Jan. 11 edition
In November, Brady Andel lost his bid for election to the Sartell City Council, but as of Jan. 14 he will take a place on the council, anyway.
That’s because at a special Jan. 7 city-council meeting, members agreed to appoint Andel to fill a vacancy on the council rather than conduct another election. Andel received the third highest number of votes in the Nov. 6 election among the four candidates who were competing for two open seats. The two council seat winners were Tim Elness and Jeff Kolb. Besides Andel, Barika Davis also vied for a council seat.
An app that will tie together school news and information for parents and community members will be launched by the Sartell-St. Stephen school district on Wednesday, Jan. 16. Parents will receive an email with credentials to set up a password-protected portal to track student details such attendance, lunch account and checked out library books. Parents and community members will be able to see feeds from the school board, social media and calendars and customize the app for services that are most important to them.
Tim Held, 48, endured years of setbacks, lousy luck, injuries, pains and an insidious infection that cost him his right leg. His family suffered right along with him, but they learned things could be worse and that giving back has curative powers for the soul. And that is why Held and his 11-year-old son, Thomas, love to snowblow and hand-shovel driveways as members of the Plowing Vets program. The Helds do the work for free, and they clear snow off of 10 to 12 home driveways of military personnel away on deployments, of disabled veterans back home, of first responders and of police officers or deputies during their busy duty hours.
Jan. 25 edition
An ordering of bids was approved by the Sartell City Council at its last meeting for safety improvements in the Celebration neighborhood of Sartell. The estimated cost of the project is about $500,000 for the actual construction, with an additional $125,000 to cover soft costs, such as design. Bids will be opened sometime in February.
Students in Ryan Hacker’s Advanced Sports Medicine class found themselves in the operating room as well as the classroom as they observed medical professionals and their patients. Through a partnership with St. Cloud Orthopedics and St. Cloud Surgical Center, the 13 class members were able to follow a patient from diagnosis to recovery and learn firsthand the details of treatment by a cast of medical professionals.
Nineteen sixty-nine was a long, long time ago – a half century, to be exact, but some members of the St. Stephen River Runners snowmobile remember that year fondly, as if it were yesterday, because that’s the year their club began. The club’s members are planning a huge public birthday celebration to memorialize the 50-year event Saturday, Feb. 9, at various venues in downtown St. Stephen. Everyone is welcome, including nonsnowmobilers.
Feb. 8 edition
Joe Schulte is waving a giant flag…the technology teacher calls it the flag of opportunity…for students to take classes that can lead to rewarding and well-paying careers in manufacturing and industry. Schulte and Nick Phillips teach Sartell High School’s classes that challenge students how to size up a problem, come up with a solution and then make something that solves the problem. The 21 classes they offer are electives and they’d like to see more students, especially girls, sign up. A majority of students don’t take technical education. The teachers would like to change that.
Despite vigorous opposition from Sartell City Council member Mike Chisum, the council voted 4-1 to authorize soil testing for a possible bridge to be constructed at Sauk River Regional Park in southwest Sartell. The soil testing authorization was one of the items in the Consent Agenda at the Jan. 28 council meeting, but Chisum asked it be removed from the agenda for discussion, which the council agreed to do.
Aki Rebeck said when she grows up she would like to be an architect, an actress and maybe – just maybe – a mayor. Recently, Rebeck, a Sartell Middle School fifth-grader and the daughter of Ken and Tomoko Rebeck, was one of three young students honored with a state award for her essay imagining herself as mayor of a city.
Feb. 22 edition
The growing popularity of the library lockers at Sartell’s Community Center has created challenges for readers as well as library staff. Book orders outpace the number of available lockers, so readers have to wait longer than they’d like to receive books. The program, launched in October 2017, allows readers to place online orders for books from any of the Great River Regional Library’s 32 brick-and- mortar libraries. Library staff deliver the books on Tuesdays and Fridays for patron pickup. When the books are delivered, the patron receives an email to pick up the book order by scanning their library card at the locker control panel and the correct locker pops open. Demand for books is so great that the 44 lockers are constantly full.
