FALL HOME IMPROVEMENT

Fix-up funds
are available
in Lakefield
by MIKE JORDAN
Staff Writer

HOME WITH
A HISTORY
by JUSTIN R. LESSMAN
Publisher

A Jackson woman has

turned a piece of local history into home.
Carolyn Jacobson purchased the site of the old
Fort Belmont in 2013 and
has spent the last three

Photos by
Justin Lessman

Above: Carolyn
Jacobson has
spent the last
three years
turning the old
Fort Belmont in
south Jackson
into home. Left:
Decorative rock
foundations
each rock
handcrafted
by Jacobson
help support
new front-porch
poles.

years molding the main

building at the former
tourist attraction into a
dream dwelling for her
and her daughter.
The work begins
When Jacobson walked
into the main building
See HISTORY on C4

Left: The unique wood-slat ceiling in the kitchen and dining area is original to the building, Jacobson said, and the brass light fixture
hanging over the dining room table was there when she purchased the property. Right: A unique bed in one of the childrens bedrooms is
Jacobsons creation.

Residents of and businesses within the city of

Lakefield are encouraged
to apply for grant funds
for property-improvement
projects now.
Locals have access to
around $846,000 in federal funds
through the
Small Cities
Development Grant
program to
fund improvement
projects
Kelly
to homes,
Rasche
businesses
and rental properties. The
program is administered
by the state of Minnesota
and facilitated by Western
Community Action.
We are in the application process now, said
Kelly Rasche, Lakefields
administrative clerk. Residents and businesses, as
See FUNDS on C2

Jackson interest
being measured
Residents of the city of
Jackson have until the end of
the month to show interest
in a new round of Small Cities
Development Grant funding.
Sur veys attempting to
gauge interest in the homeimprovement grant funds
were mailed out to locals
earlier this year and also distributed door-to-door. Sue
Pirsig, the citys economic
development coordinator,
said returned surveys are
critically important to landing
grant funds.
Responding to the survey
could help households in
Jackson secure grant funds to
repair their homes, she said.
The housing rehabilitation
program allows single-family
homeowners to seek financing for home repairs that
address health and safety,
energy efficiency, lead hazards and accessibility issues.
Eligible repairs may include
roofing, foundations, siding,
windows, doors, heating,
electrical and plumbing.
If funding were to be secured, 0 percent deferred
loans for 80 percent of the
See JACKSON on C2

A new face at JBC

Mulder has plans
to add in-house
design service to
retail offerings
by JESSICA OYE
Staff Writer

There is a new face at

Jackson Building Center.
Manager Dave Mulder
has been on the job for
only two weeks, but brings
with him years of experience.
Ive been in the retail lumberyard/hardware
business for 15 years, he
said.
Mulder s experience
has covered all aspects
of the building industry,
from sales to management,
kitchen and bath design to
working with homeowners
and general contractors,
and even building itself.
He said coming to JBS will
give him the opportunity
to do both management
and sales, which he thinks
is a perfect fit.
Mulder said he plans
to implement some minor changes at the local
building center. Initially,
he plans to level out retail
space in departments that
currently see a lot of duplication across other retailers in the community. A reduction of retail space will
allow room for more floor

See JBC on C2

Submitted photos

Those who join the nonprofit Arbor Day Foundation this month may receive 10 free
trees to plant, among them eastern rosebud (above) and flowering dogwood (below).

Spruce up any yard with trees

Photo by Dallas Luhmann

New Jackson Building Center Manager Dave Mulder

plans to tweak in-store retail offerings, add more
floor models and displays and debut an in-house
design service in the coming months.

Meet the new manager this Friday

Members of the public will have the opportunity to meet

new Jackson Building Center Manager Dave Mulder later
this week during an open house at the Industrial Parkway
location in Jackson.
The open house runs from noon to 5 p.m. Friday.
Those who attend may also enjoy free refreshments and
register for a gift-card giveaway.

