The Hills City Council and Economic Development Association discussed the fate of three downtown buildings during their meeting Tuesday night.

Plans of the Hills Post Office moving into the city office are on hold. No new construction will be approved until at least September, and there is a possibility some offices will be closed, according to a letter received by the council from the Postal Service.

The council discussed offering the space previously earmarked for the post office for rent but instead decided to wait until the end of the Postal Service's fiscal year in September to see if current budget problems are worked out.

"We can hold off for four months," said Langford. "We don't have anyone hot for it. We have other buildings available."

A motion passed to hire structural engineers Bether and Associates, Sioux Falls, to evaluate cracks in the Legion Building. Although the cracks have been in the legion walls for years they have widened and shifted over the winter, according to Connie Wiertzema, City Clerk.

The evaluation is made more difficult because the majority of the walls are paneled in the structure. "We need to hire these guys to see if the building is going to be condemned," said Langford.

In their final business on buildings Tuesday, the Hills EDA decided to offer the American Salvage Building up for bid. "We can sell it as is or we can fix it, but we would need more money for it if we fix it," said Langford.

The city recently received a $9,000 insurance payment for damage incurred when the building buckled from snow weight.

The motion passed to advertise the building for sale by sealed bid with the right to refuse any and all bids. Bids will be opened May 8 and must include intended use for the property.

In other council news:
oSioux Valley Telephone Company has reached an agreement to purchase the Hills cable system from McLeod USA. Denny Law, general manager of Hills Telephone, was present to request the council approve the transfer.

There would be no immediate changes to channels or rates, according to Law. Sioux Valley Telephone Company currently operates cable systems in Dell Rapids, Montrose, Corsica and Plankinton, S.D.
oThe council wants to establish an interest-free loan program to help residents replace sidewalks that have deteriorated and need to be replaced.

Most of the new neighborhoods in Hills do not have sidewalks, and some residents in older neighborhoods are asking to remove their sidewalks rather than repair them.

Council members were contacted by their insurance carrier and encouraged to make a stronger effort to repair, replace or remove hazardous sidewalks.

oThe council is sending letters to residents in Hills who have junk cars parked at their residences. If the cars are not removed, they can be ticketed and the vehicles towed.

oA motion by Dana Dahlquist to move the council meetings from 6 to 7 p.m. during the summer was defeated.

By Lori Ehde
According to an informal polling of township officials, it appears there's support for a road signage system in Rock County.

The subject was on the agenda of Tuesday's annual Road and Bridge hearing, and 10 of 11 townships present supported the concept establishing a road sign system.

When asked if they still supported the concept if they had to pay for it, seven townships supported it, and four did not.

On a roll-call vote, Battle Plain, Beaver Creek, Denver, Kanaranzi, Luverne, Martin, and Rose Dell townships supported rural signage whether it cost them or not.

Clinton, Mound, and Vienna townships supported the concept but didn't support having to pay for it.
Springwater Township was the only township that opposed both the concept and the cost.

Township officials were asked to gauge residents' support or opposition of rural signage during their annual township meetings last month and bring feedback to TuesdayÕs meeting.

"I don't know if this sends a clear message or not," said County Administrator Kyle Oldre, who polled township officials.

"I appreciate this. At least we have something to bring to the County Board."

Rural signage will be on the agenda of the next County Board meeting April 17.

Important for 911
About half the counties in Minnesota have already named rural roads, and Rock County is the only one in southwest Minnesota that hasn't done it.

The primary reason for naming rural gravel roads is for emergencies.

With Enhanced 911, computers automatically bring up the resident's name and directions to their home. But if rural residents don't alert dispatchers when they move, 911 calls don't correlate to the correct residences.

If the county goes ahead with the signing project, rural route addresses would become street addresses with house numbers, and the dispatch mapping system would correspond with those.

Emergencies aren't the only reasons for assigning names to roads. Delivery companies, service workers and people trying to find a business or residence in rural areas usually find road signs helpful.

How much will it cost and who will pay for it?
If it's approved, one sign would be placed at each intersection, and there are 540 intersections Rock County.

Each sign will cost roughly $130 for a total of more than $70,000, and the expense will be shared between the townships and the county (see table).

According to an informal cost plan proposed by Rock County Highway Engineer Mark Sehr, the county would fund all signs adjacent to township roads.

The cost of signs on intersections on borders of townships would be split between the two townships. The cost for intersection signs bordering four townships would be split among the four townships.

With this system, some townships would pay more for signage if they didn't share intersections with as many county roads.

Individual residence signs, estimated to cost less than $10 each, would likely be assessed to residents.

Sehr was asked if he'd looked to area counties for a good plan for implementation and funding. Sehr said in Pipestone County, townships funded the signs on their own. In Nobles County, the townships and county shared the expense.

