The twin towns have their fair share of commuters, a trend here to stay according to city officials. Commuters between Albert Lea and Austin haven’t changed much over the past several years in spite of rising gas prices and a spastic economy. About 485 Austin residents commuted to Albert Lea in 2009, and about 551 Albert Lea citizens went to work in Austin that same year, according to U.S. Census data.

“Those numbers are pretty consistent with what we’ve seen,” said John Garry, executive director of the Development Corporation of Austin.

Garry said the trends indicate Austin has a healthy mix of residents and workers coming into town to work, which means they’ll also contribute to the local economy through utilizing businesses.

What’s more, about 4 percent of Austin’s and Albert Lea’s workers lived in the opposite community between 2002 and 2009, according to Garry.

“These numbers really show how interdependent the cities are for a workforce and workforce is such a significant part of everyone’s economy,” he said. “We need each other.”

Staying in Albert Lea

Mark Stotts knows all about helping Austin’s economy. As the finance and operations director of Austin Public Schools, Stotts spends much of his day in Mower County. Though he and his wife live in Albert Lea, they go to Austin for shopping, whether it’s picking up groceries or dining.

“I feel like I support the Austin economy more than the Albert Lea economy,” Stotts said.

Stotts and his wife both grew up in Albert Lea. They still have family in Freeborn County, and though they’ve moved away to places like Duluth, the Twin Cities and Kansas City, Mo., they’ve always returned to southern Minnesota.

“We were pretty established in Albert Lea,” Stotts said.

They’ve stayed in Albert Lea since 1993, when Stotts was hired to be the finance director for Albert Lea Area Schools. He worked there for 12 years before pursuing another finance and operations job in Burnsville in 2006. They didn’t move to the metro area, however, which meant a 70-minute drive to work every day.

“My wife has a job in Albert Lea that she really enjoys, and she didn’t have an interest in leaving her job,” Stotts said. “We have family in the area, we grew up in the area, and we just enjoy living there.”

The daily journey to Burnsville took its toll after a couple years, as Stotts would have night meetings at least twice a week, which meant returning home at 10 or 11 p.m. just to wake up at 5 a.m. and start all over.

“That starts to wear on a person,” he said. “If I just worked a normal schedule, it wasn’t bad, on what I would call a normal schedule day.”

That’s why he jumped on the chance to work in Austin, where he is currently in his third year as head of the district’s finances and operations. The commute is much more enjoyable for him.

“This commute to Austin for me is the perfect commute,” Stotts said. “It takes me about 20 minutes, gives me a chance to have my coffee on the way over.”

What’s more, the commute is a little easier on his gas tank. Stotts said he used to spend about $5,500 on gas a year when he worked in Burnsville, but he currently spends about $2,300 in gas a year, or about $45 a week.

Stotts isn’t the only one who enjoys a shorter commute. The average person travels about 23 minutes to work each day, according to American Community Survey data.

Weis presented a modified rate proposal before City Council Thursday. However, there was nothing modified about the amount the company is targeting.

Vesel comes to Austin after posting winning seasons in four of his five seasons with the Lancers. In 2011, La Crescent’s starting quarterback was injured and the team went 3-5 overall.

He replaces Matt Schmit, who went 0-18 in two seasons, and while the Packers haven’t won a game in their last 19, Vesel is ready to start the rebuilding process.

“I’ve taken over losing programs before and I like to work hard,” Vesel said. “I’m coming with the intention of making a difference.”

As for his offensive style, Vesel’s La Crescent teams lined up in the spread formation, but that didn’t mean they were always passing.

“We’re going to do what the defense allows us to do,” Vesel said. “I’m comfortable running or passing or doing both. It’s going to be an up-tempo and we’ll be fast and furious.”

Vesel said Austin superintendent Dave Krenz is one of the reasons he applied for the Austin job, as Krenz used to work in La Crescent.

“I knew the district through him and it caught my attention,” Vesel said. “I felt that it would be a pretty good fit for our family.”

The group invited Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst, former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz, former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert and former ESPN football analyst Craig James to participate. The forum will be moderated by the association’s president and CEO, Bill Hammond.

The four men are the top candidates among 10 people running to replace Hutchison, who is retiring at the end this year.

Most of the competition between the candidates has focused on their level of conservatism and experience. The campaign is lasting longer than planned because of a dispute over Texas’ political maps, and a date has not been confirmed for the primary.

Sodexo is a global leader in high-volume concessions, catering and hospitality management with a proven ability to manage large-scale events on international stages, according to COA officials.

Sodexo will design, manage and deliver all aspects of concession services including catering, food and beverage service, hospitality and associated vendor management for COA.

“Sodexo has great experience managing large-scale and innovative events around the world that enhance the fan experience,” said Steve Sexton, president of Circuit of The Americas. “Their team fully understands the need to host and entertain an international audience to exceed fan expectations. At Circuit of The Americas, they will be integrating a global capability with the unique flavors of our region to provide fans a truly memorable experience.”

