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Burnsville | Eaganwww.SunThisweek.com

December 27, 2013 | Volume 34 | Number 44

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The year’s best recappedArea high school sports teams and individuals had successful 2014 campaigns.

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THISWEEKEND

NEWS

OPINION

THISWEEKEND

Input welcome on master planDakota County Commissioner Tom Egan says input regarding the Lebanon Hills Regional Park Master Plan has always been encouraged.

Page 4A

New Year’s with LouieBurnsville’s Performing Arts Center is ringing in the new year with laughter when it hosts Minnesota funnyman Louie Anderson.

Page 16A

Early deadline for newspapersThe deadline for news submissions for the Jan. 2 and 3 editions of the Dakota County Tribune and Sun Thisweek, respectively, will be 5 p.m. Monday, Dec. 30. The newspaper office will be closed Jan. 1. The newspapers will be on a normal delivery schedule next week.

2013YEAR IN REVIEW

Untimely deaths shookBurnsville community

by John GessnerSUN THISWEEK

DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE

The Burnsville commu-nity was shaken in 2013 by the deaths of Anarae Sc-hunk and Taylor Ziebol, beloved and accomplished Burnsville High School graduates who were mak-ing names for themselves as young adults when they were killed. Schunk, 20, was stabbed to death Sept. 22 in Rosemount. Charges have yet to be filed in the murder, but a suspect, her ex-boyfriend Anthony Lee Nelson, faces murder charges in a Sept. 22 fatal shooting outside Nina’s Grill in Burnsville, where he and Schunk were seen together. Ziebol, 19, was killed July 11 when the family car she was driving crossed the center line and struck a semitrailer head on near Dodge City, Kan. She and her siblings, 15-year-old Adam and 17-year-old Shannon, were en route to their grandparents’ home in El Paso, Texas. Adam continues to recover from

serious injuries. The Nina’s shooting was one of three mur-ders this year in northeast Burnsville, prompting po-lice to hold a community crime meeting with unset-tled area residents. 2013 was also a year of transition in city govern-ment, as City Manager Craig Ebeling, a City Hall presence since the 1980s, retired and was replaced by Heather Johnston, who had been city finance di-rector.

Anarae Schunk

Charges against coach dismissedProsecution erred; Virgin pleads guilty

to misdemeanor by Jessica Harper

SUN THISWEEKDAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE

Former Eagan High School basketball and soc-cer coach Kurt Virgin has been cleared of all felony charges related to his mis-management of team fi-nances. Dakota County Dis-trict Court Judge Thomas Pugh on Dec. 20 dis-missed the six felony theft by swindle charges after statements Virgin made to his employer, the Rose-mount-Apple Valley-Ea-gan School District, were wrongly used by prosecu-tors. Prosecutors admit they mistakenly used informa-tion gathered during con-

versations between Virgin and school district offi-cials. “Sometimes inadver-tent mistakes are made during the course of a criminal investigation, particularly when it in-volves internal statements being taken by an em-ployer who does not have knowledge of the crimi-nal justice system which are later shared with the police,” County Attorney Jim Backstrom said in a statement. School district offi-cials gave Virgin a Garrity Warning prior to inter-viewing him in 2011 about his management of the sport program finances. A Garrity warning guarantees that self-in-criminating statements made during a disciplin-ary interview will not be used against the person in a criminal case.

“Unfortunately, the cir-cumstances surrounding his interview were not giv-en to police and our office until after the prosecution had been initiated,” Back-strom said. Virgin was charged in May 2012 after a months long investigation. The 61-year-old Eagan resident was put on leave by the school district in late December 2011, but the criminal complaint reveals there was an inter-nal investigation a month earlier. He retired from the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District on Jan. 9, 2012. During his time with the school district, Virgin had some discretion in compensation for his ser-vices and how participants registered for the events. District rules allow Eagan High School basketball and soccer coach Kurt

Virgin was cleared of all felony theft charges against him due to an error in the case. (File photo)

Business partners, and city and state officials broke ground in the Cedar Grove Redevelopment District for the Twin Cities at Eagan outlet mall in June. During the ceremony, Paragon Outlet Partners announced a collection of top brand name stores to open in the mall in August of 2014.

Economic developments bring cheers and jeers Year of progress,

conflict and resolution in

Eagan by Jessica Harper


In Eagan, 2013 was a year of progress, conflict and reflection with Cedar Grove making headway, housing plans creating

division and the deaths of prominent community members. Plans to redevelop Ea-gan’s Cedar Grove neigh-borhood started to come to fruition this past year with the ground breaking of an outlet mall, which spawned other proposed developments in the area. Envisioned as Eagan’s gateway, the redevelop-ment project spans more

than a decade and saw several plans, which were either revised or stalled when the recession hit in 2007. By June the redevelop-ment of Cedar Grove be-gan to progress with the construction of Paragon Outlet Mall near Highway 13 and Silver Bell Road. Once it opens in August

Finding a safe homeBurnsville

resident leads Shih Tzu rescue group that saved

puppy mill dogs by Natalie Conrad


Imagine being trapped a situation with no space to call your own. This was the experience of 15 Shih Tzu dogs until a nonprofit pet rescue led by a Burnsville resident stepped in to transform their lives by providing safe homes. “We believe every dog should have a second chance and should be treated as a living creature with respect, dignity and compassion,” said Debbie Iverson, Shih

Tzu Rescue’s president. “While our vol-unteers are located in Minnesota, we res-cue Shih Tzus from other states as well. As long as we have available foster homes and the funding to do so, we will rescue and care for any Shih Tzu in need.” Eden Prairie-based group Shih Tzu Rescue of Minnesota received a $4,500 grant from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to pro-vide veterinary care for 20 dogs seized from a North Dakota puppy mill in July. Shih Tzu Rescue originally took in 15 dogs from the puppy mill seizure, and one dog gave birth to five puppies shortly after intake. The grant helped cover the cost of vaccinations, medication, spay and neutering surgeries, and microchips.