Trees are always a great

way to spruce up a yard or
farm place and, through
the month of September,
everyone who joins the
Arbor Day Foundation will
receive 10 trees for absolutely free.
Those who join the nonprofit Arbor Day Foundation this month will receive
one of the following tree
packages based on their location: 10 Arizona cypress
trees, 10 live oak trees or
10 mixed trees, including
eastern redbud, white pine,
sugar maple, white flowering dogwood, pin oak, red
maple, river birch, silver
maple, northern red oak
See TREES on C3

C2

Thursday, September 29, 2016

JBC: Mulder has plans to add a new in-house design service

Continued from C1
To complement the admodels and displays to
give customers the oppor- dition of in-house designtunity to see more options ing, JBC will end up with
a business-within-a-busifor their home projects.
There are also plans to ness model, Mulder said.
add an in-house design With lumber and hardservice at the building ware retail remaining important, the
center as
businesswell. Mulwithin-ader has exIve been in
business
tensive exthe retail
model will
perience in
lumberyard/
place a
designing
hardware
special emprojects for
phasis on
customers
business for
the design
and said he
15 years....Once
center and
is looking
you get into the
will even
forward to
making that building industry, h a v e i t s
own name,
available to
its hard to get
which has
the commuout of it.
yet to be
nity. He said
decided.
he hopes to
Dave Mulder
Mulder
have the
said his
software up
and running in the next goal is to have the new
few months that will help design center up and runturn a customers vision ning by early next spring,
to catch the start of the
into reality.

new building season.

Mulder is a lifelong resident of the Iowa Great
Lakes Area. He and his
wife of 26 years have three
children and two grandchildren.
Mulder said his love of
working in lumberyard
and hardware store retail
comes from the satisfaction of helping homeowners and their gratitude on
a successfully completed
project.
Once you get into the
building industry, he said,
its hard to get out of it.

Photo by Jessica Oye

New Jackson Building

Center Manager Dave
Mulder has been on the
job for only two weeks, but
brings with him years of
experience.

FUNDS: Local property owners have access to $846K in grants

Continued from C1

well as rental property

owners in the Main Street
business district, can apply for grant funds for
their home-improvement
and property-improvement
projects through Western
Community Action. Then
Western Community Action reviews all eligible
applications and decides
who gets funding.
Jeff Buesing, a field representative with Western
Community Action, is helping Lakefield residents
and business owners go
through wish lists of projects they would like to use
the funds for to decide
what they can and cannot
afford to do, Rasche said.
From there, the homeowners or businesses find
contractors to do the work
and collect bids from each
one, she said.
Typically, funded projects use local or regional
contractors for the projects, but Rasche said it is
up to the homeowner to
pick the contractor.
Generally, they go for

the lowest bid, Rasche

said, but if a resident, for
example, wants to use a
particular contractor for
their project that was not
the low bidder, that resident has to pay the difference.
Part of Buesings responsibility with the projects
is to see the grant-funded
work is done before the
contractors are issued payment.
Homeowners can get 80
percent of their project
funded with grant money, while businesses can
qualify for 70 percent of
the project funded by grant
funds if approved.
The homeowner needs
to come up with the additional 20 percent needed
to fund their project while
the businesses need to fund
the additional 30 percent
needed for their projects,
Rasche said. Funds are
available now, but people
have to get their application in to begin the process.
Up to 25 residents will

have their homes improved

through this process, eight
commercial buildings will
receive grant funding and
nine rental units will be
able to take advantage of
the available funds in the
projects target area.
That target area for businesses primarily runs from
Fourth Avenue North along
Main Street to the Mill
Road and to the alleyways
behind the businesses on
Main Streets east side
and west of Main Street
to North Highway 86. The
nine rental units target
area is located above the
Main Street businesses.
Residential target areas run from Seventh Avenue North east to Hunter
Street, West Menage Avenue from Third Street
West to Hunter Street, West
Fifth Avenue and West
Fourth Avenue in west
Lakefield, and then Fourth
Avenue North on the north
side south to Broadway
Avenue and east generally
to the Milwaukee Street
and Third Avenue North