When naming the rural streets, Sehr said Rock County would likely continue with the same street names as Pipestone's north-south streets that meet Rock County's border, and the same names as Nobles County's east-west streets that meet on the east side.

Pete Bakken of Beaver Creek Township wondered what would happen to border residents who live in Minnesota but have South Dakota addresses. "It's something somebody should consider," Bakken said.

Oldre said when the time comes, area post offices would be involved in the signage process, as would local fire and rescue departments.

If approved, other issues would also have to be resolved, such as who would pay for maintenance on the intersection signs.

By Jolene Farley
A storm traveled through the area early Saturday morning damaging buildings and trees on several farm places northeast of Beaver Creek.

Bob Beyenhof was awakened at about 3 a.m. when one of his bins landed on the roof of his attached garage. "I jumped right out of bed," said Beyenhof. "I could feel the whole house shaking."

Delmar DeVries watched the storm from his bedroom window. "I heard it coming," he said. "It was one big racket, here and then gone."

It sounded like a railroad train coming through, according to DeVries and his wife, Marlys. The couple said every drain in their house was gurgling.

They said sparks flew when a piece of their cattle shed roof flew into overhead electrical lines, cutting off power. The storm left their greenhouse severely damaged and debris scattered in their yard.

A cattle shed collapsed on the Orville Bork farm across the road from the DeVries place. Bork said heÕs fortunate no cattle were lost, since they were locked out of the shed because of the nicer weather. The shed was not insured.

A large tree that graced the entry to Bork's driveway was snapped in half by the force of the storm.
This is the second building Bork has lost in a month. In mid-March his machine shed collapsed from the weight of snow on the roof. He carried insurance for that building.

Damage was also reported at the Gary Top, Jim Van Santen and Frank Matus farms. Most hit by the storm spent the weekend cleaning up.

The storm carried strong straight-line winds, according to meteorologist Todd Heitkamp of the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls.

In south and southwestern Rock County, winds were estimated at 67 to 75 mph with widespread rainfall of more than one inch in the area and higher amounts farther north near Watertown, S.D.

There was little damage in the city of Beaver Creek. Some signs blew down, and there was slight damage at the elevator, according to Lloyd DeBoer.

By John Rittenhouse
The Hills-Beaver Creek-Ellsworth track squad picked up their first exposure to outdoor competition this season at the Central Lyon Relays in Rock Rapids, Iowa, Tuesday.

Unfortunately for H-BC-E, the Patriots were unable to finish what they started.

After rain started to make cold and windy conditions even more miserable, Patriot coach Tom Goehle made the decision to pull his team out of the meet with five girls' and boys' events remaining.

"They wanted to finish the meet, but I wasn't interested. We got a good workout in, with all of our kids getting to run in at least one event," he said.

The H-BC-E girls picked up two event titles before they left Rock Rapids.

Erin Boeve, who placed second in the 100-meter dash with a time of 13.38, won the long jump with a distance of 14-10.

H-BC-E's 3,200-meter relay team of Cassi Tilstra, Bev Wurpts, Brittney Olson and Janelle Jenniges produced the winning time of 10:32.87.

Wurpts finished a strong second in the 400-meter dash in 1:07.65.

The Patriot boys came away with one meet championship as the 3,200-meter relay team of Chris Willers, Lee Jackson, Tyler Bush and Brad Haak recorded the winning time of 8:42.43.

Patriots Vlad Pastushenko and Greg Van Batavia came up with the teamÕs best individual efforts.

Pastushenko finished second in the long jump with a distance of 17-2 1/2. Van Batavia ran 1,600 meters in 5:14.85 to place third.

The Patriot teams will run at the Pipestone-Jasper Invitational Saturday before attending a triangular meet in Windom Tuesday.

Here is a look at the rest of H-BC-E's individual results from the Central Lyon Relays.

H-BC-E girls
Third place: Shuttle-hurdle relay (Angie Bush, Kari Roozenboom, Kelsey Hansel and Sarah Rozeboom), 1:29.95.

Fourth place: Shanna Tilstra, 200, 29.34; Roozenboom, 400 hurdles, 1:32.36; 800 relay (Rozeboom, Jenniges, Melinda Feucht and Connie Lewis), 2:01.41.

Fifth place: Lewis, long jump, 13-2 1/2; Rachel Kvaale, 800, 2:56.56; Bush, 400 hurdles, 1:37.75; medley relay (LaDonna Sandstede, Olson, Brittney Rozeboom and Feucht), 5:05.53.

H-BC-E boys
Fourth place: Chris Fransman, high jump, 6-0; 800 relay (Jackson, Fransman, Willers and Haak), 1:37.95.

Fifth place: Derek Haak, 3,200, 13:26.

Sixth place: Pastushenko, 200, 25.96; Jared Drenth, 3,200, 13:52; Kerry Fink, 1,600, 5:53.

