By Sara QuamRock County businesses aren’t keeping as many local shoppers as they would like, but a few are doing that and then some. Automotive retailers, for example, have a combined 15,000 to 20,000 people buying from them.University of Minnesota Extension Educator David Nelson completed the retail trade analysis and presented the findings Monday. He said, "That means that four times the population of Luverne are buying automobiles in Luverne. So, you all have four-car garages, right?"Based on standard spending expectations, Luverne’s auto businesses should have sold about $10 million in 2003. But auto businesses did 270 percent better than that with a total of $37.7 million in sales.Nelson said, "I’ve not seen this before, not 270 percent more than expected."The automotive category includes items such as motorcycles, snowmobiles and new parts and accessories.Luverne Area Chamber of Commerce Director Dave Smith pointed out that there are as many used car dealers as there are beauticians in Luverne.Nelson used state sales tax data from 1996 to the latest figures from 2003 for his analysis.If three or fewer businesses file under a sales tax category, the state doesn’t release the data in order to protect the privacy of those businesses.So there was no data available on apparel or electronics, for example, because not enough businesses file under that category.Overall, the city of Luverne gets 450 more shoppers than the number of people who live in Luverne. Even so, people from Luverne are leaving town for food, general merchandise and gasoline.People spent more than expected in Luverne on building materials, automobiles, eating and drinking, hotels, repair and maintenance service and amusement and recreation. Shoppers in Luverne spent $6.11 million on building materials in 2003; $37.71 million on automobiles; $6.05 million on eating and drinking; $1.97 million on hotels; $3.45 million on repair and maintenance service, and $0.86 million on amusement and recreation.Food, which includes five businesses, had an increase of 40 percent between 1998 and 2000. So, sales may have increased in certain years, but that doesn’t mean retailers are meeting their full potential.Rock County overall sold less than expected in several categories.Food (groceries) sold 17 percent less than expected; building materials sold 33 percent less than expected; general merchandise sold 43 percent less than expected; furniture stores sold 71 percent less than expected and eating and drinking establishments sold 20 percent less than expected.Essentially, Nelson said, "Half of the population is leaving the county to shop elsewhere."Taking study to heartChamber Director Smith said, "There just isn’t the community loyalty that there used to be."People work outside of their community, maybe for better wages, Nelson said. As they are gone so much, they probably also shop away from home.Some retailers at the meeting said they feel the pull from Sioux Falls, but hope their service and unique offerings keep shoppers with them."Now we need to develop a plan to enhance the areas that have the potential to attract more consumers and to capture the markets that are already shopping here," said Luverne Economic Development Director Jill Wolf .The LEDA sponsored the $650 study."From this study, you’ll be able to make informed, strategic decisions using this factual information," Nelson said.Often, retail businesses want to relocate to Luverne or start here with the help of public funds. With this information, the city will be able to better gauge what type of business the community needs.The Extension study was for retail. It didn’t include manufacturing or industrial businesses that make wholesale sales. It also didn’t include medical care, lawyers, accountants, dentists or similar services. If people are interested, Wolf has a video copy and printed information from the Extension presentation available to the public.

