Month: March 2025

A Crookston Ways and Means meeting was on Monday, March 3, immediately following the City Council meeting.  This meeting had three discussion items, the first being a request to amend the city purchasing policy.  This was geared specifically at increasing the limit for the City Administrator to $25,000 and the limit for department heads to $10,000. “The purchasing policy has been out there for a few years. The question we had was whether the council wants to change the amounts or not,” says City Administrator Jeff Shoobridge. “The council said, leave them as is, so we will leave them as is and move forward.”

The second item discussed an update to the city’s travel reimbursement policy. “The second item, again, is just a housekeeping item. The GSA, the federal government, sets limits every year on how much travel expenses you can get reimbursed. Primarily for meals,” says Shoobridge. “Staff will write up the resolution, and we will be changing that so that in the future it will be per GSA Guidelines and according to the Regional costs that are in place for the Federal Government,” Shoobridge says the city will adopt those guidelines by reference. “What that means is, by reference, if the federal government changes it, ours automatically changes to match it,” says Shoobridge. “We don’t have to address it every year to make the changes, it will just automatically change.”

The final discussion item for Monday’s Ways and Means meeting was developing a policy that any funds allocated or reserved for any grant applied for be fully secured and fully identified before approval to move forward. The idea was to ensure that if the city was applying for a grant, funds were not being promised that were not available. “We are just going to have a standard operating procedure so that we can make sure that we’re keeping track of when we have grants coming forward; if we have matching funds, we want a methodology in place to track them. To track how much money we have set aside for each grant,” says Shoobridge. “We don’t want to accidentally spend money twice.” Shoobridge likened such a situation to writing a check from your checkbook, forgetting to put it in your register, and then writing it again.  It can be painful, and the city cannot afford to have this happen.

The post Crookston Ways and Means discusses purchasing policy, travel reimbursement and a methodology to track matching funds first appeared on KROX.

Recognized for its commitment to the community, the Benedictine Living Community-Crookston was recently awarded RiverView Health’s 2024 Reaching Out to Serve award.

For over thirty years, RiverView Health has recognized individuals, groups, and programs with the Reaching Out to Serve award. The award goes to those who symbolize RiverView’s mission of serving the region while demonstrating innovativeness and voluntary self-initiated efforts to improve healthcare access and quality.

With skilled nursing facilities facing severe challenges nationwide, RiverView Health closed its Memory Care unit in 2023. The Benedictine Living Community worked closely with RiverView’s team to facilitate the transfer of residents wishing to stay in Crookston.

“Our partnership with the Benedictine Living Community provided peace of mind as we knew the residents we transferred to their care would continue to live life with purpose,” stated Grant Gunderson, chair of RiverView’s Board of Directors. “We are pleased to recognize the Benedictine Living Community for its long-term commitment to providing a senior living community with personalized care, well-being, and enrichment at the heart of everything it does. Thank you, Benedictine Living Community-Crookston, for reaching out to serve.”

RiverView team members presented Benedictine representatives Lindsey Erdman, executive director, and Lindsey Eckstein, assistant director of Nursing, with a $500 check as part of the award. “We are so very honored and excited to be recognized with RiverView’s Reaching Out to Serve Award,” exclaimed Erdman. “Our longstanding partnership with RiverView is of immense pride for us as we work jointly to provide important care and services for older adults in the Crookston community and beyond. For decades, we have collaborated to ensure seamless transitions whether our residents have acute care needs or RiverView’s hospitalized patients would benefit from a short-term care experience.  We are so grateful for the comprehensive healthcare network in our area built on decades of history by both of our organizations.  As time journeys on, the challenges mount for rural providers, but together we are strong.  Thank you, RiverView.”

Representing the Benedictine Living Community-Crookston (left to right, holding the check) are Lindsey Eckstein, assistant director of Nursing, and Lindsey Erdman, executive director. RiverView representatives (left to right) are Nate Ellingson, Human Resources Director; April Grunhovd, chief nursing officer; Chris Bruggeman, chief operating officer; Carrie Michalski, president/chief executive officer; and Lance Norman, vice president of Ancillary Services.

The post The Benedictine Living Community-Crookston awarded RiverView Health’s 2024 Reaching Out to Serve Award first appeared on KROX.

Minnesota’s 1,776 townships will hold their annual meeting on Tuesday, March 11, 2025. Known as Township Day, these annual meetings are held every year on the second Tuesday in March and sets townships apart from other forms of local government. At this meeting, residents of the townships will meet to voice their opinions about local issues with other township residents and also vote directly on their annual tax levy — direct democracy in action. Citizens attending annual meetings also often discuss and vote on other local issues.

In addition, many of the state’s townships will hold their township officer elections on Tuesday’s Township Day.

“Township Day 2025 will put grassroots democracy on display. We encourage all residents to show up, express themselves, and weigh in on topics like their tax levy and local elections,” said Minnesota Association of Townships Executive Director Jeff Krueger. “If you live in a township, please participate in your township’s annual meeting on Tuesday, March 11. You can find the location and time by checking the published notice in the local newspaper, township website, or by contacting the township clerk,” continued Krueger.

“Townships today include over 900,000 Minnesota residents, and we represent an extraordinary form of local government. Township Day annual meetings are your chance to participate in grassroots government,” concluded Krueger.  

Information on Minnesota’s townships: There are approximately 918,256 township residents in 1,776 townships in Minnesota. Townships exist in every area of the state, including the metropolitan area. Some, with populations of more than 1,000, function in much the same way as a small city. While many townships remain rural agricultural centers, other host a variety of residential, light commercial, and industrial development. 

The tradition of Township Day: 
The tradition of a town meeting has roots in colonial America. New England town meetings gave citizens a way to exercise local authority. Those meetings were especially important in the development of democracy because it emphasized problem-solving through group efforts. 

Background on townships: 
Townships were the original form of local government in Minnesota, created at the State’s founding. Minnesota used the 36 square mile sections of land surveyed by Congress as the boundaries of each township. Today, the term “township” generally refers to local governments governed by an elected board of supervisors and created to provide services to residents.

The post Minnesota Townships to hold their annual meetings March 11 first appeared on KROX.

On Wednesday, March 5, the senior high Knowledge Bowl teams went to sub-sections at the University of Minnesota Crookston. The Blue Team took 6^th place, and the Gold Team took 13^th place! Only the top nine schools at Wednesday’s meet move on so the Crookston Blue Team will move on to Sections in two weeks. Congratulations to all participants, and best of luck at Sections.

Blue: Ben Capistran, Xavier Mason, Maddie Harbott, Leah Johanneck, Tessa Weber

Gold: Jocelyn Johnson, Kahnen Hansen, Ethan Lanctot, Sawyer Anderson, Gunner Stewart

The post Crookston Senior High Knowledge Bowl teams took 6th and 13th place at Sub-Sections with Blue team advancing to Sections first appeared on KROX.