Whew! I was relieved to make it in to work on time this morning after the kids threw a couple challenges at me as we walked out the door. I was especially concerned because I knew we had some freezing rain last night and didn’t know what the drive was going to be like. To my relief, things weren’t that bad on the east side of town.

But we’re hearing the conditions are slowing down traffic on Interstate 90 west of Sioux Falls. Our Katie Janssen says her drive in was “scary”. Nicole Winters and photojournalist Kevin Kjergaard are talking with drivers near Salem today. What kind of conditions are you coming across? Help out your fellow drivers and share that information on our KELOLAND Facebook page.

How are you spending the Martin Luther King Junior holiday? We had some schools with late starts this morning, so not everyone has the day off. We’re looking for people observing the day. Then, tonight on KELOLAND News at 10, we have rare video of King from his visit to KELOLAND in the 1950′s. Ben Dunsmoor talks with an expert about the significance of his visit.

And if you’re unemployed or looking for a new job, Kohls is holding a job fair this week at the Downtown Holiday Inn in Sioux Falls. Jon Wilson is going to talk with applicants hoping to score one of the 150 new jobs at the new store on the east side of town.

I hope you are all enjoying this Friday without bad weather! I know I am. I finally get to make that trip to southern Minnesota after work to have my dad change the tires on my car, which I desperately need. No more getting stuck in driveways and having people help push me out, although I have met some nice people this way.

Since Andrea last wrote her morning post, we learned that the founder of Dollar Loan Center was caught in a prostitution sting. His story will air on Friday’s 10:00 news and can also be found on our website.

Also Friday’s Eye on KELOLAND, learn about a Sioux Falls baby born with cancer. Plus First National Bank is celebrating it’s 125^th anniversary and paying it forward.

There’s a fun filled sports zone Friday night as well.

Happy Weekend!

We’re working to gather more information about a south dakota school superintendent who’s in trouble with the law. KELOLAND’S David Brown is headed to Wessington Springs. And because the school administrator was originally in trouble for drunk driving, Ben Dunsmoor is going to talk with alcohol counselors about the message this sends to students.

The City of Sioux Falls is having a hard time keeping up with calls about bad sidewalks after this story aired on KELOLAND News At 5 last night. Hailey Higgins is following up with them on the issue today.

And the three men charged with making counterfeit bills are scheduled to be in court today in Brown County. Erich Schaffhauser is gathering the details, looking into their connection with the area and the scope of the suspected crime.

As I walked down my apartment stairs today and opened the door I was pleasantly surprised to find the temperature above zero. I started my car with ease and zero window scraping. This is big a deal since I’m currently without a garage. To hear about the rollercoaster temperatures coming this weekend, check out Tony Barlow’s weather story, which aired during KELOLAND News at 5.

Andrea’s observations on her way to work this morning of buried fire hydrants, resulted in Ben Dunsmoor investigating the topic. Officials say there are no regulations, but urge people to dig out your hydrants. To learn more, read the story, “Snow Starting To Bury Fire Hydrants.

The fire hydrant talk also spurred discussion on our Facebook Page. We encourage you to check out the conversation and “like” KELOLAND News” to join in on our discussion.

In additionn to Andrea, I will also be updating the Inside the Newsroom blog and have recently moved into the role of evenings and weekend website producer. I will update you on any behind-the-scenes news, breaking events that occurr during the day and evenings as well as weekends, how KELOLAND News covered the stories and when to watch for them on air.

And, don’t forget to tune into KELOLAND News tonight at ten. We will be airing stories about a New Tech High School, the Sioux Falls Arena lowering it’s prices for concert promoters and former NSU Coach Meyer’s book, just to name a few.

On my way into work this morning, I noticed a fire hydrant in our neighborhood that hadn’t been cleared. So, I decided do an informal poll and started counting. I became much more encouraged as I arrived at day care and only three out of the twelve I noticed hadn’t been dug out.

However, by the time I got to the station, I was up to 38 hydrants and nine hadn’t been cleared. But I also didn’t count those where the snow hadn’t been touched, but it wasn’t covering the hose connections. It’s supposed to be cleared 3 feet around, to the ground regardless of the snow’s height.

It’s something I feel like we tell people about every year but some still don’t understand that it’s their responsibility. What does your nearest hydrant look like? I sure would hate for firefighters to spend time digging that out instead of putting out a fire.