The Sartell City Hall parking lot is going to be resurfaced this June and early July. The city council, at its last meeting, approved the project and awarded the low bid to Knife River Corp. for $115,000. The engineer’s estimate for the project had been $127,000. The parking lot was constructed in 2001 at the time the new city hall opened. Sartell City Engineer Jon Halter gave an overview of the upcoming project. The entire lot surface will be milled by 2 inches, then overlaid with a bituminous surface. In addition, there will be some repair work on the concrete medians, some curb-and-gutter repair and replacement of pedestrian ramps.
March 8 edition
What will change when the Sartell Community Center becomes staffed and managed starting in May by the Sartell-St. Stephen school district’s Community Education Program? The changes will likely not be apparent because the center will still be owned by the city, and the school district’s input to the center will be an enhancement of what has already been taking place.
Two Sartell wrestlers competed in the Minnesota state wrestling tournament last weekend at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul. One, Jackson Penk, was eliminated early. The other, Cole Fibranz, came away with second place. Fibranz, a senior, with a record of 45-3, is ranked No. 2 in the state at 220 pounds in Class 3A and ranked 14th overall nationally, according to InterMat. He made his way through the state bracket to the finals with three wins and a record of 45-2.
Plans for the Watab Park wading pool have hit a snag, although the snag might just morph into an opportunity, depending on what Sartell residents decide they want. The Sartell City Council wrestled with new details about the plans at its Feb. 25 meeting.
March 22 edition
Yearnings for spring and for “Play ball!” surfaced at the Sartell City Council meeting Feb. 25 when Jason Mathiasen updated the council about improvements to athletic fields in the city. Mathiasen, a member of the Pinecone Central Park Association, has been working nonstop with others to get the biggest bang for the buck in improving the city’s fields and athletic amenities so they can be ready for use this spring. Miller Architects was the main contractor.
An ambitious street-walkway-utility project for the neighborhood in the vicinity of the current Sartell High School will be advertised for bids, the Sartell City Council decided at its March 11 meeting. The engineer’s estimate for the base bid is $1.44 million, according to Jon Halter, the city’s engineer from Short Elliott Hendrickson Inc.
A list of budget cuts and revenue increases have been proposed by Sartell-St. Stephen school district leadership after voters rejected an operational levy last fall. The cuts and revenue increases would total at least $1.25 million and in addition, the district would spend about $500,000 from its General Fund balance. The board is also studying whether to ask voters to approve another operational levy in fall 2019.
April 5 edition
The Sartell-St. Stephen school board is expected to vote Monday, April 8, on a list of budget cuts and revenue increases proposed by district leadership. The cuts and search for increased revenue come after voters rejected an operational levy last fall. The cuts and revenue increases would total at least $1.25 million and in addition, the district would spend about $500,000 from its General Fund balance.
After years of planning and a red-light delay of one year, it’s now a green-light go for a water-level drawdown at Little Rock Lake near Rice and the Mississippi River north of Sartell. The Department of Natural Resources announced this week that the drawdown will take place starting on Aug. 1 and end on Sept. 15.
Sartell hockey boosters fell short in a national contest to win $150,000 in rink upgrades for Bernick’s Arena. When online voting ended March 31 in the national Kraft Hockeyville USA contest, Calumet Colosseum in Calumet, Michigan, captured the prize. Sartell was one of four finalists in the annual competition sponsored by Kraft Foods, the National Hockey League and the NHL Players’ Association in which communities compete to demonstrate their commitment to the sport of ice hockey.
April 18 edition
The Sartell-St. Stephen school board approved April 15 a list of budget cuts and revenue increases that fully fund the Academic Extensions program but increases fourth-grade class sizes. The nearly $1 million in budget cuts and fee increases were needed after district voters defeated an operating levy last November.
Hockey enthusiasts in Sartell are making plans and raising funds for a second sheet of ice at Bernick’s Arena. The Sartell City Council, at its April 8 meeting, heard an outline of the plans from Chad Ritter, chairman of the Sartell Youth Recreation Board, which operates and maintains Bernick’s Arena.
Sometimes zeros mean good news, as the row after row of zeroes show in the annual Sartell Fire Department report presented to the City Council at its April 8 meeting. In 2018, there were no intentionally set fires; there were no fire fatalities; there were no injuries from smoke inhalation; no fractures, no falls, no firefighters injured. Fire Chief Jim Sattler outlined the highly detailed written report for the council. Last year, the fire department answered 161 calls, including 13 in Le Sauk Township and two mutual-aid requests (one in St. Cloud, one in St. Joseph). The number of calls showed an increase of 29 percent from 2017.
