Round Up the Weed Whackers

Last summer one thing I noticed was that several roadways coming in to our community had weed issues on the median strips. Highway 59 coming North from Slayton and Highway 19 near the High School were the most obvious.

When asked, someone with knowledge on the subject pointed out that they are State Highways and that MnDOT is responsible. They also pointed out that occasionally the City will help out too.

Last fall, Marshall City Administrator Ben Martig and I were comparing notes on a variety of subjects and the "weeds in the medians" concern showed up on both of our lists. (I suppose that when you're new to town like we are, these types of things are much more obvious). Ben confirmed that it should be MnDOT's responsibility to take care of those, but probably weren't a priority seeing how they were within the City Limits of Marshall.

We both vowed then and there that this summer would be different. Even if we both had to get out there once a month with weed spray and tools, the weeds welcoming folks to our community would not become an issue this year. Later this week we'll be meeting with MnDOT officials about this very subject.

Now if someone would just deal with the lack of "Welcome to Marshall" signs at the gateway entrances.