Courier Press

By Correne Martin

The Crawford County Board of Supervisors approved its 2018 budget Nov. 14, increasing its portion of the tax levy for landowners slightly, by 0.4 percent, to cover $9,986,122 in total proposed funds.

“After assembling initial departmental requests for this budget, it was $662,000 above the allowable levy limit,” said Duane Rogers, board vice chairman.

To balance the 2018 budget, the board’s key moves will involve pulling $300,000 from the general fund and reducing highway department requests by $250,000 ($64,000 of that will be paid by unused borrowing from last year).

Though Rogers acknowledged the disappointing news that the total of all fund balances had decreased—for the second consecutive year—he said it increased in the years leading up to this and believes the county is “still in pretty good shape.”

Organizers of Country on the River have decided to take a year off in 2018 and come back “bigger, better...and even more country” in 2019, according to the Country on the River Facebook page.

A statement on the page reads, “Thank you to all of you who have supported Country on the River for the past eight years. We have tremendous appreciation for everything you have done to make this event happen every single year.

However, we regret to announce that the festival will not be returning in 2018. Instead, we’ll be taking a year off to look at improvements to make to the event.”

The post goes on to invite patrons to its sister festival, WE Fest, in Detroit Lakes, Minn.

There have been many rumors that Country on the River is considering relocating to another city, though the Courier Press has not been able to confirm any such details.

By Ted Pennekamp

The Seneca School District gained this school year with 48 students who open enrolled into the district, said Seneca Superintendent David Boland.

“We had a few more students open enroll this year,” said Boland, who noted that Seneca had 43 students open enroll last year.

“The overall increase in open enrollment funding this year is $31,030 higher than last year, which goes into the general fund for staffing, programming, and day-to-day operations,” Boland said. “We feel our school’s small size and dedicated staff allow all students to maximize their talents and reach their potential as they strive to accomplish their goals.”

“Open-enrollment numbers are very important to all public school districts. We saw a net increase through open enrollment of seven students from last year,” said Wauzeka-Steuben Superintendent Robert Sailer.

Bernard R “Herb” Watson passed away peacefully on Nov. 11, at Greenway Manor.

Herb was born May 27, 1922, to George and Ellen (Kane) Watson, in Seneca. He was engaged in farming when he married Eleanor Lucey on June 29, 1944, at Rising Sun. Herb and Eleanor enjoyed a 65-year marriage before Eleanor preceded him in death on Nov. 3, 2009.