By Lori EhdeThe party’s over, and reality is settling in for hospital and clinic staff who have started the process of moving into their new quarters on the north edge of Luverne.According to hospital administration, Sunday’s public open house accommodated 3,000 to 4,000 people for tours and refreshments."It went amazingly well," said Diane Westenberg, hospital executive assistant.She admitted to worrying about how it would go, not knowing how many people to expect."I had nightmares about people lined up at the door and out into the parking lot," she said. "But we had none of that. We were so pleased."It’s not a scientific figure, but Westenberg said 3,500 people came Sunday."That’s a lot of people," she said. "It was steady until 8 o’clock. I think the last group left at about 9."She said part of the reason things went smoothly Sunday was that so many helpers were involved.About 60 trained volunteers led groups of people between points of interest, and roughly 80 hospital and clinic employees were on hand to offer information about the various highlights in the hospital and clinic."We had a lot of nice comments," Westenberg said. "It was just an awesome day."Moving process started this weekWith construction wrapped up and the open house party out of the way, the moving process started Monday.Staff in the clinic offices moved Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, and hospital business office staff was scheduled to move today, with hospital administration moving Friday.Two moving trucks were on hand Monday and Tuesday, in addition to several inmates with Community Corrections working off sentences to serve.A good share of the clinic office move was taken care of by office workers themselves — one box at a time.Workers said this week will require patience to get through, but they said the end result will be worth it."It’s exciting," said insurance specialist Zoe Harnack. "We’re the first ones in."Next week will be a period of settling in and moving remaining medical equipment and records.The first day of business will be Friday, July 29.More to look forward toHospital CEO Jerry Carl said seeing the new hospital and clinic reach completion after nearly three years of planning and building has been gratifying."It’s wonderful, and certainly something to be proud of," he said Tuesday. "To get good feedback from the community is very satisfying, and our staff deserves a good deal of the credit for that. The time has been stretched and stretched."He also credited donors and volunteers who generously helped to pull things together."The support from our local people has been wonderful," he said. "The community has been excited and supportive, and when the community puts that trust in your hands, it gives you confidence to get the job done."Carl has announced he will retire next spring but said he’s glad to be on board while the new facility gets started.Another exciting development on the horizon for Sioux Valley Luverne Medical Center will be the process of switching to paperless medical records.Starting in January, patient files will become electronic, allowing for improved physician access to information, improved privacy for patients and improved efficiency for everyone.Luverne is the first hospital in the entire Sioux Valley network of health care facilities to use the paperless system, called Epic.Because of it’s relatively small size and brand new technology, Luverne is the perfect test site for the technology."This is just a phenomenal thing that will help us be more efficient," Carl said.He’s been at the helm of Luverne’s hospital for 18 years and said he’s pleased to be leaving when things are going so well."If you’re writing a conclusion to your career, you couldn’t have scripted it better," Carl said Tuesday. "How could you make it better than that?"

By Sara QuamRock County cashed its first local government aid check from the state of Minnesota Tuesday.This year in total, the county will receive $941,558 in two halves.The complicated funding formula gives Rock County an estimated $40,720 increase next year, for state aid in 2006 to be $982,278.State aid in 2005 for some other counties of interest include: Lincoln County — $622,890Lyon County — $1,211,248Murray County — $791,729Nobles County — $1,082,426Yellow Medicine County — $820,316Pipestone County — $1,140,470Cottonwood County — $968,410Jackson County — $781,887In other business Tuesday, the board:
Directed County Engineer Mark Sehr to negotiate with the city of Luverne on the maintenance and snow removal work the county pays the city of Luverne to complete on county state aid highways within the city limits.The city now gets $6,800 per mile for portions of streets such as Main, Blue Mound, Dodge, Warren, Cedar, Luverne and Lincoln, for examples.The annual allotment is $49,000 to the city of Luverne.Sehr said the city has been doing good work and the county can’t do it on its own with the manpower it has. But after comparing with other similar-sized cities and counties, Sehr said they pay cities from $2,000 to $4,000 per mile. "I think they can do it for closer to $4,100," Sehr said.The current dollar amount the city receives was set with the previous county engineer and previous Luverne public works director.
Was introduced to Justin Decker, new employee of the Land Management Office.
Decided to contribute $1,000 to the Southwestern Methamphetamine Task Force. The group requested money from its three member counties — Rock, Nobles and Pipestone — in order to continue operations.