Rachel Wisser, daughter of James and Nancy Wisser, of Eagan, holds her dog Lilly at Shih Tzu Rescue of Minnesota annual Rescue Reunion last summer at Round Lake Park in Eden Prairie. (Photo submitted)

See COACH, 12A

See EAGAN, 6ASee BURNSVILLE, 8A

See RESCUE, 9A

2A December 27, 2013 SUN THISWEEK - Burnsville - Eagan

by Andrew MillerSUN THISWEEK


Kristopher Francisco’s 2010 deployment to Af-ghanistan came to an abrupt and terrifying end. While on a mission, the 2005 Apple Valley

High School graduate and then-U.S. Army specialist was injured after an im-provised explosive device was detonated directly be-neath his vehicle. Making matters worse, he and the other soldiers came under enemy fire

during the evacuation, and it was several hours before they were trans-ported to a safe area. Even after leaving the combat zone, Francisco has had an uphill battle. He’s endured more than a dozen surgeries address-ing a leg injury, and he still suffers from a traumatic brain injury and post-traumatic stress disorder. Francisco, who enlisted with his older brother in the Minnesota Army Na-tional Guard in 2009 and went on to join the Army’s 101st Airborne Division, was awarded the Purple Heart for the injuries he sustained in Afghanistan. He also received a “thank you” of sorts re-cently in the form of a $10,000 grant from the Minnesotans’ Military Appreciation Fund, a nonprofit that awards grants to the state’s mili-tary personnel. “It will go a long way toward paying the bills,” Francisco, a Prior Lake resident who recently re-tired from the Army, said of the grant awarded Dec. 13. “It’s very humbling to be thanked for my service, and it feels really good that the people of Minne-sota recognize those that

serve in the military.” Since 2005, the non-profit has awarded 15,000 grants totaling $9 mil-lion to Minnesota service members. The levels of grants are: $500 for all Minne-sota military personnel who serve in a combat zone; $2,000-$10,000 for those wounded in a com-bat zone, with the amount based on the severity of injury; and $5,000 to the families of those killed in combat. “Minnesotans’ Mili-tary Appreciation Fund was founded to honor

Minnesota heroes like Spc. Kristopher Fran-cisco, who risked his life for our freedom,” said MMAF chairman Roger Sit. “Awarding (Francisco) this grant is the least we can do to thank and hon-or him for the sacrifices he and his family have made for our country.” More about the Min-neapolis-based MMAF’s grant program is at www.mmaf.org.

Email Andrew Miller at [email protected].

KOOB AGENCY, LLC

EUROPEAN TOURS

State DFL Senate Caucus handed $100,000 fineby T.W. Budig


The Minnesota Campaign Finance and Public Disclosure Board fined on Tuesday, Dec. 17, the Minnesota DFL Senate Caucus $100,000 for wrongfully working with 13 of its candi-dates in the 2012 election. The $100,000 civil penalty is among the biggest in state his-tory. The DFL state party and the candidates were not fined. “We continue to maintain that our candidates and the cau-cus campaign committee com-plied with all campaign finance laws. Although we respectfully disagree with the board’s posi-tion, we believe it is better to put this matter behind us,” DFL Senate Majority Leader Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, said in a statement about the settlement

reached with the board. Senate Democrats admit to no wrongdoing in the settle-ment. The Republican Party of Minnesota began filing com-plaints in October 2012, charg-ing that DFL campaign mate-rials were wrongfully listed as independent expenditures, but the materials were not because the candidates were actively en-gaged in photo shoots in pro-ducing the print ads, thereby breaching the legal wall between candidates and independent ex-

penditures. Republican leaders heralded the board’s decision. “Senate Democrats were so intent on winning at any cost and throwing huge money into the 2012 campaign that they played fast and loose in a big way,” said Republican Party of Minnesota Chairman Keith Downey in a statement. “We will never know how this illegal coordination would have impacted the results in these races and ultimately con-trol of the Legislature. They cheated, they won, but at least they are being held accountable now,” Downey said. Republican Senate Minority Leader David Hann, R-Eden Prairie, struck a similar tone. “The question really needs to be asked, ‘Would they have won the majority if they hadn’t cheated?’” Hann said in a state-

ment. Campaigns named in the in-vestigation include those of Sen. Jim Carlson, DFL-Eagan; Sen. Greg Clausen, DFL-Apple Val-ley; Sen. Melisa Franzen, DFL-Edina, and Sen. Alice Johnson, DFL-Spring Lake Park. The board noted in its find-ings that some of the candidates suspected the photo shoots were for the purpose of developing independent expenditures but believed inquiring further could destroy the independence of those expenditures. The board recognized in as-sessing civil penalties that the candidates believed they could rely on the DFL Senate Caucus’ decision to ask them to partici-pate in the photo shoots. “While this reliance was mis-placed and does not affect the conclusion regarding whether the conduct results in violations

of contribution and spending limits for the candidates, it is an appropriate factor to consider in assessing civil penalties in this matter,” the board concluded. The board previously has is-sued other big fines. It investigated independent spending by the Republican Party of Minnesota in 2002, which subsequently led to the reclassification of $500,000 in Republican independent expenditures as approved ex-penditures. Former Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s gubernatorial cam-paign was fined $100,000 by the board in the matter, and the reclassified funds were counted against the campaign’s spending limit.

Email T.W. Budig at [email protected].