W&N Construction crews tear down the walls of the brick building adjacent to Mary Aukes' Hair salon Monday to make room for an expanded Herman Motors car lot. By Tuesday afternoon, the building was gone, and the debris hauled away. For many years, the building housed Van RoekelÕs "Van's" service station, but most recently it has been home to Gary Theesfeld's paint business and Sudenga Communications. The building was empty when Herman Motors bought the property.

By Lori Ehde

By Lori Ehde
The Rock County Developmental Achievement Center is nearing the end of a major remodeling project that started last summer.

According to DAC Director Dorothy Cronin, the $300,000 remodeling project is something that will finally allow the DAC to operate with adequate space and above code.

"It adds the basic things we need to operate," she said. "We had to have an appropriate meeting room, we had to have an appropriate bathroom with a lift, we had to have a handicap-accessible ramp. These aren't really what we could call extras."

Code violations previously included handicapped accessibility inside and outside of the building, sanitary violations (including mop sinks and washer and dryer in the main areas), inadequate conference room, no special medication room (medication had been locked in a kitchen cabinet), no second legal exit and a bathroom that's too small.

Visitors to the DAC today will notice an expansive, sunny conference room with bay windows, a bathroom the size of a bedroom with ceiling tracking for a lift system, and an attractive three-season porch on the north that will serve as the second legal exit.

The remodeling project was financed in part by public and private donations.

The Rock County Board committed a no-interest loan of up to $120,000 to be paid back in eight years. The City of Luverne gave the DAC a $15,000 grant.

In addition to many other private contributors, Bremer Bank, Edgerton, through the Otto Bremer Foundation, donated $15,000 to the project.

Cronin said contractors expect to finish the work by late June, and final inspections will be set for mid-summer.

What is the DAC?
The DAC started 1967 in the basement of St. Catherine Church and is now located on the west end of Main Street.

It exists through public and private financing for the purpose of employing individuals with mental retardation, developmental disabilities or traumatic brain injuries.

More than 30 such individuals are currently employed through DAC, working on projects either at the West Main Street location or on jobs off-site at various locations.

In-house projects can include manual assembly, paper shredding, mass mailing and more. "The jobs change all the time, depending on what businesses need," Cronin said.

She said DAC employees are currently working on eight in-house projects, but they are busiest putting labels on packaging for Gold'n Plump, Luverne, and assembling medical equipment for Apex Medical Corporation, Sioux Falls.

DAC now has 12 off-site contracts, many of which include cleaning work.

"Right now we're busy," Cronin said, "but we're always looking for more work."

By Sara Quam
Diane Boyenga, of Nobles-Rock Public Health, inspects car seats in the Frankenhoffs' family car Friday as part of the first mobile car seat check-up in Luverne. Statistically, four out of five car seats are used incorrectly, and Boyenga showed Dawn Frankenhoff some minor adjustments she should make in her childrenÕs car seats. Frankenhoff's children are Jackson, 5 1/2, and Maddison, 2 1/2.

Boyenga outlined some things all car seat owners should know: Keep the instructions with the car seat; the life of a car seat is about six years; send in the car seat registration card so you can be notified if the car seat is recalled; when throwing out old car seats, dismantle or damage them so no one will retrieve them from the trash; don't buy used car seats; the safest place for children of any age is in the back seat; replace a car seat if itÕs involved in any car crash - even a minor fender-bender. Other information was outlined by age and weight groups.

Usually children weighing more than 80 pounds and 8 years old can fit in lap/shoulder belts: Never put shoulder belts under kids' arms or behind their backs; to fit correctly in a safety belt, children must be tall enough to sit with knees bent at the edge of the seat without slouching, and lap and shoulder belts should fit low over the hips and upper thighs and snug over the shoulders.

Children between 40 and about 60 to 80 pounds (usually 4 to 8 years old) should be in booster seats: Buy a special car seat that is for kids who weigh more than 40 pounds; correctly restrain children in car booster seats using a lap/shoulder belt. Move the vehicle seat as far back as possible and if your vehicle has a low back seat and your child's ears are above it, you need a high back booster seat to protect his or her head.

Children older than 1 and between 20 and 40 pounds can be in forward-facing car seats: Keep harness straps snug; place car seat in upright position; route the harness straps in upper slots at or above shoulder level and fasten harness clip at armpit level.

Infants until at least a year old and 20 pounds should be in rear-facing car seats: Never put an infant in the front seat of a vehicle with a passenger air bag; keep harness straps snug and fasten harness clip at armpit level; route harness straps in lower slots at or below shoulder level; put car seat carrying handle down, and recline a rear-facing seat at a 45 degree angle (a firmly rolled up towel under the car seat may help). Infants must ride in the back seat facing the rear of the vehicle to offer the best protection for an infant's neck.