By Sara QuamThe Luverne City Council met for about five hours Monday night in a visioning or strategic planning session. Council members used the meeting as an opportunity to meet more casually, not voting on issues.The meeting was facilitated by Bill Radio, Director of Member and Public Relations for Missouri River Energy Services. Radio is a former city manager and administrator, so government issues are a part of his experience.He said to the Council, "Why do you think we are doing this?"Council member Pat Baustian said, "It is helpful for any city administrator to see where we are coming from."He also said it’s important to learn and get input from city workers.Council member Bob Kaczrowski said, "On the flip side of that, I think it’s important to see where we’re coming from as a Council."Council member Maynard Lafrenz said it is good for newly elected Council members to learn what they can expect and get the opportunity to establish direction for the city.Council member Esther Frakes said that elected people get the chance, in the setting of a visioning session, to individually share goals while trying to reach a consensus as a group.Radio said, "I’m always in awe of people who serve on city commissions of any sort because the work versus material growth isn’t even close. It’s kind of a thankless job, so I’m thanking you now."A big part of the meeting was acknowledging the city’s strengths and weaknesses in order to be able to accomplish the goals of the Council.City staff and council members listed those strengths and weaknesses.Strengths from both were: osolid infrastructure (technology, roads, services)olocation, Interstate 90 and Highway 75oproximity to Sioux Fallsohospital and medical facilities, including nursing homesocommunity pride and attitudeoparks and recreational facilitiesogood schoolNegatives from both were:ocompetition with Sioux Falls ointer-governmental relationsolong-range goals and visionocity administrator/ continuity in leadershipBoth the Council and staff listed opportunities they saw:oold hospital campus oarea around new hospitalotax-free JOB Zoneodevelop city campgroundThreats to the city’s productivity included:oa decrease in government aid from the stateoan aging populationointergovernmental agencies trustounfunded mandatesThe Council members said they had a few clear goals for the city. One was to grow and not be stagnant, but control the growth so the city keeps its well-planned appearance and flow.Another goal was that, even in times of budget crunches, to help preserve the quality of life in Luverne, especially city services.The council will review information shared at the meeting and try to find ways to accomplish various goals the meeting outlined.

Luverne grad grateful in LondonPeder Berg, member of LHS class of ’91 and son of Luverne native Rolf Berg, had a hectic schedule early last week.Berg, who has been working in London for the past two years, decided to take it easy and go into work a little late on Thursday.It may have been the best decision of his life.That morning, at the time he would normally be on the subway, all three of the routes he would have usually taken were hit by terrorist bombs.Peder called Rolf to inform him of the terrorist attacks about 6:30 a.m. our time. London is six hours ahead of our central time zone.The multiple bombings included both subways and the famous London double-decker buses.As of Monday, the Minneapolis StarTribune was reporting the death toll at 52.Some areas of the subway bombings are still being searched for additional bodies.Schedule finalized for All-School ReunionFor those of you coming to Luverne for the All-School Reunion, the Luverne Chamber has scheduled a busy three days of activities.The first thing on the schedule is the reunion golf tournament.This year, instead of trying to get everyone out to play at the same time, or even the same day, you can participate in the tournament any time you wish over the course of the three days.To participate, register with the starter at the Luverne Country Club, pay a $5 entry fee and turn in your scores when you are finished.The winners will be announced in the following editions of the Rock County Star Herald and the Alumni News.Friday, July 29Registration for the weekend will run from 3 – 6 p.m. at the Elementary School Commons.Other Friday activities include:
Alumni art show at the Carnegie Cultural Center from 1 – 5 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
Showing of "Detective Fiction" at the Palace Theatre at 7 p.m. Greg Winter, LHS class of ’71, served as director of photography for the movie, which was screened at the 2003 Sundance Film Festival.
The Luverne Eagles Club will be hosting the band "Two For The Road," which will begin a 9 p.m.Saturday, July 30Saturday will be the busiest day of the weekend with registration again available from 7:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. in the Elementary School Commons.
You will have an opportunity to meet the faculty of LHS in the Elementary Commons.
The All-School Marching Band will rehearse at 8:30 a.m.
A 5K walk/run will leave the elementary school at 8:30 a.m.
If you’re interested in learning more about the Dollars for Scholars program, an informational session will be in the Elementary School Commons from 9 to 10 a.m., and again at 3:30 p.m.
The parade will start on Main Street beginning at 10:30 a.m.
The All-School reunion choir will get together for practice at 3 p.m.
The program for the weekend will begin at 5 p.m. followed by the reunion dinner at 5:50. Both will be in the Cardinal Gym.
One of the highlights of the weekend will be the Jim Brandenburg program at the Palace Theatre, with Michael Moore accompanying him. The program will be shown again on Sunday at 2 p.m.
Both the Blue Mound Banquet Center and the Luverne Eagles Club will be hosting dances starting at 9 p.m.Sunday, July 31
A bison lunch will be served at the Luverne City Park from noon to 1:30 p.m. Plan on bringing your own lawn chair.
At 2 p.m. Brandenburg will have the second performance of his show at the Palace with Michael Moore, followed by a Prairie Program at the new Touch the Sky Prairie beginning at 4 p.m.Publisher Roger Tollefson can be reached by e-mail at tolly@star-herald.com