Sodexo ’s work was recently on display at Royal Ascot, one of the top horse racecourses in the United Kingdom and the largest catering contract in Europe. The company launched the first ever Royal Ascot Fashion Show as a hospitality package featuring world-class designers, as well as a nightclub on the Ascot site. Both additions to the event were well received by fans and broke new ground for the historic facility.

COA officials said the company also understands the expectations a Formula 1 event brings. It recently managed the inaugural Indian Grand Prix and successfully managed catering and concessions to a record-breaking 310,000 visitors at the British Grand Prix in Silverstone in 2009. The company also supported the Bahrain Grand Prix in 2008.

“We are thrilled to bring our Formula 1 event experience to Circuit of The Americas, a truly one-of-a-kind venue in one of the great food regions of the world,” said Steve DiPrima, president of Sodexo Leisure Services Division. “We know Tex-Mex, Gulf seafood, southern-style cooking and barbecue are great Texas food traditions, and we also know a Formula 1 event brings high expectations for world-class fare. Our team will be tasked with elegantly blending them all together while providing flawless service for the entire festival week in Austin. I believe the F1 race will be the start of a great relationship between Sodexo and Circuit of The Americas.”

Other notable international experience includes serving as the hospitality and ticketing/marketing partner for the 2012 Olympic Games in London. Sodexo has served as the official food and beverage provider for many of the Olympic and Paralympic Games since 1988. They also provide high-volume concessions to specialized suite and backstage catering for The University of Texas at Austin and the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

An online petition asks the city to change the power washing to once per week and switch the time to occur during the day. The petition claims the current washing schedule violates the city’s own Stage 2 water restrictions and that the action is designed to disrupt the Occupy Austin protests.

After studying the damage, on Thursday NWS rated the tornado as an EF1, which is considered in the “weak” category . The length of the path of destruction was 1.14 miles and the twister was on the ground for seven minutes. It had a maximum wind force of 100 mph, according to NWS .

The tornado’s path started near the intersection of Commercial Park Drive and Old Manor Road. It touched down at 2:58 a.m. and headed north through an industrial park where an empty building was destroyed and the roofs of several others were damaged.

NWS said the tornado crossed U.S. Highway 290 and entered the Walnut Place subdivision where it caused damage to trees and homes along Springdale Road and Happy Trail. Only one home had its roof lifted off, and debris was found in a large field just south of Ferguson Lake. The tornado’s path ended just west of the intersection of Ferguson Lane and Sansom Road.

Another area hit by high winds was in Pflugerville. The school bus barn near Crystal Bend Drive and Immanuel Road was damaged, but NWS said Thursday that was due to strong, straight-line thunderstorm winds in excess of 60 mph.

NWS staff is still investigating other reports of damage in Central Texas, including some in San Antonio. Results will not be available for a few days.

The tornado touched down early Wednesday in northeast Austin, tearing across U.S. 290 and into a subdivision, damaging homes along a road called Happy Trail, according to the National Weather Service.

Morning commuters could see the brunt of the showers and strong winds, which are predicted to be most severe until 10 a.m., they said.

“Exercise caution, especially during (today’s) commute,” National Weather Service meteorologist Chris Morris said. “High winds and heavy rain could reduce visibilities, so be prepared for that.”

Two-day rainfall totals could reach 2 inches or more in the Austin area. At Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, about a tenth of an inch of rain had been recorded as of 10 p.m. Tuesday, but the weather service said chances of rain and thunderstorms would remain high throughout today until they drop to 20 percent tonight.

The front did not bring cooler temperatures, as highs in the 60s are expected today.

The low-pressure system sweeping through the area from southern New Mexico, which some forecasters said is more typical in springtime, is bringing with it plenty of moisture and the threat of more hail and damaging winds that could reach speeds up to 50 mph.

Meteorologists issued a tornado watch that was in effect until 5 a.m. today and were expecting more severe weather overnight as storms from the far Rio Grande region and the western Hill Country came together in a line pushing east.

The storms Tuesday brought needed rain to much of the drought-stricken state, but little damage was reported. The Associated Press said a small jet arriving from Alabama skidded off a wet run way at the Orange County Airport about 100 miles northeast of Houston.

Small hail was reported throughout the Austin area Tuesday morning, but there were no reports of significant damage or any other major weather-related incidents.

Austin police said that more than 70 crashes were reported between 6 a.m. and 3 p.m., compared with about 30 during the same time Monday.

Kearns briefly looked like a future star in 2002 and 2003, but injuries sidetracked his development and he eventually settled in as merely a solid role player.

He’s a good defensive corner outfielder who can play center field in an emergency, but Kearns has cracked a .700 OPS just once in the past four seasons. He may end up battling fellow veteran minor-league signing Aaron Rowand for a backup outfielder gig.