Almost $4 million in state and federal aid will be used on five road improvement projects scheduled for 2022.
County Highway Engineer Mark Sehr outlined the five-year road and bridge construction plan at the Feb. 22 county commissioners meeting.
The plan was unanimously accepted.
Sehr will present the five-year plan again at the March 22 public meeting with township officials. The meeting begins at 1 p.m. at the Rock County Library.
The majority of the 2022 construction budget will be used in a 7.58-mile mill and overlay project on County Road 4 from the Rock River Bridge east of Luverne through Magnolia to the Rock-Nobles county line.
Project estimate is $2.3 million and includes edge drains to alleviate the “waviness” in the current roadway due to excess moisture.
Other road projects (totaling an estimated $590,000) include four additional mill and overlay projects this construction season.
The projects (all in the city of Luverne and under a mile in length) include:
•Blue Mound Avenue from Main Street (County Road 4) north to Fairway Drive.
•Warren Street from Cedar Avenue east to Blue Mound Avenue.
•Blue Mound Avenue from Warren Street to north Main Street.
•County Road 4 (Main Street) from Highway 75 east to Blue Mound Avenue.
One bridge repair is planned for 2022 and involves reconstruction of the County Road 1 bridge over Kanaranzi Creek.
The current bridge received emergency repairs in 2019 after spring ice flow damaged the 1961 bridge’s wood pilings, which resulted in a 3-inch sag in the bridge deck.
Cost of the bridge replacement is estimated at $937,000.
The county will also look to install intersection warning signs at the intersection of County Road 4 and 17 (Manley Corner).
The signs, which warn motorists of pending cross traffic, cost roughly $120,000. The project was previously scheduled but no bids were received to completed the intersection signage.
 
Repairs not planned for west County Road 4
Sehr reiterated to commissioners that no repairs will be attempted to correct the two rough road areas on County Road 4, west of Luverne.
Sehr said the winter season’s freeze-thaw cycle causes areas over two culvers to sink, creating dips in the road.
“It comes back every spring,” Sehr said. “If we fix it, it may become worse.”
The culverts under the roadway allow water from the surrounding marsh areas to drain.
Once the frost leaves the ground, the roadway levels itself out.
Sehr said attempts to fix similar sinking in the west part County Road 4 roadway due to frost proved to be futile.
“I say ‘leave it’ for now — we got into one west of IBP 12 years ago — the deeper we went the worse it got.”

City leaders learned last week that a significant federal grant will support business expansion in Luverne’s industrial park.
The $467,422 award will help fund the Dakota Road extension project which will connect street and utilities to the expanding industrial complex of the Lineage Logistics Freezer Plant and Premium Minnesota Pork.
Funds are granted through the Greater Minnesota Business Development Public Infrastructure Program, which provides money to outstate cities of up to 50 percent of the capital costs for the public infrastructure.
Qualifying projects support or expand economic growth, retain or create jobs, or increase the tax base. The city will match the remaining 50 percent.
According to city plans, Dakota Road will be extended approximately 500 feet to the west, and along with the street construction, utilities will also be upsized and extended to serve the Lineage Logistics property for current operations and future growth. 
The Dakota Road Extension construction project extends an 8-inch-thick concrete pavement, 31 feet wide, approximately 500 feet west of the Minnesota Avenue intersection.
Box culverts will be added under the road extension to convey storm water. 
As part of the project, the existing 8-inch sanitary sewer line will be abandoned and approximately 730 feet of 12-inch sanitary sewer line will be installed to allow for adequate cover under the box culverts and additional capacity. 
Approximately 470 feet of 12-inch water main will be extended to the property line to serve the Lineage project. 
The infrastructure work will permanently disturb 0.8 acres of wetland, which are in the process of being mitigated, and wetland credits will be purchased by the City of Luverne.
The project is eligible for funding because it is publicly owned infrastructure that supports economic development. Streets, water, sewer, storm sewer and wetland mitigation are all eligible expenses per the program guidelines.
Additionally, it supports a warehousing and distribution business development, which is an eligible economic development project per the program guidelines as well. 
“Completing this infrastructure project will stimulate economic development and attract substantial private capital investment,” said Luverne Economic Development Authority Director Holly Sammons.
“This will provide substantial economic benefit to the local economy by creating new tax base and creating new jobs.”
The city has scheduled a bid opening for March 10.
 