By Sara QuamThe Luverne City Council approved advertising the job description and community information to recruit a new city administrator Tuesday.City Administrator Search Committee members reported to the Council.Search Committee member Dave Smith said, "We’re trying to tap into as many avenues as we can."He said networking within state Chamber of Commerce groups and League of Minnesota Cities connections might draw a happily employed person to Luverne.Committee member Connie Connell also made contacts through the Blandin Foundation and Southwest Minnesota Foundation.Committee member Steve Perkins said drawing a currently employed person who is looking for a change is preferred, as opposed to hiring to someone who lost a job or left a job under difficult circumstances.He said offering a bigger salary might also draw a qualified, highly successful candidate.For that reason, the Committee recommended a salary of $80,000 to $120,000 depending on qualifications and experience. Perkins said managing many city departments requires more from Luverne’s administrator than in some other cities. He also said the salary is comparable with school superintendents.Connell said, "We’re open to discussion on the salary and we talked a lot about that. … But we are really committed to finding a highly-qualified person."She said cities of comparable size who operate their own electric and water utilities often have numerous boards or managers, whereas Luverne just has one.Perkins said, "We need to look at the position differently. In Luverne it is really a unique position. The charter places a great deal of responsibilities and duties on the administrator."Perkins said drawing a private-sector employee is an option as well as people with government experience.City staff, City Council members and a special community meeting all outlined ideal qualities of a city administrator. Perkins said, "There is no disharmony in those priorities laid out by those groups. We have to realize that recruitment can be difficult, however, when the last three city administrators left under difficult circumstances. People may have questions about Luverne."He said looking forward from now on is most important."At this point," Perkins said, "we need to fill the position and find somebody really good."Personality and intelligence testing as well as in-depth background checks will be a part of this search.Perkins said, "The packet [information for the job] has pages of issues that the city administrator has to tackle — it’s a big job."Timeline for administrator:Aug. 12: Deadline for applicationAug. 19-25: Semifinalist reference and background checks and testing Aug. 30: Presentation of candidates and selection of finalists Sept. 9-10: City tour, reception and interviews of finalistsSept. 12-16: Post-interview follow-ups, community visit, final selectionOct. 1-15: Administrator start date

By Sara QuamThe city of Luverne and Dingmann Funeral Home are still ironing out details of how Dan Dingmann can move his business to the current Luverne Medical Center.The Luverne City Council approved Mayor Andy Steensma and Councilman Pat Baustian to participate in negotiations, since the city is without an administrator.There are a few options that both Dingmann and the city are considering, but time is becoming an issue.The new hospital and clinic will be occupied in August, and the memorandum of understanding between the city and Dingmann said he was to get the clinic 10 days after it is vacated and use parking to the north for customers. As it stood in the memo approved in December of 2003, the clinic and four lots north of the clinic would be sold to Dingmann for $235,000.The city would finance $100,000 of the purchase, to be repaid in 15 years.The city purchased the entire hospital and clinic building from Sioux Valley.Dingman is also selling Fledgling Field to the city.An architect just examined the clinic and hospital and recommended a section between the two that can be demolished without harming water or other utility systems.If that plan goes into effect, the city can sell the hospital portion for some other use. The city can also demolish it and sell it as a space for development. City Attorney Ben Vander Kooi said, "I could go into a lot of what-ifs but that’s as far as I’ll go now."Councilman Baustian said, "So many things are intertwined with these issues."Fledgling Field’s development has been a source of controversy; the Fire Department was considering using hospital space for expansion, and other businesses might want to use the existing hospital without the city being involved in demolition.The Council said it would be able to make firm decisions after more talks with Dingmann and his representatives.In other business Tuesday, the Council:
Received a report from water and wastewater supervisor Al Lais. He said that more of the northern residents of the city will be connected to the new water tower and notice increased water pressure.He also said the city has to replace parts of city wells, including meters and timers, because of damage from a lightening strike last Friday.
Heard a report from city intern Chelsea Park, who just completed her junior year at Luverne High School.She thanked the Council for the opportunity to work with the city. She completed a refuse and recycling survey of cities of comparable size to Luverne and developed a load management database that is used by the city for that utility program. Park also redesigned and added information to the city residents’ guide that newcomers receive.

