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Monticello Times
Big Lake driver suspected of DUI in I-94 crash
ST. MICHAEL — A 22-year-old driver from Big Lake, suspected of being intoxicated, was injured during a single-car crash on Interstate 94 in St. Michael Thursday afternoon. Connor Jess Roberts was driving a 2014 Ford Focus eastbound on I-94 near where it intersects with Highway 241 when the car left the roadway, striking the Crow River Bridge and rolling, according to a report from the Minnesota State Patrol. Roberts, who...
Passenger hurt after pickup hauling camper, boat rolls into ditch on I-94
MONTICELLO — A passenger from Brooklyn Park was injured Thursday morning when the pickup truck she was riding in, along with the camper and boat it was towing, rolled into a ditch on Interstate 94 in Monticello Township. According to a report from the Minnesota State Patrol, the 2006 GMC Sierra was traveling westbound on I-94 and was pulling a fifth-wheel camper as well as a boat when it lost control near mile marker 192 and entered the north-side ditch, causing all three of the...
Local eye doctor lauded for volunteer work
MONTICELLO — Dr. Charles Yancey, a local ophthalmology specialist who has practiced here in Monticello for 30 years, has an eye for doing good in the world. Yancey, one of the doctors at West Metro Ophthalmology, which has clinics locally on Cedar Street in Monticello and in Buffalo, along with offices in Golden Valley and Plymouth, was recently honored with a humanitarian award from the Minnesota Academy of Ophthalmology, recognizing his extensive volunteer work both locally and abroad. ...
Hoglund reviews transportation over past school year
MONTICELLO — With school officially out for the summer, as students attended their last day of class Wednesday, the wheels on the bus will get a break from going round and round. Joe Kounkel, general manager of the Hoglund Transportation school bus company, gave a presentation to the Monticello School Board recently, offering a year-in-review look back at transportation within the district over the 2023-24 school year. Kounkel said his...
Family fun to take over city at Walk & Roll, bubble party
MONTICELLO — The City of Monticello will host two outdoor, family-friendly events in the coming days, with one a long-standing tradition and the other a brand-new activity making its debut. First up, the 28th annual Walk & Roll is returning Saturday morning with a route along Walnut Street to showcase downtown Monticello. Then, on Tuesday evening, Pioneer Park will play host to the city’s first-ever Bubble & Foam Party. Walk...
Local eye doctor lauded for volunteer work
MONTICELLO — Dr. Charles Yancey, a local ophthalmology specialist who has practiced here in Monticello for 30 years, has an eye for doing good in the world. Yancey, one of the doctors at West Metro Ophthalmology, which has clinics locally on Cedar Street in Monticello and in Buffalo, along with offices in Golden Valley and Plymouth, was recently honored with a humanitarian award from the Minnesota Academy of Ophthalmology, recognizing his extensive volunteer work both locally and abroad. ...
Senators visit Big Lake youth center to talk funding
U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) was joined by state Sen. Tina Smith (D-Minn) on a visit to the Wave Youth Center in Big Lake on Sunday, May 26 to meet with the organization’s leadership and discuss the major federal grant she secured for their expansion project. The project aims to build a new facility to meet the needs of youth in the community. The new facility will enable the center to expand programs, support services and mentoring. ...
Take a Kid Fishing Weekend runs Friday to Sunday
Fishing, one of Minnesota’s favorite pastimes, is just one way to enjoy Great Outdoors Month during June — and this weekend offers a prime opportunity to make it a family activity. Over Take a Kid Fishing Weekend from Friday, June 7 to Sunday, June 9, state residents can fish without licenses if they take children 15 or younger fishing. “Fishing is fun and it’s a great way to spend time...
ATV riders can explore state trails for free this weekend
Minnesotans with an all-terrain vehicle registered for agricultural use can ride the state’s public ATV trails this weekend, Saturday, June 8 to Sunday, June 9, without paying the registration fee ($60 for three years). Out-of-state riders can explore Minnesota’s ATV trails this weekend as well without the need for a nonresident ATV trail pass ($31 for one year). This annual “No Registration Weekend” gives riders access to more than 3,000...
