FAIRMONT - A city administrator's complaint against her elected bosses, H1N1 flu and budget cutting by area governments were among the top stories in the Sentinel coverage area in 2009.
The complete list of Top 10 local stories follows, as voted on by Sentinel staff:
No. 1
The city of Winnebago has been thrown into a complex investigation.
In October, administrator Jennifer Feely filed a complaint against the City Council on the eve of her annual review after learning some information from Police Chief Bob Toland.
Toland was present at a conversation in which Councilman Dana Gates reportedly asked public works employees if they still had a deal - that the council would fire Feely if the workers did not form a union. Gates reportedly said he had all four council members in agreement.
In November, the council agreed to an investigation of itself. Investigator Jeff Zalasky, an attorney from Bloomington, returned his report to the city on Dec. 15, but Gates raised questions about Data Privacy since some of the information in the report will involve city personnel.
The city is now working with an outside attorney to determine public and private information. The report is expected to be released by Jan. 12.
No. 2
At $31 million, a new water treatment plant may be the biggest project the city of Fairmont has ever embarked upon.
The Public Utilities Commission hired Advanced Engineering and Environmental Services to complete a facilities study of the existing plant. The firm found the cost to renovate the building and bring it up to code would be about $26 million. After studying several options, the PUC recommended to City Council that a new surface water plant be built.
The first choice for a site is where Budd School is located while the second choice is in Cardinal Park.
No. 3
Built for $1.8 million, Fairmont's new municipal liquor store did not come without opposition.
Faced with a dilapidated building deemed too small, the City Council opted to build new, setting its sights on a piece of property on the north end of Fairmont off Highway 15.
Many residents were upset with the decision, wanting the city to use the liquor store's reserve funds for other uses than to pay off a new building. Others preferred that the city turn over liquor sales to the private sector.
But in October, the 10,000-square foot building opened to the public. The city anticipated business would increase 20 percent to 25 percent in the new space and so far that has proven true. The building is expected to be paid off within three to five years.
No. 4
The building at 400 S. State St. in Fairmont has undergone a number of changes this year, as have local grocery shoppers.
Shortly after Jeff and Renae Vetter purchased the business County Market, the building's owner sold it to Fareway Foods of Boone, Iowa. Rather than try to come up with the capital and compete with another grocery story in Fairmont, the Vetters decided against purchasing the building themselves.
The Sentinel reported in March that Fareway would open by Labor Day if all went according to plan. All did not go according to plan, as renovations on the building began in September.
In November, the company gave a tentative opening date in mid-February. Hiring 50 to 75 new employees will take place in January.
No. 5
Last spring, an outbreak of a new influenza strain held the world in its grasp. The flu, initially called swine flu, threatened a pandemic and people were advised to stay home if they exhibited symptoms - sore throat, fever, or cough.
Schools around the country were closed if even one student was confirmed to have the virus, causing disruption of education and society at large, as parents left work to care for children not in school.
But those who suffered from what was later known as H1N1 novel virus the most in the early stage seemed to be hog producers.
China and Russia halted imports of U.S. pork despite assurances that the virus did not come from pigs, causing sales to plummet and instituting a tailspin in an already difficult market for farmers.
Minnesota Pork Producers estimate a $646 million loss for producers due to the swine flu moniker.
By October, another round of illness arrived, sparking a push by local, state, and federal health care agencies to institute good health practices - like hand washing and covering a cough - as well as vaccinations.
Schools were no longer required to close when H1N1 was detected, but were mandated to report to the state when the number of students absent due to influenza-like illness, or ILI, reached 5 percent of the total student population.
That reporting threshold was met by most schools in Martin County, although early indicators of the severity of the illness was not seen, with most cases resembling seasonal flu symptoms and duration.
China and Russia re-opened trade with U.S. pork producers in November.
No. 6
After voters turned down a bond referendum in 2007 to address districtwide deferred maintenance items that included the closure of William Budd School and an addition onto Five Lakes Elementary to house the displaced students, the school board took the building closure out of the package and asked voters to vote again.
Two referendums later, residents approved the package. But Fairmont Area Schools still had a building it couldn't fix because of state law.
A group of residents, parents of students, teachers and other community members was assembled and given the task of researching the various aspects of William Budd and determining what they think should be done with the building to best benefit students and the community.
The task force ultimately determining the best option is to close Budd School and Lincoln School and build a pre-K through second-grade addition at Five Lakes Elementary, a plan striking similar to the district's original referendum request.
The school board accepted the task force's determination, and is in the process of determining if another referendum is feasible in the spring of 2010.
No. 7
At the end of 2008, Minnesota was facing a $4 billion budget deficit. Gov. Tim Pawlenty stuck to his staple of not raising taxes, and among those facing cuts were area cities and counties.
This year, cities and counties spent a lot of time on their budgets - trimming what they could to make up for the revenue losses.
All tightened their belts based on what was important to their citizens. Some reduced services, many delayed capital outlays, some furloughed workers, others froze wages.
No. 8
An ethanol plant years in the making in Welcome was stalled in 2008 when owner VeraSun Energy of Sioux Falls, S.D., filed for bankruptcy.
But the idle plant was purchased in March by Valero Energy out of San Antonio, Texas.
After sitting idle for nearly a year, the Welcome plant went online and began producing ethanol this summer, and the grand opening celebration was held in September.
No. 9
A surgeon formerly with the Fairmont Medical Center filed a wrongful termination suit against the medical center in July.
Dr. Lee Yang was terminated after several anonymous e-mails were sent to medical center personnel regarding Fairmont Medical Center's CEO, Dr. Phillip Vuocolo. The e-mails consisted of information found online in regard to a past disciplinary action against Vuocolo and details about his personal finances. The e-mails reportedly were traced back to Yang's husband, though Yang said she had no knowledge of her husband writing or sending the e-mails.
In May, Yang was asked to sign a memo of understanding, in which she was to take responsibility for the e-mails. When she refused, she was terminated.
Attorneys for both sides have submitted arguments in the case, with the medical center requesting the case be entirely dismissed.
No. 10
A pair of area boys high school athletic teams thrilled the area in 2009.
The Granada-Huntley-East Chain boys basketball team claimed the Class A state title on March 28 with a 62-54 overtime win against Ellsworth at Target Center in Minneapolis.
The Mustangs finished their championship season with an unblemished record of 29-0.
On Nov. 20 at the UNI Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa, the Armstrong-Ringsted football team came out a 49-30 winner over Lenox to claim the eight-man state title.
The game marked the Mustangs third straight appearance in the championship game and their first win.