KTOE Noon News 7-16-25

Top Stories for Noon 7-16-25:

• Owatonna City Council Approves Employment Agreement for Jenna Tuma As City Administrator

• Local celebrities to play in 10th Annual LEEP Legends softball fundraiser on Thursday, July 17

• The Rochester Public Schools Board is giving the green light to a financial plan designed to provide stability until 2030. The initiative involves transferring six million dollars from the general fund balance to address enrollment declines and special education revenue issues. Rochester School Board Superintendent Kent Pekel says the board’s approval will set a framework for the next five years that will permit annual reassessments.
• Testimony is expected to continue today in the burglary trial of Minnesota State Senator Nicole Mitchell. Opening statements began yesterday in a court in Detroit Lakes. The defendant’s stepmother, Carol Mitchell, testified that she felt violated when she found her stepdaughter in her basement last spring. She also struggled on the witness stand because of her Alzheimer’s disease, when she forgot key dates and family members’ names. Nicole Mitchell is accused of using a crowbar to enter the residence. She pleaded not guilty to first-degree burglary and felony possession of burglary tools. The trial is expected to last a week.

• University of Minnesota will honor 86 families at annual Farmfest ceremony Thursday, Aug. 7, at Gilfillan Estate

• Cottonwood County Sheriff’s Office Responds to Reports of a car seat in Cottonwood Lake Tuesday

• Emily Sieberg Accepts Market President Role at United Prairie Bank