Jim Carlson Greg Clausen

Local soldier on road to recovery

AVHS grad Kristopher Francisco, injured in Afghanistan, receives MMAF grant

U.S. Army Spc. Kristopher Francisco, 27, was awarded the Purple Heart for injuries he sustained after an IED was detonated under his vehicle during his 2010 deployment to Afghanistan. The 2005 Apple Valley High School graduate, who has retired from the Army, recently received a $10,000 grant from the Minnesotans’ Military Appreciation Fund. (Photo submitted)

Kristopher Francisco

SUN THISWEEK - Burnsville - Eagan December 27, 2013 3A

MnSCU’s disagreements continue over long-term planby T.W. Budig


Steven Rosenstone dismisses the idea his ad-ministration has a Krem-lin mentality. “It’s silly,” the Minne-sota State Colleges and University chancellor said of a faculty union last summer describing draft recommendations to increase access, afford-ability and transferability as a move toward “Sovi-et-style management.” “It’s preposterous to imagine I would sup-port it or that it would work,” Rosenstone said of pulling the strings on 31 MnSCU institutions from St. Paul. The MnSCU Board of Trustees in November approved “Charting the Future for a Prosperous Minnesota,” a strategic plan whose draft drew fire, but the final version accolades, from the trust-ees. It calls for increasing the affordability, trans-ferability and access to MnSCU programs and services; the innovative use of technology; the de-signing of financial and administrative models to

reward collaboration and drive efficiencies; and other goals. Although its words have cooled, the Inter Faculty Organization, which made the “Soviet-style” comment, still ex-presses unease. In a Dec. 11 letter to Rosenstone, IFO Presi-dent Nancy Black re-quested the chancellor back off a draft imple-mentation plan, expected in January, and instead convene a constituency council to implement the goals. Such a council is “cru-cial” to a system as di-verse as MnSCU, Black said. The IFO, which rep-resents 4,000 faculty at seven Minnesota state universities, supports the core commitments in Charting the Future. But the union has expressed concern over exactly what words, such as “col-laboration,” mean. Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton, speaking in early December, said he believes Rosenstone is on the right track. “I think what he’s doing to get MnSCU brought into the modern

era, to focus on the jobs of the future, the kind training needed to be suc-cessful at the jobs, is just outstanding,” Dayton said. Rosenstone, speaking Dec. 12, said the ideas he plans to present to the board of trustees in Janu-ary will reflect the ideas of the people who helped craft Charting the Fu-ture. While withholding judgment on the constitu-ency council idea, Rosen-stone stressed speed of action. “At the end of the day, we have to get started. Somebody has to lead this,” he said. Not all lawmakers are sitting on the edge of their seats. House Higher Education Finance and Policy Committee Chair-man Gene Pelowski Jr., DFL-Winona, a sharp critic of MnSCU, views the Charting the Future initiative as needless. “You’re looking at what I call ‘ed-u-speak,’” Pelowski, an educator by profession, said of the document. “I think ed-u-speak is to disguise whatever you’re thinking and what-

ever it is that you want to do,” he said. Lawmakers and Day-ton have already charted the future with an infu-sion of $250 million into higher education and a two-year tuition freeze for MnSCU and Univer-sity of Minnesota stu-dents, Pelowski said. He criticized Chart-ing the Future for lacking focus on central issues — reducing student debt and keeping tuition costs down — while ignoring budgetary implications, among other problems. “I’m not going to worry about it,” Pelowski said of the strategic plan. “I’ve got things to worry about that are real.” Rosenstone briskly defends the initiative. Over the next several years, Minnesotans will see MnSCU colleges and universities grow stron-ger by collaborating more closely, with stu-dents moving across the system with greater ease, Rosenstone explained. Affordability is a central theme, he said. The chancellor be-lieves he has good sup-port in the Legislature. Moreover, he has reached

out to the unions, MnS-CU presidents and stu-dents. “And I’m not backing off,” Rosenstone said. The January meeting of the Board of Trustees is scheduled for Jan. 22. Speaking on other is-sues, Rosenstone said MnSCU enrollment is down about 2 percent; the decrease is reflected across higher education nationally. In part, he ascribed this to an improving economy. “When the economy goes south, people go to school,” he said. “When the economy improves, they’ve completed their degrees, they go back to work.” Additionally, the state has reached the “top of the curve” on number of Minnesotans graduating from high school, he said. Enrollment is down, but still higher than in recent years. “We’re still about 12 points higher than where we were prior to the Great Recession,” Rosen-stone said.

Email T.W. Budig at [email protected].

Eagan man injured in Lyon County crash An Eagan man was hos-pitalized last week follow-ing a rollover crash on an icy roadway in southwest Minnesota. Andrew R. Kruse, 20, was driving east on High-way 19 in Lyon County at about 2 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 17, when his Pontiac Grand Prix lost control on the curved roadway, en-tered the north ditch and rolled, coming to rest on its roof, according to the Min-nesota State Patrol. Kruse, the sole occupant of the vehicle, was trans-ported to Marshall Hos-pital in Marshall, Minn., with non-life-threatening injuries. Damage to the Pontiac was reported as “moder-ate” and it was towed from the crash site, the State Pa-trol said. Kruse was wearing a seatbelt and no alcohol was detected in his system after the accident.

—Andrew Miller

Red Cross reminds residents to safe with tips to prevent holiday home fires The American Red Cross urges residents to take extra precautions with cooking and decorating around the holidays. “Cooking is the lead-ing cause of home fires, and as people are cooking, entertaining, and string-ing lights this holiday sea-son, we’re urging that they take safety measures to en-sure that their homes and loved ones are safe from the threat of fire,” said Phil Hansen, regional chapter executive of the American Red Cross Northern Min-

nesota Region. Christmas Day, Christ-mas Eve and Thanksgiv-ing are the top three days for cooking fires, accord-ing to the National Fire Prevention Association. Nationally, the Red Cross responds to a disaster on average every eight min-utes, and the vast majority of them are home fires. The Red Cross has some simple steps everyone can follow to prevent home fires around the holidays:

Holiday

entertaining Test your smoke alarms. Check food regularly while cooking and remain in the home while cooking. Use a timer as a reminder that the stove or oven is on. Enforce a “kid-free zone” in the cooking area and make children stay at least three feet away from the stove. Keep anything that can catch fire away from the stove, oven or any appli-ance in the kitchen that generates heat.

Clean cooking surfaces on a regular basis to pre-vent grease buildup. Purchase a fire extin-guisher to keep in the kitchen. Contact the local fire department to receive training on the proper use of extinguishers.