Freezer warehouse the size of four football fields
Lineage Logistics will build a 235,000-square-foot cold storage warehouse on land near Premium Minnesota Pork.
The warehouse, with an estimated construction value of more than $50 million, will be roughly the size of four football fields and will be built to store food products requiring temperatures ranging from -20 to 45 degrees.
Lineage has indicated it will create up to 75 new “quality paying” jobs in the area to support the operation.
Company officials have indicated dirt moving will start March 15 construction may be complete by summer of 2023.

Meetings
Blue Mound Quilters will meet at 6 p.m. Monday, March 7, at the Rock County Library. Exchange Day — books, fabric, etc. — and Show and Tell following the meeting.
Beaver Creek Township Board will meet at 7:30 p.m. Monday, March 7, in the township hall.  
Parkinson’s support group will meet at 2 p.m. Monday, March 7, at Poplar Creek Care Center for a speaker on physical therapy. Masks are required. Call Diane Karlstad, 507-530-3307, for more information.
Vienna Township Board will meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 8, in the Kenneth Community Center.
 
Winter Carnival set for March 5
Luverne Music Boosters Winter Carnival, which was scheduled for Jan. 22, is rescheduled for Saturday, March 5.
 
Mobile dental clinics scheduled
Mobile dental clinics will be in Luverne Wednesdays, March 9 and April 6 and Thursday, April 7, at the Rock County Health and Human Services community room.
These clinics provide dental care for adults and children ages infant through 100. Call 612-746-1530 to schedule an appointment. All forms of insurance accepted. The clinics are organized by the #Luv1LuvAll initiative, Rock County Oral Health Task Force.
 
Tack swap March 5 at Rock Ranch
A tack swap benefit is planned from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, March 5, at Rock Ranch near Hills. Organizers are seeking individuals interested in selling horse-related items or sharing business or service information by reserving a booth. The event is a fundraiser for two area 4-H families: Mark and Lisa Ehlers of Luverne and Wyatt and the late Tanya Fey of Woodstock. Call Kris Vanderbrink at 507-350-9209 to reserve a booth.
 
‘More than Sad’ suicide information March 7, March 28
Cassie Linkenmeyer of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention will be in Luverne from 7 to 8 p.m. two Mondays, March 7 and March 28, at Luverne Community Education. Parents, educators and students will learn how to recognize signs of depression and other mental health problems, initiate conversations and get help. Register by calling 507-283-4742. Fee is $5.
 
Free tax preparation at library
AARP volunteers offer free tax preparation for low-income individuals and seniors at the Rock County Library on Mondays through April 15. Call 507-449-5040 for appointments. Bring documents, including last year’s tax return, and a form of identification to document social security number. Masks are required.
 
Community Ed
Call Cindy at Luverne Community Education, 507-283-4724, to register for classes. Community Ed’s website is www.isd2184.net, select Luverne Community Education under schools.
Students in grades K-12 can sign up now for summer community ed T-ball, baseball or softball before March 28. Fees are lower in March and this ensures placement on a team.
Plan a garden at Getting Ready for Spring on March 8. Fee is $5. 
Register preschoolers for Spanish class (ages 4 and 5 not yet in school) that begins on March 10.  Research shows that learning a second language improves memory, concentration, listening skills and more. Fee is $24.
Participants Grade 5 through adult, will Make Your Own Drinking Cup on March 12. Fee is $15.   
 See examples of start to finish design and manufacture at Intro to 3D Printing on March 14. Fee is $8.
Learn the ins and outs of the Rock County Community Library at Library 101 on Tuesday, March 15. Fee is $5
Register for the Refresher Defensive Driving class to be held in Edgerton Public School on March 17 at 5:30 pm.  Fee is $28.  
Children ages 2-5 with parent will enjoy Open Gym on March 18. There is no fee, but registration is required.
 
Kindergarten Round-Up
Luverne Kindergarten Round-Up will be from 5:30-7 p.m. Thursday, March 24, at the Luverne Elementary School. Parents and children will participate in an informal “meet and greet” open house. A staggered schedule is as follows:
•5:30 to 6 p.m. for last names beginning with A-G
•6 to 6:30 for last names beginning with H-M
•6:30 to 7 for N-Z
Children must be 5 years old before Sept. 1, 2022, to register for kindergarten. Call the elementary office at 283-4497 with questions.
 
