NEWS
--Little Falls City Administrator Jon Radermacher gave a city update yesterday on KLTF, Jon stated that road construction is ahead of schedule mainly due to the dry summer to complete the 4th Street Project and nearing the end of the 18th Street Project. Work will also be going 13th Avenue and 11th Street in the days ahead. Jon mentioned that the golf course clubhouse is moving forward as council approved bids to put an addition on the clubhouse to help improve the site that was designed and built in the 1970s. Also work on the Police Department, Fire Department and City Hall are also in the works to be done in the near future. The City and School project for the child care facility is moving forward with hopes of completion on the west side by early 2025, also the Hospital is working with the city to help with working St. Camilus Place into a child care facility in the future. They will also work on the budget and have details on the 2024 budget in the coming days. Radermacher spoke on the Minnesota House members coming to Little Falls today and look at the rail grade separation over Highway 27, federal funding has been met but they need the matching state funds and if that is approved then the city can work on local funds on moving the train tracks, this is still very early and will be another 5-6 years before anyone is likely done on the railroad project but this is all progress into the future. Jon also want to personally thank all the employees for the city of Little Falls in all aspects, the office, to firefighters, street and park workers and police officers for continuing to make the city work all together as a whole. If you have questions call 616-5500.
--Meeker County authorities are investigating an arson that destroyed a vehicle and damaged an attached garage. The sheriff's office got a call at 3:50am Monday on a report of a vehicle fire. Officers and fire crews responded to the 72900 block of 240th Street in Dassel Township and saw a vehicle in a driveway that was engulfed. Deputies quickly discovered that the fire was a result of arson. The flames were put out, but not before destroying the vehicle and damaging an attached garage. The Minnesota Fire Marshal's Office was called in to help investigate and detectives are reviewing surveillance video in an effort to identify a suspect.
--A man is accused of asking a woman at the St. Cloud Library to be his girlfriend and then groping her. 38-year-old Jason Corder is charged in Stearns County District Court with 5th-degree criminal sexual conduct. St. Cloud Police were called to the library on Friday on a sexual assault call. Officers met with a woman who said she was in a quiet room studying with a friend when a man knocked on the door. She told police that she didn't know the man but let him in because she assumed he wanted to study in the room. At one point Corder took the woman's phone and texted his phone number. Court records show the woman didn't know how to get Corder to leave so she texted her brother to call her. She left the room to take the call and upon returning, told her friend that her mom would be picking them up. That's when Corder allegedly gave the victim a side hug and grabbed her breasts. Police saw the man on the library's surveillance and learned he was living at the Dream Center in north St. Cloud. Corder was found and arrested. Officers also learned he has an active Department of Corrections warrant related to a prior conviction of 1st-degree criminal sexual conduct.
--Motorists will encounter periodic lane closures on various segments of Highway 10 in central Minnesota as crews install high-tension cable median barrier, reports the Minnesota Department of Transportation. On Monday, September 18, motorists should begin to watch for roadwork signs, lane closures, lane shifts and reduced speeds. Expect multiple crews and equipment working at these Highway 10 locations: Morrison County south of 58th Street in Royalton to Highway 27 in Little Falls. Benton County, County Road 40/Halfway Crossing to north of the Platte River in Royalton; and Sherburne County, County Road 7 to north of Highway 24 in Clear Lake. Work will occur on good weather days during daylight hours until mid- to late November. High-tension cable median barriers are made of three or four steel cables strung on posts. When a vehicle hits the barrier, the posts break and cables flex, absorbing much of a crash’s kinetic energy. This redirects the vehicle along the median, preventing a severe or fatal cross-median crash. When complete, the $6.6 million safety improvement project is intended to prevent crossover collisions with on-coming motorists and save lives. To learn more about the benefits of cable median barriers, visit MnDOT’s traffic engineering web page. For real-time travel information on central Minnesota highways, visit 511mn.org.
--A St. Cloud man was hurt after crashing his motorcycle Tuesday morning. It happened at around 6:15am on Highway 23 in St. Joseph Township. The Minnesota State Patrol says 55-year-old Shane Specht was heading south when the deer came out of the ditch and collided with the bike. Specht was taken to St. Cloud Hospital for treatment of non-life-threatening injuries. The patrol says Specht was wearing a helmet at the time of the crash.
--The 11th Man Vs. Beast Rodeo is Saturday and Sunday at the Morrison County Fairgrounds put on by Joe Varner Cattle Sales. Mutton Busting both days at 3:15pm and the rodeo begins at 4pm with many events to see and do. Vendors on site with food and beverage concessions. DJ Music Saturday come for the show and the fun Saturday or Sunday, tickets are available at the gate for both.
WEATHER
TODAY= AM fog and mist, then sunny, high 66.
TONIGHT= clear skies, warmer night, low near 50.
THURSDAY= sunny skies, high 82, PM storms likely at night, low 55.
FRIDAY= AM storms, then sunny, high 73, turning very breezy.
SPORTS
TWINS= Castro's homer helps the Twins to a 3-2 victory over the Rays last night. The Twins and Rays wrap up their series today, pregame coverage begins at 11:30am on Q92 WYRQ.
NFL= an MRI confirmed Tuesday that Jet's Quarterback Aaron Rodgers tore his Achilles tendon and will miss the entire NFL season.
TODAY IN HISTORY
IN 1922= hottest temperature on record, 134.6 degrees in Libya.
IN 1949= Ladies Pro Golf Association is formed (LPGA)
IN 1965= The Beatles release “Yesterday”.
IN 1972= “The Waltons” debut on CBS TV.
IN 1974= “The Rockford Files” debut on NBC TV.
IN 1977= first viewer discretion warning airs on ABC Television prior to a show's debut that night, that show was Soap.