Candles and flowers were left on the front steps of a Marshall home after Meredith Martell was killed in a Dec. 17 incident of domestic violence.

It was a year marked by big changes, as well as tragedy.

Over the course of 2023, the Marshall area welcomed new businesses, expansions of city infrastructure, and a public vote strongly in favor of allowing the city of Marshall to build a new aquatic center. Residents also celebrated the accomplishments of area young people in sports and the arts.

Late in the year, the Marshall community was shocked, after two people died in an incident of domestic violence. Community members came together to grieve, and to reach out to help.

Here are the Independent’s top 10 stories of 2023:

1 Fatal stabbing, shooting in Marshall

Two people died as the result of a domestic violence incident and officer-involved shooting in Marshall on Dec. 17. Marshall resident Meredith Martell, 35, was stabbed and fatally injured in the incident. Jamel C. Hill-Moore, 41, was shot by police responding to the disturbance, the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension said.

Family members and co-workers remembered Martell’s sense of humor and her dedication to her family and children. Community members later gathered for a candlelight vigil outside Martell’s home in Marshall.

The incident is under ongoing investigation by the Minnesota BCA. Once the investigation is complete, the BCA will present its findings to the Lyon County Attorney’s Office for review.

2 Marshall vote supports new Aquatic Center

Plans for a new aquatic center in the city of Marshall will be able to move forward, after residents voted to extend the city’s local sales tax.

The sales tax extension passed by a margin of more than 66% on Nov. 7. Unofficial vote results showed a total of 1,455 “yes” votes to 735 “no” votes, said Marshall City Clerk Steven Anderson. The turnout numbers meant about 30% of eligible Marshall voters participated in the referendum.

The referendum does not raise Marshall’s local sales tax. Instead, it keeps it in effect longer. Up to $18.37 million in sales tax revenues will be used to build a new aquatic center. The current aquatic center at Legion Field Park faces problems like aging mechanical systems and serious leaks, city staff said.

3 Major construction on Lyon Street

Two busy streets in Marshall’s downtown area were under construction all summer in 2023, as the city rebuilt parts of North Third Street and West Lyon Street.

The project included new water and sewer lines, concrete streets, and sidewalk updates on a total of five blocks downtown. Work on part of North Third Street started in April, and then continued with portions of Lyon Street, starting near the intersection with East College Drive and gradually moving toward Fifth Street.

One major change was making a block of North Third Street into a one-way street. Other changes were geared toward making a little more space for drivers on Lyon Street, like having parallel parking on one side of the street and angle parking on the other side.

4 Lake Benton teen wows judges on ‘The Voice’

Joslynn Rose isn’t a stranger to being on stage. She’s performed at the Lake Benton Opera House, and she works as an assistant for illusionist Max Fleet. But singing in a blind audition on “The Voice” took things to another level.

Rose, a 16-year-old Lake Benton resident, appeared in the season premiere of the popular NBC talent competition. Her performance at the blind audition part of the competition caught the attention of music star coaches including Niall Horan, Reba McEntire and Gwen Stefani.

Although Rose didn’t end up advancing through later rounds of the competition, she’s still busy performing.

“I’m thankful for the experience of it all,” Rose said. “It’s only the beginning, but it feels like a big thing.”

5 Avera Marshall completes $6 million renovation project

New facilities and new locations for specialist health care services, physical therapy and more were completed this year at Avera Marshall. Work on a $6 million remodeling project at Avera Marshall facilities began in the spring of 2022.

The project affected three Avera Marshall locations: the Bruce Street campus, a building at the corner of East College Drive and Bruce Street, and a former surgical center near the Access Health clinic on Carlson Street. The remodel moved a variety of services at Avera Marshall into spaces designed to be more functional and convenient for providers and patients.

One major change is that most Avera Therapy services have now moved out of the Market Street Mall and the fourth floor of the hospital. One of the new therapy locations is at 1104 East College Drive. Renovations at 1104 East College included setting up a 3,400 square-foot physical therapy gym, and digging a new therapy pool.

6 RTR volleyball brings home first state championship

The Russell-Tyler-Ruthton volleyball team had a year of firsts in 2023. Not only did they get their first section championship win to secure their first state tournament appearance, they also won their first state championship.

The top-seeded Knights showed grit and determination to put together a spectacular second-set comeback, and rode that momentum to a four-set win over Mayer Lutheran to claim the Class A championship.

RTR finished its season with a 30-6 record after winning 10 of their last 11 matches. The one exception was a five-set loss to Minneota in their regular-season finale, which they avenged in the Section 3A Championship game.

“Every single one of our games has been a tough battle for us and these girls just stepped up all the way. With those tough games, it allows us to be battle-tested,” RTR head coach Daynica Brown said.

7 Upper Sioux State Park lands go back to Upper Sioux Community

The lands of a Minnesota state park will be returned to the Upper Sioux Community, after a long-standing request by the community, and action by the Minnesota Legislature. In April, area residents attended a packed public meeting to learn more about the pending park transfer.

Minnesota DNR representatives said bills passed by the Legislature required them to report on any possible obstacles to transferring the Upper Sioux Agency State Park lands by Dec. 15, 2023. The DNR spent time over the course of the year gathering public feedback on other potential recreation opportunities in the area, once the park was closed.

In addition to the tribe’s request for the land, several circumstances factored into the decision to transfer the Upper Sioux Agency park lands, DNR representatives said. The site’s history wasn’t appropriate as a recreational site, and the park had infrastructure issues that would take significant investment to address.

8 Ralco completes new Marshall headquarters

It was a project that was in the works for a year and a half. In January 2023, Ralco welcomed Marshall community members to tour its new headquarters on Marshall’s Main Street.

Ralco purchased the former New Atlantic Hotel and Landmark Mercantile buildings on Main Street in 2021. Since then, the buildings have been transformed into 17,000 square feet of space for new offices for Ralco, as well as new commercial spaces.

In addition to Ralco, the downtown buildings are now also home to the Atlantic Place restaurant, the Upper Room event center, Echelon Wealth Management, and Wings Axe Company. All four business opened over the course of the past year.

In Ralco’s announcement of the new offices, Brian Knochenmus said the company was committed to the Marshall area. In recent years, Ralco has built a new Innovation Center and distribution center in Marshall.

“We’re here to stay in our hometown for many years to come,” Knochenmus said.

9 Kwik Trip comes to Marshall

In 2023, two former gas stations in Marshall were razed to make way for a new business. Kwik Trip locations are planned to open on both East College Drive and West Main Street in 2024.

Kwik Trip purchased the two Cattoor Oil stations on East College Drive and West Main Street in 2023. Construction crews are nearing completion on the East College Drive site. Signs at the new gas station say an opening is planned for Jan. 25, 2024.

The West Main Street site wouldn’t be developed until 2024. The process will include the removal of four houses either through moves or demolitions. A grand opening is expected in November.

10 Harbor Freight moves into former Shopko

A vacant Marshall business has tenants again, after Harbor Freight Tools moved into the former Shopko building on Susan Drive. In January, Harbor Freight spokespeople confirmed the company planned to open a new store in part of the Shopko building.

Harbor Freight is a family-owned company with more than 1,300 store locations in the U.S., according to the company website. Before the Marshall store opened, the closest Harbor Freight location to Marshall was in Willmar.

The former Shopko location in Marshall had been vacant since 2019, when the retail chain went into liquidation.