By Lori EhdeTwo rural Hills men appeared Monday in Rock County District Court on controlled substance charges after authorities found a meth lab in their home Saturday.Authorities arrested 50-year-old Donald Frederick Wilson and 45-year-old Darwin Gene Otten after searching their home in the early morning hours of Saturday, Nov. 12.According to information from the Rock County Sheriff’s Department, the High Risk Entry Team was used to force entry to the home, which is located in Section 17 of Martin Township."We had knowledge of a 9 millimeter handgun on the property," Rock County Investigator Jeff Wieneke said. He said that’s why the entry team was used to execute the search warrant, and that’s why they did so at night. "Darkness provides more protection for the entry team," Wieneke said.In addition to recovering the handgun, a long list of items used to manufacture meth were also seized, mostly in a shop and corn crib on the premises.The list includes, for example, starter fluid, paint stripper, acetone, pseudoephedrine, glass jars, rubber gloves, coffee filters, lithium batteries, drain opener, anhydrous ammonia tanks, a hot grill, a bong and miscellaneous containers with colored, layered mixtures.Ten officers serve on the Southern Minnesota, Northern Iowa High Risk Entry Team. Nine additional officers assisted with the arrest, including highway patrol officers.Wieneke said only a small amount of meth was actually recovered at Wilson’s place, but he said that’s becoming typical."When people cook around here, they usually don’t produce more than 6 or 8 grams of finished product," he said.He said new laws have made it more difficult for meth cookers to get large enough quantities of pseudoephedrine, a key ingredient in meth production.But he added that meth users locally are increasingly buying from dealers who get their product from Mexico.On Monday, Wilson was charged with first degree controlled substance crime for manufacturing meth and fifth-degree controlled substance crime for possessing meth.Otten was charged with two first-degree controlled substance crimes — one for attempted manufacture of meth and one for conspiracy to produce meth (for possessing the precursors to produce meth). He was also charged with fifth-degree controlled substance crime for possessing methAs of Tuesday, they were still in custody at the Prairie Justice Center, Worthington. Wilson is being held on a $20,000 bond and Otten has a bond of $5,000.Ordinance requires owners to clean upThe two men were living on a rented acreage owned by Charlie Sandager, Hills.Dawn Sandager said she’s not surprised about the meth lab, and had in fact been in contact with law enforcement about suspicious activity there."We’d see traffic in and out of there — for three to five minutes at a time," she said. "We’ve had suspicions about what was going on."She described Wilson as a nice man who has rented the property since the early 1990s, but this was the fourth search warrant executed on the property since 2000. Three were for controlled substance crimes and one for stolen property.Saturday’s search was the first to produce an active meth lab, and the Sandagers, as owners, are responsible for the costs of cleaning up the toxic waste, according to a new county meth ordinance.Nobles Rock Public Health Sanitarian Jason Kloss said clean-up costs can range from $5,000 to $10,000 depending on the size of house, extent of contamination and length of time meth was manufactured there.Kloss will assess the site on Thursday to advise the Sandagers on the clean-up process."All I know is we’re responsible," Dawn Sandager said Tuesday. The meth products and ingredients were removed after the arrest, but a sampling on Thursday will determine the extent of further cleanup necessary.The Sandagers may need to hire an environmental cleanup company to conduct testing on the property.If enough volatile chemicals and meth residue are found, then they’ll have to proceed with ripping out all absorbent surfaces (furniture, carpet, etc., washing the walls with a chemical-soap mixture and repainting the interior. A meth lab was seized on a rental acreage near Hardwick earlier this year, and that home was recently burned because the owners determined the house wasn’t worth the cost of restoring it.

