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Trio of businesses open downtown Anyone who tries to say there’s nothing downtown really hasn’t looked recently because almost every storefront is now full. The downtown area has seen a few new businesses offering various services move in and they’re all a welcome addition. Council revisits arena, community center For the first time in awhile, the Fairmont City Council talked about the Martin County Arena and the proposed community center project during its meeting on Monday. However, the conversation went much the way it’s been going on and off for the past few years and no ...

Will a community center in Fairmont ever be celebrated?

Wednesday was an exciting day around the county as two big projects were celebrated. First, there was the Bravo Zulu House Grand Opening in Winnebago, or Northern Martin County. Then later in the day the groundbreaking ceremony for Martin County West’s new school took place in Sherburn. The energy at both of these events was extremely positive and both were well attended with several hundred at each. When all was said and done and I was reflecting back on both I thought how amazing it would be to have a project of such magnitude celebrated in Fairmont. Don’t get me wrong, ...

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In split vote, city keeps engineer In a 3-2 vote on Monday, the Fairmont City Council decided to go with its current engineer, Bolton & Menk, after considering two other firms. While discussion and even debate is healthy, the city council has an infamous history of split votes. More concerning in this case though, was some of the language thrown at the local firm as words like ‘complacent’ were used. It’s been said in the community, and even by some councilors, that Fairmont isn’t a business friendly community and the way that some councilors spoke about Bolton & Menk ...

Is it time for a new jail yet?

During a recent work session to discuss the proposed Martin County Justice Center, Chief Deputy Corey Klanderud said he believed that the conversation of a new jail dates back to at least 2003. With a little bit of searching through the Sentinel’s digital archives through the Martin County Historical Society, a Sentinel article from Nov. 1, 2003 came up which was headlined “Despite positives, county jail still faces issues.” The article starts with, “For several years, the Martin County Jail has faced problems of being overcrowded and in violation of regulations passed in the ...

Proper communication could improve morale

Former Fairmont city employee, Peter Bode, is the most recent in a string of city employees over the last few years to have resigned citing issues with the council and/or public. Bode, who just resigned on Feb. 7, shared a message with the council during its meeting on Monday night. He said that city staff has often been the target for personal attacks and campaigns to demean and discredit and told the council that administration does not do enough to protect city staff from people on the internet or interference of individual city councilors. He suggested the council develop a policy ...

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Habitat for Humanity and schools partner Fairmont Area Schools and Martin County West have each received $100,000 in grants to partner with Habitat for Humanity on some building projects. This is a win all around as the students will get experience in not only hands-on education, but on the importance of pitching in and giving back. It’s also a win for the community as it will provide some additional housing. Thank you to all involved in putting in the work to secure the grants. We look forward to watching these projects progress. MCKAH prepares for 16th pack day Today is the 16th ...