Concerns raised from business owners about county setbacks in small communities By Chad Koenen Publisher New York Mills will continue to utilize the county’s cannabis ordinance—at least for the time being. During its regularly scheduled meeting last Tuesday night, the NY Mills City Council failed to approve a motion to call for a public hearing to develop its… Read More

Cultural Center to host NYM community Halloween party By Tucker Henderson Reporter With Halloween right around the corner, Karvonen Funeral Home has come up with another evening of festivities for families across the region. With an early date set for Saturday, Oct. 25, there will be activities for everyone at their facility in Wadena. This year’s theme… Read More

By Tucker Henderson Reporter The New York Mills Education Foundation is gearing up for their annual Turkey Bingo event again which is set for Tuesday, Oct. 28 with a meal at 5 p.m. sponsored by the NY Mills Bandwagon and Bingo starting at 6 p.m. The meal will kick off the night at 5 p.m. and will… Read More

Plan to provide a road map for future projects By Chad Koenen Publisher With rapid growth comes the need to plan for some expansive road and community projects in the near-to-distant future. During its regularly scheduled meeting on Thursday night, the Ottertail City Council heard from Bob Schliemann of Apex Engineering, who compiled a five-year capital improvement… Read More

Biker injured east of Dent By Tom Hintgen Otter Tail County Correspondent  A county resident who lives northwest of Battle Lake has been scammed out of $700, as reported by county sheriff deputies on Oct. 13. The scam victim, believing a phone pitch that he won a truck and large amount of cash, gave the scammers numbers… Read More

Third annual event to be held Sunday at church parking lot By Chad Koenen Publisher Local youth with have the chance to get some candy a little early this year as the Deer Creek Fire and Rescue, as well as Trinity Lutheran Church in Deer Creek, will be hosting the third annual Trunk or Treat event… Read More

By Robert Williams Editor Jodi Teich was introduced as Otter Tail County’s new County Engineer, replacing Krysten Foster who resigned from her position in August to become a Senior Project Manager at Stonebrooke Engineering. Teich began her duties on Oct. 13. Teich brings extensive leadership experience in county engineering and transportation planning to Otter Tail County. She grew… Read More

The New York Mills junior high knowledge bowl team started their season October 10 in Fergus Falls.  Knowledge bowl is an academic competition with trivial pursuit style questions from all subjects of school covered throughout the day. On this day the Eagles competed against teams from Alexandria, Moorhead, Osakis, Perham and Barnesville.  Eighteen NY Mills students made… Read More

Pelican Rapids application to be revisited on Oct. 28 By Tom Hintgen Otter Tail County Correspondent The Otter Tail County Board of Commissioners tabled a decision on approving or not approving a retail cannabis business in Pelican Rapids until 10:15 a.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 28, at the County Government Services Center in northwest Fergus Falls. The five-person county… Read More

Recycling program to begin in early 2026 Otter Tail County is taking a significant step toward the long-range strategic plan for countywide single-sort curbside recycling with the launch of a pilot program beginning January 2026 in the southeast quadrant. Thanks to grant funding from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA), residents in the cities of Battle… Read More