City’s financial audit reviewed
MONTICELLO — The City of Monticello has received a favorable audit of its finance reporting in fiscal year 2023. As an organization trusted with responsibly managing public dollars, the city is required by state law to have an independent third party conduct an annual audit of its financial statements. As part of a five-year contract, the auditing firm Abdo, comprised of licensed certified public accountants, conducted the city’s audit for...
Learn about travel tours, lawn care, more at Senior Center
The senior center partners with a travel company to provide quality extended tours. Staff from Landmark Tours will be at our center at 1 p.m. on Thursday, June 20 to talk about a number of extended tours they have scheduled. A local, family-owned tour operator, Landmark’s inclusive packages feature round-trip airfare, quality accommodations, enjoyable meal experiences, admission to all itinerary attractions and more. You do not have to sign up in advance to attend this session. Come and check it out. ...
Times Past: Look back at this week in city history
30 YEARS AGO: MAY 26, 1994 • Sister Emillie Bormann of St. Henry’s parish readied to leave Monticello after 10 years to take on the challenge of prison ministry in Marianna, Fla. • Past Commander Wayne Meyer of the Monticello American Legion Post 260 was the guest speaker at the city’s Memorial Day services. •...
Savvy Senior: Find reliable health info online
Dear Savvy Senior, How can I tell if the health info on a website is trustworthy? I usually do a Google search on a symptom, drug or health condition when I want to research something, but with so much information out there I’m not sure what I can trust. — Skeptical Sal Dear Sal, ...
Select Eyecare moves across street
MONTICELLO — Select Eyecare of Monticello has moved to a new location. The full-service eye care center was formerly located in the Towne Centre Plaza on Highway 25/Pine Street, near La Michoacana Delights. Select Eyecare has now moved across the street, where it’s located at 504 Pine St., between Papa Murphy’s and Hirschfields. For more information, visit the website at www.selecteyecare.com or call 763-295-4044.
Wright County Sheriff’s Office to host open house
BUFFALO — The Wright County Sheriff’s Office will be hosting its annual open house event from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Friday, June 7 at the Wright County Government campus at 3810 Braddock Ave. NE, Buffalo. Among the attractions will be K-9 demonstrations with two of Wright County’s K-9s, Chase and Grizz, games for kids, tours of the county jail, a helicopter, drone demonstrations, emergency vehicles and more. A free lunch with hot dogs and chips will be provided and there will also be food trucks on site.
Grant offers legal services to seniors
The St. Cloud office of Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid has received a grant of Older Americans Act funds from the Central Minnesota Council on Aging to provide legal services for seniors residing in Wright County. The funds will be used to provide legal advice, counseling and representation in court and administrative hearings. There is no cost for these services. If you are 60 years or older and reside in Wright County,...
Arrests and sentencings for June 6
Wright County Sheriff arrests: • Troy Thomas Forward, 36, of Osseo was arrested May 27 in Monticello on a charge of driving after license cancellation. • Corey Andrew Hatfield, 33, of Belvidere, Ill., was arrested May 27 in Monticello on a charge of fugitive from justice from another state. • Gage Christopher Robinson, 22, of...
Let’s Chalk parts ways with city, goes private
Monticello’s annual Let’s Chalk Festival, a unique event that lets artists turn city streets into works of art, is changing over from being run by the city into a privately operated endeavor. The City Council discussed the annual festival at its last two meetings, at the bequest of Mayor Lloyd Hilgart. Ultimately, the council decided to take Let’s Chalk off the city’s plate, and instead have it run under the...
Panera planning to put restaurant near Target
MONTICELLO — If all goes according to plan, Monticello could soon have a new fast-casual restaurant on the east side of town, complete with a drive-thru and outdoor patio seating. Panera Bread, a popular bakery-café chain with more than 2,000 locations in the U.S. and Canada, is looking to put an eatery at Union Crossings, right by Target. The City Council at its most meeting May 28 approved a conditional-use...
NRC apologizes, changes stance on power plant's tritium leak
MONTICELLO — A representative of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) has apologized for public reassurances from its staff that a major leak of radioactive tritium from Xcel Energy’s Monticello nuclear reactor had not reached the Mississippi River, a drinking water source for 20 million people including the Minneapolis/St. Paul metro area. In opening remarks during an NRC-sponsored public hearing at the Monticello Community Center on Wednesday, May 15, NRC Senior Environmental Project Manager Stephen S. Koenick reversed the NRC staff’s often-repeated assurances that leaked...
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