Rock County Library Happenings
For more information about library happenings, call 507-449-5040 or email rockcountystaff@gmail.com
The 2022 Winter Reading Program, “Catch a Keeper at your Library,” is currently under way and goes through March 31. Read or listen to 12 books checked out from the Rock County Library and win a fabulous prize. Winter Reading Bingo will also be played. Bingo sheets are available now at the library.
Story Time with Bronwyn takes place 10:30 a.m. Fridays through April 29. No story time on Feb. 18.
Bring your creative selves to Bad Art Night at 7 p.m. Thursday, March 17, at Take 16, and compete to see who can make the worst piece of art with provided supplies. The less artistic ability you have, the better. Prizes will be awarded.
Trivia Night is at 7 p.m. the first Thursday of every month at Take 16 in Luverne. Team registration begins at 6 p.m.
Reminiscence Kits are available featuring various topics such as gardening, pets, baking, sewing, farming and hunting. The kits are designed to use with a loved one experiencing memory loss, encouraging the loved one to open up about activities they once loved in the past.
 
Goehle gym open Sundays through March 27
The Hugo Goehle gymnasium in Hills is open for public recreation from 1 to 3 p.m. Sundays now through March 27.
 
Online mental health classes continue
NAMI Minnesota (National Alliance on Mental Illness) will offer free online mental health classes in February. The classes are designed for family members and caregivers, persons living with mental illness, service providers and also for the general public. Go to namimn.org and click on “classes.”
 
A.C.E. respite care available, volunteers needed
A.C.E. of SW Minnesota (A.C.E.) offers respite care services in Rock County for those needing a break from caring for a loved one.
The respite program offers short-term (1-3 hours), temporary care for families and caregivers by providing a brief period of reprieve from the daily cares they provide to their loved one.
Volunteers provide non-professional supportive services to caregivers to give them time for themselves, relieve their stress and help them remain healthy.
Respite care volunteers are also needed. Trained A.C.E. volunteers provide respite care to family caregivers of adults age 60 and older who are suffering from long-term health conditions.
Contact Linda Wenzel at 507-283-5064 or ace.rock@co.rock.mn.us.
 
Nominations sought for Rock County Hall of Fame
The Rock County Historical Society’s Hall of Fame Committee is seeking nominations for the 2022 induction of current and former residents.
Nominees must have a significant identity with Rock County and have made an exceptional contribution to society, achieved exceptional success, and brought honor and prestige beyond the borders of Minnesota.
Nominations are accepted now through Feb. 28, 2022. Forms are available at The History Center, Luverne Area Chamber or online at www.rockcountyhistorical.com or www.luvernechamber.com. An awards presentation is scheduled for July 17, 2022.

Residents of Rock County and southwestern Minnesota have learned the maps of new legislative districts in the State Legislature.
The new districts become effective in January 2023 following the November general election which includes both House and Senate candidates.
 A panel of five state judges released redistricting lines for the Minnesota Legislature on Feb. 15. The changes are necessary due to population changes recorded from the 2020 census.
 
State Senate
Rock County is part of the current Senate District 22, which will be known as Senate District 21.
The new Senate district will no longer include the counties of Lyon and Redwood, but it gained the east half of Jackson County, the west half of Watonwan County (including the city of St. James), and four townships and two cities in the northwest part of Martin County. 
Sen. Bill Weber (R-Luverne) currently represents Rock County and District 22 in the Minnesota Senate.
 
State House
Rock County is part of the current House District 22A, which is comprised of communities in Lincoln, Lyon, Pipestone, Murray, Nobles, and Rock counties.
The current House District 22A largely becomes the new House District 21A. It will now be comprised of Rock, Pipestone, Lincoln, and Murray counties in their entirety.
All of Lyon County will now become part of a new House District 15A.
The new House District 21A also includes the western portion of Nobles County, including the cities of Adrian, Ellsworth, Lismore, and Wilmont, along with the neighboring townships.
A significant portion of Cottonwood County will also be added to the new House District 21A, including the cities of Jeffers, Storden, and Westbrook.
Rep. Joe Schomacker (R-Luverne) currently represents Rock County and District 22A in the Minnesota House of Representatives.
"With population gain in the Twin Cities, I was worried that we would lose border-city and border-county seats in the adjustment,” Schomacker said. "I am thankful to see that in southwestern Minnesota that is not the case."
 