Holiday decorating Choose decorations that are flame resistant or flame retardant. Keep children, pets and decorations away from lit candles. Keep matches and

lighters up high in a locked cabinet. Replace any string of lights with worn or broken cords or loose bulb con-nections. Connect no more than three strands of mini-light sets and a maximum of 50 bulbs for screw-in bulbs. Read manufac-turer’s instructions for the number of LED strands to connect. Some strings of lights are only for indoor or outdoor use, but not both. Use clips, not nails, to hang lights so the cords do

not get damaged. Keep decorations away from windows and doors. People should also download the free Ameri-can Red Cross First Aid app, which provides in-stant access to information on handling the most com-mon first aid emergencies. The apps can be down-loaded from the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store for Android by searching for American Red Cross or by going to redcross.org/mobileapps.


Opinion

John Gessner | BURNSVILLE NEWS/MANAGING EDITOR | 952-846-2031 | [email protected] Harper | EAGAN NEWS | 952-846-2028 | [email protected]

Mike Shaughnessy | SPORTS | 952-846-2030 | [email protected] Jetchick | AD SALES | 952-846-2019 | [email protected]

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Letters

Letters to the editor policySun Thisweek welcomes letters to the editor. Submitted letters must be no more than 350 words. All letters must have the author’s phone number and address for verification purposes. Anonymous letters will not be accepted. Letters reflect the opinion of the author only. Sun Thisweek reserves the right to edit all letters. Submission of a letter does not guarantee publication.

Board member welcomes input on Lebanon Hills master plan

‘Vitally important’ state report almost three years late

by Tom EganSPECIAL TO SUN THISWEEKDAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE

I seriously pondered whether I should respond to the letter written by Scott Johnson (“Commissioner Egan is cor-rect,” Dec. 19, 2013) in this newspaper. I decided it was important to the read-ing public to clarify misinformation. So I am writing my response. First, let me say that many com-ments have been received in various forms about the plan for Lebanon Hills Regional Park and many of those com-ments have been negative. That is why Dakota County extended the process time for consideration of park improve-ment plans from last summer to early 2014. That is why interested parties were invited in September to join the Dakota County staff and board of commission-ers on a tour of the park and workshop. That is why the Dakota County Board directed the Dakota County Planning Commission to hold a public hearing on Lebanon Hills this fall. That is why after receiving a unanimous recommendation by the Planning Commission to open the public comment period the Dakota

County Board on Nov. 19 unanimously voted to open that 60-day comment pe-riod on Lebanon Hills from Nov. 19 to Jan. 18. Also, two open houses were planned to make presentations to the public about tentative improvements at Leba-non Hills. One was held on Monday, Dec. 16 at the Dakota County Western Service Center in Apple Valley; the sec-ond is scheduled at the same location for Jan. 14. Dakota County staff did an incredible amount of work laying out clear and simple graphic information about the tentative plans. As a policy maker, I can’t possibly imagine relying on the opinion of the public concerning an issue such as this as much before they are presented with an opportunity to re-view information as before. None of the

comments Mr. Johnson mentions were made before even this first open house. Attendance at this open house was sig-nificant although a large number of at-tendees came with their own predispo-sition and weren’t very interested in the presentations. And then there is Mr. Johnson’s state-ment that “taxpayers [should] object to the $31,029,429 bill that [Egan] voted for at the November Dakota County Planning Committee meeting.” Well, for those of you who have recently read that this month the Dakota County Board of Commissioners voted to authorize a levy for 2014 that is 0.6 percent be-low the levy for 2013 keeping Dakota County with the lowest levy per capita of any county in the metropolitan area, you might be confused. You see, Mr. Johnson is wrong. The Dakota County Board has yet to authorized any amount for Lebanon Hills improvements. And if and when we do, it is anticipated that those improvements will occur and be paid for over 20 years. So again to summarize, we still have at least one more open house scheduled for Jan. 14 on tentative Lebanon Hills

improvements. It would be great if at-tendance at that open house was at least as good as we had at the first one. We may decide to hold further open houses. The intent is to collect, refine and con-dense all the information obtained from all sources – including these open houses – and to come back with plans that take into consideration all those comments. We are considering extending the period further to allow everyone to be engaged in all options. A number of people have contacted me … including several at the first open house … expressing a desire to work on a compromise solution for Lebanon Hills. Bearing in mind that the main responsibility the Dakota County Board has is to make Lebanon Hills – and all the parks in our regional park system -–as accessible to as many people as possible we will continue to work to-ward coming up with a plan that is as acceptable to as many people as pos-sible.

Tom Egan is a member of the Dakota County Board serving the Third District, which includes the city of Eagan. Columns reflect the opinion of the author.

by Joe NathanSUN THISWEEK


“I think it is vitally important to have the ‘Getting Prepared’ report up-dated in 2014, given the push we did this legislative session to advance early college opportunities for all second-ary students.” That’s what Rep. Carlos Mariani, DFL-St. Paul and chair of the Minnesota House K-12 Education Policy Committee, told me this week. State law requires that this report be completed and shared annually with legislators. But despite this law, the re-port was last issued in January 2011, almost three years ago. It’s online at http://bit.ly/1bPf6uk. As with state and federal health care applications, it appears that, unantici-pated computer and data problems are causing big delays. “Getting Prepared” shows what number and percentage of gradu-ates from each Minnesota public high school had to take developmental, aka remedial or high-school level, courses when they entered a Minnesota public college or university. It’s valuable for legislators to know whether the state and individual schools are making progress. (A recent report on kinder-garten readiness shows progress in that field.) Because the report shows how many graduates at each high school took re-

medial courses in reading, writing and math, high school educators can use “Getting Prepared” to identify and then work on improving student prepa-ration in those subjects. “Getting Pre-pared” also helps students and families see how well prepared graduates are for public higher education. Finally, the report is important be-cause of 2013 changes in state law. High school students are no longer required to pass reading, writing or math tests in order to graduate. Instead, students will be encouraged to take various tests and assessments that help them under-stand where they are compared to ex-pectations of colleges and employers. Taking remedial courses costs fami-lies and taxpayers millions of dollars. Our goal should be to reduce the num-ber of students entering public colleges and universities who take these courses. Minnesota Statute 13.32, subdi-vision 6(b) is clear. It reads in part: “Public postsecondary systems annu-ally shall provide summary data to the Department of Education indicating