and Second Avenue North

areas east to the city limits.
In the end, the total
grant funds of $846,000,
plus the matching funds
from the grant recipients of
$326,000, means that in the
next 24 months, $1.17 million dollars will be spent
in our community, Rasche said. We have until
December of 2018 to use
those grant funds.
Currently, funds can only
be used in the target areas,
Rasche said.
People inside the target
areas included in the grant
can make application for
funding first, she said.
But if our goal of 25 houses is not reached, funds will
be opened up citywide.
Funds are awarded on
a first-come, first-served
basis, Rasche said.
The quicker an application is in to Western Community Action, she said,
the quicker funds can be
approved.

JACKSON: Surveys out

Continued from C1

rehabilitation cost would be provided to qualified homeowners. The loan would carry no interest and would be forgiven 10
percent per year for 10 years as long as the property does not
change ownership.
Homeowners who return the survey will be placed on a
waiting list for possible grant funding. If the city of Jackson is
awarded funds, homeowners who filled out the survey and
indicate interest will have the first chance to access these funds
for a period of 60 days at grant startup.
The average housing loan will be around $18,500, with a
maximum loan of $22,000.
The new round of surveys comes on the heels of a successful grant period that saw close to 30 homes in Jackson receive
facelifts thanks to more than a half-million dollars in SCDG
funds. The city was awarded $586,500 in grant funds back in
2013 and set a goal of using it to improve 28 owner-occupied
homes in Jackson. In the end, nearly all the grant money was
put to use for the improvement of 29 homes.
Pirsig said members of the Jackson Economic Development
Authority, the citys lead agency on housing, were so impressed
with the last project they recommended the city apply for another round of funding.
Surveys are due by Sept. 30 to Jackson City Hall or the
Western Community Action Housing Department office in
Marshall. Pirsig said her office has extra copies of the survey
on hand as well.

Email your local news to the Pilot.

info@livewireprinting.com.

Meet
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109 Pond Drive

Jackson, MN

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C3

Thursday, September 29, 2016

TREES: Ten free in September

Continued from C1

and Colorado blue spruce.

The free trees are offered through the foundations Trees for America
campaign. The campaign
encourages everyone to
plant trees, which Matt
Harris, chief executive of
the Arbor Day Foundation, said benefit the environment and improve
quality of life. With nearly
1 million members and
supporters, the Arbor Day
Foundation is the nations
largest nonprofit organization dedicated to planting
trees.
These trees are carefully selected to yield yearround benefits, including
beautiful spring flowers,
cool summer shade, spectacular autumn colors,
winter berries and nesting
sites for songbirds, Harris said.
These trees will also
add to the proud heritage
of your states Tree City
USA communities. For
the past 40 years, Tree
City USA has supported
effective urban forestry
management across the
country, and planting these
trees will enhance this
tree-planting tradition.
The trees will be shipped
postpaid at the right time
for planting between Oct.
15 and Dec. 10. The 6- to
12-inch trees are guaranteed to grow or they will
be replaced free of charge.
Easy-to-follow planting
instructions are enclosed

Johnson ready, willing to

handle any job, any time
by JUSTIN R. LESSMAN
Publisher

Submitted photos

Those who join the nonprofit Arbor Day Foundation this

month may receive 10 free trees to plant, among them
northern red oak (above) and red maple (below).
with each shipment of
trees.
New members of the
Arbor Day Foundation will
also receive The Tree
Book, which includes information about tree planting and care.

To receive the 10 free

trees, send a $10 membership contribution to Ten
Trees, Arbor Day Foundation, 100 Arbor Ave.,
Nebraska City, NE 68410,
by Sept. 30, or join online
at arborday.org/september.

