Letter to the Editor: Festival in the Park

Letter To the Editor:

On behalf of the Festival in the Park Volunteer Committee I would like to thank all involved for their contributions, time and energy, because of you this year’s Festival was a tremendous success. Our park looked great and there were several comments from people visiting that we are fortunate to have such a gathering place. Again this year our local youth came out in large numbers. It is great to see so many participating in the free activities. I emphasize free because one of the goals for all the years of the Festival has been to provide activities free of charge. Any child can participate by being there! Adults you aren’t left out either, you can belly flop by just giving us a call before we call you.

The volunteer committee spends many hours getting ready for the Festival each year; it couldn’t be done without their commitment. We have finished wrapping up the 2010 event and are hard at work getting ready for the 2011 Festival to be held August 11-14. If you would like to get involved, even for just an hour, please give us a call.

To everyone who donated cash and merchandise, thank you. It takes about $20,000 to put on the event and it is all donated by local merchants and residents. Watch for our fundraisers throughout the year, we will again be doing a pancake breakfast in January and new for this year will be a chili cook-off in October, scheduled for Sunday, October 17th. Watch the DCI for more details.

Chris McKern
Co-Chair

Letter To the Editor: In response to the letter regarding the Dodge County Sheriff

Letter To the Editor:

In response to the letter regarding the Dodge County Sheriff.

Allegations are something most law enforcement officers live with their entire career. Investigations are conducted for even the most frivolous of complaints. Some investigations are short and others are lengthy.
Some investigations result in finding no proof of wrong doing. Others may find some wrong doing or unprofessional behavior. While yet others may show serious wrong doing or even criminal behavior.
Law Enforcement conducts the same type of investigation on a complaint regardless who it involves.

Usually a department will not investigate allegations against someone within their own agency. An outside agency conducts the investigation in order to avoid any favoritism or protecting of a friend/co-worker.
Outside investigations cost more. After all the outside investigators have to travel to conduct interviews, etc. The investigators have to set aside their own work in order to deal with allegations from another county.

If no charges are filed, or no misconduct is found the investigation is closed. There is no need to publicly admonish a individual as nothing was done that was considered wrong.

If charges are determined to be warranted or serious administrative action need be taken - then it becomes a matter of Public Record.

If every allegation or complaint against every citizen were made a matter of Public Record, how much unwarranted humiliation, distrust, and other issues would develop within a community?

Now multiply that distrust for law enforcement officers if the same rules applied, even though most if not all allegations were found to be false or without merit.

Someone once said, "A man who makes no mistakes... is a man who is doing nothing." Officers or officials who have no complaints against them are not doing their job.
Criminals or those being charged with a crime after an investigation is completed are seldom happy with the officers arresting them... the lawyer representing them... the prosecutor... or the judge determining guilt or innocents!

Allegations are easily made... Yet often hard to prove... but more times than not, "Impossible to live down especially when exonerated".

Dave Elliott
Dodge Center
Retired Law Enforcement
507-951-9571

Relay For Life

What an accomplishment. The  Dodge County Relay For Life  raised $182,500 two weeks ago. That is $10,000 more than the record set last year.

For 2009 the Dodge County Relay For Life was a national per capita award winner.  For counties with a population of 20,000-25,000 Dodge ranked fifth nationally. The per capita amount received was $8.38 for every man, woman and child in the county.

Last year Olmsted County raised $178,000 and their population is six times the size of Dodge.
When our economic downturn started in 2006 the Relay brought in $139,700. In 2007 the numbers jumped to $149,000, then $157,000, $172,500 and now $182,500 in an economy that is struggling.

Even in difficult times people in our local communities find a way to support this fantastic cause.

Unfortunately there is so much support because people are affected by cancer in so many different ways.
A survivors reception was held at the Relay before the other  activities started. My mother and a friend were standing in that food line. My mother's friend looked back to my mother and said,  "A year ago who would have ever thought we would be in this line?"

Isn't that so true. We never know who is benefitting from money raised from  events like the Dodge County Relay For Life donations go to research, education and patient care.

I am not about singling out individuals, but chairperson Aleta Abbott of Kasson has been the guiding force of this ship that continues to gain momentum. I'm not sure I will be around to see the cure for cancer, but I have been around long enough to see that the number of survivors continues to grow at a higher rate than those who lose that battle!

Leading the "Hunting For A Cure" Team at the Relay for Life are Russ Anderson and brother-in-law  Jim Struck, Cleveland, MN. Team leader is his wife, Lisa Anderson walking with daughters Jenna and Jaime Anderson and  Christy Leopold of Hudson, WI. They were the third highest fundraising team at $7,965. Russ Anderson is quite the sportsman/hunter so thus the "Hunting For A Cure" theme. Lisa is a cancer survivor. Photo by Wayne Hendrickson.