ORDINANCE NO. 279, THIRD SERIESAN ORDINANCE RELATING TO GENERAL AMDINISTRATION AND BUILDING REGULATIONS, AMENDING CITY CODE CHAPTER 2, SEC. 2.58, AND CHAPTER 4, SEC. 4.07 THROUGH 4.08, AND ADOPTING BY REFERENCE CITY CODE CHAPTER 2 AND SECTION 2.99 AND CITY CODE CHAPTER 4 AND SECTION 4.99, WHICH AMONG OTHER THINGS, CONTAIN PENALTY PROVISIONSTHE CITY OF LUVERNE DOES HEREBY ORDAIN: SECTION 1. That Chapter 2, Sec. 2.58, of the Luverne City Code is hereby amended in its entirety to read as follows: SEC. 2.58. BOARDS OF CODE APPEALS. Subd. 1. City Code Issues. A. Establishment and Composition. A Board of Code Appeals is hereby established. The Board shall be composed of members of the Council.B. Powers and Duties. The powers and Duties of the Board shall be to handle all appeals as to matters concerning City Code and housing maintenance as governed by Minnesota Law, Rule, or Regulation; and the City Code.Subd. 2. Minnesota State Building Code IssuesA. General: In order to hear and decide appeals of orders, decisions, or determinations made by the building official relative to the application and interpretation of the state building codes, the appellant may appeal to the State Appeals Board in the State of Minnesota Building Codes & Standards Division.B. Scope: Appeals shall be made and handled as set forth in Minnesota Rule 1300.0230 as contained in the Minnesota State Building Code, as adopted by the City of Luverne, pursuant to Minnesota Statutes Sections 471.465 to 471.469, ad 16B.67.SECTION 2. That sections 4.07 & 4.08 of Chapter 4 of the Luverne City Code are hereby repealed. SEC. 4.07 REPEALED SEC. 4.08 REPEALED. SECTION 3. This ordinance shall take force and effect seven (7) days after its publication. (11-17)

OCTOBER 27, 2005MINUTES OF THE REGULAR SCHOOL BOARD MEETING OF INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT NO. 2184, ROCK COUNTY, LUVERNE, MINNESOTA. A regular meeting of the Board of Education, ISD #2184, was held in the District Office on Thursday, October 27, 2005, at 7:30 p.m. The following members were present: Vicki Baartman, Colleen Deutsch, Laura Herman, Cary Radisewitz, Bill Stegemann, and Becky Walgrave. Absent: Dan Kopp. Also present; Gary Fisher, Marlene Mann, Patsy Amborn, and Matt Crosby, K101/KQAD Radio.The meeting was called to order by Chairperson Becky Walgrave. Motion by Stegemann, second by Deutsch, to approve the agenda. Motion unanimously carried. Administrative reports were given. Motion by Deutsch, second by Herman, to approve the School Board minutes of October 13, 2005. Motion unanimously carried. Motion by Stegemann, second by Radisewitz, to approve payment of the district bills as presented in the amount of $995,600.23. Motion unanimously carried. Motion by Deutsch, second by Stegemann, to receive the Student Activity report showing the balances as of September 30, 2005. Motion unanimously carried. Business Manager Marlene Mann reviewed the Maintenance/Capital Expenditure working document as a part of the required Capital Outlay Hearing. Motion by Radisewitz, second by Baartman, to approve the document as presented. Motion unanimously carried. One snow removal proposal was received. Motion by Stegemann, second by Deutsch, to approve the proposal from Perry Hoven for snow removal. Motion unanimously carried. Motion by Stegemann, second by Herman, to allocate 1% of the school district’s general fund to staff development rather than the required 2%. The remaining 1% will be placed into the school district’s general fund. This has also been agreed to by the teachers. Motion unanimously carried.No committee reports were given.The upcoming meeting dates were reviewed. Motion by Stegemann, second by Deutsch, to adjourn the meeting. Motion unanimously carried. Dated: October 27, 2005Colleen Deutsch, Clerk(11-17)

By John RittenhouseThe Luverne girls’ hockey team opened the 2005-06 campaign by dropping a seven-goal decision to St. Peter Saturday in Le Sueur.The Cardinals were scheduled to play their home opener by hosting Sioux Falls Blue Tuesday, but the game was postponed due to inclement weather.Luverne travels to New Ulm for a Friday contest.SP 8, Luverne 1The Cardinals opened the 2005-06 campaign by taking on St. Peter in Le Sueur Saturday.The home-standing Saints controlled play by outshooting the Cardinals 42-7 on the way to a seven-goal victory.St. Peter scored seven goals in the first two periods of the game, including the first five counters of the contest, to open a commanding lead.Rebecca Studer scored the game’s first goal early in the first period before Abby Sunderman added two more counters to give the hosts a 3-0 lead at period’s end.The Saints received goals from Kayleigh Sesmo and Meghan Monahan in the second period before the Cards netted their first goal of the season.Luverne’s Natalie Morgan netted an unassisted counter with 7:01 remaining in the second period to make it a 5-1 game.St. Peter’s Monahan and Sunderman scored one goal each to make it a 7-1 game before the second period was complete, and Saint Erin Seaver capped the scoring with a third-period tally.Alison Brands and Kaylee Smook shared time in the net for LHS. They stopped a combined 34 of 42 shots.

