County Road 17 is closed for bridge repairCounty Road 17, which goes north out of Beaver Creek and immediately curves west, will be closed for 10 to 12 weeks to repair the bridge over the Beaver Creek.The project started on Sept. 20, so it should be completed during the first part of December.The detour, which includes County Highway 4 and Highway 23, is marked and should be used by local traffic, according to County Highway Engineer Mark Sehr.While the marquee is getting fixed, let’s talk about the Palace ballroomBlue Mound Area Theatre Board members, who manage the Palace Theatre, continue to make progress in their efforts to renovate the historic theater.The most noticeable aspect of the progress is the recent removal of the marquee.The current marquee, which has been in place since October 6, 1939, is the third marquee to grace the face of the Palace since it was built in 1915.The marquee is now in Sioux Falls getting repainted as well as having the light sockets, bulbs and neon replaced.The board has big plans for the inside of the building also.One of the areas that is on the radar screen for the group is the upstairs. The area is now used as a museum and also includes some unoccupied apartments.To restore the building to its glory days, the board needs a little help from residents with some memories of the past.I have been told that Laurence Welk used to play in the ballroom.Some on the board have been told there was an elevated stage on the south side of the ballroom, but we need people who were there to confirm those reports. We need your memories. Is there anyone out there who remembers going to the upstairs ballroom at the Palace, or better yet, do you have any photos of what it looked like back then?If you have those memories or photos, contact the BMAT historian, Betty Mann at 283-2913.The League of Women Voters do NOT want your SS #The League of Women Voters do not want your Social Security number and they don’t want you to give it to anyone else either.Recently the Secretary of State’s office has been receiving calls from people around the state reporting that someone wanted their Social Security number to get them registered to vote.It’s believed that the group, sometime identifying themselves as "Women’s Right to Vote," is using the calls for the purpose of identity theft.According to the Secretary of State, "There is no reason why anyone should be calling Minnesota residents and asking for Social Security numbers or other sensitive personal information in order to vote." To register, you must complete a form, and your signature is required on it. Nobody can do it for you over the phone.If anyone in Rock County receives a call requesting such information, you should contact the County Attorney’s office at 283-9111 or the FBI at (651) 291-7100.Even Smokey the Bear has to put up with changes at workAfter six decades of telling people, "Only you can prevent forest fires," Smokey the Bear has an altered message.In order to reflect the importance of fire in a healthy forest ecology, Smokey’s new slogan will now be, "Only you can prevent wildfires."In conjunction with the Governor’s Fire Prevention Day recently, the Department of Natural Resources Division of Forestry had a 60th birthday party for the aging bear.Publisher Roger Tollefson can be reached by e-mail at tolly@star-herald.com
