County’s top photos on display THATE’S TREE SERVICE Specializing in large Best Shot photo show and difficult tree projects! opens at Remick Gallery in Windom 800-225-8733 n Page 4 www.thatetree.com 138th year Cottonwood County 5th edition $1.25 Starting a streak Eagle boys grab back-to-back wins n Page 9 VISIT US ONLINE AT WWW.WINDOMNEWS.COM WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 3, 2021 WHAT’S INSIDE — WINDOM VEX ROBOTICS TOURNAMENT — Big change County board coming Citizen to unveil newly studies going redesigned website later this week n Page 2 digital with Snow violations drop as fines begin documents n Vehicles have received A revised tax abatement program for citations, tows after snow commercial properties remodeled into housing units was discussed. emergency violations n Page 2 By JOEL ALVSTAD Technological advancement in the pres- ervation of historical archives is a growing ONLINE POLL trend for many government entities. At Tuesday’s meeting, Cottonwood County Last Week’s Results Commissioners heard a report that could make the county’s historical documents Which team do you want easier for those in government, and for the to win Super Bowl LV? public, to search. David Frank from Arca Search gave a pre- Kansas City 4 % sentation to the board on how his company o Chiefs .............58 scans historical documents, like past board Tampa Bay % minutes, and saves them to an online search o Buccaneers .. 42 engine. Frank said about 80% of his company’s Next Week business is related to county government. Should Minnesota He demonstrated using a recently-completed compilation of Pipestone County docu- legalize sports betting? ments. Vote at Records would be searchable by word, www.windomnews.com phrase or topic, and could be sorted by year or decade. To capture older records, pages are scanned. Any bound-copy records are gently DID YOU KNOW? pressed using an air compressor to hold the January warmer SEE COUNTY •BACK PAGE than usual When it comes to January in Minnesota, we usually think of bone- Wormstadt in DAVE FJELD 2/3 robotics 69 chilling cold. PHILIP ACKERMAN LOOKS on as his Windom Eagles Robotics A teammate Keith Swenson works on their Not in 2021. running for robot in preparing for the team’s next match. The team went 4-3 and reached the tournament semifinals. The average high temperature for the superintendent month was 32 degrees, Robots return to while the average low was 16. Respectively, job at Iowa school that’s five and six degrees n The final interview for the warmer than a year ago. action in Windom Gilbert, Iowa superintendent The high temperature job will occur on Feb. 17. The sight in the Windom There were a number was 52 degrees on Jan. Area High School Blue Gym of measures taken to It appears there’s at least a Saturday was a rare one keep teams separated. For 13, while the low was -1 chance Windom will be look- on Jan. 26. in Minnesota. While many instance, only two competi- ing for a new superintendent schools decided not to host tion fields were used in the The Windom area of schools this spring. VEX Robotics tournaments Blue Gym, rather than three. received 8.4 inches of Windom Superintendent during the pandemic in Teams could have just two Wayne Wormstadt is one of 2020-21, Windom bucked the students at the game field, snow for the month, three finalists for the Gilbert Wayne same as last year. Wormstadt trend and hosted its annual rather than three. The scor- (Iowa) Community School Dis- day-long event. er’s table was set back away Precipitation was .96 trict superintendent position. inches, just .05 less than It was Windom’s first full, from the competition fields, A selection is expected to be announced in-person tournament of the and practice fields were set last year’s 1.01 inches. sometime after a final interview, on Feb. 17. season, playing the game up behind the scorer’s table 2/3 robotics 42 There were five days This would not be a major enrollment Change Up. and in the Gold Gym. Teams with snow and five days increase for Wormstadt, who is in his 13th ROBOTS WERE in Defries said the tourna- were socially distanced and with a trace. year as Windom’s superintendent. The action during the ment went smoothly. podded according to schools Gilbert Community School District has an Rubber Duckies “The tournament actu- with team camps set up in match. Porsha enrollment of 1,574 and is located just north ally went very well,” Defries the Gold Gym and in the of Ames, Iowa. Currently, Windom has Myrvold and Tatum WEATHER Bramstedt were said. “There were no hiccups hallway next to the Blue 1,112 students. Both are considered growing and all the teams were great Gym. A look back . districts. directing and driving their robot. at following the restrictions And, of course, all wore H L P “I like the location, the amenities, the that were imposed on us, masks. Tues. 17 -1 — close connection to Iowa State (University) EAGLE MFG. made making it a successful event. One of Windom’s teams Wed. 19 1 — and the progressive nature of the district,” I felt it ran just as smoothly, was half of the second-place Thurs. 