Snow Saturday, again Tuesday blankets the city

If the 7 inches of snow on Saturday wasn’t enough, for good measure it snowed again Tuesday, stacking another 6-plus inches of snow on the ground in and around Hillsboro.

The Red River Valley is assured of a white Christmas, snow removal crews have all the work they want, and meteorologists are still smiling: another dusting of snow was forecast Thursday.

As a result, Hillsboro has a good foot of new snow blanketing the city and its neighborhoods. 

Patrol officer Scott Crump resigns from city post

After only two months on the job, Hillsboro city patrol officer Scott Crump has resigned his position with the local police department to accept a position with the Barnes County, N.D. Sheriff’s Department.

Police chief Ray Weber said his former officer would be making more money in Valley City and would not be required to take as much call time.

Crump’s last day on the job was November 30. At their meeting December 3, city commissioners agreed to advertise immediately for a replacement. Interviews will likely be conducted after Jan. 1. 

Volunteers roll out welcome mat

Making a good impression.

Hillsboro’s Plummer House has a reputation. Over this past weekend (five days to be exact), the 14th annual Christmas Extravaganza again served nearly 250 people from all parts of the Red River Valley — from Gardar to Fargo from Cooperstown to Minnesota Lake Country.

The first — and lasting — impression was “Wow, what a wonderful place!”

Hosted by the Traill County Historical Society and the Hillsboro Women’s Club, the dinners were delicious, the house was spectacular and the hospitality warmed even the guests who weathered a snowstorm to dine on the best prime rib around.

What makes the annual fundraiser so special is how far-flung the guest list has become. We checked the guestbook and the secret is out. Many guests have a Hillsboro connection — long time residents or a native back home for a visit. Others come because a special invitation was extended or a parent dragged them along. Others gambled on the recommendation of a friend. Whatever the impetus, guests marvel at how a small town can pull off a four-course meal for 50 people every night. The staff — about 25 per night — is strictly volunteer. They keep coming back year after year, night after night — both to eat and to serve.

“Just how do you do it?” one Fargo woman asked.

“Simple,” came the reply. We live in a small town and people here understand the need to volunteer, to help when they’re asked. For some working is more fun than being a guest. Some will do both ­— dine one night and work the next.

It’s being a good neighbor. That’s what we’re all about.

Let it snow, let it snow

It’s only neighborly.Winter weather has a way of bringing out the best — and the worst in people.

The best — You come home from work and find that someone has already cleared your driveway of snow. A pleasant surprise, something a kind neighbor will do without expecting so much as a thank you.

The worst — Someone who thinks they own the road and drives without care or caution when the weather makes travel a hazardous adventure in and of itself. 

Reynolds man pleads guilty to drug charges

A 48-year-old Reynolds, N.D., man pled guilty Wednesday to a felony drug possession charge.

Under a plea agreement, Patrick Dale Miller was given a suspended prison sentence and ordered to pay $1,025 in fees and fines.

Based on a recommendation from states attorney Stuart Larson, Judge Steve Marquart ordered Miller to serve one year in the state penitentiary with the sentence suspended for two years. During that time, he will be on supervised probation. 

Courthouse addition resurrected

By NEIL O. NELSON

After months of languishing in virtual obscurity, plans for the proposed $6.2 million addition to the Traill County Courthouse were resurrected this week.

First proposed in the summer of 2006, the addition that will purportedly replace the building that currently houses the Traill County jail, Social Services and the water resource district resurfaced Tuesday morning at the regularly-scheduled meeting of the Traill commissioners. 

Heat, please.

The bank clock reads -10º.

The newspaper is forecasting 20 below for tomorrow night.

I huddle closer to my little heater and swear I can feel the wind blow through the walls of my 100-year-old office cubicle.

Ah, winter.

They’re at it again.

These men and their machines.

In the spring, summer and fall, they’re in their yard pushing, trailing or riding lawnmowers.

In the winter, they’re pushing, blowing or rearranging the snow.

Matters little if it snows one inch or 12 inches, they’re out there.

You hear them at all hours; the whine of the snowblower engine is not to be mistaken for that of a cold car, for instance, or the lawnmower or leaf blower, which would answer the call to duty, if it wasn’t freezing out there.

Actually, the leaf blower, I understand, is sometimes used in snow removal operations. What better piece of equipment is there when clearing snow from tight corners?

But, when it comes to winter’s big jobs: the driveway, the neighbor’s driveway, the church and school parking lots, the in-laws’ driveway, your beer-drinking buddy’s street, the BAR’s parking lot, the kids’ backyard skating rink, Main Street, the highway out of town, it’s you and your snowblower.

City still exploring partnership with rural water

By MICHELLE MCLEAN

City commissioners defended their on-going negotiations with Traill Rural Water Users Monday night after a Hillsboro resident questioned if a joint water treatment plant was already a “done deal.”

Resident Ray Foss urged commissioners to listen to the public before a final decision is made about partnering with TRW or building a new water treatment for the city. 

City crew asks for help with snow removal

By MICHELLE MCLEAN
Jim Anderson is looking for a little cooperation.
As Hillsboro’s supt. of public works, Anderson leads the charge when it comes to snow removal. He hopes city residents will help make the city crew’s job a little easier.
After Saturday’s storm, his crew watched and wondered as some residents persisted in blowing snow from their yards and driveways into the streets.
Anderson told commissioners Monday night, “It just makes more work for us. It takes more time to clear the streets.