Rice County will utilize state funding to compensate property owners who had their lands seized after a federal ruling last year made the payouts necessary. A Minnesota law from 1935 required counties that make any profit selling a property seized over unpaid taxes disperse those profits to schools, cities and the county. But the Supreme Court said that isn’t constitutional in May 2023. That decision led to additional litigation and a subsequent statewide settlement funded by the Minnesota Legislature, according to a summary by Goodhue...

The Faribault Lakers town ball baseball team won a June 14 game in dramatic fashion with a 4-3 walk-off victory over the Lonsdale Aces. The game was tied in the bottom of the 11th at 3-3 when Jack Jandro singled, scoring Drew Conrad for their fourth win this year. Joe Grote was once again solid on the mound for Faribault, as he was the winning pitcher in relief in the last five innings, giving up only three hits and one run. ...

DID YOU KNOW? Petalina Mercantile is open year round Wednesdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday afternoons from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. The store, located at 313 Division Street. S in Northfield, is closed Mondays and Tuesdays. 46d3a8fc-cf48-4b9b-a025-b0232a5528bf Petalina Mercantile owners Derek Kruse and Ethan Solheid want their new store to be a destination gift shop. The 1,900-square-foot store at 313 Division St. S. is...

After more than a month of organizing and researching complexities and concerns surrounding a possible gravel mine in northeast Rice County, many residents of Nerstrand were left disappointed. The Rice County Board of Commissioners approved the controversial interim-use permit to allow the mining operation and denied an Environmental Assessment Worksheet at the end of a four-hour meeting Tuesday morning. The decision left several members of the public feeling frustrated, especially after their coordinated effort to gather 100 signatures and petition for a third-party EAW. ...

The Tri-City United baseball team officially ended its 2024 season with their annual awards Celebration Sunday. The Titans secured a 10-win season before having their season come to a close in the third round of the section 2AA baseball tournament. The Titans had a very successful season winning 10 games and advancing to the third round of the Section 2 AA Baseball Tournament before getting eliminated. Three Titans were named...

Friday and Saturday morning, members of the Tri-City United track and field program made the trip to St. Michael-Albertville H.S. to compete in the Class AA MSHSL Track and Field State Championships. In her return to state as the defending champion in the 400 meter dash, eighth-grader Carly Hartwig once again qualified for the finals on day one to guarantee herself a podium finish. Hartwig’s time of 57.83 in the qualifier was the second fastest in the field, earning her a spot in the final...

The Larsons, headed up by Ray and Darlene, are the 2024 Rice County Farm Family of the Year. The family heads up Bridgewater Farm. Ray grew up on a small hobby farm west of Northfield and Darlene grew up on a dairy farm near Webster. Ray and Darlene got married in 1977, and they were able to buy Ray’s aunt's farm west of Northfield on Highway 19. Over the years,...

GET ALERTED To get emergency alerts about emergencies and other important community news: sign up for the Emergency Alert Program. Citizen Alert Notification Sign Up provides critical information quickly in situations, including severe weather, unexpected road closures, missing persons and evacuations of buildings or neighborhoods. Time-sensitive messages delivered to wherever you specify. Individuals needing assistance can call Rice and Steele 911 at 507-334-4391. 8a471470-c629-4a24-92f1-b4242f5a6b88 Joe Johnson, Rice County’s new emergency management director, wants everybody to have a plan and resources at the ready just in...

Despite a troublesome start to the year, the Lonsdale Public Library’s summer-reading program is still taking off. More than 70 children aged 0-18 had signed up for the program Friday during the kickoff cookout, according to Library Director Marguerite Moran. She said the program is always a hit with the youth, and that this year brought some unique challenges. “You get a free reading log,” she said. “It encourages parents,...

The Tri-City United track and field team continued the Section 1AA Championship meet Saturday morning in Faribault with bids to the MSHSL State Championship on the line. Carly Hartwig, TCU’s first state champion in track and field, will return to defend her title in the 400m dash and will be joined by Kaitlyn Hartwig, Guadalupe Lopez and Jillian Houn in the 4x200m relay race while Nyadek Ruei hit the automatic qualifier in the high jump to make state as well. The MSHSL State Championship for...