For more information, contact the Minnesota Child Passenger Safety Program at 1-800-818-9296 or www.buckleupkids.state.mn.us

By Lori Ehde
When Alex Miller was a trial attorney with a law firm in downtown Chicago, he spent an hour and half commuting to and from work every day.

Considering the demands of a trial attorney, he was lucky to be home by 7 or 8 p.m. on a good night.

Two years ago, he and his wife, Karen, and their three daughters decided it was time for a change.

"We thought if we were going to enjoy our family, it was better to do it sooner than later," Alex said.

Their life change landed them on a hobby farm north of Hardwick, where they market chemical-free produce as well as fresh chicken eggs. In addition, the former city slickers are planning to expand their livestock to eventually include cattle and goats.

Their favorite hobby is gardening, something they enjoyed on a 12-foot kitchen garden in Chicago.

It didn't take them long to cultivate their own garden here. After establishing a sizable plot on the farm last year, they plan to market their produce this year under the name, "Sorella Farms."

Sorella is the Italian word for sister. "It was a roundabout way of naming it for our daughters," Alex said.

In November, the Millers attended a conference in Indianapolis on small-scale organic farming.

They soon realized people in Rock County are hungry for organically-grown produce.

"Going in, we had no idea what the demand was going to be," Alex said. "We're finding so many people are interested."

It didn't take long for the Millers to connect with the Little Buying Club on the Prairie, a group of local residents who pool their orders to buy organically grown produce and health food in bulk.

Buying Club members were excited to learn about a local grower offering chemical-free produce.

This year, Sorella Farms will offer 50 varieties of vegetables: four varieties of broccoli, three cauliflower, six lettuce/greens, three beans, sweet corn, three varieties of sweet bell peppers, three tomatoes, two different potatoes, beets, radishes, carrots, summer squash, zucchini, peas, pumpkins, melons and cabbages.

The way their system works is that they sign on subscribers for $150 a year. For that, subscribers receive a box of produce every two weeks.

Alex said similar growers who are well-established charge anywhere from $350 to $550 a year.

The Millers can’t market their first year’s produce as organically grown because the land they purchased was industrially farmed. Nonetheless, the produce is grown free of pesticides and herbicides.

They intend to use composted manure from their own farm animals - a scientific process involving the right mixture of sun, air and biodegrading vegetation.

"Really it's just a grand experiment," Alex said. "We fully expect to learn as we go along."

Considering Alex grew up in Chicago and Karen is from St. Louis, the change of pace was dramatic coming to Luverne.

"It was quite an adventure. We didn't know what we would find. But we're really enjoying it. It's working out really well for us," Alex said.

"We had some kids come up from Chicago - some friends of our daughters - and they didn't want to leave. It has to do with room to roam and wide open spaces."

Alex now works as a guardian ad litem for the Nobles and Rock county court systems, representing children in divorce or custody cases or in child endangerment cases.

Karen is a nurse at McKennan Hospital, Sioux Falls, working three 12-hour days a week.

Their daughters, Kristin, 16, Emily, 11, and Caitlin, 9, attend school in Luverne.

By Jolene Farley
A storm traveled through the area early Saturday morning damaging buildings and trees on several farm places northeast of Beaver Creek.

Bob Beyenhof was awakened at about 3 a.m. when one of his bins landed on the roof of his attached garage. "I jumped right out of bed," said Beyenhof. "I could feel the whole house shaking."

Delmar DeVries watched the storm from his bedroom window. "I heard it coming," he said. "It was one big racket, here and then gone."

It sounded like a railroad train coming through, according to DeVries and his wife, Marlys. The couple said every drain in their house was gurgling.

They said sparks flew when a piece of their cattle shed roof flew into overhead electrical lines, cutting off power. The storm left their greenhouse severely damaged and debris scattered in their yard.

A cattle shed collapsed on the Orville Bork farm across the road from the DeVries place. Bork said he's fortunate no cattle were lost, since they were locked out of the shed because of the nicer weather. The shed was not insured.

A large tree that graced the entry to BorkÕs driveway was snapped in half by the force of the storm.

This is the second building Bork has lost in a month. In mid-March his machine shed collapsed from the weight of snow on the roof. He carried insurance for that building.

Damage was also reported at the Gary Top, Jim Van Santen and Frank Matus farms. Most hit by the storm spent the weekend cleaning up.

The storm carried strong straight-line winds, according to meteorologist Todd Heitkamp of the National Weather Service in Sioux Falls.

In south and southwestern Rock County, winds were estimated at 67 to 75 mph with widespread rainfall of more than one inch in the area and higher amounts farther north near Watertown, S.D.

There was little damage in the city of Beaver Creek. Some signs blew down, and there was slight damage at the elevator, according to Lloyd DeBoer.