Congressional District 1
Rock County is part of Minnesota’s First Congressional District, which extends across southern Minnesota from Rock County to Houston County.
Minnesota’s First Congressional District gained Goodhue and Wabasha Counties, which were formerly part of the Second District, but lost Le Sueur County to the Second District.
The First District also lost a section of land on its northwestern edge (to the north and east of Windom) which was added to the Seventh District.
The late Congressman Jim Hagedorn had represented District 1 in the U.S. House until Feb. 17 when he died of cancer at age 59.
A special election Aug. 9 will determine who will fill out the remaining term, set to expire in 2023.
The winner of the November general election will serve a two-year term beginning in January 2023.
More information is available on the Minnesota Secretary of State website, sos.state.mn.us

Sixteen teams competed for the traveling trophy in the 28th Annual Helgeson Father/Son Pool Tournament Feb. 11 and 12 at Up the Dam Creek Bar in Beaver Creek.
Keith and Ryan Morford defeated Dick Kramer and Brandon Muellenberg in the final round.
Along with the double-elimination pool tournament, a quilt and several other raffles took place throughout the Friday and Saturday event.
The event raised $4,300 for Sanford Luverne Hospice and over the 28 years, $42,300 has been raised.
The tournament resumed this year, and due to the ability to receive funds through Venmo, it received donations from South Dakota, Minnesota, Indiana, Canada, Iowa, Colorado and Wisconsin.
“The Helgeson family wants to thank everyone for the donations, family members for helping sell tickets, making the quilt and for the extra raffle items and Up the Dam Creek for letting us play here,” said Gary Helgeson, who with wife, Maureen, organize the event.
“We especially thank the players. Without them there is no tournament.”
The tournament began in 1985 by Gordon and Kitty Helgeson, who raised the money to support the Hospice Cottage in Luverne.
Gary said his late parents conducted the tournament for 20 years building a “legacy for giving.”

Luverne students traveled to Redwood Falls Saturday for the Redwood Valley Cardinal Invitational, where they had a quiet showing.
Seven students placed in the three-round, no final, tournament.
The top six in each of the 13 speech categories received individual awards with blue and red ribbons presented to students who placed first and second in the final placings.
Sweepstakes awards were given to the top three schools.
Luverne did not place as a team among the 21 schools participating in the tournament. About 200 students competed.
Individually, Luverne students placed in:
•Informational speaking: Jessika Tunnissen, first; Lizzy Mulder, red ribbon.
•Extemporaneous speaking: Chance Tunnissen, first; Parker Carbonneau, third; Zander Carbonneau, fourth.
•Humorous interpretation: Luke Thorson, blue ribbon.
•Poetry: Mia Wenzel, blue ribbon.
•Great speeches: Nora Louwagie, red ribbon.
Luverne next competes Saturday in Minneota.

The Minnesota Veterans Home in Luverne is among four in the state to receive national accolades for its skilled nursing care.
The Pinnacle Quality Insight’s 2022 Customer Experience Award in the skilled nursing category also went to facilities in Fergus Falls, Minneapolis and Silver Bay.
By qualifying for the award, these Veterans Homes have scored in the top 15 percent of the nation across a 12-month average.
Pinnacle Quality Insight conducts over 150,000 phone surveys each year and works with more than 2,500 care providers in all 50 U.S. states, Canada and Puerto Rico.
Over the past year, Pinnacle interviewed residents and their families on several areas including: cleanliness, activities, therapy, personalized care, dignity and respect, communication and responding to resident concerns.
The results are compared to others in the industry, and the Minnesota Veterans Homes have been identified as “best in class.”
“The Pinnacle survey results represent the overall quality our homes provide to our residents by our staff,” said Douglas Hughes, Veterans Healthcare deputy commissioner.
“We are very proud of the level of care that is provided and appreciate the work of all employees to provide this experience to residents and families.”
He said Minnesota Veterans Homes have worked to ensure that individual needs of every resident are met.
Over the course of 2021, Pinnacle contacted residents and their families in monthly telephone interviews that included open-ended questions, as well the opportunity to rate the Veterans Home in specific categories.
Every month, the veterans homes reviewed these real-time survey results to gain a better understanding of residents’ needs and made improvements when necessary.
Pinnacle Quality Insight is a customer satisfaction measurement firm with 26 years of experience in post-acute healthcare.