the extent and content of the reme-dial instruction received in each sys-tem during the prior academic year by, and the results of assessment testing and the academic performance of, stu-dents who graduated from a Minnesota school district within two years before receiving the remedial instruction. The department shall evaluate the data and annually report its findings to the edu-cation committees of the legislature.” I’ve been asking for this report since fall of 2012. In March 2013, I was told that the responsibility to produce the report had been shifted from the two public higher education systems, the University of Minnesota and the Minnesota State College and Univer-sity system to the Minnesota Office of Higher Education. Since then, I’ve talked with Office of Higher Education officials a number of times. Initially the Office of Higher Education said data would be available in June. That later was changed to July and then “the fall.” I checked again with the Office of Higher Education and Department of Education officials this week. The re-port still is not done. State officials have held several meet-ings around Minnesota this month to encourage high school and college col-laboration, leading to better-prepared students. Having an updated “Get-ting Prepared” report would have been

helpful. Sandy Connolly, communications director at the Office of Higher Edu-cation, explained the office’s analysis of data has produced “some inconsis-tencies ... with regard to the percent-age of students taking developmental education at MnSCU.” So officials are “checking the individual records of thousands of students, a step OHE be-lieves is necessary for the integrity of the final product.” Perhaps it’s time to go back to the old system, where the University of Minnesota and MnSCU system com-plete the report, until the inconsisten-cies can be resolved. More people may also be needed to help finish the report. The Office of Higher Education says the new report will include more details and, for the first time, data from Min-nesota students attending private as well as public institutions. That could be valuable. But almost three years have elapsed since this report was produced. The law (wisely) says the “Getting Prepared” re-port is supposed to be done each year. It’s time to follow the law. Joe Nathan, formerly a Minnesota public school teacher, administrator and PTA president, directs the Center for School Change. Reactions welcome, [email protected]. Columns reflect the opinion of the author.

Sun Thisweek

ColumnistJoe Nathan

Guest

ColumnistTom Egan

The Ettl Family would like to thank the whole community for the love and support that we have received over the past couple weeks as we mourn the loss of Alyssa. Although no words can bring her back or express our loss, we are com-forted in knowing what an impact she had while she was here on Earth. We would like to extend our deepest appreciation to the entire community along with a special thank you to: All Saints Catholic Church, Father Kelly, Deacon Marshall and all the staff; Lakeville North High School, stu-dents, teachers and staff; The Lakeville Police Department and all first responders for their service; Schmitty & Sons Bus Company for donating the buses on Saturday for the roadside memorial along with buses on Tuesday for our family, friends and stu-dents during the funeral; Nan Price Photography for volunteer-ing to be there for us at the service; All our family and friends that have provided meals and support since the tragic accident. We ask that you continue to keep us and all those who have experienced loss of a loved one in your thoughts and prayers.

Again thank you to the entire com-munity and may you all have a Safe and Blessed New Year. May everyone work together to bring happiness and joy to all in 2014.

MATT, JENNY and KORI ETTLLakeville

We have witnessed outstanding love, compassion, encouragement and support since the car accident in Kansas on July 11, which claimed the life of Taylor and seriously injured Shannon and Adam Ziebol. We are grateful for the healing of Shannon and Adam and miss the pres-ence of Taylor. We wish to express our gratitude to all who generously gave their time, talent, and financial resources to support our family during this difficult time. Friends, neighbors and complete strangers have stepped forward with many acts of kindness. We are grateful. We would not be where we are at this stage of recovery without the love we have received. A family neighbor flew us to Dodge City the day of the accident. We arrived there bewildered, shaken and anxious to see our loves ones. The com-munities of Dodge City and Bucklin, Kan., surrounded us with compassion as we tried to make sense of the tragedy. We will never forget their generosity and kindness. We needed and received all the expertise the medical staffs Dodge City and Wichita provided. We are grateful and indebted for their devotion and care. A medical flight in early August brought Adam back to Minnesota, where he received excellent care at Re-gions Hospital. Adam is now continuing his recovery at home. His medical jour-ney has been long and is still moving to-ward a complete recovery of his injuries. We are thankful for all the calls and visits which continue to lift our spirits. Words cannot express our apprecia-tion to the staff of Prince of Peace Lu-theran Church for their support and prayers as we gave tribute to Taylor’s life and in moving forward with Adam and Shannon’s recovery. Numerous expressions of kindness

from groups and businesses in the com-munity raised funds and offered services when our energies were devoted to the family care we needed to provide. A Fair-view Ridges Foundation Crisis Hospital-ity Program has been established by our family. The mission of the program is provide shelter, food and transportation to those who might experience a medical crisis event similar to our experience in Kansas. We appreciate the effort, commitment and dedication of the Burnsville area community. There is a lesson our family has learned from this tragedy. We know how important family, friends and com-munity are when an event like this affects your family. We are so grateful.

The ZIEBOL, HESS and FANCHER familiesBurnsville

Thank you, thank you, thank you We are grateful

Alyssa EttlTaylor Ziebol, right, with Shannon and Adam.


Chris Lee and Ross Albertson of Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan Public Schools were rec-ognized as TIES Excep-tional Teachers at the TIES 2013 Education Technology Conference at the Minneapolis Hyatt Regency on Dec. 17. They were among 91 teachers from 48 districts. The teachers were cho-sen by their superinten-dents for the TIES Ex-ceptional Teacher award, which recognizes teachers who model the best prac-tices in their classroom and engage students in learning. Lee has been sharing his twin passions of sci-ence and technology with the students at Apple Val-ley High School for over two decades. Students in his physics classroom are exposed to a rigor-ous curriculum driven by “hands on” learning and infused with technology. Lee has not only been an early adopter of technol-ogy, he’s been an innova-tor and pioneer using his iPad, iPhone, laptop or combination of the three in his daily lessons. Before flipping the classroom was trendy, Lee was posting videos online of lectures, demonstrations, and study

guides and began integrat-ing all facets of his curric-ulum online using Moo-dle. Lee shares his passion and his knowledge with his colleagues at AVHS resulting in teachers in all academic areas benefiting from his experience and leadership and extending the use of technology in their classrooms. Albertson received a grant for the purchase of Chromebooks used at all levels to work on Google

Docs including entering data from lab activities into collective data pools for trend analysis and graphing. As a result, ad-ditional Chromebooks have been purchased for all grade levels. Albert-son is dedicated to find-ing sites that have engag-ing science simulations for geology, meteorology, and astronomy that target the science standards, are attainable for use by stu-dents, and are engaging.

