08 Broadcaster Press January 28, 2014 www.broadcasteronline.com Bingquan Lu, president and chief researcher of Beijing Bo Zhi Hang Research Institute of Commercial Real Estate in China, presents Gov. Dennis Daugaard with a gift of a beautifully embroidered scroll depicting a river scene as a way of showing appreciation for USD hosting an entrepreneurial institute for Chinese students. (Photo by David Lias) Female owners/operators of businesses in downtown Vermillion include Emily Sudbeck, Willson Florist; Shawn Johnson, Infinite Variety; Peggy Higman, RED Steakhouse; Rita Houska, Rita's Purse-o-nalities; Amy McComsey-Nelson, Amy's Whoopti-Do; Jessi Wilharm, Chae's Oriental Dining; Judy Nygren, Nygren's True Value; Laura Brady, Body in Balance Massage; Diane Wirth, The Varsity Pub; Margret Crew, Clay County Title & Abstract; Sara Bye, Farmers Insurance; Bekki Engquist-Schroeder, The Spa at Wynie Mae's; Tabatha Odens, Pets Paw; Lisa Johnson, Vermillion Beauty Shop; Gloria Christopherson, Nook n Cranny; and Crystal Solomon, The Front Porch. Not pictured are Amber Groh, The Varsity Pub; Trish Durham, The Mane Attraction; Marla David, Meridian Title Company; Caitlin Collier, Collier Law Office; Karen Muenster; Monica Iverson, Cakes by Monica; Phyllis Packard, LumoStudios; Lois Hazen, Massage for Health; Dorothy Neuhaus, Ot 'n Dot's Arts, Antiques & Collectables; Paulette Wipf, Pressing Matters; Bonnie Rowland, Raziel's; Kelly Saunders, Scoops; Marie Oulette, Total Flooring; Clarene Meins, University Cleaners; Amy Christensen, Vermillion Vision Clinic; and Linda Vogel, Vogel Law. (Photo by David Lias) seriously ill for several months now. He was a great friend and colleague. … “It’s a sad day for the college and, I think, for the fine arts community of South Dakota because he was so well-connected to arts organizations across the state,” he said. Professional of the Year A local recreation supervisor has been named one of the best in his field. Last week, Ryan Baedke was named Young Professional of the Year by the South Dakota Parks & Recreation Association (SDRPA) during a conference in Pierre. “I was honored to win it,” Baedke said this week. “It was kind of unexpected. I knew I was nominated for it, but I really wasn’t expecting to win, given the fact that we’re not one of the larger communities that attend the banquet.” Baedke was nominated for the award by Vermillion Parks & Recreation director Jim Goblirsch. Landlords Call New Ordinance a “Double Standard” At least five local landlords decried what some of them called a “double standard” regarding egress window requirements during the regular city council meeting Monday night. The ordinance they spoke against has been on the books for two years. The council members were voting to give rental property owners an extension to get the proper egress windows installed – a plan they passed unanimously. USD Eliminates ROTC Program The University of South Dakota’s ROTC program is being eliminated. University officials were informed Wednesday by the U.S. Army Cadet Command that the school will be among 13 in the nation that will no longer have a Reserve Officers Training Corps program. The programs are being eliminated due to downsizing and “other fiscal developments,” said LTC Ross Nelson, professor of military science at USD. Local reactions are those of “shock and disappointment,” Nelson said. USD Professor Studies Dust in China While most Americans might not think of China as being a country where dust storms take place, the storms do raise a number of health and environment concerns there. Because of research performed in part by a professor from the University of South Dakota, more is being learned about some of China’s biggest potential dust-emitters. Mark Sweeney, associate professor of earth sciences at USD, spent two and a half weeks doing research in China this past summer. Car of Missing Teens was in High Gear Tests done on the 1960 Studebaker Lark discovered in Brule Creek near a gravel pit in Union County indicate the vehicle was in high gear when it entered the channel. The automobile was last seen 42 years ago, being driven by two 17year-old Vermillion girls, Cheryl Miller and Pamella Jackson the night they went missing in May 1971. The car was discovered Sept. 23, thanks to low water levels in the creek. It was recovered the next day, and skeletal remains were found in and near the vehicle. “It (the Studebaker) has three gears, and we’ve been able to determine that it was in the third, or the highest, gear,” said South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley in a telephone interview with the Plain Talk Tuesday. “That item, standing alone – that one piece of potential evidence – would not be consistent with foul play. November, 2013 Vermillion’s Women Entrepreneurs The growing influence of women entrepreneurs in downtown Vermillion was noticed immediately by Nancy Naeve of Sioux Falls television station KSFY as she and a cameraman visited the community Monday. Naeve was responding to an invitation she received from Bekki Engquist-Schroeder, owner-operator of The