Gov. Tim Walz on Tuesday called for a special election on August 9th in the First Congressional District to fill the vacancy created
when Congressman Jim Hagedorn passed away.
Because Hagedorn had slightly more than 10 months remaining in his two-year term, a special election to fill his remaining time is required.
Affidavits for candidacy and nominating petitions for the seat will be accepted from March 1 through March 15 and must be filed at the Minnesota Secretary of State’s Office, at the State Capitol.
If necessary, a special primary will be held Tuesday, May 24.
The state’s 1st Congressional District currently covers 21 counties stretching along the southern Minnesota border, and includes the cities of Rochester, Mankato, and Faribault.
In a complicated turn of events, because of the state’s redistricting process, the cities of Lonsdale and Morristown which are currently in the First Congressional District, are shifting to the Second Congressional District at the end of the year. Voters in that area will vote on Aug. 9 in the 2nd Congressional District primary and will also vote in the First Congressional District special election.
Congressman Jim Hagedorn passed away last week after a four-year battle with kidney cancer. He was 59 years old.
District Budget Prioritization will take a ‘serious,’ ‘thoughtful,’ ‘confident’ approach
With a decline in enrollment that is projected to reach more than ten percent over the next ten years, the Northfield School District is set to begin the process of budget prioritization. The goal in the process is to identify about $4.5 million dollars in current expenditures that can be taken out of the budget over the next few years.
Northfield Superintendent of Schools, Dr. Matt Hillmann said, budget cuts are never easy, and the plan is to have most of the reductions happen in the next two years, so that they can be sustainable.
Those doing the prioritizing will be a group of fifty people, made up of parents, staff, and other community members, who have been recruited by the district to help make these difficult decisions.
District Director of Finance, Val Mertesdorf said the group will look at three categories. There will be an Elementary Package, a Secondary Package and a District Services Package. Each package has the current expenditures that are budgeted right now along with an explanation of the programs. After a first, data heavy, meeting the group will be asked to prioritize district programming, or as Mertesdorf put it, “what do you want to fund first?”
Eventually, the prioritized programs will reach the total dollar amount of the district’s new budget. And whatever is remaining will be what is reduced.
Mertesdorf said the process will be the foundation of a five-year plan that will guide how the district spends its money in a transparent way and will help everyone in the district know what to expect.
“I think one of the worst things you can do as a school district is to cut your budget yar over year. It’s really not great for students, or employee morale or anything. Our goal is to have a five-year plan so it’s very transparent about what’s coming and when. People can adjust to that and plan for that.”
The remaining items will be prioritized as well, she said, so if there is an unanticipated increase in enrollment, or if the state increases education funding, they will know what to add back in first.
Dr. Hillmann said this is the best way to handle a situation that is unpleasant but must be addressed with confidence and serious intent.
“The process will help us to prioritize the programs that we think will help us best meet our strategic plan vision,” he said. “We need to identify the issue, we need to identify the target expenditures, and then we need to get to work.”
Big weekend for Raiders Hockey on KYMN
The Northfield Raiders Girls and Boys Hockey teams are gearing up for a big weekend, and KYMN will have full coverage of their
games.
This morning the girls face off against defending champions Edina in the State Hockey Tournament. KYMN will broadcast the game on AM 1080 and FM 95.1 beginning at 11:00.
The boys team will begin sectional play as the #1 seed tonight at the Northfield Ice Arena against #8 Red Wing. That game will be video streamed live on kymnradio.net. The puck will drop at 7pm.
To view a game on our website, go to kymnradio.net, and click on the Raider Sports Banner on the front page. Make sure to turn off all ad blockers that might be running on your computer.
To livestream our audio coverage, visit kymnradio.net and click on the KYMN Live arrow in the top right corner of the page. Alexa or Google Home can also connect you via TuneIn; just ask the device to play KYMN.
Rock & Roll Revival tickets on sale tomorrow
Tickets will go on sale tomorrow for Rock & Roll Revival, the biennial music extravaganza put on by students at Northfield High
School.
The fifteenth edition of the show is called “The British Are Coming.” The shows promoters say it is a celebration of past shows, with a nod to the British Invasion of the mid-1960’s.
Tickets will be sold at the Northfield High School Box Office beginning at 4:00 tomorrow. Show dates are March 18, 19 , 20, 21, 24, 25 and 26.
This will be the second consecutive year that NHS has presented Rock & Roll Revival. Last year, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the production was moved outdoors into the high school parking lot. This year, the show will return to the familiar confines of the Middle School auditorium.
Rich Larson is the KYMN News Director. Contact him at rich@kymnradio.net
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