By John RittenhouseThe 2005-06 winter sports season will bring three coaching changes involving Ellsworth and Hills-Beaver Creek high schools.New leaders will be in charge of both EHS basketball programs. H-BC will have a new girls’ basketball coach.After Tom Goehle stepped down from the girls’ basketball position to end a 10-year run at the post, H-BC officials selected Jason Blosmo to replace him in late May.Blosmo brings 10-plus years of coaching experience to the program, including four years of head coaching experience.Blosmo, who was hired as a fifth-grade teacher at the H-BC Elementary School prior to the 2004-05 year, served as one of Goehle’s assistant girls’ basketball coaches last season."Working with Coach Goehle last year was pretty valuable for me," Blosmo said."It gave me an opportunity to get to know the girls personally and athletically. That will be extremely helpful this year, when we hope to continue the H-BC tradition."Blosmo attended Bison High School, which is located in northwestern South Dakota.A three-sport athlete (football, basketball and track) during his high school days, Blosmo was a three-year starter as a shooting guard for the BHS basketball team before graduating in 1988.Blosmo furthered his education at Dakota State University in Madison, S.D., and South Dakota State University at Brookings, S.D., graduating from the latter in 1994.After teaching one year at Central Elementary School in Brookings, Blosmo spent a year at a consolidated school named Deubrook (near Brookings) for one year, where he coached junior high football and served as an assistant boys’ and girls’ basketball coach.Blosmo worked for the Britton, S.D., school district for the next two years, where he continued to serve as an assistant coach.From 1999-2002, Blosmo was employed in Garretson, S.D., where he took over the head coaching positions of the girls’ and boys’ basketball programs.After working in Wyoming the next two years without coaching, Blosmo found his position at H-BC."I got away from coaching for a couple of years, and I started to miss it," he said. "Now I’m excited to get back into it (coaching), and I’m looking forward to taking over the head coaching position here at H-BC."Like H-BC, Ellsworth school officials hired a pair of assistants to fill their head coaching positions for the upcoming seasons.J. (Jeremy) Fisk will replace Dean Schnaible as the head girls’ basketball coach.Schnaible resigned from the position after a five-year stint at EHS last March.This is Fisk’s second year as a kindergarten-12 physical education and health instructor at EHS, where he’s gained his first coaching experience.Fisk served as the assistant volleyball coach the last two years and worked under Schnaible as an assistant basketball coach last season."It really helps to know the girls," Fisk said."I know what to prepare for. I’m really excited about this opportunity and to see if we can improve throughout the season."Fisk graduated from North Branch High School in 1994, where he started for one season as a member of the basketball program. He also played football in high school.He attended the University of Wisconsin-River Falls after high school, graduating from the institution in 2001.Fisk’s first teaching and coaching jobs came at EHS, and he plans to preach the fundamentals to the Panther girls this winter."I want them to do the little things right. If you add all the little things up and do them well, they can win you some ball games," he said.Like Fisk, Markus Okeson is in his second year as an employee of the Ellsworth School District.Okeson is a sixth-grade teacher who has been selected to replace Ken Kvaale as the head boys’ basketball coach.Kvaale resigned as the EHS coach after a six-year run last spring.Okeson served as Kvaale’s assistant coach last year, which was his first coaching experience."It was nice to get to know all of these kids last year," Okeson said. "We should be all right this year, and I’m looking forward to the challenge of it all."Okeson is a 1999 graduate of Frazee High School, where he was a two-sport competitor.Along with playing baseball, Okeson was a three-year starter as a point-guard for the Hornets’ basketball team.Okeson attended Bemidji State University after high school, where he graduated in 2003.The first-year EHS coach will stress defense to the 2005-06 Panthers."I’ll be a defensive-minded coach. The boys will learn how to defend," he said.

