Road closure begins Thursday

FAIRMONT — Lair Road in Fairmont will be closed from Albion Avenue west to Gomsrud Park for road repairs Thursday.

The closure is anticipated to run from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. The work is scheduled to last one day and the road will re-open as soon as repairs are complete. If the weather does not cooperate, the work will be completed on Friday.

Anyone with questions may contact City Hall at (507) 238-9461.

Minnesota man declared citizen

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A Minnesota man and military veteran whose request for a passport was twice denied has been declared a U.S. citizen.

Attorneys say Mark Esqueda can now get a passport.

Esqueda sued Secretary of State Michael Pompeo in May. In a settlement reached Friday, the State Department acknowledges Esqueda is a U.S. citizen.

Esqueda’s lawsuit says he was born in Texas in 1988 and is entitled to citizenship rights, including the right to travel freely across borders, but the State Department kept requiring information that was burdensome and unnecessary. Both of Esqueda’s passport applications were made during President Barack Obama’s administration.

Suburb reinstates Pledge

ST. LOUIS PARK (AP) — A suburban Minneapolis city council has voted to reinstate the Pledge of Allegiance at its meetings after the decision to drop it generated a firestorm of criticism, including from the White House.

The St. Louis Park City Council voted to drop the pledge June 17 in an effort to be more inclusive to new residents and non-citizens.

Protesters packed the meeting room last week, and on Monday night more than 100 people showed up to call for the reinstatement of the pledge. The council then voted unanimously to bring it back.

Council member Thom Miller says city workers have been inundated with sometimes abusive and harassing emails and phone calls about the decision.

Missing man found dead

GRAND FORKS, N.D. (AP) — Grand Forks police say a man missing since July 6 has been found dead.

Police solicited the public’s help in locating 55-year-old Fernando Balboa when he went missing because he needed to take medication every four hours. Authorities said Tuesday a body was discovered in rural Polk County, Minnesota Monday evening and was later identified as Balboa.

Police say there were no obvious signs of trauma to Balboa. The cause of his death is under investigation.