I’ve had a comfortable seat for this winter sports season thanks to modern technology.
Last week my stint as the sports reporter for the Luverne High School gymnastics team came to an end.
Thanks to live broadcastings and online scoring, I was able to cover the team’s away meets with ease — much easier than my predecessor did.
Coach Phoebe Flom introduced me to the world of live, online scoring. No longer did I have to worry about getting all the events results from paper copies following the meet — the scores were right there on my computer screen.
The few times the host school didn’t subscribe to the online service, Phoebe would send pictures of the paper results to my iPhone.
For those away meets, I often sat in my cushioned office chair, a blanket covering my lap and a cup of hot chocolate in hand. As I watched the social media feeds, I cheered for the local girls and made notes of the scores as each event finished.
With no drive home in a cold car, I simply clicked off the computer and crawled into bed.
I did thoroughly enjoy the home meets when I did “old school” reporting in person, on site, shooting my own photographs.
Even though covering home meets meant sitting on those uncomfortable bleachers, the experience was enjoyable as the Luverne gymnasts introduced difficult maneuvers into their routines as the season progressed.
I watched as their confidence grew and I admired the difficult routines most Luverne gymnasts were not performing just a decade ago when I was just a parent in the stands.
Over the three-month competitive season, I got to know the athletes, and none impressed me more than freshman Ella Reisdorfer.
When her teammates needed a solid score, she delivered and earned herself a third-straight appearance to the state gymnastics tournament.
Talking with the 15-year-old prior to the tournament, I asked her about who in the gymnastics world she admired (she listed her teammates) and she credits God for her athletic abilities in not only gymnastics but in volleyball and softball.
Ella is a young person to be admired — something I wouldn’t have learned through technology or from even sitting in the bleachers.

The IRS started off the 2022 tax season ringing the alarm bells, warning that they do not have the resources to return filers’ tax returns in a timely manner and will likely be overwhelmed by the number of returns. 
 You might think that this means that you won’t have to pay your 2021 taxes. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you will. Unless, of course, you’re wealthy. 
Report after report has shown that, for years, the wealthy have gotten away with murder when it comes to paying taxes in the U.S.
The IRS estimates the current tax gap — the difference between the amount of taxes the IRS expects and what it actually gets — to be somewhere around $1 trillion dollars.
Reasons for this incomprehensible total are multifold, but the biggest involves the wealthy evading taxes.
I don’t suggest that all the wealthy seek to avoid their fair share, but wealthy Americans like me are able to pay armies of tax lawyers to utilize any and every tax loophole and exemption available to avoid paying as much tax as possible, and some certainly do.
Unfortunately, as it stands today, the IRS simply does not have enough resources to go after wealthy tax evaders and fix the tax gap. Thanks to COVID-related staffing issues and a decades-long right-wing attack on this critical agency, the IRS is in a sorry state.
There are simply too few service personnel to meet the current demand of the tax season, with one representative for every 16,000 Americans.
Budget cuts have left the agency unable to properly dole out pandemic aid to businesses, thanks to massive paper backlogs, which is no surprise when you consider that the agency has roughly the same size workforce that it did in 1970.  
But no matter how underfunded the IRS is, know that lower- and middle-class Americans still have to pay their taxes or the federal government will bring down the hammer on them. Because, as it stands in this country today, skipping your tax bill is a privilege reserved only for the wealthy and corporations. 
With their massive funding gaps, the IRS simply does not have the resources to go after wealthy tax dodgers who can spend obscene amounts of money on expensive tax lawyers if they were ever threatened with an audit.
So rather than chasing the largest source of tax fraud, the agency has increased the amount of audits it performs against low-income taxpayers. 
This is not only an unjust decision by the agency: it’s simply inefficient. Picking on the little guy does not levy anywhere near the amount that would come from a moderately wealthy individual.
While it would be expensive to audit even just a handful of wealthy tax dodgers, the returns would make the effort worthwhile.
Estimates show that by putting down just $70 billion dollars over ten years, the IRS can raise a whopping $1.2 trillion over that same time frame – far more than it would ever get from auditing working Americans.  
When the wealthy avoid paying such extreme amounts of money, the burden of filling the funding gaps falls directly on the same working Americans who do pay their fair share.
From our crumbling infrastructure to our many underfunded public schools, it’s everyday Americans who pay the price for the greed of some of the ultra-wealthy. With the sorry state of many of our public goods, we need that funding more than ever.  
And while I do think that we need to raise taxes on some of the wealthiest in our country, we can get the same bonus by simply giving the IRS an appropriate budget to go after rich tax cheats.
A well-funded IRS can raise revenue and slow the out-of-control wealth inequality that we are currently experiencing as a country. And with this, we’re only talking about adhering to and enforcing existing law.
What can be disputed about that?
Democrats have the perfect opportunity ahead of them to introduce additional funding for the IRS in the coming reconciliation package. Americans don’t like cheaters, so let's finally make wealthy tax cheats pay their fair share. 
 
Dale Walker is a retired financial services executive, living in San Francisco. He currently serves on the Boards of Beneficial State Bank, the Graduate Theological Union, and Pacific Vision Foundation. He is an active member of Patriotic Millionaires.