Since the 2011 census results were made public, the Journal has been taking a closer look at some of the towns and villages in the Humboldt area that have grown in population since the last census was taken in 2006.
Among them, the village of Muenster is one of the communities with the highest increase during that period. At 23.4 per cent, its population grew from 342 to 422 residents in 172 private dwellings.
Rose Haeusler, the village's administrator, says she feels there are several factors that contribute toward making Muenster one of the more popular communities in the area for families to move to.
"It's an attractive community and we've got reasonable housing costs," Haeusler surmised, and then added, "The closeness to Humboldt is important, plus the easy access -- being right on the highway."
However, the growth came as something of a surprise according to Mayor Benno Korte.
"We had 15 houses built in the last couple of years," Korte said, "and we were not ready for that as a town, so it was quite a thing to go through."
These houses were built on individual lots in the first subdivision the village had made available for sale, to the west of Muenster.
"I think what the mayor means is that we were surprised that our new development sold out so quickly," explained Haeusler.
Since then a second subdivision with 14 lots has been made available for new homes to be built, with two already sold.
"We got our curbs and drainage system all put in before we let anybody start building," said Korte. "That was the big thing with the other one."
Otherwise, both the mayor and Haeusler believe that for now, the infrastructure of the area will be sufficient as the new subdivision develops.
The village just finished putting in a new water main in 2011 - a six-inch line that runs from the east to the west side of the village. Other recent upgrades included replacing all the fire hydrants, and a new fire truck that was acquired in 2008.
Haeusler says there have been a series of community planning meetings where interested residents from the community have gotten together and started to address some of the community needs that are associated with growth.
"We've always had a strong relationship with the rural areas around us," said Haeusler. "The village isn't separate from the community. It has a large area of rural residents that have always been a strong component within our community."
Some of the topics the committee is looking at include identifying local improvements that are needed, promoting Muenster in order to continue to attract new residents and businesses, and keeping the community safe, clean and welcoming.
"Keeping the community safe while being progressive in development is one of our top priorities," Haeusler said.