May 3 edition
A long-anticipated dream – a second large ice sheet by Bernick’s Arena – will now come true, thanks largely to a corporate donation from Scheels All Sports. The announcement of Scheels’ lead gift was made by the Sartell Youth Recreation Center, which has been raising funds for a second ice sheet since 2017. The substantial gift from Scheels means the SYRC now has enough to start building the year-round amenity.
The latest four-year high school graduation rate data shows Sartell High School outperforming districts statewide as well as surrounding schools. Sartell’s 2018 graduation rate of 98.2 percent improved slightly from 96.6 percent in 2017. The Minnesota Department of Education released numbers for all schools on April 23. The statewide rate of 83.2 percent was the highest on record.
When the Sartell school district is done with its plan to reconfigure grades and schools, third- through fifth-graders will enter a school with a new name. In fall 2020, the current middle school will be their home and a new name will replace the “3-5 building” tag informally used by staff and administrators. Starting on May 13, students, staff, parents and community members will have a chance to vote on three names selected from a naming process that began in last November.
The three names are:
Mississippi Mills Intermediate School.
Riverview Intermediate School.
Watab River Intermediate School.
May 17 edition
After five years of long-distance dating and then two years of a long-distance marriage, now is the time for Matt and Anita Archambeau to be together – at home in Tennessee. For nearly 20 years, Anita has been the Sartell City planner/developer and assistant administrator, and she presided over the city’s phenomenal growing pains during that time. She had become such a familiar face and so much a part of Sartell developments that many were stunned when she announced recently she would move to Tennessee.
Married military veterans Chuck and Kitty Haselkamp of Sartell have long been gung-ho about Memorial Day ceremonies, and they wish more people would attend them. As it has for many years, this year’s Memorial Day service in Sartell will take place at Veterans Park on the west bank high above the Mississippi River. The ceremony, which begins at 9 a.m. Monday, May 27, will feature speakers, live patriotic music, a color guard, laying of a wreath and a gun salute.
It’s bye-bye wading pool, hello splash pad. At its May 13 meeting, the Sartell City Council decided on plans for a variety of Watab Park improvements, among them a splash pad instead of the wading pool, which will be removed after so many summers of happy use. Instead, a splash pad will be created at the site in the park.
May 31 edition
Blustery winds blew, a drippy rain fell, a chilly temperature caused some shivers, but the nasty weather did not dampen the patriotic spirits of the 150 or so people who attended the Memorial Day ceremony in Sartell. The ceremony had been planned, as always, for Veterans Park, but the cold rain caused planners at the last minute, shortly before 9 a.m., to change the venue to beneath the Watab Park picnic shelter across the street from Veterans Park.
The Sartell-St. Stephen school district selected Laura Arndt as the new Sartell Middle School principal beginning in the 2019-2020 school year. Arndt served as an assistant principal at Sartell Middle School this past year and previously served as an instructional coach for three years at Oak Ridge Elementary School.
We know it’s time for summer because it’s time for Sartell SummerFest. The annual summer event takes place Friday and Saturday, June 7-8. The fun kicks off on Friday, June 7, when the Sartell Senior Connection and Sartell Historical Society host Historical Tours of Sartell. Tours begin at 4, 5 and 6 p.m. from the Sartell Community Center, 850 19th St. S. The tours are free but space is limited. Call Ann at 320-253-4036, ext. 4, to reserve a spot. Short, vintage children’s movies will be shown at the Community Center.
At 10 a.m. Saturday, June 8, the Granite Logistics Parade will travel up Riverside Avenue from Sartell Street to Seventh Street North and end at the Sartell Middle School. Eight marching bands are expected to compete along with as many as 80 parade entries.
June 14 edition
There’s good news for bus riders in Sartell A pilot service dubbed ConneX, has been extended through the rest of this year, to Dec. 31, 2019. It is an on-demand ride service introduced to Sartell in January by the St. Cloud-based Metro Bus. Metro Bus Chief Executive Officer Ryan Daniel said the service has been steadily gaining ridership since its inception six months ago. Extending ConneX, he added, will allow Metro Bus time to gather information about ridership trends and overall performance of the service.
