The Dundas City Council approved a liquor license for MGM Liquor. It’s part of the renovation of the old K-Mart site which will also house a movie theater. The vote was 3 to 1 vote. City Administrator John McCarthy remarked that there was concern because a church wants to rent space there too. Canvas Church would like to rent a space but, according to code, they can’t be within 300 feet of an establishment with a liquor license, nor does it allow for a church to be in a business zone. McCarthy said that means that if the liquor
store and church are to be in the same space, the City would have to change their zoning code and their liquor law. McCarthy added that an application has been filed for a church to be located in a business zone. That will be heard at the Dundas Planning Commission meeting on Thursday and would come before Council on March 20th. Councilor Chad Pribyl voted against the liquor license and also serves on the Planning Commission. They’d still have to change the liquor law. There’s also still more to the process for MGM.
St. Patrick’s Day lands on Friday and law enforcement says “have a plan”
St. Patrick’s Day is the 2nd most dangerous night on our roadways due to impaired drivers. Faribault Police Chief Andy Bohlen commented that statistics show when a holiday lands on a Friday or Saturday, there are more DUI arrests and more accidents. He said he wants people to prepare, so if you know you’re going out Friday night, “have a plan”. He added that law enforcement isn’t saying don’t go out and enjoy the holiday, don’t have a green beer, but be careful. Rice County Sheriff Troy Dunn added, “make sure you have a designated driver, use the Safe Roads Sober Cab program. There are so many different options… eat more corned beef, less beer”! Extra officers will be out on the road Friday night. The most important message is Have A Plan and to that end, the Toward Zero Death program has given KYMN a few Sober Cab rides home. Listen for a chance to win.
NAFRS fire facility update on Council agenda
Northfield City Council meets tonight for a work session. Remember their start time is now 6pm. All meetings are streamed live on the City’s website. On their agenda is discussion of the NAFRS fire facility update agreement. Mayor Pownell and City Administrator Ben Martig will be in studio tomorrow morning at 7:20 with a recap.
Township Elections are today. Only 3 townships in Rice County have contested races, Erin, Wheatland and Wells.
Bly discusses buffer zone compliance
The original author of the Buffer Zone bill, Paul Torkelson, has introduced another bill to delay implementation. District 20B representative David Bly says 85{b5761be34e80a16b6d0e4dabc1869c131a263f96a745c82bebdd3b8a4330bfa9} of farmers have already complied with Governor Dayton’s buffer zone requirements, it’s those most resistant to the efforts, “who don’t want to really do it, who are asking for the delay or asking for further things. It’s kind of frustrating when you think that we’ve had good compliance across the state and then there are those who think it’s just impossible to do, they don’t want to be told what to do in a sense”. Buffer zones are put in place to protect our water supply from herbicides and other farm related issues. Bly said, “the law itself really has farmers engaged with their Soil and Water district and say the person who would help them plan and come up with solutions”. Bly says Dakota County had just a couple of farms they had to order compliance. Compliance in Rice County has been significantly less.
