Lonsdale
Published On: 21st April 2009 | Published By: Kevin Dahle For Senate
Yesterday, I stopped by the Lonsdale city hall to visit with the Mayor, Tim Rud and city administrator Joel Erickson. Representative Bly and I both spent some time with our friends to the west to talk about local issues.
Lonsdale has a lot of good things happening right now. They are anticipating opening a new care facility for assisted living as the Northfield Three Links Care Center expands there and they eagerly await the opening of a new municipal library set to open its doors this fall. Both facilities are a great addition to the community.
Recently, a federal grant request was submitted to the state hoping to acquire about $35,000 from the Library Services and Technology Grant. Surprisingly and unfortunately that grant request was denied. We will be asking the grant committee to reconsider the request and awarding of funds which would be used for books and getting books programmed into the SELCO (Southeast Library Coop) system. The Northfield Library has been very helpful in assisting the Lonsdale library in getting started and have been a good resource in helping Rep. Bly and I understand the grant process a little more clearly.
We also talked in general terms about the effects of LGA cuts to the city budget and about possible federal stimulus dollars that may find their way to Lonsdale in the way of commercial development improvements or aging downtown infrastructure replacement. While there are no specific plans in place, my office will be forwarding all state and federal contact information regarding the use of stimulus funds to the city administrator.
While many small towns continue to struggle in a tough economy, Lonsdale continues to look for ways to develop and improve a plan for growth they have put in place over the last several years. I look forward to working with the Lonsdale leaders and of course will do whatever I can to help them achieve those goals.
The 2009 Legislative Session is at its mid-point and the Legislature continues work to finish the job of balancing the state’s budget before the constitutionally mandated deadline in May. The Senate and House set their budget targets earlier this year than any year in recent memory, and the Legislature is positioned to finish this session on time, with a budget that is balanced and fair to Minnesotans.
A recent newspaper editorial criticized a legislative committee for taking up a bill which further defines bullying in the public schools. The bill (SF971) would require school boards to develop policy for training educators on dealing with bullying, reporting such instances, and for instituting disciplinary action should it happen. The final sentence of the editorial wondered why, with a multi-billion dollar deficit, we would be discussing these types of issues.
This was the week of highs and lows. I had a great bill up in the Commerce Committee on Tuesday that would have brought some badly needed oversight to the Payday Lending industry. So many good people worked on this bill since the last session, only to see it go down in flames on Tuesday. The bill would have allowed consumers to get three payday (short term) loans within a 6 month period. Inquiry into a fourth loan would have triggered a conventional loan allowing the consumer to pay off any debt in installments at much more reasonable interest rates. Payday loans are a booming industry where consumers find themselves caught in a debt trap that tends to spiral out of control. This bill would have offered an escape route for costumers beholden to an industry that is growing across the United States at an alarming rate. I feel I was on the right side of this issue. Unfortunately, fellow committee members did not agree.
