Garretson in 2019, a year in review (part 2)

By Carrie Moritz, Garretson Gazette

The second part of 2019 flew by in a flash; between the summer road construction, the fall flooding, and great Halloween and Christmas celebrations, the community stayed busy!

June started with moving day for Blue Dragon Academy, which opened in its new facility. Prior to that, it had been operating in two buildings, which it had outgrown. The facility opened with 100 out of its 103 openings filled, and they had the capacity to be able to take drop-ins and smaller part-time spots, which was a relief for a business that had had a year-long waiting list for the past several years.

At the same time, the street construction project on 3^rd & Main got underway for the new season. It had originally been slated to begin in March of 2019, but between weather and issues with the contractor, the project was delayed. By the end of the summer, the issues had not been alleviated, and at the beginning of September, the City Council voted to terminate its contract with Haarsma Construction. The construction project then went to the bondholder, who will be working with Sayre Associates to finish Main and the truck route in 2020. Haarsma Construction was allowed to finish 3^rd Street, which was finally completed on September 8.

However, June also had Jesse James Days, which was a success, and the city council heard from its new code enforcement officer, a new position which has been a contentious decision between the council and the community. The goal of the code enforcement officer is to ensure the community keeps its ordinances, but it has been hard on people who weren’t aware they were in violation, or knew they were, but hadn’t had any consequences prior to 2019.

Summer of 2019 also saw the city moving forward with a housing development that had been organized first by Grow Garretson starting in 2015, then by the new non-profit Economic Development Foundation. A developer had purchased the land, and worked with the city to install infrastructure and ensure his plans fit community planning and zoning.

On July 6, the Henry G Fix Post #23 American Legion celebrated 100 years, and the Gazette had a story about its namesake written by Marty Luebke, and finished our yearlong run on the history of the post, which was written by Owen Wiese (who retired in 2019 after 50 years as post historian).

The Gazette was also able to feature a former Zion Lutheran pastor’s pilgrimages in Spain, a visiting family that hailed from France, and the Bench Dedication ceremony, which celebrated an effort by the Garretson Parks Advisory Committee and Grow Garretson that places over 20 new benches around the community.

The Garretson baseball and softball teams also had great seasons, with the 14U and 16U teams each placing 3^rd at State, and the Blue Jays (Garretson’s amateur team) and the girls’ softball team each taking runner up at State tournaments.

August and September saw the start of a new school year, a new grand opening for the Davis (formerly Motel, now Short & Long-term Stay), and successful rides for Team Tayden and the annual tractor ride.

However, September also saw record flooding, when between 6 and 11 inches of rain fell around the area in a 5-day period. The ground had already been saturated from a wet spring and summer, and water moved fast and high. Brandon only had one route in and out of town; luckily, only one house in Garretson needed sandbagging efforts. Splitrock Park’s well-known rock bridge near the dam was completely submerged. The flooding was one more thing on top of an already hard season for the local farmers.

Fall sports ramped up as soccer, volleyball, and cross country started racking up the wins. By the end of the season, soccer made it to the State A Quarterfinals; volleyball made it to the State A Semifinals; and cross country girls placed 2^nd at Regions. Football had a hard season, with a young team that had trouble competing against more experienced teams, but were still able to make it to the playoffs.

October was a calmer month, with Homecoming at the beginning of the month and the Spooky Trail at the end. By all measures, the Spooky Trail was a success, with the Jesse James Players scaring more than 1400 people in its two-weekend and Halloween day run. The Gazette also ran a photo collage of all the new construction that is happening in the community; between beautification, new industry, and housing, Garretson is growing.

In November, we honored those who served our country with two programs for Veteran’s Day in Garretson; first at the school, then at the Legion. The All-School Veteran’s Day program featured calls to the ideals of Americans; the ideas of liberty, freedom, kindness, and diversity. Elementary students recorded quotes from prior presidents, including John F Kennedy, George H.W. Bush, Franklin D Roosevelt, and Barack Obama, and after each quote, gave a short speech on what those quotes and ideals meant.

The city council wrestled with the issue of dogs barking, with a proposal to limit the number of pets even more substantially, but after feedback from the community, they opted to work with the Minnehaha County Sheriff to place more emphasis behind noise enforcement.

After Thanksgiving, the holiday season got off to a start with Light the Park, an event spearheaded by the Garretson Parks Advisory Committee and Grow Garretson. Along with that popular event, Hometown Christmas also had a great turnout, despite extra-cold weather canceling some of the outdoor events. The Gazette again ran its 6^th grade Drawing Contest and 2^nd grade Letters to Santa, and added some fun comments from Kindergarten and 1^st grades as well.

Here’s to a great 2020, with hopes of continued success for the community! We know, with the hard work of all who contribute, that Garretson will continue to be its awesome self. We at the Gazette will do our best to continue bringing you the news of our community and the county, and items from around the state that also impact us all.