ECHO: COUNCIL MINDS MADE UP ABOUT HIGHWAY BYPASS

The Lake Country Echo reported Thursday morning that members of the Pequot Lakes City Council have made up their minds about where the expanded Highway 371 should go. The council is to vote on the issue on Tuesday, December 18th. Echo reporters contacted members of the council and a majority said they prefer the bypass by a 4 to 1 margin. Mayor Cathy Malecha said she'd prefer it not be in the paper but in her heart couldn't see the future highway going through town. Council member Craig Nagel said the community would be best served with the alternate route around town. Councilman Jim Orascovitch said at the time he was contacted he would vote for the bypass. Councilman Tom Ryan said he would continue to support the through-town route. Councilman Dave Sjoblad said he was elected in a near landslide last year because he supported the bypass. "What am I supposed to do, turn my back on that?" Sjoblad said. The next step is to reach 'municipal consent', a formal expression of the council's desire for the future highway route with MnDOT.