Belle plaine herald january 7, 2015

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2014 Year in Review Continues

Scott West Wrestlers Rule at Rumble on the Red

Boys’ Hoops Team Takes on Faribault BA

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ONE HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FOURTH YEAR

75¢ SINGLE COPY

BELLE PLAINE, MINNESOTA, JANUARY 7, 2015

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City Council Orders Final Plans for 2015 Street Project

Work on the demolition of the former Hot Spot gas and convenience store along Highway 169 northeast of Belle Plaine began yesterday (Jan. 6). The building will be razed and four underground tanks removed.

Mankato Company Buys Hot Spot Site, Plans to Raze Building

Although its plans are as-yet undetermined, a Mankato company has purchased the property that was home to the Hot Spot gas and convenience store on the southeast side of Highway 169 along Old Highway 169 Boulevard northeast of Belle Plaine. B & H Petroleum Equipment of Mankato purchased the 4.23acre property. After falling into foreclosure, it has sat idle since 2009, said Tom Evenson, a broker with Gonyea Land Company. Scott County issued a demoli-

tion permit for the site, a permit that will allow the building to be razed and the four underground tanks removed. The gas station was built in 1960, Evenson said. Ted Kornder, chairperson of the St. Lawrence Township Board of Supervisors, said B & H Petroleum indicated it will have the building razed and then reassess the property and its potential again later in the spring before moving forward with plans for the site. The property is zoned for re-

tail, office or industrial uses. St. Lawrence Township is concerned the Minnesota Department of Transportation (Mn/ DOT) may want to close the access to the property from Highway 169’s southbound lanes or from people crossing the highway on Park Boulevard, a township road, Kornder said. The town board is working with representatives of Mn/ DOT, Kornder said, to keep the access to the property open as long as possible for B & H Petroleum.

Scott County Eyes New Alignment for CR 60 Through Blakeley Twp.

More than six months after storms washed away the walls of ravines supporting County Road 60 through Blakeley Township, the County Board has selected an option for repairing the roadway. In a workshop Tuesday morning after the Scott County

Board’s regular meeting, the last June 19. majority of commissioners in- County highway staff recomformally indicated preference CR 60 for a realignment of County Road 60, also known as Blake(continued on page 12) ley Trail, through the area where the ravines washed away following a torrential rainfall

$1.99 a Sight for Sore Eyes

The price of a gallon of unleaded gasoline dropped to below $2 in Belle Plaine last week and has stayed there since, at least as of late Tuesday. Kwik Trip, Cenex and Coborn’s were all selling a gallon of unleaded gasoline for $1.99.9. In early December, gas prices in Belle Plaine were already at their lowest in several years as Cenex, Coborn’s and Kwik Trip were all at $2.47.9, compared to $2.99 at the same time the previous year and well over $3 most of this year. The all-time high for gas in Belle Plaine was reached in May of 2013, when the price skyrocketed to $4.29.9 a gallon. Experts say lower crude oil prices are continuing to drive prices down, along with an abundant oil supply and the rising value of the U.S. dollar. On Monday, oil prices briefly fell below $50 a barrel.

It’s One of Those Weeks Belle Plaine kids, including Austin Denzer, had to withstand subzero temperatures both Monday and Tuesday during their brief but harsh expeditions to school. The coldest stretch of this winter season has been pretty uncomfortable for adults as well, and today (Wednesday) is expected to be the coldest day of the week, with wind chills approaching 30-40 degrees below zero during the morning hours. The weather is forecast to stay unseasonably cold the rest of the week before warming back up to the 20s next week. The average high for this week in January in the Twin Cities is 21 degrees, which since Sunday we have been nowhere near.