By John RittenhouseThe 2005-06 winter sports season will bring two coaches to Luverne High School programs.Craig Schneider will be the fourth new head wrestling coach the program has seen in the past four years.Chris Medill will take over as the head boys’ hockey coach this winter.Schneider has been hired to replace Tim Homan, who headed the wrestling program for one year before resigning last spring.A sixth-grade social studies instructor from Wisconsin, Schneider can’t wait for the mats to be rolled out and practice to begin."I’m really excited about getting the season started," he said."This will be an educational year for myself and the kids. We’ll make some mistakes, but we’ll work to improve and let the chips fall where they may at the end of the year."Schneider, who served as the freshman coach in the LHS football program this fall, attended Brillion (Wis.) High School for his freshman through sophomore years, but he graduated from Hilbert High School in 1999.He attended Lawrence University for one year before spending the next three years at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, where he graduated in December of 2004.Schneider wrestled in high school and in college before a knee injury sidelined his college career.During his college days, Schneider served as volunteer assistant coach with the Hilbert High School program. He also was the head coach for La Crosse’s Park and Recreation youth wrestling program.Luverne offered Schneider his first full-time teaching position. He served as a long-term substitute teacher for the Port Edward (Wis.) School District last spring.Prior to taking the job, Schneider was made aware of the dwindling numbers that hampered the LHS wrestling program in recent years. Still, he accepted the job with no hesitation."That’s part of the challenge," he said."I want to see if we can increase the numbers in the program and see the wrestlers experience success on and off the mat.""It will take a while," Schneider continued."It will take a commitment not only from myself, but all of those who help out by volunteering their time to the youth program in Luverne. I want to rebuild the program to the way it once was."In Medill, the boys’ hockey program gets a coach with past playing experience in Luverne.Medill replaces Nick Nafziger, who resigned from his head coaching position after a two-year stint in September.A 1994 LHS graduate, Medill played goalie for Luverne’s Junior Gold team before the Cards joined the Minnesota State High School League in the late 1990s.Medill, who said he skated in Luverne’s hockey program since he was six years old, played one year of Junior B hockey for a team based in South St. Paul after high school.He also played club hockey for three years at Northern State University, Aberdeen, S.D.Medill moved to Sioux Falls in 2001, where he started a business (Medill Plaster & Drywall) with his father, Tim Medill. Tim Medill was one of two coaches Chris played for during his days as a Junior Gold player.Luverne’s new coach said he served as an assistant coach in the lower level of the local hockey program for one year. When he discovered the head coaching position in Luverne was open on the MSHSL’s Web site in September, he decided to throw his hat into the ring of consideration."I wanted to get involved in the program again ever since I moved back to this area," Medill said."I’ve been looking forward to this for a long time. When I noticed there was an (coaching) opening here the last time, I wasn’t sure I was going to stay in this area, so I didn’t consider it. Now I know I’m not going anywhere else, so I decided to try it."Medill will be living a dream when the Cardinals take the ice for the first time Nov. 26 in Mankato.As a Junior Gold skater, Medill and his teammates considered playing high school hockey in Minnesota as being the ultimate experience."I remember being excited when I heard Luverne was getting a high school program. I know things have gone down hill since then. Hopefully, we can do something about that," he said.Medill has been precise in his preparation for the season, carefully jotting down his drills in a practice plan for the first six weeks of the season.The coach will instruct the players on the game’s fundamentals, while placing an emphasis on scoring by taking advantage of opportunities."It’s hard to put a label on the type of game we’ll play," he said."I have an idea how I want the kids to play, but it’s hard to place an offensive or defensive identity on the style we’ll be playing. We’ll try to take advantage of all the situations we face," he concluded.