Spa at Wynie Mae’s, located downtown at 120 West Main. Naeve said she followed up with a call to the Vermillion Chamber of Commerce and Development Company, who also noted that a good portion of community’s downtown business sector is owned or operated by women. “They (the Chamber) also said that while that is one factor, a second factor is that downtown is thriving,” Naeve said. “So many downtowns have empty businesses or empty buildings, and Vermillion’s downtown is thriving. “Not only are the women owning their businesses or getting involved in the community, they are also serving on the city council, they are active on various boards, and in the Chamber,” Naeve said, “and I think, as a woman who graduated from USD and who loves Vermillion, that that is a great story.” Vermillion Now! Since it began in 2009, the Vermillion Now! campaign has helped bring several high-profile businesses to town, and with them, hundreds of new jobs and millions of dollars in new payroll funds. The Vermillion Area Chamber of Commerce & Development Company (VCDC) hopes to continue this trend with a second Vermillion Now! campaign, which is poised to begin when the first one concludes next year. Man Escapes Fire Officials are crediting hardwired smoke detectors with saving the life of a Vermillion man when a fire consumed most of his trailer Oct. 31. The elderly man awoke shortly before 8 a.m. that day when the hardwired smoke detector in his bedroom went off. “That’s a key thing, because if it wasn’t hardwired, it would not have woken him up,” said Vermillion fire chief Shannon Draper. “What Makes it Great?” Of the things the National Music Museum (NMM) has in common with the works of Ludwig van Beethoven, one stands out for Rob Kapilow – they both have “room for it all.” The National Public Radio personality brought his show “What Makes It Great?” to the museum on Nov. 21, where with the help of USD’s Rawlins Piano Trio he dissected Beethoven’s Archduke Trio to show the audience what makes it tick. December 2013 No Tickets Yet Issued for Texting While Driving Ban Even though the ordinance banning texting while driving has been on the books since May, no one has been ticketed for it yet. Vermillion Police Chief Matt Betzen said this is due mainly to the difficulty of enforcing the law. “You need to be stopped in a stationary place (to spot texters), and the officers are either going on calls or driving around,” Betzen said. “One of the big things we do is speeding. Speeding is not on the intersections. It’s out on the roadway. It’s a different enforcement model.” Betzen made these comments during a special meeting with the Vermillion City Council on Monday. Parade of Lights Cancelled Last Friday was the date of the fifth annual Parade of Lights in Downtown Vermillion. That is, it would have been if Mother Nature had cooperated. Due to a National Weather Service prediction that set the temps at around 20 below zero, the parade was cancelled Thursday afternoon. “We figured at that point we better call it,” said Steve Howe, executive director of the Vermillion Area Chamber & Development Company (VCDC), the parade sponsor. Museum’s Annual Christmas Festival a Big Success The W. H. Over Museum’s 47th annual Christmas Festival was a big success, with hundreds of area visitors coming to check out the vendors, watch performances by local dancers and meet with Santa Claus. The festivities took place Sunday, Dec. 8, from 1 to 4:30 p.m. Council Approves Sidewalk Repairs The Vermillion City Council approved a resolution of necessity for sidewalk repairs in the Southwest Quadrant at its regular meeting Monday night. This comes two weeks after a similar resolution was tabled because there may have been an issue regarding public notification. A public hearing date regarding the repairs also was set Monday for Jan. 6, 2014. State law requires the city to set a public hearing and to notify the property owners through publication and by mail. New Water Tower The erection of Vermillion’s new water tower is set to begin shortly after Christmas. Water department superintendent Randy Isaacson said the work will unofficially begin Dec. 26, when six trucks hauling components of a single crane will arrive in town. The actual tower will be set up the following day. The Bluffs Golf Course The Vermillion City Council has awarded a bid for a new five-year golf cart lease for The Bluffs Golf Course. Yamaha Golf & Utility of Burnsville, MN, has been awarded the bid for use of a fleet of 40 new golf carts at the cost of $22,084.80 per year for five years. Parks & Recreation director Jim Goblirsch said the bid will save the city $364.80 over that five years. Tell them you saw it in the Broadcaster! Clay County Abstract & Title YEARS IN BUSINESS 76 YEARS IN BUSINESS 121 West Kidder Street #104 •Vermillion, SD 57069 605-624-2068 • contact@claycountytitle.com UNIVERSITY CLEANERS 124 E. Main Street Vermillion, SD 57069 (605) 624-2645 Tuxedo Rentals BROADCASTER PRESS Mead Lumber YEARS IN BUSINESS Award-Winning News Coverage Since 1884! 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