He spearheaded an effort to have all eighth-graders take a Mastery Connect pre-assessment to gauge student recall and mastery of the previously taught sixth- and seventh-grade science content. The result was all science teachers creating groups of stu-dents for targeted re-con-nection to some important MCA content. Albertson often takes time before and after school to help students with their tech-

nology needs by holding learning sessions once a week for questions across multiple curricular areas. His knowledge and ability to connect with students has attributed to the suc-cess of countless middle school students. Besides being recog-nized at the conference, each teacher is featured

in the TIES Exceptional Teachers publication and received a certificate. School districts par-ticipating in the TIES Ex-ceptional Teacher award program are members of TIES, an education tech-nology consortium of 48 Minnesota school dis-tricts.

Obituaries

Ross Albertson (center) and Chris Lee (right) were among 91 educators honored as TIES Exceptional Teachers by Minnesota Education Commissioner Brenda Cassellius (left) at the TIES 2013 Education Technology Conference. (Photo submitted)

District 196 teachers honored as TIES Exceptional Teachers

Education

Education BriefsEastview’s ‘Legally Blonde’ receives SpotLight honors Eastview High School’s produc-tion of “Legally Blonde: The Mu-sical” is among the fall 2013 hon-orees recognized in the Hennepin Theatre Trust’s SpotLight Musical Theatre Program. SpotLight is the Trust’s educa-tional initiative that honors and supports Minnesota high school musical theater programs and stu-dents. Eagan native, Broadway star and two-time Tony Award nomi-nee Laura Osnes is the new Spot-Light spokesperson. “Legally Blonde” was honored with Outstanding Overall Produc-tion, Outstanding Overall Perfor-mance and Outstanding Perfor-mance by a Student Orchestra. The following Eastview stu-dents were recognized for their performances: Outstanding Performance in a Leading Role: Rachel Williams as Elle Woods. Outstanding Performance in a Supporting Role: Lara Akal as Vi-venne Kensington, Moriah Huerta as Paulette Bonafonte, Sydney Laylin as Brooke Wyndham. Honorable Mention Perfor-mance in a Leading Role: Tom Richmond as Emmett Forrest. Honorable Mention Perfor-mance in a Supporting Role: Tate Sheppard as Professor Callahan, Mason Swain as Warner Hunting-ton III, Maggie Elinson as Mar-got, Sabrina Epou as Serena, Elise Stepka as Pilar, Kacie Riddle as Kate. Honorable Mention Perfor-mance in a Featured Role: Paige Kraemer as Enid, A.J. McDermott

as Nikos, Will Selby as Carlos, Cole Peterson as Kyle. Schools and participating stu-dents will be honored at Spot-Light’s culminating event, the ninth annual SpotLight Showcase, held 7 p.m. Sunday, June 8, and Monday, June 9, at the Orpheum Theatre. Tickets for the SpotLight Show-case go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 14, and may be purchased in person at the State Theatre box office, 805 Hennepin Ave.; at the New Century Theatre box office, 615 Hennepin Ave.; online at Hen-nepinTheatreTrust.org; by calling 800-982-2787 or visiting a Ticket-master Center.

North’s ‘The Music Man’ receives SpotLight honors Lakeville North High School’s production of “The Music Man” is among the fall 2013 honorees recognized in the Hennepin The-atre Trust’s SpotLight Musical Theatre Program. SpotLight is the Trust’s educa-tional initiative that honors and supports Minnesota high school musical theater programs and stu-dents. Eagan native, Broadway star and two-time Tony Award nomi-nee Laura Osnes is the new Spot-Light spokesperson. “The Music Man” received Honorable Mention Vocal Perfor-mance by a Chorus/Ensemble. The following students were recognized for their performances: Honorable Mention Perfor-mance in a Leading Role: Daniel Redfield as Harold Hill, Sarah Mason as Marian Paroo. Honorable Mention Perfor-

mance in a Supporting Role: Nick Furlong as Marcellus, Cole Spa-novich as Winthrop. Honorable Mention Perfor-mance in a Featured Role: Sami Peick as Mama Paroo, Amanda Knutsen as Amaryllis, Laura Carr as Amaryllis. Schools and participating stu-dents will be honored at Spot-Light’s culminating event, the ninth annual SpotLight Showcase, held 7 p.m. Sunday, June 8, and Monday, June 9, at the Orpheum Theatre. Tickets for the SpotLight Show-case go on sale at 10 a.m. on Fri-day, Feb. 14, and may be purchased in person at the State Theatre box office, 805 Hennepin Ave.; at the New Century Theatre box office, 615 Hennepin Ave.; online at Hen-nepinTheatreTrust.org; by calling 800-982-2787; or visiting a Ticket-master Center.

College news “Aftermath,” a project created by Dominic Ghilani of Eagan, was selected for the annual Minnesota Electronic Theater showcase held Thursday, Dec. 5, in Minneapolis. Ghilani is a game design and de-velopment student at University of Wisconsin-Stout. Harika Govada of Eagan was recently initiated into Phi Kappa Phi, the nation’s oldest and most selective collegiate honor society for all academic disciplines. Gov-ada was initiated at Bradley Uni-versity, Baton Rouge, La. University of Nebraska-Lin-coln, December graduate, Sarah Ward of Eagan, B.S., education and human sciences.