Sartell is now officially a Bicycle Friendly Community, one of only 29 cities in Minnesota to be so honored and one of 464 in the nation. At the June 10 city council meeting, the city was honored with a Bicycle-Friendly Community certificate (bronze level) by Dorian Grilley, executive director of the Bicycle Alliance of Minnesota.
After proving his automotive know-how in a national automotive knowledge and skills contest, Nick Martel is sure he wants to pursue a career in automotive technology. “I decided this is the direction for the rest of my life,” Martel said. Martel, a senior at Sartell High School, earned a trip to the National Automotive Technology Competition in New York City April 22-26.
June 28 edition
Toppan Merrill announced plans June 25 for a 70,000-square-foot expansion to its Sartell facility. The announcement followed unanimous approval of a business subsidy by the Sartell City Council members at their June 24 meeting. Toppan Merrill is a specialty digital-printing company (formerly Merrill Corp.) that opened in St. Cloud in 1994 and some years later a branch of the company (fulfillment order center) in Sartell. The expansion will allow Toppan Merrill to increase efficiency and capacity to support an expanding customer base and add additional jobs in the community, according to a press release, with the St. Cloud functions moving to the Sartell plant.
Nearly five years ago, on Sept. 20, 2014, Tom Bearson of Sartell, was murdered while he was a freshman at North Dakota State University. After being reported missing Sept. 21, his body was found abandoned in Moorhead by a recreational-vehicle sales-and-service business. The murder has still not been solved.
The Sartell Baseball Association and Pinecone Central Park Association on June 11 dedicated new and improved baseball fields. A double-header at St. Cloud Orthopedics Field (formerly Champion Field) highlighted the event that capped two years of a fundraising campaign. A ceremony between the games officially dedicating St. Cloud Orthopedics and Gilleland Chevrolet Field. The capital campaign of $1.3 million was made possible with more than half the money privately raised and the city of Sartell contributing the balance of the funds.
July 12 edition
Kelly Hanson, communications specialist for the Sartell Police Department, was the recipient of not one – but two – awards for excellence at the July 8 City Council meeting. The honors were presented by Sartell Police Chief Jim Hughes, who delivered bouquets of praise for Hanson’s longtime work for the department. One award, the “Circle of Excellence,” is from the Professional Law Enforcement Assistants Association, which promotes high degrees of skill and efficiency for staff members who support law-enforcement agencies. The other award, the Meritorious Service Award, was from Hughes on behalf of the Sartell Police Department.
A $10,000 check for rink up-grades at Bernick’s Arena will be presented Tuesday, July 16, after Sartell’s runner-up finish in the Kraft Hockeyville competition. Bernick’s Arena was the only Minnesota arena to advance as a finalist. To thank the community for support in the contest, there will be free pizza, hot dogs, chips and beverages from 6 to 6:45 p.m. followed by the check presentation at 7 p.m.
Violet Halverson returned to the medal winners stand, this time for a Silver Medal at the National Senior Games. Halverson, 94, of Sartell won her medal in shuffleboard competing against other women in the 90-94 age group. The games took place in Albuquerque, New Mexico, June 14-25 with more than 14,000 competitors.
July 26 edition
Sartell-St. Stephen school district voters will be asked a second time to approve an operating levy. The measure will be put to voters in a special election on Nov. 5, 2019. If approved, it would raise $1.77 million a year for 10 years. Last fall, voters turned down a similar proposal. That outcome resulted in cutbacks that affected class size, staffing and delaying or canceling proposed instructional and program plans.
At long last, the Little Rock Lake and Mississippi River drawdown project is about to begin – on Thursday, Aug. 1. On that day, the Sartell dam will be opened to decrease lake and river water levels by three feet, a process that will take about 30 hours. The levels will remain low for about six weeks, to mid-September. About 700 acres will be exposed to air and sunlight during the drawdown. Beneficial plants known as emergents will then be planted in the exposed areas. The shipments of many thousands of the emergents will be delivered to the Little Rock Lake Association for volunteers and shoreline residents to plant in the first few days after the drawdown begins.
