No one was injured in a fire at the Perkins in New Ulm on Sunday afternoon, according to the New Ulm Fire Department's Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/NewUlmFireDepartment/photos/a.361973993885065.84011.276890159060116/1007045386044586/?type=3&theater General Manager Bobbi Fuhr told KNUJ that a customer noticed smoke outside the building as he was coming in. The cause of the fire has yet to be determined. After the evacuation of about 100 people, it took nearly 35 firefighters to battle the blaze, reported KEYC. The building was in the middle of being remodeled, and the fire l ..read more

A New Ulm tourism official acknowledges a story he told news outlets about discovering a cast of Hermann the German's footprint in a basement crate was actually just a publicity stunt. Terry Sveine now tells the Associated Press the New Ulm Convention and Visitor's Bureau actually hired an artist to make the four-foot-long mold, and then spread the story that it was found with a dusty note suggesting the ancient warrior's footprint had been shipped over from Germany. New Ulm's most famous landmark is the 102-foot statue of Hermann, who led Germanic tribes to a battlefield victory over invading ..read more

The city of New Ulm has agreed to pay $570,000 to family members of two people killed when a police car crashed into their vehicle two years ago. As the Mankato Free Press reports, in 2011 a New Ulm city police squad car — traveling at least 70 mph with no lights or siren on a 30 mph street — crashed into a vehicle with an elderly New Ulm woman and her son. The collision killed both Myra Meyer, 82, and Brian Wichmann, 60. No criminal charges were filed against the officer, the paper reports, but he was named in the suit. Both the city and the officer's insurer will pay out to Meyer's three sur ..read more

Five artists with local ties have been named as inductees to the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame, The Associated Press reports. The organization says guitarist Leo Kottke, rock singer Mary Jane Alm and Twin Cities jazz singer Dennis Spears have been named to the hall of fame, as have Cloquet accordionist Lorren Lindevig and old-time band leader Leon Olsen of New Ulm. The five will be inducted in the 25th annual ceremony at the Turner Hall in New Ulm on Nov. 1, and the "2013 Inductee Showcase" will be featured at the Minnesota Music Hall of Fame Museum the next day. Previous inductees into the Min ..read more

August Schell Brewery President Ted Marti is offering a reward for anyone who can offer information leading to an arrest in the killing of a whitetail buck kept at the brewery's deer park in New Ulm, the New Ulm Journal reports. New Ulm Police were called about the slaying in the park adjacent to the brewery on Friday morning. According to the brewery's Facebook page, brewery officials are eager to find the "cowardly, heartless bastard" responsible. The whitetail deer is a symbol of the Schell's brand. An image can be found on its beer bottles and various deer monuments are found around b ..read more

A call from southern Minnesota lead to the discovery of a double murder-suicide more than 1,200 miles away. The Associated Press reports San Antonio police received a call from authorities in New Ulm, asking them to conduct a welfare check on a truck-driving team that hadn't been heard from in more than two weeks. Officers went to a home on San Antonio's west side Thursday morning and found three shooting victims: a 76-year-old man, a 67-year-old woman and a 45-year-old man. The woman was found dead in the bed, the man in his 40s was found lying on the bedroom floor and the elderly man was in ..read more

August Schell Brewing Co. in New Ulm is planning two major projects that could total more than $6 million, the New Ulm Journal reports. The Mankato Free Press says Minnesota's largest brewer will build a $2 million expansion to increase efficiency and boost its annual brewing capacity from 150,000 barrels to 250,000 barrels. The expansion will add 1,280 square feet onto the existing brewhouse and create a new 1,800-square-foot building, according to a news release. Construction is set to begin this spring. The second phase of the project, which could cost more than $4 million, will involve ins ..read more

Photo courtesy The Journal of New Ulm/Kevin Sweeney Settlements have been reached in lawsuits filed after a deadly fire at a New Ulm bed and breakfast last year. The Journal of New Ulm reports four wrongful death claims and one injury claim were filed against Roberta McCrea's estate. McCrea, owner of the Bohemian Bed and Breakfast, was killed in the July 2, 2011 fire along with five others. The settlement amounts were not released at the request of the victims' attorneys. Investigators determined that burning candles left unattended caused the fire, the Associated Press says. New Ulm Fire ..read more

Joni Steinbach, of New Ulm, trains her dog Sport in their backyard agility course, and they attend numerous competitions around the nation. In one recently, Sport placed fourth at the American Kennel Club National Dog Agility Championship in Reno, Nev., out of a field of 267 dogs in her class. Joni Steinbach, of New Ulm, trains her dog Sport in their backyard agility course, and they attend numerous competitions around the nation. In one recently, Sport placed fourth at the American Kennel Club National Dog Agility Championship in Reno, Nev., out of a field of 267 dogs in her class ..read more

The sauerkraut eating contest that's part of New Ulm's Bavarian Blast gained a little extra authenticity this weekend. Winner Valentine Gasteiger hails from the land of the original Ulm. The German exchange student is spending the summer in Red Wing. On his trip to New Ulm he put away 16 ounces of sauerkraut in two minutes. And didn't even spill. The sauerkraut eating contest that's part of New Ulm's Bavarian Blast gained a little extra authenticity this weekend. Winner Valentine Gasteiger hails from the land of the original Ulm. The German exchange student is spending the summer in Red Wing ..read more