Walleye angling on Mille Lacs Lake will be catch-and-release only for this year’s open water season, with the exception of the month of July, when walleye fishing will be closed.
Additionally, anglers will not be allowed to use live bait for any species in July, except sucker minnows greater than 8 inches in length for targeting northern pike and muskellunge.
The new walleye rule is among several regulations changes this year. Bass and northern pike also have new regulations.

The Minnesota River Conference (MRC) voted on March 30, 2020, to accept Lester Prairie/Winsted Holy Trinity into the conference beginning with the 2021-22 school year.
The new school replaces Jordan that leaves the MRC after this year. According to Dan Gardner, MRC Executive Director, Lester Prairie/Winsted Holy Trinity approached the conference about joining last fall.
“It’s been discussed since and the final vote was yesterday (via a Zoom meeting),” Gardner said. “That will put us at eight teams for the 2021-22 school year.”

William “Bill” Schultz, age 89, of Montgomery (formerly of Belle Plaine, Aitkin, and Eagan) passed away peacefully surrounded by family on April 5, 2020.
Bill was born April 17, 1930, in Milwaukee, WI to Edward and Edna Schultz. After High School he proudly served in the US Army during the Korean War. Bill married Marlene Wiesner on December 4, 1954.

The City of New Prague received an application for a commercial building permit for the former Shopko. The permit is valued at an estimated $1.3 million and the applicant is HyVee Construction. The building is expected to be converted into a HyVee Dollar Fresh grocery store. For more see an upcoming print issue of The Times. (Patrick Fisher Photo)

The start to the 2020 DRS Baseball League is currently on hold.
According to League President Mike Sticha, they are waiting for more information from the Minnesota Baseball Association before rescheduling.

Harriet Ann Novotny, 84 of Webster, MN passed away on Sunday April 5, 2020 at her home in Webster.
Harriet was born on November 30, 1935, and grew up on the family farm in Montgomery. The daughter of George and Anna (Pavek) Choudek, she graduated from Montgomery High School in 1953 and went to work at Munsingwear.
Harriet met Raymond Novotny, and they married on June 26, 1956. They started a family and rented a house in Webster for two years before purchasing their current home where she lived for 62 years.

In a 4 to 3 vote on Tuesday, April 7, Lonnie Seifert was selected by the Tri-City United School Board as the district's next superintendent.
Seifert was among three finalists for the position being vacated by retiring TCU Superintendent Teri Preisler at the end of June.
The finalists, who also included Lisa Edwards and Carmen Daniels-Strahan, completed a second round of interviews during the afternoon. The interviews included questions by the school board and other stakeholders, including staff and community members.

Patrick John Holtz, age 67 of Fort Atkinson, WI, passed away March 30, 2020 at Woodland Hill Memory Care in Hudson, WI. Pat was born August 22, 1952 in New Prague, MN, to parents John and Genevieve (Petricka) Holtz. He graduated from Montgomery High School in 1970 and earned a bachelor’s degree in Business from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Pat was drafted into the U.S. Army in 1972 and was honorably discharged in 1978. He was united in marriage to Kay Liebhard on May 6, 1972 in Le Center, MN. The couple was blessed with three children and made their home in Fort Atkinson, WI.

The Tri-City United School Board has selected three finalists to return for a second interview for the school district’s superintendent position. The semi-finalists are:
■ Carmen Daniels-Strahan, Principal, Mankato Public Schools, Mankato, MN
■ Lisa Edwards, Dir. of Continuous Improvement, Farmington Area Schools, Farmington, MN
■ Lonnie Seifert, Superintendent, GFW Schools, Gibbon, MN
The semi-finalists were selected from a pool of twenty-three applicants based on criteria established by the school board. Six applicants were interviewed last week.

As the United States faces the worst public health crisis in a generation, we want you to know we are here for you—and with you.
Whatever happens, whenever it happens, your newspaper will be there for you.
We’ll be there to let you know how our community is managing through this crisis—from business to government to the health care system and schools to the impact on individuals and families.

The search for the next Tri-City United superintendent went from 23 applicants down to six finalists Monday night.
They were selected based on criteria established by the school board.
At the TCU school board meeting, held via video conference due to the health pandemic and shelter-in-place order, school board members met with Barb Dorn of the Minnesota School Board Association to narrow the list of candidates for first-round interviews.

The Tri-City United School Board selected a new elementary school principal following the retirement announcement earlier this year by Montgomery principal Deb Dwyer.
At the March 30 school board meeting, the seven board members unanimously voted to approve Lisa Manders as the newest addition to the school district, as the principal of the pre-K to eighth grade principal in Montgomery.
Manders was one of more than 25 candidates vying for the position, according to TCU Superintendent Teri Preisler.

UPDATE - 4/2/20 
Highway 93 between Highway 169 and Henderson opens after 5 p.m today Thursday,, April 2, 2020.
 
Crews monitoring Highway 19 closely.
Motorists are advised that Highway 93 from Highway 169 to Henderson remains closed due to flooding on the Minnesota River.  The Minnesota Department of Transportation closed Highway 93 early Sunday morning. 
MnDOT and area law enforcement are closely monitoring Highway 19 between Highway 169 and Henderson as current river forecasts indicate the potential closure later this week.

The first Le Sueur County COVID-19 case was identified on March 22. Since that time, over the 
course of the last week, Le Sueur County Public Health has been notified by the Minnesota 
Department of Health (MDH) of an additional 10 cases of lab confirmed COVID-19. MDH does 
not release specific case information to protect the identity and privacy of the individuals. 
Aggregate data regarding the Le Sueur County cases that can be shared at this time include:
none of the cases were hospitalized, all are recovering at home and following isolation guidance 

Effective immediately, we have been directed by our DNR Regional office to implement Burning Permit Restrictions in our counties.  Restrictions mean that (in an electronic burning permit county) the only burning permits that can be activated and legally burned are variance permits. A variance is a burning permit issued for over 1 acre of grass and special permits issued for large piles such as for a road construction activity or similar projects. Variances are issued by a forester and not fire wardens or purchased online.

The Minnesota Department of Public Safety Driver and Vehicle Services division (DPS-DVS) is closing all exam stations statewide beginning Friday at the close of business to follow Governor Tim Walz’s executive order for Minnesotans to stay home and slow the spread of COVID-19. Offices will stay closed through April 10, when the executive order is set to expire.