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| Back to: Home > Local News & Info > KRWC News Archives 2004 |
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| KRWC News 8/9/04 - 8/15/04 |
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3 Arrested After Car Chase, Foot Search
Two young men and one juvenile from the metro area are in custody after a car chase and ground and air search in Wright County early Tuesday morning. Wright County Sheriff Gary Miller says around 2 AM Tuesday, a Deputy saw two vehicles that appeared to be racing on 4th Street in Maple Lake. The Deputy gave chase, and the vehicles turned off their headlights and headed south on Grover Avenue. The drivers and a third suspect abandoned the vehicles after they entered a road that turned out to be a farmstead driveway. The drivers fled on foot, and Deputies along with a Canine Unit began a search, finding one suspect identified as 18-year-old Michael Green of Minneapolis hiding in a shed on the farm. Deputies set up a perimeter on 4th Street and County Road 7 to Grover Avenue in a search for the other two suspects. The Canine Unit tracked the suspects for a mile and a half through swamps and fields, eventually leading deputies to 20-year-old Steve Ofstie of Minneapolis who was hiding in a soybean field. The State Patrol dispatched a helicopter to assist in the search for the third suspect until around 5 AM. Just before 6 o'clock, the Sheriff's Office got a report of a pickup truck being stolen from Fillmore Avenue Northeast at Ramsey Lake. The Plymouth Police Department reported stopping the vehicle a short time later on Highway 55, and the third suspect, a juvenile male was arrested. One of the other abandoned vehicles, was later found to be stolen out of Montrose. No one was injured in the incident. The Wright County Sheriff's Department is still investigating, and charges including Motor Vehicle Theft and Possession of Stolen Property are likely. |
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4 Community Theater Presents
There's more community theater in the area this weekend as the 4 Community Theater in Rockford presents the first of 7 performances over two weeks of "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat." The popular Andrew Lloyd Weber and Tim Rice musical will take the stage tonight and tomorrow night at 7:30 at Rockford High School. Four evening performances and one matinee will be presented next weekend. More than 60 cast members from Wright County and western Hennepin County are included in the production. |
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Antique Car Run Visits Wright County Saturday
Dozens of turn-of-the-century automobiles will travel through Wright County again this weekend for the 18th annual “New London to New Brighton” Antique Car Run, patterned after the original London to Brighton car run in England. The cars are expected to make their way to the Buffalo High School parking lot between 11 AM and noon on Saturday. The Wright County Car Club will welcome them and will have other vintage cars on display, along with music from “Bondo Bob”, lunch and will have concessions available. Car owners, many of whom will be dressed in vintage clothing, will be on hand for photos, and to answer questions about their vehicles. The group is expected to depart for the final leg of their journey to New Brighton at around 1 PM. |
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Big Prizes Highlight Cokato Corn Carnival Finale
Temperatures were cool, but rain stayed away and despite the unusual autumn-like chill, Peterson Park was packed as people turned out for the final events in the 55th annual Cokato Corn Carnival on Wednesday evening. Those attending enjoyed traditional orchestra and bluegrass music before the big drawings for cash prizes and a car concluded the Corn Carnival. Top prize winners included Char Peterson of Cokato, who won the 25 hundred dollar 1st cash prize. Kyle Stipe of Minneapolis won the 15 hundred dollar 2nd prize. Mike Pinnell of Crystal won the 1 thousand dollar 3rd prize, and 7 people won 50 dollar consolation cash prizes. The raffle drawing for a 2004 Chevrolet Impala was also held Wednesday evening. Jerry Bajari of Annandale was the lucky winner. This weekend, another Wright County community will swing into the spirit of summer celebrations as Rockford opens its River Days festival. |
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Cokato Corn Carnival Continues Today
The 55th Annual Cokato Corn Carnival continues today. The festival originally began, and continues to be a celebration of a bountiful harvest in an area known for its production of corn and other crops. One of the highlights of the festival continues to be the free corn-on-the-cob for those with a Corn Carnival button. Serving will be on Tuesday and Wednesday from 4 to 9 PM. The Cokato Corn Carnival runs through Wednesday in Cokato. |
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Local Woman Extreme Speed
A young woman from Wright County finds herself in some hot water for an incident of extreme speeding on I-94 last week. The State Patrol nabbed 20-year-old Yelena Koop of Clearwater after being clocked at 114 miles-per-hour on the freeway through Monticello Tuesday morning. The speed was 44 miles-per-hour over the speed limit according to authorities.
Officials say there's more. The young woman was allegedly talking on a cell phone at the time, and at first did not notice the State Trooper's flashing lights in her rear view mirror. There's still more. Koop also was driving with a revoked license.
Authorities say she faces a fine of more than $200 for the speeding incident, and could be fined another $1000 for the invalid license. Surprisingly, troopers say speeding tickets on I-94 for driving 90 to 100 miles per hour are getting more and more common. Last month, more than 21 thousand tickets were issued in a statewide crackdown on speeding. |
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Longtime Farm Organization Leader Earl Nelson Dies at 77
Funeral services will be held Saturday for a longtime Wright County area farmer, electrician and farm organization leader.
Earl Nelson of Annandale died on Wednesday at the age of 77.