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He doesnt even mind
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jobs on
Sundays or
in the
Jordan
middle
Johnson
of the
night if need be.
I dont turn anything
down, said Johnson,
owner and operator of
Johnsons Home Repair
Handyman Service of
Jackson. Anything anybody wants done, Ill do.
That around-the-clock
commitment is just one
way Johnson plans to
accomplish his goal of
being regarded as the
areas top contractor.
My goal is to be the
No. 1 contractor in southern Minnesota, he said.
I think you accomplish
that by not only taking on
the job, but always leaving behind a quality end
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On-the-job training
Johnson, 34, has been
on the job for nearly half

tools and equipment.

his life.
I have a large invenIve been doing the
work since I was 18, he tory of tools, but if I find
said, listing one of his I need something, I go
earliest jobs as helping and get it, he said. In
to turn the old Jack- terms of technology, Im
son Hardees into the basically all digital as far
as I can be
current
with digiBurger
My goal is
tal levels
King.
to be the No.
and lasers,
I
as theyre
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Minnesota. I think j u s t e y e said, and
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balling it.
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He
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went into
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good tools
business
and good
for himleaving behind
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a quality end
ogy.
years
product.
ago in
Happy to
Windom
Jordan Johnson
respond
and reGood
cently relocated his family and work is what his customers expect and what they
business to Jackson.
I was getting work deserve, Johnson said.
I do get a lot of calls
all around the area in
Spirit Lake (Iowa) and on Sundays and Im hapFairmont, so Jackson py to respond and projust made sense as a base vide quality workmanship, he said. It shows
of operations, he said.
The work varies, John- Im a hard worker and
son said, ranging from that Im serious about
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C4

Thursday, September 29, 2016

Photos by Justin Lessman

Carolyn Jacobson has spent the last three years molding the main building at the
old Fort Belmont in south Jackson into a dream dwelling for her and her daughter.

The timbered roofline of a fort addition from decades ago is visible above Carolyn
Jacobsons laundry table.

HISTORY: Tourist stop is home

Continued from C1

Many of the furnishings in Carolyn Jacobsons home are secondhand made to look like
new with plenty of elbow grease, including the bathroom sink, which she purchased
for $5 and built into a base she crafted of old barn wood.

three years ago, it had

been sitting empty for the
past 10.
And it showed.
It was kind of rough,
she said.
She and her daughter,
Sophia, moved in a few
months later, in March
2014.
Id be in bed at night
and could hear the squirrels that were living in
there with us, she said.

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could envision the nearly
2,000-square-foot structure that once served as
the centerpiece of the Fort
Belmont grounds becoming home.
She went to work, tearing down one interior wall
to open up a great room
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room and the utility/laundry/work areas are on the
buildings west end.
Many of the furnishings
are secondhand made to
look like new with plenty
of elbow grease.
The bathroom sink she
purchased for $5 and built
into a base she crafted of
old barn wood.
The kitchen table is an
old library table she found
tucked away in a corner
of the building when she
bought it. She hand built
a bed for one of the rooms.
On the buildings exterior, she replaced two of
the original three front
doors with windows and
installed a large patio door
on the back.
I tried to add as much
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said.
The covered front porch
required quite a bit of
work especially the
poles supporting the roof.
A lot of the poles kept
falling down, she said.
I found some old telephone poles for free
and replaced them.
At the base of each pole,
Jacobson placed decorative rock foundations
each rock handcrafted by
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I poured every one of
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had 22 molds, so I could
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See HISTORY on C5

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C5

Thursday, September 29, 2016

An old utility shed now functions as a playhouse for 5-year-old Sophia Jacobson.

Photos by Justin Lessman

On the buildings exterior, two of the original three front

doors are now windows framed with handmade shutters.

HISTORY: Now home

Continued from C4

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What was once a nook of the bustling Fort Belmont tourist attraction is now a bedroom for 5-year-old Sophia
Jacobson.

