Serving Polk County’s St. Croix Valley since 1897
WEDNESDAY, MAY 1, 2019 VOL. 121 NO. 40 www.osceolasun.com $1.00
SPORTS: Osceola softball wins one. PAGE 10
Branches takes home Manufacturer of the Year award BY SUZANNE LINDGREN EDITOR@OSCEOLASUN.COM
Osceola-based paddle maker Branches LLC took home a Manufacturer of the Year award from the Manufacturer’s Alliance last Wednesday. The award recognizes operational efficiencies, dedication to staff and investment in community, among other criteria. The Manufacturer’s Alliance is a regional association comprised of businesses in the Twin Cities metropolitan area, including western Wisconsin.
Branches history Branches, parent company to Bending Branches and Aquabound paddles, was founded in 1982 when canoeists Dale Kicker and Ron Hultman invented a protective edging for canoe paddles. They patented it Rockgard and, selling long-lasting paddles, Bending Branches started to grow. In 1994, production moved to Osceola’s industrial park. The company’s journey to success has not been without challenges. In the early 2000s, after two decades of growth, Bend-
ing Branches found itself with too much inventory and on the brink of insolvency. It was then that Ed Vater and Jason Eccles, the company’s current president and operations manager, introduced streamlined practices and the company’s first kayak paddle. By 2008, the company’s finances were strong enough to buy its largest competitor, Aqua-Bound paddles of Surely, British Columbia, Canada. Since then, Branches has continued to produce in-
SUBMITTED
Andrew Stern, Cory Novinska, Travis Hamlin, Jason Eccles, Ed Vater, Brian Boyea, Destiny Herbert and Cody Strey.
SEE BRANCHES, PAGE 9
Saputo will close Dresser cheese plant BY SUZANNE LINDGREN EDITOR@OSCEOLASUN.COM
SUZANNE LINDGREN | THE SUN
At 66 years old, the Osceola bridge is showing signs of deterioration that call for replacement.
Bridge replacement planned for 2025 needs to be replaced,” said Adam Josephson, MnDOT’s east area manager. “From the top it
BY SUZANNE LINDGREN EDITOR@OSCEOLASUN.COM
Planning is in the very early stages to replace the Osceola bridge. The departments of transportation in Minnesota and Wisconsin have their sights on year 2025. By then, the bridge will be more than 70 years old. Built in 1953, the crossing is showing signs of deterioration that can no longer be fixed with surface-level repairs. MnDOT inspected the bridge last week, part of its regular annual inspection schedule, and findings reinforced the need to plan for replacement. “It’s an old bridge and it really
‘From the top it doesn’t look too bad but if you go underneath it, it has some problems.’ Adam Josephson MnDOT east area manager doesn’t look too bad but if you go underneath it, it has some problems. … Nothing real surprising but inspectors continue to see deterioration. When you’re under the bridge you see a long
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joint down the middle. That’s where the hole opened up in 2017 and that’s where they have most concerns with the bridge deck.” Replacement was initially slated for 2028 or 2029 but has been moved up. MnDOT is getting started on a request for proposals. “I would hope by this fall we’ll have a consultant on board,” Josephson said, “and we’ll go through the public engagement process working with various agencies, the village and other interested parties to try to identify the right thing to do out here as far as replacement of the bridge.”
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SEE BRIDGE, PAGE 2
PUBLIC NOTICES 715-294-2314 office@osceolasun.com
Less than six months after buying Dresser-based F&A Dairy, Montreal-based Saputo Cheese announced plans to close the facility at the end of May. “As part of our strategic objectives to expand our market position in the U.S. and improve the overall performance of our U.S. manufacturing assets,” the company wrote in a letter to Dresser’s village president, “… Saputo has reached the difficult decision to completely and permanently close the Dresser plant.” Saputo plans to lay off the majority of employees within two weeks of May 31, keeping a small group “to help wind down operations.” All hourly employees subject to the layoff will receive offers to transfer to Saputo’s manufacturing plant in Almena, about 35 miles away. “We are hopeful that the vast majority of hourly employees will accept offers of employment at the Almena Plant,” Saputo wrote. If 25 or more employees do not transfer, the closure would trigger Wisconsin’s WARN Act. Under the act, employees who are part of a large-scale layoff or plant closure are entitled to 60 days notice. If the act is triggered, Saputo would pay them the portion of those 60 days for which they did not receive notice. Dresser’s village president, Bryan “Fatboy” Raddatz, said it was too soon to tell the impacts for Dresser. SEE CHEESE, PAGE 2
SUZANNE LINDGREN | THE SUN
Montreal-based Saputo Cheese has announced plans to close its Dresser facility. Before its purchase by Saputo in late November, F&A had operated since 1965.
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