Letter to the editor: Administrative leave in past for Trihey

Letter to the editor:
To my fellow citizens of Dodge County:

This election year is very important. There are many issues that must be resolved to get our great country heading in the right direction. I have to admit, I have taken a much greater interest in these elections than those of the past. In doing so, I have discovered one thing on a local level, that to me, was a little disturbing. Last fall, there was an incident reported to the Dodge County Sheriff’s Department that involved our Sheriff, Jim Trihey. This resulted in Sheriff Trihey being put on administrative leave for a period of time, which if my memory serves correctly, was in the news briefly. Also, there was never an explanation to the citizens of ‘why’ this action was taken. It seems a little odd that a sheriff would be put on leave for any reason at all. As I have further looked into this issue, I have discovered that Dodge County has hired an outside investigator or attorney to investigate Sheriff Trihey’s involvement in this incident. This cost the taxpayers of Dodge County over $22,000! This is very troubling to me since I have lived in Dodge County all of my life, and never once, that I can recall, has a sheriff been the focus of an investigation. Also, if I may point out, he was never elected sheriff but was appointed by the county board after a recommendation by a retiring sheriff around a year ago. Which is also troubling to me since only being there a short period of time, this much attention has been brought to the sheriff’s department as a whole.

This has raised more questions in my mind about this whole incident. What other expenses were incurred by taxpayers during this investigation? How much did it cost us to pay a sheriff that was ‘put’ on leave? How about the salaries of the other county officials that were working on the investigation? I feel it is very important for the citizens of Dodge County to know ‘who’ is leading our distinguished Sheriff’s Department. This raised another question; why aren’t we, the taxpayers, allowed to know what the investigation was about? I believe we have every right to know what is going on in our ‘own’ sheriff’s department, especially when it comes to the man who is suppose to be leading it.

Concerned citizen of Dodge County,
Dalen Maxson

Letter to the editor: Wind Project

Letter To the Editor:

The public hearing for the National Wind/AWA Goodhue Wind Project was held this past week in Goodhue, MN.  One session on July 21 was scheduled.  However, due to the number of people who chose to speak at this public hearing, Administrative Law Judge Eric Lipman extended the public hearing to July 22.  These sessions ran long (3 PM-10:30 PM) on both days.  I am guessing that approximately 100 people got up to comment, most of which opposed this wind project and others slated for Goodhue County.

 At this public hearing, it was noted that the two-mile wind buffers requested by the City of Zumbrota and the City of Goodhue likely will NOT be honored by the wind farm developers.  Both cities have requested these wind buffers to allow for future economic expansion and long-term plans.  Both cities have invested taxpayers' monies--Goodhue to create residential housing and Zumbrota to extend sewer and water to the west side of U.S. Highway 52 and nearby land for development.

 Earlier this year in April, the City of Zumbrota City Council voted 3-2 (Bauer and Hinderaker voted yes) to allow National Wind/AWA Goodhue Wind to encroach on the two-mile wind buffer near Zumbrota.  City Council members Nygaard, Grothe, and Borgschatz voted the request down.  Unfortunately, National Wind/AWA Goodhue Wind doesn't take "no" for an answer.  There are multiple wind turbines (4 inside the wind buffer and 7 very near the wind buffer) sited in or near Zumbrota on the preliminary municipal wind buffer map submitted by National Wind/AWA Goodhue Wind, LLC.

 Leia Ryan, a member of the Goodhue City Council, was quoted, "We (Goodhue) could be landlocked, and that's where cities begin to die off."

 To speak with someone on the street, most people think the wind turbines are a good thing as they will provide clean, "green" electricity that will lower our electricity rates.  This is not true.  The wind does NOT blow all the time.  When the wind turbines are not spinning and producing electricity, it is required to have a backup coal-fired plant or a natural gas-fired plant.  These plants cannot be turned on and off like a light switch.  These plants need to remain running to fill in the gaps when the wind does not blow.  So, in essence, you are keeping the backup running at all times in case the wind turbines cannot provide the electricity.

 If National Wind/AWA Goodhue Wind is NOT listening, I hope you are!  There is still time to voice your opinion.  Even if you are not in the footprint of this wind farm project, you may write via e-mail or U.S. postal mail your comments by August 6, 2010, 4:30 PM.  That is the cutoff when it must arrive--not postdated:

 Eric Lipman
Office of Administrative Hearings
P.O. Box 64620
St. Paul, MN  55164-0620
 or eric.lipman@state.mn.us
 Please refer to:  AWA Goodhue Wind--Certificate of Need and Siting Docket, PUC Certificate of Need Docket: IP-6701/CN-09-1186 and PUC Siting Docket:  IP-6701/WS-08-1233.
 Please take the time to write.  One voice can become many.
 Barbara A. Stussy
14884 420th Street
Zumbrota, MN  55992
507-732-5115
barbstussy@hcinet.net