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Judge: Orono in contempt over fire department feud, again
The City of Orono will be launching its new fire department in July following a breakdown in discussions of how to move forward under Long Lake Fire Dept.
ORONO, Minn. — A Hennepin County judge has ruled for a second time that the City of Orono is in contempt of court for interfering with Long Lake Fire Department (LLFD). The Orono City Council held its first meeting since the contempt order on Monday night. The council went into a closed session to discuss the measures, which upset residents.
“I urge you to reconsider your plans to take over services for Orono,” resident Kelly Prchal said during public comment. “You have the ability to make a change. Please show your residents you value their input and their safety.”
Orono Mayor Denny Walsh said he feels it’s in the city’s best interest to have their own department following failed contract discussions years ago with LLFD.
“We would like to have control of what’s going on because we have a much bigger human resources, [and] finance department. Just a much bigger background to help everyone run a 30-person department,” Walsh said.
Walsh points out that Orono makes up more than half of the service area covered currently by LLFD. Medina is also covered in its jurisdiction.
“It’s concerning,” Long Lake Mayor Charlie Miner said.
Long Lake filed a lawsuit against Orono for hindering its operations at its fire department by recruiting its firefighters over the summer. A Hennepin County judge granted them a temporary injunction in July, then found Orono in contempt of that injunction in November and most recently in March.
“We don’t agree with the judge’s decision,” Mayor Walsh said.
Meanwhile, Mayor Miner feels validated.
In the March ruling, court documents say Orono “willfully disobeyed” the injunction’s prohibition against Orono’s recruitment of LLFD firefighters by offering a waiver of the standard physical and psychological exam requirements for a class of applicants that included only current LLFD firefighters. Orono was fined for the continued violations of the court orders.
LLFD’s former chief is now leading the Orono Fire Department. In the last year, 10 of the on-call paid LLFD firefighters have joined Orono.
“We’re trying to do what we can to maintain the fire department we have now so we can continue to provide service to the cities we serve,” Mayor Miner said.
Starting in July, the Orono Fire Department will cover roughly one-third of the city around the Navarre neighborhood. Mayor Walsh says they will have their new department running by January 1, 2026.
LLFD promises to service Orono residents through December 31, 2025.
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Vikings fans were ecstatic to see their team beat the New York Jets.
FRIDLEY, Minn. — Vikings fans packed Forgotten Star Brewery early Sunday morning to watch the Minnesota Vikings and New York Jets game in London.
Hundreds of people were at the Fridley brewery to watch the game on a 15-foot screen at 8:30 a.m. Hodgepodge food truck was also there serving up brunch specials for fans to have with a pint of beer.
“We were up at 4:30 this morning, ready to go, getting our gameday gear ready,” said Luke Drake. Luke got there at 6 a.m. with his wife Nicole to make sure they got a prime spot.
“Before we were together, I was a Vikings fan and not like a super crazy Vikings fan. [Now] we’re up like a 5, 6 a.m., on Sundays, and it’s like we’re ready to go, we’re in front of the TV and we’re ready for the game to start,” Nicole said.
If you can’t tell by Shannon Russell’s purple hair, she bleeds purple and gold.
“I just love football,” she said.
Russell didn’t grow up in a sports family and came across the Vikings by chance when she was 10 years old.
“I was just up watching cartoons one morning and saw the Vikings playing and not understanding what it was, and I just fell in love with it,” Russell said.
Her favorite player is No. 22.
“I love watching Harrison Smtih while he comes up and he’s like ‘Am I going to rush, I don’t know’ and then he just bails out and I love watching that,” she said.
Liz Johnson was also up early with her two kids, Henry and Alice.
“I like football. I like watching. I enjoy the surprises that come with it. I like Forgotten Star, so it’s a perfect place to be, snacks, food,” Henry said.
“It’s pretty cool because you can see the TVs over there, over there, you can look behind you and see it over there, and you can look right there and see it a giant screen,” Alice said.
Alice got creative to pass some of the time, making art with her hands.
“I’m making bracelets,” she said. “So, first you take the first one, twist it and put it around your fingers.”
Even though the kids were up early, the Johnsons wouldn’t have it any other way to watch their hometown town leave London with a win.
Police said the 7-year-old victim was skateboarding on Saturday night.
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The road closure is expected to last until about 11:30 p.m. tonight, according to MnDOT.
MINNETONKA, Minn. — Officials have closed the westbound lanes of US Highway 12 starting at I-494 in Minnetonka after a collision occurred on Saturday night.
According to the Minnesota Department of Transportation’s 511 Map, the road is closed and there was a “serious crash,” on the highway.
The road closure is expected to last until about 11:30 p.m. tonight, according to MnDOT.
This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.
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