Worship Directory


2014, the 400,000-square-foot retail complex will include about 100 upscale stores, such as Coach, Puma and J. Crew. Five acres near the mall has been reserved for pos-sible development for oth-er uses, such as restaurants and coffee shops. Although there will be a large parking structure near the outlet mall as well as several parking lots, Baltimore-based Paragon Outlet Partners say they plan to create a walkable development. The $100 million proj-ect is expected to create an estimated 400 con-struction jobs and 1,500 to 2,000 retail jobs upon completion. Within hours of Para-gon’s ground breaking, Apple Valley developer Stonebridge Communities submitted a proposal — which was approved by the Economic Development Authority — to purchase a city-owned 4.8-acre parcel in Cedar Grove to build a four-story apartment and retail complex. The City Council unan-imously approved prelimi-nary plans in September for the upscale complex — located at 3830 Sibley Me-morial Highway near Ce-dar Grove Boulevard and Cedar Grove Parkway. The complex, called Flats at Cedar Grove, will include 190 market-rate rental housing units and 11,0000 square feet of commercial space below. Once finished, the brick C-shaped building, will in-clude fireplaces, balconies, a pool, onsite laundry fa-cilities and underground parking, and range in price from approximately $900 for a studio to ap-proximately $2,200 for a three-bedroom apartment. The developer plans to construct a path from the complex to Paragon Out-let and the Cedar Grove Transit Station nearby, which pleased council members who have envi-sioned a walkable district. Stonebridge wasn’t the

only developer attracted by Paragon’s progress. In December, Mor-rissey Hospitality Co., which manages the St. Paul Hotel, announced it plans to build a 123-room hotel next to the mall. The $14 million project is expected to bring in just under $1 million in annual tax revenue. The four-story up-scale, limited-service hotel would be a Hilton Hotel’s and Resorts Home2Suites brand and would include a fitness center, sizeable lobby and pool. Plans don’t include a restaurant. Rooms, which would all be suites, would have an average cost of $117 per night.

Confl ict Not all proposed de-velopments in Eagan were embraced with open arms this past year. Vexing a crowd of resi-dents, the City Council approved a proposal in April to turn Parkview Golf Course into a 170-unit housing development, which ended a year-long battle over the proposal. Eden Prairie real estate developer Hunter Emer-son’s controversial plans met a slew of criticism over the span of a year from nearby residents who had hoped to keep the property as a golf course in an effort to maintain green space and provide outdoor recreational op-portunities. Several council mem-bers, including Mayor Mike Maguire, cited the similar Carriage Hills pro-posal, which ended in a 2007 court case and settle-ment against the city, as a significant factor in their decision. As in the Carriage Hills case, Parkview owner Robert Zakheim claimed that Parkview, located at 1290 and 1310 Cliff Road, was losing money due to declining demand and that the current market presents no reasonable op-tions aside from selling the property for development. All but one council

member said they believed the city didn’t have the evidence to deny Hunter Emerson’s request without risking another lawsuit. An eleventh-hour offer of $1.5 million was made by Eagan resident Jeff Varela but was rejected by Hunter Emerson. The developer’s attorney Jack Pierce said the offer was too low and contained un-reasonable conditions. Dakota County as-sessed the property in 2012 at $3.5 million, and Pierce noted that assessed values are typically lower than a fair market value. The purchase price wasn’t the only matter of contention between Hunt-er Emerson and Varela. They also disagreed on the amount Varela agreed to put down on the property and whether he provided complete proof of his abil-ity to financially back the offer. Several residents ex-pressed their disgust when council members agreed with the developer that the offer was too low. One res-ident even began to shout and name call Maguire as he questioned Varela. Maguire criticized Va-rela for his lack of research and incomplete proof of his financials and ques-tioned whether Varela’s offer was credible consid-ering he waited until five days before the council meeting to make it. Though Council Mem-ber Paul Bakken ques-tioned the validity of Va-rela’s offer, he maintained that Zakheim had the abil-ity to sell the 18-hole golf course under the existing zoning and voted against the proposal. Bakken, who cast the sole dissenting vote, said he believes the city should have denied the proposal and take its chances with the courts.

Lebanon Hills Residents again be-came impassioned over green space when Dakota County Parks officials an-nounced plans in June to create 8.5 miles of paved

trails in Lebanon Hills Re-gional Park, a 1,842-acre park in Eagan and Apple Valley. The county’s proposed plan, which has met strong resistance from residents, includes 24.5 miles of un-paved trails, a new paved 6.5-mile connector trail that runs east and west and a 2-mile paved loop around Holland and Mc-Donough lakes. The plan would keep all existing unpaved trails in Lebanon Hills the same, and would add six miles of unpaved trails. In total, the park would have 46 miles of un-paved trails. Parks officials envision the paved trails would provide four-season recre-ation for bicyclists, walk-ers and skaters. In the latest draft, officials are considering closing the western loop around Hol-land and McDonough lakes in the winter to al-low cross-country skiers to cross the trail. Several opposition groups claim the paved trails will harm the envi-ronment and the park’s aesthetics. Some people have voiced their support for the plan, including Mar-go Imdieke-Cross of the Minnesota State Council on Disabilities who said she believes the new paved trails would allow better access for people with dis-abilities. County officials and opposition group Save Lebanon Hills Wilder-ness have held a number of public meetings on the matter.

Change Eagan has seen a num-ber of changes in the past year, not only in economic development, but also within its organizations. The year kicked off with news that Ruthe Bat-ulis planned to leave the Dakota County Chamber of Commerce to start a new chapter in her life in Wisconsin. The 62-year-old stepped down as president of the chamber in April to move to her lakefront

cabin in Spooner, Wis. With her three sons grown and the chamber running smoothly, Batulis said she felt the timing was right to move to the sleepy town. Batulis came to the DCR Chamber after gain-ing experience at both the Bloomington and Burns-ville chambers of com-merce. In 2005, the then Northern Dakota County Chamber expanded to include the former Farm-ington Area Chamber of Commerce, after which Batulis implemented a re-branding campaign that included a name change for the organization. Her new regional focus allowed the organization to think differently about its approach to chamber membership. Batulis was succeeded by Vicki Stute. Stute previously served as president of the Angel Foundation, a nonprofit organization that helps adults with cancer and their families. Though she worked in the nonprofit field for a number of years, Stute has extensive chamber of commerce background. She began her ca-reer as a staff member at the South St. Paul/Inver Grove Heights Chamber of Commerce (renamed the River Heights Cham-ber of Commerce). From there, she held various leadership posi-tion including president and CEO at Twin West, Red Wing Area and the St. Paul Area chambers of commerce.