‘North Country’ at the Palace this weekendThe movie "North Country" will be shown at the Palace Theatre this weekend.Show times are 7 p.m. Friday and Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday.The Web site Internet Movie Data Base, or www.imdb.com, described it as a "fictionalized account of the first major successful sexual harassment case in the United States -- Jenson vs. Eveleth Mines, where a woman who endured a range of abuse while working as a miner filed and won the landmark 1984 lawsuit."The Eveleth in question is Eveleth, Minnesota.The movie stars Charlize Theron, Woody Harrelson, Francis McDormand and Sissy Spacek.IMDB reviewers gave the movie a 7.2 out of 10 review, and Ebert and Roeper both gave it a "thumbs up."2006 tree programRock County farmers, if you want to get involved in the Rock County LMO/SWCD tree program, your time is running out.The Land Management Office/Soil Water Conservation District can assist you with the design of tree planting, as well as selecting appropriate trees for whatever needs you may have.The trees are on a first-come first-serve basis.According to the Rock County Ag News, trees planted in crop ground may be eligible for the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) in which cost-share is available as well as an annual payment on the set aside acres.The newsletter goes on to say that fall site preparation contributes to a much better survival rate for the trees once planted in the spring.If you have any questions about the program, phone 283-8862, ext. 3.The deadline for the program is November 30th.Farmers, can you spot a meth lab?Or anyone else, for that matter?Meth labs are popping up all over rural America, and if you know what to look for, you could help keep them out of our neighborhood.Last year 237 meth labs were discovered in Minnesota alone.If you would like to help keep them out of our area, here’s what to look for:
strong odor of chemicals in the area
heavy fortification, such as surveillance camera, bars on windows or covered windows, "beware of dog" signs
suspicious automobile traffic and visitors to the site
unusual hours of activity
chemical cans or drums in the yard
people leaving the building to smoke
open windows in cold weatherIf any of these activities sound familiar, contact Rock County Law Enforcement at 283-5000.SHARE gears up for Christmas ’05Sharing Hearts Are Everywhere (SHARE) is beginning to get ready for their annual Luverne Christmas tradition.A few weeks ago letters went out from the group to local businesses to reintroduce themselves and ask them to start thinking about their contribution for this Christmas season.The program, which was started in 1985, was originally run by the Rock County Family Service Agency.As it grew, a stand-alone organization was created to handle the responsibilities.For those unfamiliar with the program, the 21-year-old effort collects and distributes food, clothing and toys to families who may not be able to provide those items for themselves.In 2004, SHARE provided 150 families with donated items at Christmastime. Those families consisted of 220 children and 222 adults.The donated items come from all quarters, including individuals, churches, organizations and businesses.If you would like to donate items, collection times will be from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 7, and from 8 a.m. to noon Thursday, Dec. 8, at Sharkee’s.IF you would like to make a cash donation, mail it to SHARE, P.O. Box 792, Luverne, MN, 56156.Publisher Roger Tollefson can be reached by e-mail at tolly@star-herald.com

One of our family’s favorite table prayers goes this way: "By your hand we all are fed. Thank you, Lord, for daily bread." Our family prays those words, then each individual names one "daily bread" for which he or she is thankful. Then we end the prayer by repeating the words, "By your hand …" It serves as a reminder to us that the daily bread that God provides for us is far more than just the stuff we fill our stomachs with.In this our family’s prayer, many things have been named over the years. God has been thanked for dogs, cats, butterflies, school, family, butterflies, rain, safe trips, butterflies, bicycles, fun days, butterflies (Hannah, our youngest, used to really appreciate butterflies), our home, thunder, lightning and, yes, even food. Daily bread consists of all that which God provides for our sustenance each and every day. The list could never be completed, for God’s providence is unlimited. But there is one item that I suspect is all too often left off a person’s thankfulness list. Not because it is low in priority, but because it doesn’t occur to people that it is eligible to be included as an example of "daily bread." Each of us would properly refer to that item with the word "me."You are daily bread for others. You are one of the countless but important morsels of sustaining food that lies on the plates of more people than you realize. One of the regular exercises I do with my confirmation class is to ask, "How have you served others in your day-to-day lives?" The question is to get them to think about how it is that God has provided them as daily bread for others. And if daily bread is provided for others, it benefits us as well. For when others are fed, the community is fed, and we are fed with a healthy community. More and more daily bread. Around and ’round it goes merrily on.How have you been daily bread in another’s life? Here’s how. You have been such in doing your job responsibly, in your volunteering, in your play, in your relationships. So, when you thank God for the daily bread he so graciously gives, you can thank God for you.Moreover, thanking God for daily bread is thanking God not only for the daily bread you have been in someone else’s life, but for the daily bread which is precisely that opportunity to help, to love, to serve, to support, to cry with another. Your daily bread includes the opportunity to serve well that customer over the counter with a smile, or to pick up that barrel or bin full of trash, or to help change that tire and get them on their way, or to change that diaper, or to walk that neighbor’s dog, or to pick up that candy wrapper along the path, or just be that son or daughter, mother or father, grandpa or grandma.You are daily bread for others. The opportunity to be that is daily bread for you.For the broccoli, the steak, the spud and the cake, And the butterfly, which seems not much; For the chance to give as we have received, To help others in a clutch. … By your hand we all are fed. Thank you, Lord, for daily bread.