Luverne may have first smoke-free park

By Sara StrongLuverne could be the first city in southwest Minnesota to ban smoking in parks and recreational areas if the City Council passes a policy at the request of Partners in Prevention.The City Council is now reviewing a modified draft of a policy.The draft shows a more strict tobacco policy than what’s currently in place, but doesn’t ban its use in all public areas as the group requested. The new policy would:
Designate neighborhood parks as tobacco-free areas
Prohibit smoking in city parking and storage facilities
Prohibit smoking in recreation areas where scheduled youth sports events are occurring. The prohibition includes an area 100 feet around the perimeter of the area where such scheduled youth sports events are occurring.
Discourage, but not prohibit tobacco use in the city park during adult sports events
Discourage, but not prohibit smoking in picnic and camping areas of the Luverne City Park
Discourage, but not prohibit, tobacco use on city trail systems.The Council will discuss the policy at an upcoming meeting.LaFond salaryAfter a positive performance evaluation, City Administrator Greg LaFond received a salary increase of $2,856. The exact salary for LaFond is now $76,856, which was voted on by the City Council Tuesday.The Council didn’t spend time discussing LaFond’s compensation at the meeting.Award of excellenceFinance Director Barb Berghorst received a Certificate of Achievement for Excellence in Financial Reporting for the ninth consecutive year.The Certificate of Achievement is the highest form of recognition in the area of governmental accounting and financial reporting, and its attainment represents a significant accomplishment by a government and its management.Berghorst thanked the City Council for emphasizing sound financial reports in its leadership, and thanked staff in City Hall who help to make reports accurate and complete.The award is largely for the comprehensive annual financial report, which has been judged by an impartial panel to meet the standards of the program including demonstrating a constructive "spirit of full disclosure" to clearly communicate its financial story and motivate potential users and user groups to read the report.