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Baxter water plant open house scheduled BRIEFS
BAXTER - An open house for Baxter's new public works facility and water treatment plant is scheduled for March 1. The facility is located off Mapleton Road near Forestview Middle School.
A dedication ceremony will be at 9:30 a.m. with the unveiling of the building's commemorative plaque and comments from Baxter Mayor Darrel Olson.
The public can tour the complex at 10 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 11 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.
Widseth Smith Nolting designed the architecture for the complex and AE2S designed the water treatment facility. The building was designed to have a 15-year lifespan, the architecture matches nearby Forestview Middle School and the campus was designed to be expanded for other city departments.
Baxter had relied on the city of Brainerd for supplemental water needs, but the new treatment facility's capacity of 5 million gallons per day of water means Baxter is able to produce 100 percent of the city's water needs.
Pawlenty to attend manufacturing roundtable at Wausau Paper in March
Gov. Tim Pawlenty will headline a manufacturing roundtable from 8:30 to 10 a.m. March 6 at Wausau Paper in Brainerd.
Also speaking will be Dan McElroy, commissioner of the Department of Employment and Economic Development, and David Olson, president of the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce and chair of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities.
Topics at the Brainerd Lakes Chamber event will include the state's commitment to strengthen manufacturing, a manufacturing skills gap survey and the opportunities and challenges facing manufacturers.
Those attending will have the chance to ask questions and engage in the discussion. The event is free and open to the public. However registration is requested and can be done at explorebrainerdlakes.com or by calling 829-2838.
Olson advances cell phone user bill of rights legislation
Sen. Mary Olson, DFL-Bemidji, on Tuesday presented legislation aimed at addressing consumer concerns with cell phone company practices. The measure was heard by the Senate Committee on Energy, Utilities, Technology and Communications, which passed it on to the Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection.
"This legislation puts in clear simple terms what the state of Minnesota expects from the cell phone industry," Olson said. "We expect these companies to be open and honest with their customers and to protect consumers from fraudulent charges."
A companion bill has been introduced in the House.
Doty hopes his law
on bovine TB will help state respond to crisis
Rep. Al Doty, DFL-Royalton, is hoping a law he authored and helped pass last session will enable the state to react more quickly to the news Tuesday that another case of bovine tuberculosis has been found in Minnesota. The most recent case was discovered in a Beltrami County herd.
His bill authorized the commissioners of agriculture, natural resources and health to serve as consultants on the Board of Animal Health.
The latest discovery - the fourth - according to Doty, automatically triggered regulations the state can't control, such as mandatory testing.
Doty said the state Department of Agriculture is trying to change federal regulations to demand mandatory testing on a regional basis but the change may not come fast enough to help farmers.
Ward emergency services bill passes House unanimously
A bill that would allow Emergency Medical Services Regulatory Board members to serve up to two consecutive terms unanimously passed on the House floor Wednesday. The bill was authored by Rep. John Ward, DFL-Brainerd.
Current law prohibits them from serving more than one four-year term and the intent of the bill is to allow the board members to gain more knowledge about the complicated EMS system.
Rural Minnesota CEP
to receive economic development grant
Rural Minnesota Concentrated Employment Program will receive a Framework for Integrated Regional Strategies grant to develop plans related to education, work force and economic growth.
The grant is awarded by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development.
In the Brainerd area the contact for Rural Minnesota Concentrated Employment program is Craig Nathan, operations manager.
The grants are designed to bring together regional leaders in economic development, work force development and education to increase economic competitiveness through long-term strategic planning.
Doty, Oberstar to speak at Morrison County DFL convention
LITTLE FALLS - Morrison County Democrats will meet March 1 at the Little Falls Middle School for their county party convention. Scheduled political guests include Rep. Al Doty, DFL-Royalton, and U.S. Rep. Jim Oberstar, D-Minn.
Registration for the meeting starts at 9:30 a.m. March 1 and the convention begins at 10 a.m. The county's 115 delegates who were elected at the Feb. 5 caucuses will elect county officers and a county DFL board. They will choose delegates to the state and congressional district conventions. Resolutions will be sent to the state DFL office for consideration at the state convention in Rochester.
Brainerd parks board panel to meet
The Brainerd Parks and Recreation Board will meet at 3:30 p.m. Monday in the conference room at Brainerd City Hall.
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