $5. All letters must be at the Her2A For more information or to Class ald office by 5 p.m. Dec. 17 or purchase tickets in advance, champion wrestler while in be postmarked no later than visit the U of M’s wrestling high school. He is the son of that date. Larry Kroells and Laura Cunwebsite. and Activities Director Mindy how requests from transgender ningham, and Lori Kroells. Sparby wouldn’t have been cer- students to participate in girls’ tain what to do. sports. State law already allows This week, they have a policy girls to participate in boys’ to follow. sports. “I’d be on the phone seeing This fall, the Belle Plaine what other districts would do,” School Board supported a resoWithout last week’s Minnesota he said. “South Dakota has a lution calling for the MSHSL’s State High School League deci- (transgender) policy. I’d prob- directors to pass a transgender policy. The MSHSL’s decision on how to properly handle ably check there.” Thursday (Dec. 4), the Minnesion was nearly unanimous. a transgender student’s request to participate in a girls’ sport, sota State High School League To participate in girls’ sports, a Belle Plaine School District (MSHSL) Board of Directors transgender student must comSuperintendent Kelly Smith approved a policy governing plete a detailed set of criteria. It includes letters from parents, friends and health-care providers operating within their licensed specialty substantiating the person’s gender identity. “A person can’t decide Friday they’re going to go out for the volleyball team on Monday,” Smith said. Schools will decide whether a transgender student who follows the MSHSL policy can participate on a girls’ team. If a school rejects a request, the two-page approved policy states a transgender person appealing a school’s decision to Jim’s Apple Barn, the yellow barn-shaped candy store along Highway 169 northeast of Belle the MSHSL for review by an Plaine, is growing. General Manager Robert Wagner hired Matt Kes (right) and his crew to independent hearing officer. The new MSHSL policy states build a 2,000-square-foot addition on the north side of the building. the decision will comply with state and federal laws and regulations. The ruling allows the Gas prices in Belle Plaine are at their lowest in several years student will be eligible to paras Cenex, Coborn’s and Kwik Trip were all at $2.47.9 for a ticipate in MSHSL activities gallon of regular unleaded gas on Tuesday, which compares to consistent with the student’s $2.99 this time last year and well over $3 most of this year. The gender identification for the While the steady stream of goods store opens for its 37th a cave,” he said. “The building visitors has ended for the sea- season next summer. is already about the length of a all-time high in Belle Plaine was set in May of 2013 when the balance of the student’s high son, activity at Jim’s Apple Wagner said the additional football field.” school eligibility. price skyrocketed to $4.29.9. The current price in Minnesota two-story display space would Wagner’s hope is that the exThe names of transgender Barn is still bustling. on average is $2.53 per gallon, which is down about 40 cents students invoking the policy Another expansion project is be open and filled with sun- pansion will be part of another from last month, when it started to dip below $3 at $2.94 per will be private data under state underway at the yellow barn light. A mural will be on the good year. The family-owned gallon. Gas prices across the nation have fallen steadily over law. The policy is scheduled to along Highway 169 northeast north wall of the new area. business saw an increase in the past few months and they’re currently at their lowest level go into effect at the start of the of Belle Plaine. Large picture windows will al- 2014 business, thanks in part to in about four years. According to experts, the trend doesn’t 2015-16 school year. Construction of an additional low sunlight to enter the space, less rain than the area received appear to be changing very soon. They say lower crude oil 2,000-square-feet of product enhancing the open area. in the late-summer and fall of prices are continuing to drive prices down, along with an display space on the north side Wagner said adding the space 2013. New MSHSL abundant oil supply and the rising value of the U.S. dollar. of the barn will expand the on the north side of the build- Wagner is using Belle Plaine (continued on page 6) The highest-priced gas in the lower 48 states (as of the start candy store’s display area and ing, rather than just extending and area contractors, like Matt storage to about 21,000-square it farther eastward, would give Kes for the building work and of this week) was in San Francisco, where it was $3.04 per feet, said Robert Wagner, gen- the building a bit more char- Lange’s Plumbing & Heating gallon. The lowest was in Albuquerque, N.M., where it was eral manager. acter so it wouldn’t appear as for the air conditioning. about $2.38 per gallon. What’s all this mean? Americans are The work will be completed large as it is. “We like keeping things locollectively saving $110 million per day on gas compared to a well before the candy and apple “We didn’t want it to seem like cal,” Wagner said. year ago.
Fire Destroys B.P. Mobile Home
Gophers Wrestling Team to Hold Belle Plaine Day Dec. 18
New MSHSL Transgender Policy: A Map for B.P., Schools to Follow Policy Will Take Effect in 2015-‘16 School Year
The Lowest in Years
Even During Off-Season, Jim’s Apple Barn Growing