By Lori EhdeA petition is gaining signatures among local people who support a smoke-free environment, and so far it has 665 names.Behind the petition is Nobles-Rock Public Health Educator Paula Anderson.She started circulating the petition last summer at the Rock County Fair as part of her work with Tobacco Free Communities Grant. The goal of the newly-formed Rock County SAFE Coalition (Safe Air For Everyone) is to have smoke-free public places in all of Rock County.Buildings and property owned by Rock County, the city of Luverne and the Luverne School District are already smoke-free.But the petition targets bars and restaurants in particular because of the danger second-hand smoke poses to both customers and employees."Waitresses have the highest death rate of any female occupational group," she said, "and that’s because of their exposure to second-hand smoke."A local billboard draws attention to smoke in restaurants. It says, "Smoke doesn’t know how to stay in the smoking section."Nine states have so far banned smoking in bars and restaurants. They are New York, Montana, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maine, Vermont and Rhode Island.Anderson said a year after New York’s smoking ban, restaurants and bars in New York saw an 8.5 percent increase in business.Some counties in Minnesota have approved similar bans. They are Hennepin and Ramsey Counties, which include Minneapolis and St. Paul. Anderson said she doesn’t think Rock County is ready for a county-wide smoking ban in bars and restaurants, but she said she hopes the petition will help her increase awareness and public education."So many people think second-hand smoke is just an irritant," she said. "It’s not. It’s a toxin, and it kills more people than anything else, except tobacco use itself, alcohol or obesity-related ailments. … It’s the fourth-leading cause of preventable death."Anderson said she hopes the petition helps bring this information to light."We’re not trying to bring up any issues about smokers’ rights," she said. "We’re just trying to bring this forward as a public health issue."Her plan is to bring the petition to local municipalities sometime in 2006. The petition can be found at the Korner Gas Stop, Glen’s Food Center and Pizza Ranch in Luverne and at Rauk’s Hilltop Stop in Beaver Creek.

By Lori EhdeSchool Board members have hired a new principal for the middle school and high school in Luverne.They offered the position to Donna Judson, currently principal of Kenyon-Gleason High School in Kenyon, and she has accepted.Judson’s first official day on the job will be July 18, and she said she’s eager to start."I loved the town and I was very much impressed with how well everything was kept up," she said Tuesday, when asked why she applied for the job in Luverne. "People were so friendly."More than that, she said the school system in Luverne was what she was looking for."The school is beautiful," Judson said. "I was very much interested in the size of the school. I like to be in a school district where I can get to know all the kids, and the size of Luverne is very appealing."In the Kenyon-Wanamingo district there are 75 students per grade, compared with roughly 100 per grade in Luverne.She said getting to know the students and the community ranks among her most important initial challenges. She and her husband, Terry, who is self-employed in personal investments, are looking to buy or build a home in Luverne. "I hope to be a principal you’ll see out and about town," she said. "My husband I hope to be involved in the community … We look forward to the facilities and opportunities in Luverne."Judson has a bachelor’s degree from MacMurray College in Jacksonville, Ill., a master’s degree from Mankato State University and a specialist’s degree from Winona State University.She’s been principal in Kenyon for two years, and prior to that she was assistant principal in Fairmont for two years.In addition, Judson has 24 years of experience teaching physical education and adaptive PE. One-third of that time was in the elementary grades, one-third in middle school and one third in high school.She’s also coached volleyball, basketball, track and dance team.Luverne School Board will meet today at noon to formally approve Judson’contract, which sets her annual salary at $87,500.The middle school-high school principal position in Luverne was vacated by Gary Fisher, who was hired last month to fill the district’s superintendent position.Former Luverne Superintendent Vince Schaefer resigned from the post after six years in Luverne after accepting an offer for the superintendent position in the Beresford, S.D., district.

By Lori EhdeSioux Valley officials are expecting anywhere from 800 to 8,000 visitors at the public open house for the new hospital and clinic Sunday."There’s parking up there, but not enough to handle a thousand or more," said Diane Westenberg, hospital executive assistant.To alleviate potential parking and traffic congestion, arrangements have been made with Luverne School District and Heartland Express to shuttle people in and out of the facility.Westenberg said two school buses will be available, with a third on standby, and a Heartland Express bus will be available to transport handicapped riders.Riders can meet in the south parking lot of the Luverne Elementary School, and the first round of buses will leave at 12:30 p.m.Open house activities at the new Sioux Valley Luverne Medical Center will start at 1 p.m. and continue through 8 p.m.Buses will shuttle riders back and forth throughout the day.While it’s difficult to estimate crowds for Sunday’s open house, hospital officials have tried to spread out the excitement over a series of separate tours.For example, Wednesday night’s Donor Wall unveiling was estimated to include 500 people for tours at that time.Also, groups of local public officials and hospital employees and their families have already toured the facility.The intent is that Sunday’s event be for members of the public who haven’t yet had a chance to tour the facility. See the 24-page hospital special edition included with this week’s Star Herald for more information about the medical facility and Sunday’s open house.