Movie Night

“We just don’t want to see it close.”

Glenn Peterson

President of Viborg Development Corporation

I grew up in the 1960s and 70s. It was the age of the Beatles, mini skirts, and super 8 home movies. Movie night was a big deal in our family. Dad would set up the projector, turn out the lights, and with a click and a whir, our lives would play out on the big screen (or bedsheet): ice skating in the park, Christmas at the cousins, and graduation celebrations. But almost without fail, movie night would be cut short when the film caught fire or the projector jammed.

The folks in Viborg, South Dakota (population 782) know our pain. For 98 years they’ve enjoyed movie night at the Lund Theater on Main Street. With a click and a whir, moviegoers have been treated to the latest action flick or romantic comedy. But all that came to an end last month when the film projector at the Lund stopped working. This might not seem like a big deal. The price to get a replacement projector is $4,000. That’s not bad, but the price for converting to digital, which will be required for all movie theaters by 2013, is $75,000 to $80,000. Ouch. Townsfolk aren’t willing to accept that they’ve watched the last picture show in town. They’ve set up a Friends of the Lund Theater fund and are collecting donations. Organizers figure they’ll raise the $4,000 in no time, but the big ticket price for digital will be tough to come up with.

My sister recently had all our super 8 home movies converted to digital. The quality is a heck of a lot better and we never have to worry about the film burning or the projector breaking. This should be a good thing. Maybe I miss the tension of not knowing when the movie will end, and maybe I take technology for granted, but somehow digital movie night just doesn’t seem like such a big deal.

Read the Article ® Raising money to keep the Lund Theater open

Critters

“What kind of problems will we have with chickens?”

Gail Howe, Mayor of Pateros, Washington

Animals are in the news—small town news, at least. Here’s a roundup of stories that’ve moseyed across my desk lately.


Chicken Out
No chickens allowed. That’s what voters in Pateros, Washington (population 624) said after a quick vote last month. Lots of towns, and even big cities like Chicago and New York, have been rewriting the rules to allow homeowners to keep a few hens for fresh eggs. But not the folks in Pateros. They say their on-call animal control officer is busy enough keeping an eye on dog owners who run afoul of the law; she doesn't have time to run herd on a bunch of chickens, too. One family in town does have chickens, but it’s no big deal. Part of their property sits outside city limits so they’ve set up a nice little place in the country for their hens.
Read the Article ® Pateros says “no” to small-town chickens

Groundhog Day

No hitchhiking allowed. That’s what one driver in Whitehall, Pennsylvania (population 13, 397) said after giving a ride to an uninvited guest: a groundhog. Actually, the young man screamed when he saw the groundhog, but the message was the same. The groundhog, which wasn’t discovered until the next morning, chewed up one seat and pooped throughout the car. The hairy hitchhiker was big news in Whitehall: it got the attention of the neighborhood (maybe it was the scream), took two calls to the police, took another call to the Fish and Game Commission, and even scored a visit from the mayor. The groundhog was last seen sharing a photo op with the mayor before being carted off.
Read the Article ® Driver doesn't dig hitchhiking critter


 Gone to the Frogs
Frogs welcome. The folks in Milton-Freewater, Oregon (population 6,319) have been been overrun by frogs. At first there was alarm, and then frustration. But six years ago, when someone changed the welcome sign from “Welcome to Milton-Freewater” to “Welcome to Muddy Frogwater,” instead of getting hopping made, town leaders thought, what the heck—let’s go with it. The town now holds a Logs to Frogs carving contest in July and The Muddy Frogwater Festival in August. Sounds like a “ribbeting” good time.
Read the Article ® The city that's gone to the frogs

Boomtown

“Oh, it’s a busy town anymore.”

Sandy Anderson, Resident of Chester, Montana

Chester, Montana (population 900) doesn’t get it. The whole country is in a recession: unemployment up, housing market down. Despair is supposed to be on the rise, hope hitting rock bottom. But not in Chester. This small town is booming. Folks are moving in. Empty houses have been rented and hotels are full. And why? Jobs.

Chester is located in the heart of Montana's farm country. Up until this year, it was struggling like many small towns. But after suffering years of drought, the last couple of seasons have been good to farmers. Their yields are up, along with demand and market prices. And the icing on the cake? Not one, but two grain elevators are being built in Chester this year to handle the bounty. With the elevators come jobs, workers, and a market for local materials. Five new businesses have opened, the local bakery is working longer hours, and a couple of long-standing establishments are getting new digs.

A lot of people blame our country’s sour economy on companies sending jobs offshore. Again, not in Chester. It turns out the new grain elevators are being built by two international companies. Instead of sending jobs out of the country, they’re bringing jobs home to Chester.

Read the Articles:
·        A big boom in a small town
·        International changes for Chester, Montana

Take This Job and . . .

“We’d really like to get someone in here

who could stay for the long haul . . .”

Penny Pearson-Burke, Resident of Prosperity, South Carolina

In these times of high unemployment and uncertainty, it seems everyone is either looking for a job or hanging on tight to the one they have. Right? Not really. At least a couple of small towns are having a heck of a time keeping their top spots filled.