To thank the community for the runner-up finish in the Kraft Hockeyville contest, Sartell hockey boosters hosted a community thank you July 16 at Bernick’s Arena. The event featured free food including hot dogs and pizza before presentation of the $10,000 prize money won in the contest. Bernick’s arena was the only Minnesota arena to advance as a finalist. Hockeyville is an annual competition sponsored by Kraft Foods, the National Hockey League and the NHL Players’ Association, in which communities compete to demonstrate their commitment to hockey.
Aug. 9 edition
The long-anticipated drawdown has finally begun. The Mississippi River north of Sartell and Little Rock Lake near Rice are now 3 feet lower than they were July 31. At midnight Aug. 1, the Sartell hydroelectric dam was opened gradually to let massive amounts of water flow down river, lowering the water levels in the lake and the river, which are connected via the Harris Channel. The lowering process took about 30 hours. The drawdown is expected to increase the water quality of Little Rock Lake and parts of the river. It was supposed to happen one year ago but had to be delayed because of regulations and other factors.
Saturday, Aug. 3 was a hot and muggy morning at Benton Beach Park at the north side of Little Rock Lake but despite the humid heat, tight teamwork triumphed. Dozens of volunteers hand-planted aquatic plants into the mucky mudflats at the edge of the lake, an area that has been exposed by the river-lake drawdown. The water level of the Mississippi River and Little Rock Lake, connected to the river via a channel, was lowered 3 feet slowly via the Sartell dam during a 30-hour period Aug. 1-2. On Aug. 2, the Department of Natural Resources delivered five truckloads of plants to Benton Beach Park – a total of 50,000 aquatic plants grown by Minnesota Natural Landscaping.
The Jake and Stefanie Rothstein family learned together that small everyday actions can add up to big results. The couple and their two children – Caden, 12; and Evie, 9 – were recently honored as one of five winners in the Clean Water Bingo effort. It is a program created by the Central Minnesota Water Education Alliance, of which many cities are members, including Sartell. The focus of the alliance is to provide educational outreach to promote water-quality stewardship, largely through making simple but effective behavioral changes.
Aug. 23 edition
Amazing. That’s a word commonly heard from students and teachers when they talk about the new Sartell High School. The $89.5 million high school at 3101 Pinecone opens on Sept. 3. When students start classes, they’ll experience the results of four years of planning and design that will offer a drastically different educational experience. A vision for the school started before the district asked voters to approve a building bond and detailed planning started within weeks of voter approval in May 2016.
The opening of the new Sartell High School is just one piece of a multiyear strategy that transforms the district’s curriculum and building configurations. “We have been for a number of years implementing the four Cs – communication, creativity, critical thinking and collaboration,” said High School Principal Brenda Steve. While the focus is on the high school this fall, during the next year, the district will spend about $11 million to remodel the old high school for middle school students.
Jeff Sartell, a descendent of city founder Joseph B. Sartell, spoke about the importance of honoring and preserving local history in a talk before the City Council during the open forum portion of its Aug. 12 meeting. In 2007, Sartell’s centennial year, a group of residents and history buffs, including Jeff Sartell, put together a pictorial-and-text history book of the city and also formed the Sartell Historical Society. But since that time, the historical society has been an orphan of sorts without a permanent home.
Sept. 6 edition
The latest statewide school test scores showed students in the Sartell-St. Stephen district continue to exceed state averages and overall show a high level of performance.The state Department of Education released on Aug. 28 the latest performance scores based on five indicators – achievement and progress on state reading and math tests over time, progress towards English language proficiency, graduation rates and consistent attendance.The results recognize top performers as well as highlight areas that need improvement and attention.Sartell-St. Stephen district exceeded the state average in all indicators.In reading achievement, Sartell students scored 72.06 percent compared with 58.29 percent statewide. In math achievement, Sartell students scored 75.24 percent compared with 53.85 percent statewide. Achievement scores are calculated by the number of students that meet or exceed standards divided by the number of all students tested.Sartell students’ yearly progress in math and reading also exceeded the statewide average. In reading, Sartell scored 2.37 compared with 2.00 statewide and in math, Sartell scored 2.48 compared with 2.33 statewide.
The new welcome-to-Sartell sign near the city’s new high school is a hit with residents, and the City Council is considering putting up more of the signs elsewhere at entrances to the city.The sign is comprised of metal letters, about 3 feet tall, that spell S-A-R-T-E-L-L in a curved configuration. It was installed on the roundabout at 35th Street N. and Pinecone Road just east of the new school. The sign is 13.5 feet long.