8486

laundry table.
History shines through
Theres a lot of history
While Jacobson has
changed many things in- here, and Im not ashamed
side and outside the build- of it at all, she said. I like
ing, plenty of memories to let it shine through.
of the old Fort Belmont
Dream come true
remain.
Work continues on the
The unique wood-slat
ceiling in the kitchen and property, Jacobson said.
She had some trees in
dining area is original, Jacobson said, and the brass the backyard removed relight fixture hanging over cently, would like to install
the dining room table was a furnace to supplement
there when Jacobson pur- a gas stove heater and is
considering carpeting the
chased the property.
The original timbers painted concrete floors.
But whathewed deever she
cades ago
Its definitely
does, she
by Amish
a dream come
said she
craftstrue that we
will always
men still
get to live here.
respect the
cover the
place and
exterior
We couldnt be
its history.
walls and
happier.
There
the porchs
are a lot
floorboards
Carolyn Jacobson
of people
are the
with a lot of
same ones
so many tourists traipsed memories of this place,
over back when the fort she said. There have
was a prime tourist attrac- been a lot of weddings in
my backyard. There are
tion along U.S. Route 16.
When I cut into the people I talk to who tell
floorboards to place my me they and their families
rock bases around the stopped by the fort every
poles, I found quite a bit of summer to visit. There are
loose change, Jacobson so many stories, and I love
said, producing a handful hearing them.
But for Jacobson and
of worn and weathered
Mercury dimes dating her daughter, the place is
from the 1940s. They say so much more than a piece
the old pop machine was of local history or a warm
memory from the past.
over there.
Its home.
The old gift shop is now
Its definitely a dream
home to Jacobsons washer and dryer. The old caf come true that we get to
is used for storage and live here, she said. We
a carport area. The tim- couldnt be happier.
bered roofline of a fort
addition from decades ago
is visible above Jacobsons

Jordan Johnson

C6

Thursday, September 29, 2016

The smart use of fall Home loan, repair funds available

pesticides, herbicides

Light touch
Many people might not
have to use pesticides at
all, said Tchukki Andersen, board certified master
arborist, certified treecare
safety professionaland
staff arborist for the Tree
Care Industry Association.
Professionals may be able
to solve landscape problems without pesticides
by choosing non-chemical alternatives, such as
sanitation procedures and
selecting shrubs and ornamental trees that are less
susceptible to diseases and
insects.
For example, an infestation last year may only
require all the old plant
material be cut out, Andersen said.
Often, cultural practices (pruning, raking leaves,
etc.) will go a long way
toward solving pest problems, Andersen said.
For homeowners who
decide to use pesticides,
the Tree Care Industry
Association offers these
suggestions:
Identify the pest first.
There is no use in applying a pesticide that wont
address the pest problem.
Dont be tempted to
use agricultural chemicals. They arent designed
for use by homeowners.
A small miscalculation in
the mixing of a small batch
could result in drastic
overdosing.

Buy the least toxic application. Most chemicals

available to homeowners use the signal words
caution, warning or
danger on their labels.
Try to avoid those with the
warning and danger
labels, as they are more
hazardous.
Never mix herbicides
with other kinds of pesticides, and never use the
same equipment to spray
herbicides and other pesticides.
Dont mix or store pesticides in food containers,
and dont measure pesticides with the measuring
cups and spoons used in
the kitchen. Always store
pesticides in the original
container, with the label
intact.
The best choice may be
to consult a professional
who can diagnose pest
problems and recommend
chemical or non-chemical
alternatives. A beautiful
lawn, shrub or tree isnt
worth the trade-off if pesticides are not being used
properly.
Herbicides
Fall is a good time to
inspect walkways, driveways and patios for those
annoying trapped seeds.
Despite drought and frequent sweeping, some
seeds from weeds, grasses
and trees will have germinated, lining joints with
unsightly green. Other
seeds simply lie in wait
until the spring. This new
growth must be stopped
before the growing season
arrives and those small
cracks become gaping
holes filled with vegetation.
Herbicides are the most
cost-effective way of eliminating unwanted weeds,
but homeowners need to
be careful when using
herbicides. When they are
used improperly, they can
just as easily kill valuable
mature trees and shrubs
as sprouting weeds. Users
should read the product
label to ensure proper application methods.

