EDITORIAL:On the trail to prosperity: Otter Tail County’s  recreational trail initiative a top prior

Downtown Pelican Rapids has the potential to be one of the finest business districts
for specialty retail in Otter Tail  County–perhaps the entire region

Pelican Rapids is one community that perhaps stands to gain the most from Otter Tail County’s new recreational trail initiative.
We were thrilled to learn of the Otter Tail County board’s focus on developing a county wide trail system to connect with other trails and parks in the county.
Maybe...with some work and a little luck...a dormant proposal to link Pelican Rapids to Maplewood State Park will become a reality.
With the possible exception of halting the spread of zebra mussels and other aquatic invaders in our lakes,  recreational trails could be viewed as the top travel-tourism initiative of our era.  read entire story. . . .

Pelican Press now has online, electronic version of printed newspaper on website

The Pelican Rapids Press has unveiled a new, online version of its newspaper.
A full edition of the printed newspaper can be viewed at the pelicanrapidspress.com website. By clicking the icon in the upper right, an exact copy of the printed newspaper can be read on the computer screen, in a “flipbook” format.
 read entire story. . . .

FROM MY VIEW POINT - By Louis Hoglund

Fergus Falls state hospital

The house that Pelican Rapids built

The Fergus Falls Regional Treatment Center; variously known through the decades as the “state hospital,” the “asylum,” the institution for the “feeble minded,” the “funny farm,” the “insane hospital” and other titles now insensitive and inhumane; is the “house that Pelican Rapids built.”
Tens of thousands of distinctive “Pelican brick” were hauled to Fergus Falls nearly 125 years ago to construct the immense state hospital.
The Pelican Rapids quarry, 22 miles north of the state hospital building site, was bustling constantly–providing jobs and bolstering the city’s economic base. The Pelican brickyard operated from 1883 to 1909.  There are a numbe of local and area  Pelican brick structures still standing–one the most notable is the “Church with the Clock Tower,” Faith Lutheran on Pelican’s Main Street.  read entire story. . . .

LETTER TO THE EDITOR:

The Untimely End of an American Tradition

Community Action has been a first responder to poverty in our Minnesota communities for over forty years.  Now, with the latest funding cuts, many of these community based initiatives will be forced to close their doors.
The working poor; low and moderate income families; and the elderly on fixed incomes will no longer be able to turn to their local community action agency – because in many locals, we won’t be anymore.
Small building contractors that have been providing home weatherization through Community Action Weatherization and energy assistance - will lose most of their client base – and most likely their business.  Many more construction workers will lose their jobs.  Building product manufacturers and suppliers will be dealt a serious blow.  The dedicated professionals who have invested their lives and careers in community action will have their positions abruptly terminated.
The reason for all of these crippling blows to our community: budget cuts and the priorities of our elected officials.  read entire story. . . .

LOOKING BACK

Old Erhard Creamery
produced nearly 440,000 pounds of butter in 1936

75 years ago
Feb. 18, 1937

•The Farmers Cooperative Creamery Association of Erhard hosted its annual meeting in 1937.
The creamery made 339,296 pounds of butter in 1936, according to creamery manager Len Youngberg.  read entire story. . . .