Sioux Falls Police also did liquor stings last night at a handful of businesses and say six sold to the underage buyer. Local businesses had been doing so well for several years. It seemed like we went a long time without any citations or just one at a time. Perry Groten’s going to dig further into that story.

And I’m curious… have you noticed anyone smoking at a business in violation of the smoking ban?  We’ll show you what we’re finding later today on KELOLAND news.

As I mentioned yesterday, I’m new to the KELOLAND Blog scene. As I get more comfortable with it, I hope it grows into something you come to daily to find out what’s going on behind the scenes in our newsroom and share story ideas on what’s going on in your area.

Four. Degrees. We can only hope Old Man Winter is generous enough to give us a few more notches on the thermometer today. I saw a guy dancing around outside one of the tax preparer offices on East 10th Street yesterday. Brrrr! Today our Hailey Higgins is catching up with the parking patrol Downtown to see how they’re keeping warm.

We also got a lot of interest in Katie Janssen’s story from yesterday on the education funding lawsuit going before the South Dakota Supreme Court. So, we’re going to work on posting more from the hearing online today.

The second robbery of the year in Sioux Falls happened at a casino overnight. We’ll have the latest on the investigation and work on finding out what casinos have in place to help deter criminals from targeting their business.

And you may be wondering who’s this new person writing Inside The Newsroom blogs. I’ve been the 6 PM News producer here at KELO-TV since March 2004 and will soon transition into the morning website producer. I’m very excited about the transition and learning more.

As part of my day, I’ll write up this blog to give you an update on our daily coverage and interesting topics that come up during our daily 9 AM morning meeting. It’s a way to help you stay connected with us and our crews as we cover the stories relevant to you. So, feel free to send me any story ideas and comment if you have any input on our coverage.

Hope you’ve been able to survive all this snow.  Meteorologist Jay Trobec just tweeted that Sioux Falls is in its 50th straight hour of snowfall.  Our crews hit the road for Pierre yesterday afternoon and say the drive got hairy at times on Interstate  90. But things got better once they reached Chamberlain.

They’re going to have a busy day at the state capitol where lawmakers are gathering to hear Governor Dennis Daugaard’s State Of The State Address and begin the 2011 session.  The South Dakota Supreme Court is also hearing arguments on the school funding lawsuit.

KELOLAND’s Shawn Neisteadt and Katie Janssen are both there to bring you live reports throughout the day.

We’re also hoping to get some updates on the man was hit by a car yesterday on Interstate 29.  The victim was a locksmith who was trying to pull someone from the ditch when it happened.

And Sioux Falls Police just released some new photos on the bank robbery at the Service First Federal Credit Union on South Kiwanis Ave. from Monday afternoon.  So if you recognize these guys, give Crimestoppers a call.

 However, people are still talking about all this snow. Meteorologist Brian Karstens says the county roads still weren’t the best for his drive into Sioux Falls today and the wind is expected to blow things around.  We’re going to try to check on the conditions for you later.

But the temperatures are what will really get you today. I was sure to grab hats, mittens, and really bundle up the kids this morning for even the short walk from the car to day care. It just makes me cringe when that bitter wind hits their little faces and they gasp when it takes their breath away.

Good morning, KELOLAND.

On mornings like this, I really miss my manual car. I now drive a smaller automatic car and expect that can offer some limitations in our winters. But after our morning meeting in the newsroom, I found out I wasn’t the only one who struggled getting into work this morning. David Brown says it took him 20 minutes to just get out of his parking lot.

We’re asking people on our KELOLAND News Facebook page today how you’d grade your city’s streets after this last bout of snow.

Today, our Nicole Winters is out talking with drivers about what they’re seeing. We’re hearing of cars in the ditch along the interstates from the morning commute. My sister in-law noticed several in the ditch yesterday too.

The City of Sioux Falls also changed the way it’s plowing streets this winter. So, Shawn Neisteadt is going to find out how that played into clearing the snow this time around.

Well, it’s now been snowing for more than 24 hours and Meteorologist Scot Mundt says as of 9 a.m., the city of Sioux Falls has received 4.3 inches. But it’s still falling and will likely keep going through the afternoon. If you’re parked on the street, you’ll want to move it.  The city’s under a Snow Alert. 

Drive safe out there today. The first day of Spring is just 70 days away!