or fewer that is not urban in

nature. No down payment
or mortgage insurance is
required.
Our program helps lowincome families buy homes
in the community, where
otherwise they must continue to rent or many cannot
find housing, said Kathy
Oertli, area Rural Development specialist.
Rural Development also
offers home repair loans for
very low-income homeowners. Loans up to $20,000 are
available at an interest rate

of 1 percent and repayable

over 20 years. Grants up to
$7,500 may be available to
homeowners over the age
of 62 and must be used to
remove health or safety
hazards.
With the home improvement program, we can help
the very low-income families improve their homes
due to our low loan rate,
where otherwise they could
not afford to do these repairs due to the higher bank
rates, Oertli said.
Oertli said the home re-

pair loans are especially

useful for elderly citizens
living in the rural cities of
Jackson County.
She said the programs
available through Rural
Development assist in home
sales and help beautify
Jackson Countys rural communities through the repair
of homes already owned.
Those with questions or
who are seeking more information may contact the
Worthington Rural Development office at (507) 3727783, extension 4.

Easy, affordable home winterization

ideas can make noticeable difference
Smart homeowners are
taking time now to prepare
their homes for the harsh
winter weather sure to arrive within the next few
months.
Winterizing not only
helps maintain comfortable temperatures inside,
but also helps lower energy
bills. Fortunately, some
of the improvements that
have the biggest effect are
also easy to do and surprisingly affordable.
Seal gaps and cracks
The average midsize U.S.
home has a half-mile of
gaps and cracks, according
to energystar.gov. Cold air
infiltrates through those
spaces causing furnaces to
work overtime.
An easy way to combat
the problem is to use gap
and crack sealer to fill
openings around electrical
outlets, plumbing pipes,
doors, dryer vents and

more. Sealing a home can

take just a few hours.
Reverse fan blades
Ceiling fans arent just
valuable during summer;
they can help reduce energy costs by circulating
warm air that rises to the
top of rooms.
To ensure fans are circulating the air correctly,
simply reverse the blades.
Most modern ceiling fans
have a handy switch that
controls the blade direction. During the winter, set
the blades to spin clockwise to help warm rooms
and set to counterclockwise during summer for
cooling breezes.
Eliminate drafty windows
Gaps around windows
are a major source of heat
loss. Seal out those drafts.
Another great tip is to
open the curtains during the daylight hours on

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As fall approaches,
homeowners and green
industry professionals
take steps to prepare landscapes for the winter.
Leaves are swept away
for composting or disposal,
perennials and shrubs
are pruned, hedges are
trimmed and pesticides
are applied in anticipation of next years growing
season.
For professional arborists and landscapers, fall
and early winter are an
effective time to use pesticides, a broad term that
includes products that kill
insect pests and also kill
weeds.

U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development

currently has funds available for helping low- and
very low-income individuals and families in Jackson
County purchase and repair
homes.
Applicants interested in
purchasing a home must be
unable to qualify for traditional financing and meet
USDA income and credit
requirements. Homes must
be modest in size and design
and be located in a rural
community of 20,000 people

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south-facing windows so
the sun can help heat the
home naturally. Close curtains when the sun sets to
reduce the chill.
Install an adjustable thermostat
An adjustable thermostat is an effective tool for
maintaining a comfortably
warm home and cutting
heating costs.
By adjusting the temperature down while inhabitants are sleeping or
away, plenty of money can
be saved. In fact, by turning a thermostat back 10 to
15 degrees for eight hours,
one can save 5 to 15 percent per year on heating

bills, according to energy.

gov.
Tune up that furnace
Make sure furnaces are
working effectively and
efficiently by scheduling
a tune-up now. A qualified
technician will check the
coils and clean and lubricate important mechanical
parts.
Some utility companies
offer free checkups to customers, so be sure to ask
about options. In addition
to a tune-up, remember to
change furnace filters once
event month during the
heating season to maintain
proper air flow.

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CONTRACTOR LICENSE #BC125765