Body found at Flying J
The body of a dead man was found at the Flying J truck stop. Early yesterday morning a Rice County deputy was checking the plates on a vehicle parked in the lot. The vehicle had a missing persons alert attached to the registered owner. When the deputy looked inside the vehicle, he noticed a deceased male. Rice County Investigators and a Bureau of Criminal Apprehension (BCA) Agent arrived on scene and are investigating the death. Sheriff Troy Dunn said they do not have a positive identification of the deceased and the investigation is on-going. He added that they have no reason to believe the public is in any danger.
Schmelzer trial reset
The first day of trial in the case of Mary Schmelzer vs the Northfield Chamber of Commerce was set to begin yesterday. I spoke with Erica Weber, a representative of the firm representing the Chamber, saying that they had remained on the docket all morning but due to another trial, they were “vacated”. Schmelzer is the former Chamber Executive Director who was let go from that position in November of 2013. Schmelzer alleges that her employment with the NCC was terminated in violation of the Human Rights Act which includes protection for whistleblowers. A new trial date was just set for June 20th.
E. Cannon trail questions still unanswered
There are more questions than answers. According to an email sent to Council members, the Mayor and City Administrator have determined that based on the questions that have come in on the East Cannon River Trail, these items will be removed from the agenda tonight. Questions surrounding the purchase of wetland credits, clearing work already begun before the project has been approved and more. There’s also a resolution on the consent agenda to go back to ending their meetings at 10pm rather than 9. The meeting begins at 7 tonight and is streamed on the City’s website. Mayor Graham will be in studio at 7:20 tomorrow morning with a recap.
School disciplinary handbook review
Among issues coming with the Northfield School Board is the administration’s review of the district’s disciplinary handbook and looking at all their disciplinary policies which will be presented to the Board at their April 25th meeting. Superintendent Dr. Chris Richardson said if the Board is comfortable with the changes, they’ll then send it to the District Youth Council for review to make sure it’s understandable to students. Richardson said they have also been required to do a study of their special education staffing.
Dahle comments on buffer zone
Water quality continues to be a high priority. Senator Kevin Dahle says he thinks they’ve found the right mix of a buffer zone bill in terms of who’s in charge of enforcement. It’s “pretty much” left to the county level rather than the state. The administration had said its buffer initiative would establish 110,000 acres of grass and other plant cover to protect state waters from polluted runoff. The law requires buffers averaging 50 feet along public waters and a minimum of 16.5 feet along public ditches; widths on other waters will be determined by local soil and water conservation districts.
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