Prosperity, South Carolina (population 1,055) is unlucky in law enforcement. The town has had three police chiefs in three years, and they’re on the lookout for another one now. One police chief stepped down in 2009 amid charges of misconduct, another left last week as a “personnel matter,” and the police administrator who oversees the chief and would be on the hook for the interim job is out on medical leave. The town administrator and some county deputies are keeping an eye on things while the town ramps up another search. Good thing—turns out Prosperity has a relatively high crime rate for a small town. Maybe word’s gotten out that Prosperity is police chief poor.

But a small town in our neighbor to the north has it even tougher. In Bridgetown, Nova Scotia (population 972) the mayor and entire town council walked out last week. The reason? The town has deep financial problems and town leaders are stumped about what to do. The problems stem from a $1 million upgrade to the town’s water system and an insufficient tax base to pay the bill. The mayor says they’re all stepping down so someone with more expertise can take over. It isn’t the first time the mayor’s spot has had to be filled on the QT—the current mayor took over after the previous mayor quit halfway through his term. In this latest crisis, it looks like Bridgetown is in over its head, and all the folks at the top are throwing in the towel.

Read the Articles:
Small town looking for third police chief in three years
Bridgetown’s leaders step down amid growing financial problems; police investigating town’s books

Creepy Crawlies

“I’m not laughing at anything on the inside.”

C. R. Carter, Mayor of Weston, Missouri

What the heck is going on? Last year it was dead birds falling from the sky. This year it’s snakes. But these snakes aren’t dead. They’re alive and slithering and creeping people out.

Near Rexburg, Idaho (population 17,257—yep, the same town that was featured in yesterday’s texting story), there’s a house that’s literally crawling with snakes. For some reason—nobody knows why—the snakes picked this house for their winter home. Each year thousands of snakes slither through the yard, up the walls, and in through the foundation to hibernate, breed, and reproduce. They’ve starred on TV’s Animal Planet, chased out two families, and stuck the bank with a house no one wants—no one but snakes, that is. Looking at the big picture, I guess that isn't too surprising: the house is located in the Upper Snake River Valley, after all.

And then there’s Weston, Missouri. It’s bad enough having a house infested with snakes, but what about an entire town? Weston is home to about 1,700 residents . . . and just as many snakes. The trouble started three years ago when the town put in a new bridge and used rock to hold the creek bank. Turns out that rock is a reptilian refuge. For now, most of the snakes are bunking down in the park next to the creek, but townsfolk worry the problem will only get worse as the snakes breed and reproduce. They’re right—ask a couple of homeowners in Rexburg, Idaho. 

For a bit of an “eww” factor, here’s a video of the snake house in Rexburg, Idaho:

Read the Articles:

Foreclosing on a bunch of snakes

Snakes invade Weston park

OMG: Ban on Texting While Walking

“I have a lot of friends that when they text, they cannot think.”

Holli Loar, BYU-Idaho student

I’m one of those people who have a hard time chewing gum while walking, so I’d fit right in in Rexburg, Idaho (population 17,257). Town leaders there recently passed a law banning texting while walking. Correction: the law actually bans only texting while crossing the street. Common sense might suggest texting and walking in traffic don’t mix, but why did Rexburg feel compelled to pass a law? The town can’t cite any accidents—just some close calls—and there are no national statistics on texting while walking. Still, town leaders say the law will ensure the safety of its citizens. Critics argue it will ensure fat coffers for the town: fines are $50 for first offense and $150 for subsequent violations. Rexburg, home to BYU-Idaho, stands to make a pretty penny on the university’s 15,000 texting-addicted students. But students say the town might be on the right track. A hit to the pocketbook gets the message across and hurts a lot less than getting hit by a two-ton truck.

Read the Article ® $50 fine: Texting while walking

Election Fun-raiser

“It’s the best mayor money can buy.”

Mike Druey, Pastor and resident of Los Molinos, California

The citizens of Los Molinos, California (population 2,002) claim bragging rights to the best mayor money can buy. That’s kind of true. The candidates running for mayor seem to be good folks, and they’re all doing a bang-up job of raising money, but the thing is, Los Molinos doesn’t really have a mayor at all. The town is unincorporated so the title is purely honorary. So what’s with all of the money being raised? That’s how this election is decided—not by ballots but by bucks. The candidate who raises the most money wins. When the fundraising is done and a winner declared, all of the money raised goes to pay for the town’s 4th of July parade and celebration.

Five candidates are running this year. There’s a Vietnam veteran who dresses up as Captain America and is holding softball and horseshoe tournaments, a bartender who’s putting on a luau and pig roast, and a gal who’s hosting a rodeo and steer roping. The most elaborate fundraiser is a 130-mile Poker Run, where folks ride motorcycles and cars from spot to spot and stop and get a playing card and refreshments before continuing on their way. At the end, players compare the hands they were dealt—winners receive prizes and everyone celebrates with dinner, music, and camping. And then there’s the campaign by a lifelong Los Molinos resident who has attended nearly every 4th of July celebration since she was born. It’s all about her jingle:

My name is Sabrina,

Last name Fritz,

Vote for me

And I’ll show you my pits!

(armpits, that is)

I’ve got to say, this is my kind of election—light on politics and heavy on partying, poker, and pits.

Read the Article ® Small-town mayoral race is a kick