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To the groundbreaking of Vortex Cold Storage in Albert Lea.

Congratulations to Vortex Cold Storage and all of those organizations who were a part of bringing this project to Albert Lea.

On Wednesday the company had its groundbreaking ceremony for a new facility on 14th Street between South Broadway Avenue and Margaretha Avenue.

The facility will be 173,400 square feet and offer temperature-controlled storage ranging from 40 degrees to 20 below zero. Up  to 26 new jobs will be created.

We are excited to see this project come to fruition and applaud all of the people who helped make it a reality.

We were impressed with the excitement of the owners and the optimistic outlook they have as the construction begins, and we look forward to seeing their growth in the future.

To the fourth year of dredging starting on Fountain Lake.

For everyone in Albert Lea, and particularly those who are fond of our city’s lakes, it was great this week to see the dredging begin on Fountain Lake for a fourth year with dredging and marine construction company J.F. Brennan.

The company this year is expected to remove over 300,000 cubic yards of sediment and wrap up this phase in mid- to late August.

We have already seen success with the first few years of dredging, and we urge continued support of this project at the state level in the coming weeks as local legislators and officials lobby for $7.5 million to complete the final phase of the project.

To having an in-person showcase for 4-H students this summer.

No matter what happens with the Freeborn County Fair this summer, we hope the County Board of Commissioners will continue to support 4-H’ers and allow them to have a showcase of some form at the fairgrounds.

Last year, 4-H’ers participated in non traditional livestock shows in an outdoor arena, with all participants, family members, staff and volunteers required to wear face masks. Families were expected to bring their trailers into the fairgrounds, showcase their animals and then leave once their shows were complete. Youth moving on to the state fair showcased their livestock via a virtual platform.

From an outsider’s viewpoint, this method worked smoothly, and we are confident it would work smoothly again if necessary. We hope that spectators can also be allowed this year in adherence with proper social distancing and masking safety protocols.

The 4-H program teaches many important life skills to students, and the fair shows give a chance for students to showcase what they have learned.

To ongoing catalytic converter thefts.

People in Freeborn County and the surrounding areas have still been reporting thefts of catalytic converters off of vehicles in recent weeks.

As the nice weather is here to stay for the coming months, this will likely be an ongoing problem.

We encourage people to keep an eye out for suspicious behavior in your neighborhoods and to report anything questionable to law enforcement. Help protect your friends and neighbors when you can.