For this travelin’ band, playing a Friday night gig in Aberdeen, South Dakota, and then appearing the next night 500 miles away in Brice Prairie, Wisconsin, is no big deal. But earlier this summer Sweet Siren really took their act on the road. The Top-40 and classic-rock band played for U.S. troops at two stops in Germany. Guitar player and Sartell resident Jeff Schreiner said the eight-day trip in early August was “unbelievable.” “They are away from their families a year at a time,” Schreiner said of the troops. “It means a tremendous amount to them that you play for them. They love American bands playing American music.”
Sept. 20 edition
Riverview will be the name of Sartell-St. Stephen’s intermediate school when it opens next fall to serve students in grades three through five. The name was revealed Monday, Sept. 16, at Sabre Stadium with games that slowly uncovered the letters spelling out the name. Current second, third and fourth-graders gathered at the stadium for the games that included a tricycle race and dance contest. The class that won each contest could pick a card to flip over that eventually revealed letters spelling out the name in scrambled order.
The six-week drawdown project on the river north of Sartell and on Little Rock Lake is now over. Did it produce good results? Time will tell, according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The lake and Mississippi River will be closely monitored periodically, but the intended result of the project won’t be fully understood until next August. Even this early, however, there are positive signs.
The Siemens family returned to the Sartell City Council at its Sept. 9 meeting to ask the council again to allow chickens in the city – or at least to make an exception for the Siemens’ three pet chickens. According to Sartell City Administrator Mary Degiovanni, there has never been a specific chicken ordinance or amendment in Sartell; it’s just that chickens have never been allowed in the city. The Siemens family would like the city to amend its animal ordinance to allow, specifically, for pet chickens or to grant an exception for their three chickens.
Oct. 6 edition
After months of work, the Sartell city staff and the City Council presented a preliminary budget and levy for 2020, and the council approved it unanimously at its Sept. 23 meeting. The good news is the tax rate will decrease by about 0.60 percent from this year’s rate. The city’s general fund budget would increase by 2.5 percent to a total of $5,174,069.
As news of vaping-relating illnesses and deaths mount, an Oct. 8 program in Sartell takes on added urgency. The Sartell-St. Stephen school district’s Substance-Free Coalition has scheduled Summer Hagy from the American Health Association to speak on the health dangers of vaping and e-cigarettes. The event is 6 p.m. at Sartell Middle School and the public is invited, especially students and parents. “What is scary is that kids think it is a safe alternative to smoking, but it’s not,” said School Resource Officer Rob Lyon.
While most homeowners this time of year are thinking about keeping their lawns mowed and anticipating the fall leaves, homeowners in Sartell’s Oak Pond neighborhood have their minds on the future and the frozen days of winter. Four neighbors on Oak Pond Court have struggled for years with frozen water lines during the winter and they are running out of options to find a solution. In May, the four, Carol DeGiovanni, Sara Magee, Elaine Hanson and Debra Kellerman, spoke at the open forum portion of the Sartell City Council meeting and asked the city to fix the problem.
Oct. 18 edition
A vote on the Sartell-St. Stephen school district’s operating levy is being presented as a choice between raising new revenue or making additional cuts in the programs, services and building maintenance. The operating levy, which will raise $1.7 million for 10 years, is on a Nov. 5 special- election ballot. A year ago, district voters rejected a similar operating levy and the defeat resulted in program cuts, larger classes and increased fees, saving the district $1.3 million. In addition, the district tapped the reserve fund for about $400,000.
Nate Keller, Sartell’s city planner, has resigned to take another job. The Sartell City Council accepted his resignation at the Oct. 14 council meeting and thanked him for his years of service to the city. Keller began his job for Sartell in 2014. He is the second employee of the city’s planning department to resign in recent months. Anita Archambeau, who worked for two decades as city planner and development director, resigned a few months ago to move to Tennessee.
Nov. 1 edition
Sartell-St. Stephen school district voters will be asked to approve an operating levy in a special election on Nov. 5. If approved the levy will raise $1.7 million a year for 10 years. For this special election, the levy will be the only question on the ballot. Instead of polling places typically used for general elections, three polling places for the special election have been set up.
