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Proposed tax levy raised to 14.17 percent
By JIM LUTGENS
Publisher
For the taxpayer, there was both good and bad news at the Monday, Sept. 9 meeting of the New Richland City Council.
The good news? The 2020 budget for the New Richland Police Department is not off the table, only the possibility of contracting with Waseca County for law enforcement.
The bad news? They’re thinking about taking more of our money, raising the proposed tax levy increase to 14.17 percent, up from the previously proposed 6.79 percent.
The news about the police department came as a casual comment made by mayor Mike Shurson, who confirmed it after the meeting. He said he and the council will examine the police budget and possibly lower it before the city’s 2020 budget is finalized in December.
The decision to raise the proposed budget levy came after lengthy discussion.
Councilman Jason Casey made no secret his desire to lower the tax levy, but his pleas for the most part fell on deaf ears, and his was the lone dissenting vote in the 3-1 decision to raise the proposed levy.
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New Richland Police Chief Tony Martens did not respond in time to questions presented by the Star Eagle prior to the Thursday, Sept. 5 article detailing the proposed 2020 budget for the police department. The newspaper was printed when he replied.
Here are the questions presented by the Star Eagle and Officer Martens’ response:
• 1. Why has the Schooling part of the budget gone up so much?
“The state of Minnesota reimburses us for some costs regarding training of officers. This is due to the increase in mandated trainings from the state. The increase is directly related to the reimbursement that we receive from the state of Minnesota. You will see an almost equal amount on the revenue side as a reimbursement from the state. This includes firearms training, use of force, newly mandated training for dealing with mental health, etc. The amount of reimbursement has increase quite a bit from 2017 and is directly reflected in the budget increase.”
• 2. Why has the Records Access part of the budget gone up so much?
“Records access has gone up because of the new requirements regarding the adoption of FBI required crime statistics coding, etc. This has caused us to upgrade much of our equipment and technology to comply with those requests. Cost of software is continuing to increase and data storage and retention are also contributing factors.”
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The New Richland Area Food Shelf now has a handicap accessible entrance to their building, on the Division St. side. They are currently seeking donations to cover the cost of the new entrance. Donations will be matched 2-to-1 by the State Bank of New Richland through the month of September.
To donate, send to NRAFS, P.O. Box 12, New Richland, MN 56072, or drop off at State Bank of New Richland.
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Pontoppidan Lutheran Church Men’s Brotherhood will host the annual ice cream social Sunday, Sept. 22 from 4-7 p.m.
The menu includes pork burgers, barbeques, potato salad, beans, beverages, homemade pies and ice cream, with a kids’ hot dog meal.
All proceeds go to local and international mission projects.
Pontoppidan is located at 9651 SW 75th St. (or Co. Rd. 4), just west of Lemond.
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Kruger helps raise hopes, expectations for NRHEG football
FIRST AT LAST — NRHEG head football coach Marc Kruger, right, embraces Jacob Schuller after the Panthers’ section championship victory over WEM at Janesville last October. The Panthers’ 2018 and continuing motto: “Count on Me.” (Star Eagle photo by Chris Schlaak)
By JIM LUTGENS
Publisher
Last year, expectations were not exactly high for the NRHEG High School football team.
And they did not get any higher when the Panthers hired first-year head coach Marc Kruger, a product of Albert Lea High School, where they rarely win football games.
So what did Kruger’s Panthers do? They surprised everyone, winning their first-ever section championship while finishing 9-3 and reaching the state semifinals.
“It was a perfect season,” said Kruger. “The last game for every team is real bad, but we were able to look back at it pretty quickly and realize how well we did.”
How did the Panthers win so many games when Kruger won so little at Albert Lea?
“In Albert Lea, we had our own issues,” he said. “The kids would never buy in to what they were doing. Kids from Albert Lea would go on to play in college, and everyone wondered, why can’t Albert Lea be better? The kids never bought in.”
This did not happen here last year, according to Kruger. The NRHEG kids bought into the system and the Panthers won. It also didn’t hurt that they had 10 talented seniors, three of whom are on college football rosters.