Patrick Schauer did a great job leading the eXmark Outlaw cars around the track from his pole position start with the battle behind between Karl Hewitt and Dan Eckblad who was piloting the 39x car. Schauer spun on lap eight which started a restart and Eckblad took the lead, despite another two yellows, Hewitt could not catch Eckblad and he won the race while Hewitt took second and Mark Oestreich took third. The very first lap of the Midwest Machinery Night saw the John Deere...

Resilient was a common word used to describe Tri-City United’s class of 2024 during its commencement ceremony Friday ― and for good reason. In their freshman year — when the students from Le Center, Lonsdale and Montgomery were all supposed to come together under one roof — the students instead remained split apart in different sections as the school grappled with the COVID-19 pandemic. “Our class was impacted the most...

A 30-old-year man from Dundas, who was riding in the front passenger seat, was killed in a single-vehicle crash Saturday night. The driver, a 33-year-old woman, along with a toddler and an infant, were extricated from the vehicle. Local law enforcement and emergency services responded to a single-vehicle crash in the 3000 block of 30th Street W. in Webster Township at 20:08 hours on June 1, 2024. The crash claimed...

Conservative and Libertarian residents of Lonsdale might be happy about at least one key point in the 2023-year-end audit for the city. While presenting the city’s annual audit Thursday evening, Abdo Certified Public Accountants Governmental Service Partner Tom Olinger shared notes with the mayor and council that Lonsdale has the lowest tax rate and lowest taxes per capita in Rice County. But those are lower for a reason, argued Councilor Brian Wermerskirchen. ...

With the season on the line in the Section 2AA Baseball Elimination Bracket, the Tri-City United Titans hosted Waseca for the right to keep the season going forward. Despite a disastrous first inning which saw the Bluejays score five runs on three hits and three errors, the Titans battled all the way back but came up just short in their rally, falling 8-6 to bring the spring to an end. Parker O’Malley got the start on the mound for TCU and pitched five innings allowing...

In the first round of the Section 2A elimination bracket, the Tri-City United softball team faced off against the Fairmont Cardinals in a battle for survival with the winner advancing and the losing team’s season coming to an end. A tight battle throughout and late rally kept the game exciting until the final out, but when the teams gathered in the handshake line, it was Fairmont that kept it’s season alive with a 5-3 victory. The loss for TCU ends team’s season with a record...

Monday morning, members of the Le Center community gathered in the Tri-City United/Le Center school gymnasium to honor those who serve, have served and contributed to the defense of the United States in the annual Memorial Day Ceremony. Don Hayden, the master of ceremonies, led the program which began with the National Anthem, performed by Rita Sapp, and the Hoisting of the Colors by members of American Legion Post 108 and VFW Post 1803. ...

Whether on the court or on his video-game console, now-ninth-grader Kyle Kuehl foresees a lot of basketball in his future this summer. He finished his final year at Holy Cross Catholic School Thursday, returning the same evening for a special event called the Summer Kickoff BBQ. The 19-year long tradition is a way to celebrate the start of summer in a relaxed, informal setting. Kyle said he had learned more...

The Tri-City United baseball team hosted Waterville-Elysian-Morristown Thursday night in the first round of the Section 2AA baseball tournament. A six-run second inning propelled the Titans to an 8-1 victory, advancing the team to the second round. Max Krautkremer earned the start on the mound as well as the victory as he pitched five innings of one-run ball, allowing just three hits while striking out 11. Parker O’Mallery pitched the final two innings, allowing just one hit while striking out three. ...

While other communities suffered much more significant damage in storms that moved across the Midwest on Tuesday, May 21, Rice County had some wind damage and buildings were struck by lightning. “We had a few trees down blocking roads and several manhole covers that needed to be put back in place due to the heavy rain,” said Faribault Police Chief John Sherwin. “The only damage I heard of was a tree fell on an unoccupied vehicle in the 800 block of Fourth Avenue SW. Also...