Nelson was a lifelong resident of the French Lake and Annandale areas. He was an area farmer, and later an electrician, but might best be remembered for his many years on several farm management boards. Nelson was a former Wright County NFO Treasurer, a member of the Wright County Soil Conservation Board, a former Secretary of the Albion-French Lake Creamery Board, and a member of the Cokato Creamery Board. He was also a former chairman, secretary, and treasurer of the Riverside Cemetery in French Lake. Nelson was also active at his church, where he was a former church trustee. He also was a member of the South Haven VFW Post. Funeral services for Earl Nelson are scheduled for Saturday at 11 AM in Annandale. |
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Memorial Services Today for Dwight Holmquist, Buffalo Grocer, Civic Member
Memorial services are scheduled for this afternoon in Buffalo for longtime area businessman and civic leader, Dwight Holmquist.
Holmquist died Friday at the Park View Care Center at the age of 81. Holmquist was a life-long Buffalo resident, graduating from Buffalo High School in 1940. He was employed at the Buffalo National Bank, and with his father at the grocery store.
He joined the Army Air Corps, serving in England, France, and Germany before being discharged as a Staff Sgt. in 1945.
Dwight then joined his brothers Kermit and Bruce in the grocery business, building larger stores as the community grew. Some of the stores included the Holmquist's Super Valu Store, now the Lakeview Mall, and Holmquist's County Market, now Gordy's Foods. Holmquist served two terms as president of the Minnesota Grocers Association. The group named Holmquists, Inc. as “Grocer of the Year” in 1986, and later named Dwight “Honored Grocer.” The business was sold in 1994. Holmquist was very active in the community of Buffalo, serving with the Buffalo Redevelopment Corporation, the Community Chest, the Association of Commerce, and on the Board of Directors of the Buffalo National Bank. Memorial services for Dwight Holmquist are scheduled for 2 PM today at the Buffalo United Methodist Church. |
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Met Council OK's Northstar Funds
As expected, the Metropolitan Council approved 2 1/2 million dollars in funding for the Northstar commuter rail line on Wednesday. On a 14 to 1 vote the funding request from Governor Pawlenty was approved. The project is a 40-mile line from Big Lake to Minneapolis. Future expansion could extend the line to St. Cloud. Met Council Chair Peter Bell said the vote was motivated by a desire to ease traffic congestion and secure the local funding needed to qualify for 10 million dollars in federal grant funds. Bell cited inflationary costs as reasons to work on the preliminary features of the line now rather than later. The project has not yet been approved by the state legislature which will eventually have to vote on approving the state funding portion of the 265 million dollar project. Lawmakers did not take action on Northstar funding in this year's regular legislative session, and many in the Governor's own party have fought against the line from the start, saying that other options such as improved bus service and adding more lanes for commuter traffic may be more economically viable. |
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Rockford Celebrated
Another community celebration in Wright County is ready to get underway. The annual Rockford "River Days" festival kicks off tonight. A tent dance with music from the "Shagg Band" will open the festival tonight from 8 to midnight. Admission is free, and concessions will be available. Events in Rockford continue through Sunday. Stay tuned to KRWC through the weekend for updates. |
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Seal Coating to Begin Today on Highway 12
Roadway preservation projects are expected to get underway on segments of Highway 12 in Wright County today. A bituminous seal coat will be applied to the pavement to extend the life of the roadway. Work is already underway on a 12 1/2 mile segment of Highway 55 from Kimball to Eden Valley, and seal coating will begin today on a 6 1/2 mile segment of Highway 12 from Cokato to Howard Lake, and an 8 mile segment from Waverly to Delano are slated for work beginning on Thursday. Drivers should watch for lane closures, heavy equipment, and traffic flaggers during the work hours from sunrise to sunset. The construction zones could last up to 4 days depending on the weather. |
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Supreme Court Reverses Conviction in Randy Pool Death
Late last week the Minnesota Supreme Court reversed the conviction of a former Wright County man who had been sentenced to life in prison without parole for his alleged role in the July 1999 death of another former Wright County man.
The body of 31-year-old Randy Pool, formerly of Howard Lake, was found in a duffel bag in the Clearwater River near South Haven. Investigators determined that Pool had been kidnapped, beaten and killed, then thrown into the river. Authorities say the killing was drug related, and determined that Pool was believed to have been an informant. 26-year-old Salem Bernhardt, formerly of Cokato, was in jail for a probation violation at the time of the killing, yet was charged with aiding and abetting the crimes because of suspicion that he had ordered them from jail. The Supreme Court majority ruling in the appeal of Bernhardt's conviction said the evidence presented was not enough to support his conviction for 1st degree premeditated murder, 1st degree felony murder, and 2nd degree intentional murder, kidnapping and assault. All of the convictions were reversed. Three Supreme Court members dissented, saying the circumstantial evidence presented in the case was substantial and consistent with Bernhardt's conviction. 8 other people were convicted in connection with Randy Pool's 1999 death. |
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Water Management Plan Public Meeting Tonight
Local residents are invited to offer their comments and concerns on water management in Wright County at a public meeting tonight. The County Board adopted a resolution last month requiring the update and revision of the Wright Local Water Management Plan as authorized under state statutes known as the Comprehensive Local Water Management Act. The revision of the plan will focus on priority water management concerns. Anyone with concerns they would like to address should plan on attending the meeting. Those who cannot attend may submit an online survey at www.wrightcountyswcd.org. by August 31st. Residents may also address questions to Andrew Dahlgren with the Wright Soil and Water Conservation District at (763) 682-1970. The public meeting is scheduled for tonight at 7 PM in the Community Room of the Wright County Government Center in Buffalo. |
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