25 11 .2”sn the trophies that Wormstadt said of the Gilbert district. “I if not better, than past tour- alliance. For full tournament Fri. 29 21 — have been seeing how the board works (on- were presented to Sat. 30 27 tr. top teams in the naments we held. Our teams details and how other Win- Sun. 29 22 tr. tournament. all competed extremely dom teams competed, see the Mon. 26 18 — SEE WORMSTADT •BACK PAGE 2/3 robotics 3 well.” story on page 4. Citizen receives key state newspaper awards Windom sweeps n ing, which is also a key award, the Triple-A honors The Citizen placed first in Erickson, Green are standouts in academic THATE’S TREE SERVICE s, arts and athletics Specializing in large WARDS ONORS THE CITIZEN n Page 6 and difficult tree proje A & H cts! 800-225-8733 General Excellence, considered the Citizen edged second and third www.thatetree.com 137th year RECEIVED four 9th edition place recipients the Waconia Pa- $1.25 Cottonwood County Join Hy-Vee’s NEW top award in each class of the state class, the Citizen finished ahead awards in the triot and Pelican Rapids Press. Moving on premium membership today! WHAT’S INSIDE VISIT US ONLINE AT Eagles win playoff opener Better Newspaper contest. of second and third place winners, WWW.WINDOMNEWS.COM 2020 Better Meet the n Page 15 president WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 26, 2020 Snap decision leasd to “This is a well-organized paper valuable opportunity for Big year in store Windom FFA president County For only $99 per year, get: n the Pine and Lakes Echo Journal Newspaper Page 2 City takes aim at Service animals voters go take center stage streets, housing, that puts its readers first with Windom School Board to polls Last week’s Minnesota Better approves service animal fire trucks, more policy Contest. n and Steele County Times. City and township officials will discuss fire Tuesday + n contract and truck purchases. Fuel savings every time Page 5 In his lengthy term as Windom city admin- n There will be two separate istrator, Steve Nasby has learned that — at ballots at each polling site. ONLINE POLL least in Windom — there is no such thing as a lot of “extras” like bulleted In a matter of days, area a quiet year. Newspaper Contest virtual awards voters will head to the polls Last Week’s Results Nasby glanced at his STATE OF for the state’s new presiden- With the Minnesota THE CITY tial primary election. “The Cottonwood County office computer screen and rattled off a few primary on March 3, things that will keep city workers fairly busy + Exclusive monthly deals which Democrat would IN DEPTH Cotton- in 2020: a citywide street project, completion wood County n THATE’S TREESpecializing SERVICE in large get your vote? of the wastewater treatment plant project, Should officials are and difficult tree projects! efforts to address a housing shortage, leaky Minnesota well-prepared, summaries, polls, and reader’s 4 Elizabeth taxpayers o roofs on city buildings and Windomnet’s confident banquet brought good news to the Warren ........... % 800-225-8733 54 conversion to streaming video, to name a few fund an www.thatetree.com this first-time Amy things. exclusive contest doesn’t o Klobuchar % Citizen has it all,” judges from the New pastor in ......18 election? capture na- The street project /Page 4 Storden, Jeffers o Bernie tional scorn in + Sanders............... % Clearly the street project will be among the way Iowa’s Free 2-hour pickup caucus debacle did a few Pastor Needham takes 9 the most visible undertakings of the year. Pete weeks ago. Auditor-treasurer over at Bethany, Trinity o “We try to do street projects on a regular voices,” the judges noted. “Those Buttigieg ............. % Donna Torkelson said much Lutheran churches 8 basis,” Nasby said. “We have a lot of miles of Cottonwood County Citizen. n Page 4 of it is treated the same as o Michael streets andReady a lot of the to wet run weather certainly Cottonwood CountyBloomberg % any general election. ..........7 hasn’t helpedEagles the open pavement. season Michigan Press Association re- Joe “Streets are consistently the thing we hear “The biggest thing is n Page 11 o Biden % about most.”Thursday at Marshall that you have two separate ..................4 ballots at each site, one for Over the years, the city’s system has been + Free grocery delivery Next Week to pay off one past street project and then Democrats and one for Re- publicans,” Torkelson said.