Belle Plaine SixthGraders Remember Wolf Ridge Boys’ Hoops Team Wins Two of Three
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ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FIFTH YEAR
BELLE PLAINE, MINNESOTA, decEMBER 14, 2016
75¢ SINGLE COPY
NUMBER 50
Students and staff at Kids Company, a before- and after-school childcare program offered by Belle Plaine Schools, created decorations for vacant downtown storefronts. The group includes (back row, from left) Dorothy Saulsbury, Paul Woestehof, Ricky Ledesma, Michael Bruner, Wyatt Vossen, Devan Rupp, artist Brianna Kruschke, (front row, from left) Kaelyn Reinwand, Taylor Mehrkens, Lauren Staples, Jessica Petersen and (not pictured) Braysen Knoblauch.
EDA, School District Bringing Life to Vacant Downtown Storefronts
Unlike those with motorized tools for moving snow, Katarina McCluskey spent much of Sunday morning clearing 9 inches of fluffy snow from the sidewalk in front and alongside of her house at the corner of Cedar and Main streets in Belle Plaine by hand. Frigid temperatures and more snow is expected this winter, virtually guaranteeing a white Christmas.
A White Christmas A Certainty A brown landscape was turned white with a 9-inch snowfall in Belle Plaine and the surrounding area this past weekend, and with below-freezing temperatures forecast for the next 12 days, a white Christmas is almost a certainty. In fact, Belle Plaine and the rest of the Twin Cities region will struggle to make it out of single-digit highs or even above zero this week. No above-freezing days are in the forecast until just after Christmas. Many overnight lows until then will be just above or well below zero. There could be a slight warm-up the middle of next week but not the kind that will melt much snow, more of which could fall late this week. In 116 years of snow depth measurements in the Twin Cities, a white Christmas happens about 72 percent of the time. From 1899 to 2015, there have been 34 years with either a “zero” or a “trace.” The last time the Twin Cities has seen a brown Christmas was last year. and the year before that. The deepest snow cover on Dec. 25 was in 1983 with a hefty 20 inches. It was also a very cold Christmas in 1983, with a high temperature of 1
above zero. It was not the coldest Christmas Day in the Twin Cities. That dubious award goes to 1996 with a “high” temperature of 9 below zero. The warmest Christmas Day was 51 degrees in 1922. One of the more bizarre weather conditions on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day happened in 1982. Heavy rains accompanied by thunder and lightning hit this area after dusk on the 24th and continued into the early-morning hours of the 25th. The rain changed over to a slushy mess of snow later in the morning of the 25th. Driving in the heavy slush was difficult and Belle Plaine Public Works Superintendent Pat Fogarty spent much of Christmas Day plowing the streets. Officially, 1982 was a brown Christmas since the snow depth was measured at 6 a.m. and the change-over occurred after that. Christmas 2007 was the snowiest Christmas Day since 1950. Nearly 3 1/2 inches of very fluffy snow fell at Twin Cities International Airport, making a very picturesque scene. Has there ever been a snowstorm on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day in the Twin
Holy Family Christmas Silent Auction and Bake Sale Sunday Holy Family Academy in Belle Plaine will hold its annual Christmas Silent Auction and Bake Sale 6:30 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 18 at the Belle Plaine Performing Arts Center located in the Belle Plaine District Cen-
ter. The Silent Auction starts at 5:30 p.m. Christmas music will be provided by Holy Family Academy students. The public is invited. Admission and refreshments are free.
Cities? It may depend on what you mean by “snowstorm.” The heaviest snowfall on Christmas Eve was 5.2 inches of snow in 2009. Another 2.0 inches of snow fell on Christmas Day 2009. To find the next significant snowfall, one has to go back in time to 1950 when 5.9 inches of snow fell. The biggest snowstorm was in 1945 when 11.3 inches fell in downtown Minneapolis on Dec. 24-25. The Twin Cities was partially paralyzed as streets and sidewalks were blocked by huge drifts and walking was very difficult. The streetcar system continued to run, albeit a bit tardy. Minneapolis street department employees used every piece of equipment available to clear the streets for Christmas.
choirs, the Our Lady of the Prairie choir, as well as Christmas favorites for all to sing. This concert is a fund-raiser, with all proceeds to benefit the Our Lady of the Prairie Parish Religious Education Program (PREP) and Catholic School Program. The Fund-raiser is sponsored by Catholic United
upbeat visual appearance to the area, said Cynthia Smith Strack, Belle Plaine’s director of Community Development. Using artwork created by Brianna Kruschke and students at Kids Company, a Community Education before and after school childcare program, a seasonal display was placed in the storefront window. Smith Strack said the vacant or under-utilized spaces in downtown buildings could be used short term for displays from people operating home-based businesses or seasonal items for sale over a limited period
of time. Smith Strack said the EDA wants to hear from building owners or entrepreneurs interested in working together to take advantage of vacant or under-utilized space downtown. Chelsea Hutchison, the district’s communications director, said the initiative is one of several the city and school district are considering. Other possible ideas involve using students’ talents in city parks via involvement with Belle Plaine Community Education. “We’ve been working to be as collaborative as we can with the city,” Hutchison said.
Home Decorating Contest You can sign up now to enter the Belle Plaine Rotary Club’s annual Holiday Home Lighting Contest. Judging will take place Dec. 16 or 17 and winners will be announced in the Herald on Dec. 21, including photographs of the top decorated homes. Prizes will also be awarded, for which the Rotary is seeking contributions from local business and organizations. To have your home placed on the list for judging, call or text Diane Skelley at 952-2122834.
OLP Christmas Concert Friday Our Lady of the Prairie Catholic Church will hold its annual Sing, O Heavens Christmas Concert on Friday, Dec. 16. The Youth Prelude begins at 6:30 p.m. and the Concert at 7:00. Come and bring your families to start off the Christmas season by enjoying adult and youth ensembles, youth
Working to bring some life to vacant downtown storefronts, the Belle Plaine Economic Development Authority and Belle Plaine Community Development are working together. The EDA and Community Education began a collaborative “storefront activation” project this week at the former Volleyball Products International building on the 100 block of West Main Street. The building has sat vacant for several years. It is one of as many as four under-utilized or vacant buildings downtown where students talents could offer a more
Belle Plaine’s Tony Kornder (center), an employee for Genesis Growing Solutions in Le Sueur was chosen as Operator of the Year during the 2016 Agricultural Retailers Association (ARA) Conference & Expo in Orlando, Fla. Mark Mohr (left), and David Webster (right), of AGCO Corporation presented Kornder with the grand prize of a new Harley-Davidson® motorcycle.
Belle Plaine Man Wins AGCO National Operator Honor Tony Kornder Enjoys His Work in Great Outdoors
Financial and will receive a matching grant of up to $1000. Following the concert, a wine and dessert reception will be held in the parish hall. Concert and reception admission are a There are people who enjoy freewill donation. We look for- the corner office, the comfortward to an evening of entertain- able chair behind a big desk. ment and celebration with our Tony Kornder isn’t one of community!
them. The Belle Plaine farmer can’t imagine a job where he’s not out in what he calls, “the great outdoors.” Kornder has been working for Genesis Growing Solutions and its predecessor, the Belle Plaine Coop, full-time since 1998. He started with the company the previous year as a part-timer. Kornder, whose about to turn 40, was recently named AGCO’s 11th Annual Operator
of the Year honoree for 2016. AGCO is the company that manufacturers a line of terragators and rogators, machines that apply dry and liquid fertil-
Belle Plaine Man (continued on page 11)