by Dan Ruud The Belle Plaine City Council held its first meeting of 2015 Monday night, and shortly after swearing in Mayor Mike Pingalore and council members Paul Chard and Scott Schneider, all of whom won reelection last November, it was back to business. Included was public hearing No. 1 of the year, which involved the need or lack thereof for the city’s proposed 2015 street and utility improvement project. And after hearing from two affected property owners, the council unanimously okayed the preparation of the final plans for the nearly $1.3 million project. That action came after City Engineer Joe Duncan gave a presentation showing photos of cracked streets and decaying infrastructure in the project area, which consists of street reconstruction and utility improvements on Forest Street West between Grove Street and the railroad right-of-way, and Elk Street between Court and Forest streets (one block). Duncan said the total estimated cost of the project is $1,295,000, approximately one-third of which would be assessed to benefiting property owners. The city, which owns Fountain Park in the project area, would pick up the rest of the tab. City Administrator Holly Kreft reported that notices were mailed to four affected property owners, with the mobile home park being the majority landowner with six parcels with front footages ranging from 200 to 758 feet. RV Horizons Inc. of Cedaredge, Colo., purchased the mobile home park from Haefner Enterprises of Belle Plaine in 2013. “Although they are the landowner, staff recommends that if the project moves forward to construction, the city host a neighborhood meeting with the renters in the mobile home park to inform them of the project and potential impacts,” Kreft said. The only two affected property owners that spoke at the public hearing were Lee Stuewe (400 Forest Street West) and Stuart Haefner (415 Forest Street West). Both said the project seems to be overly expensive

and would like to see it lowered. Haefner also questioned the need for a sidewalk that’s proposed for one side of Forest Street. He added that many of the driveways and parking pads in the mobile home park are quite short and a sidewalk would make the parking situation all the more difficult. Council Member Paul Chard

agreed that it’s an expensive project, but added that because the city has been bidding its annual street projects earlier in recent years, the costs have often gone down, which he hopes will be the case again this year. Council Member Scott Sch-

City Council

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New Home Permits Issued in Belle Plaine Rises to 18 According to Belle Plaine Building Official Scott McCarty, the city issued 18 permits for new single-family homes in 2014, which is 50 percent more than the 12 that were issued in 2013. In 2012, six were issued and in 2011 the total was four. The record year for Belle Plaine was 2001 when nearly 200 new home permits were issued. While Belle Plaine continues its “slow” climb back up the new housing ladder since the glory days of the early 2000s, residential construction activity in the Twin Cities region dropped slightly compared to 2013. According to data compiled by the Keystone Report for the Builders Association of the Twin Cities, there were 4,914 permits issued for a total of 10,093 units in 2014, compared to 10,303 units in 2013. Those unit numbers reflect both new homes and multi-family dwellings. “We had hoped to see a much stronger year in 2014 for single-family construction, but the numbers continue to show little improvement, if any,” said Shawn Nelson, Builders Association of the Twin Cities 2014 president and president of New Spaces. “Builders are feeling the full effects of the regulatory burdens that continue to raise the price of new homes in Minnesota.” It was no surprise that Minneapolis took the top spot with 2,312 permitted units in 2014. Maple Grove was next with 512 units, followed by Savage (481), Blaine (392) and Woodbury (382). Schmidt Building and Development of Belle Plaine accounted for seven of the 18

permits issued in Belle Plaine in 2014. The permits for new homes issued in Belle Plaine in 2014 were: 956 Plateau Lane, Oakwood Custom Builders LLC. 1388 Robert Creek Curve, Schmidt Building and Development. 548 Oak Village Court, Matthews Roofing and Renovations LLC. 552 Oak Village Court, Matthews Roofing and Renovations LLC. 1306 Quail Court, Property Owner. 944 Farmers Ridge Trail, Sherco Construction. 1316 Dove Court, Shaughnessy Construction. 120 Forest Street West, Schmidt Building and Development. 1012 Morningside Way, Schmidt Building and Development. 952 Farmers Ridge Trail, Charles Merritt Homes. 1322 Quail Court, Shaughnessy Construction. 969 Farmers Ridge Trail, Riviera Homes. 1099 Schoolhouse Drive, Schmidt Building and Development. 1097 Schoolhouse Drive, Schmidt Building and Development. 1101 Robert Creek Curve, Schmidt Building and Development. 1103 Robert Creek Curve, Schmidt Building and Development. 948 Farmers Ridge Trail, Sherco Construction. 800 Riverview Lane, Capstone Homes.

Trinity Lutheran to Celebrate 70th Anniversary Trinity Lutheran School in Belle Plaine will celebrate 70 Years of Education at an open house Saturday, Jan. 10 from 10 a.m. to noon. The public is invited to attend the event, which will include family fun, games and prizes. Belle Plaine Mayor Mike Pingalore administered the oath of office to city council members Scott Schneider, left, and Paul Chard at the start of Monday night’s meeting. Seconds earlier, Pingalore received the oath of office from City Administrator Holly Kreft. Pingalore was unopposed in his bid for a second term in last November’s election. Chard and Schneider were also reelected by being the top two vote-getters for city council.

More Years to Come


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