An AED SaveStation was installed in mid-October right at Lions Community Park just across from Sartell City Hall. The Sartell Lions Club contributed money to purchase the SaveStation, which is a device that holds an automatic external defibrillator, also known as an AED. Countless lives have been saved by the use of AEDs. The SaveStation AEDs function even in Minnesota’s severe winter weather.
Remodeling the old Sartell high school for use by middle school students in grades six through eight is on schedule, school board members were told at their Oct. 21 meeting. Interior demolition is complete and framing has begun in what was the media center. Concrete is being poured in what will be science rooms below the old media center.
Nov. 15 edition
Clear communication about the plan and more robust community support apparently turned around last year’s rejection of a school district operating levy into an approval in a Nov. 5 special election. Sartell-St. Stephen school district’s voters approved an operating levy that will raise $1.77 million for 10 years. There were 3,047 yes votes and 2,276 no votes – a 57 percent approval. A similar measure failed a year ago with 60 percent of voters rejecting the levy.
Thanks to a one-time grant from the Minnesota Legislature, Sartell-St. Stephen schools will have money for a number of safety upgrades. At the school board’s Nov. 6 work session, Joe Prom, director of Business Services, said the district will receive $135,000. The money comes from $30 million that will be split among all Minnesota school districts based on enrollment.
City Council set an all-time record for a short council meeting – at 7 minutes and 36 seconds. Mayor Ryan Fitzthum commented toward the end of the short meeting that “I think we’re going to set a record.” Many years ago, the council set a record with a meeting that lasted about 10 minutes. There just wasn’t anything of pressing urgency on the agenda for Nov. 12, other than the council approving the Consent Agenda and some rapid-fire updates of some items, such as a cable along Pinecone Road.
Nov. 29 edition
High school and community skiers now have a new cross country trail in Sartell thanks to a joint effort by the school district, Nordic Ski Club of Central Minnesota and the city of Sartell. The trail officially opened Nov. 18 after volunteers spent the summer clearing brush and the fall making snow on the 1/2K trail between the old Sartell high school and soccer fields. The 60 members of the Sartell/Cathedral nordic ski team will use the trail for practices, coach Joe Teff said. Skiers from Tech and Apollo high schools are also expected to use it, as well as community members.
Two businesses and two individuals were honored with “Choice” awards at the annual Sartell Chamber of Commerce awards night Nov. 14 at Blackberry Ridge Golf Course. The honorees were the St. Cloud-based Central Minnesota Mental Health Center, large business; House of Pizza in Sartell, small business; Jed Meyer, Sartell Citizen of the Year; and Jessica Houle, Sartell Chamber of Commerce Member of the Year.
It’s 9 a.m. Reading time is over and now it’s time for prefixes. The second-graders dig in, led by Katie Strand. She quizzes the engaged children about re-, pre- and un- as casually as if they were chatting about their favorite movie character or snack food. Strand is student-teaching this year with Justin Foss at Pine Meadow Elementary School and the grammar lesson is just part of her day with 22 7- and 8-year-olds.
Dec. 13 edition
Sartell’s population will grow to more than 25,000 people by 2025, a 37 percent increase since 2018, Mayor Ryan Fitzthum told Chamber of Commerce members Tuesday. The projection was part of Fitzthum’s state of city update that touched on growth and development issues as well as recent successes.
The Sartell-St. Stephen school board approved on Dec. 6 its contract with the district’s more than 280 teachers. Total package cost to the district for the two-year deal is 8.66 percent. The contract covers July 2019 through June 2021 and teachers will receive backpay in their paychecks that arrive before Christmas. The settlement is in line with past contracts. According to the district, the average cost of the three previous settlements was an 8.42 percent increase. The most recent contract, for 2017-2019, cost 8.67 percent.
At its Dec. 9 meeting, the Sartell City Council gave final approval to a 2020 budget/levy that was described as “balanced, sufficient, yet frugal” by the city’s financial director, Heidi Ostlie. The budget, she noted, will result in a slight tax decrease overall. The tax rate for 2020 shows about a 1 percent tax-rate decrease from this year’s. The budget/levy portion of the Dec. 9 meeting was an open public meeting, but there were no comments offered by anyone. There were only about a dozen people present in the audience.