Dave Osberg The city of Eagan also welcomed a new leader in April with the hiring of its second city administrator after its first, Tom Hedges, retired. Previously an intern with the city of Eagan, Dave Osberg came full cir-cle by succeeding his men-tor. While working on his master’s degree in urban and regional studies at Mankato State University,

Osberg landed an intern-ship with the city of Ea-gan. As a young graduate student, Osberg looked up to Hedges, who has been highly regarded among those in the field. Though Osberg has a history with the city of Eagan, city officials noted he was chosen as Eagan’s second city administrator due to his 30-year experi-ence and impressive track record, among other as-pects. Upon completing his internship and graduat-ing from Mankato State in 1982, Osberg was hired as a city administrator for St. James, Minn. While there, he married his wife of 29 years, Lau-rie, and had four children, who are now grown. By 1989, Osberg moved his family to Hastings where he took a job as the city’s administrator. While the city of Ea-gan and Dakota County Chamber saw positive change in 2013, one of the city’s largest employers endured change that was more onerous. Thomson Reuters an-nounced in December that a round of 3,000 company-wide layoffs will include its Eagan campus. The New York-based company employs 7,000 workers in Eagan, which serves as its headquarters for its legal business. Thomson Reuters has yet to release the number of Eagan employees to be cut, but has said that job cuts are in management information systems.

Saying goodbye The Eagan community was forced to say good-bye to two of its longtime community leaders this past year. In April, former Eagan City Council Member Ted Wachter died at age 89. Known to many as Mr. Tree, Wachter saw value in preserving green space long before “going green” was considered cool.

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Wachter, who spent 41 years in public office, had a passion for preservation and creating opportuni-tiesfor area youth. The Rosemount na-tive was a proponent of preserving old trees and crafted for the city ordi-nances aimed at preserv-ing old trees and planting new ones. An avid history buff, Wachter was a founding member, chair and resi-dent storyteller of the Ea-gan Historical Society. He was instrumental in restoring Eagan’s 1914 town hall, located on Pilot Knob Road, and in creat-ing Holz Farm park. Wachter got his first taste of public service in 1958 as a new member of the township planning commission. Wachter re-mained on the commission until 1972 when he became a member of the first Ea-gan Village Council. Two years later, Eagan incorporated as a city and Wachter was elected to the City Council. He retired in 1998. Five months after Wa-chter’s death, longtime Eagan businessman and entrepreneur Dan Shimek died of cancer at age 65. Shimek left his mark on a number of communities as a business owner and philanthropist. His first venture was Heat-N-Glo, which he founded in Burnsville in 1975 with his brother, Ron Shimek, who died in 2002. Shimek stayed on as president after the com-pany merged in 1996 with Heatilator to form Hearth and Home Technologies in Lakeville. He retired in 2002, but that was short-lived. Within a year he found-ed Eagan-based Outdoor GreatRoom Company, which designs and manu-factures upscale fire pits, furniture and kitchens for outdoor living spaces. Though Outdoor GreatRoom felt the weight of the recession, it con-tinued to thrive with an-nual sales in the millions. Aiming to save money and

bring business to Minne-sota, Shimek moved the company’s engineering, production and manu-facturing operation from overseas and Salt Lake City, Utah, to its head-quarters in Eagan. A year after opening Outdoor GreatRoom, Shimek opened Enjoy! and then Paradise Land-ing restaurant in Balsam Lake, Wis., and a winery called Chateau St. Croix in St. Croix Falls, Wis. Seeing promise in Ap-ple Valley’s Central Vil-lage, Shimek and his wife, Kay, opened Enjoy! res-taurant in 2004 at 15435 Founders Lane. The dis-trict was envisioned as a thriving downtown area, but by 2008 it was filled with empty storefronts and undeveloped lots due to the recession. A savvy businessman, Shimek was able to beat the tide. Three years later, the restaurant’s future became brighter as Central Village rebound-ed. In August, the couple temporarily closed Enjoy! and sold the restaurant to Twin Cities restaurateur Bob Tinsley, who plans to reopen it under the name Vivo. At the time, the couple said they sold the restau-rant to “simplify our pro-gram.”

Looking to 2014 In the coming year, the Cedar Grove Redevelop-

ment District will come to life with the August opening of Paragon Out-let Mall and construction of several other projects in the district. Construction of the Flats at Cedar Grove and the Home2Suites hotel are expected to begin in 2014 upon the City Council’s approval of final purchase agreements and planned development proposals. The council will likely vote on both proposals early in the year. While many residents eagerly welcome upcom-ing construction in 2014, others will likely continue to protest other develop-ments. As plans for paving 8.5 miles of trails in Lebanon Hills are reviewed next year, opposition groups are expected to continue to urge officials to reject the plans. A final public meet-ing will be held in January before the proposal goes to the County Board. The fight may not be over for those working to preserve Lebanon Hills, but the battle has ended in a loss for residents who fought to preserve Parkview Golf Course. To their chagrin, residents living near Parkview will likely see homes replace the 18-hole golf course in 2014.

Jessica Harper is at [email protected] or facebook.com/sunthisweek.

EAGAN, from 6A

Eagan’s historic Town Hall was severely damaged in a fire in September that police say was a result of arson. A number of artifacts stored in the building were destroyed. The city has made efforts to preserve the 100-year-old building, including shrink-wrapping it over the winter months. No arrests have been named in the incident. (File photo)


In other Burnsville news highlights from the pages of Burnsville-Eagan Sun Thisweek, Fairview Ridges Hospital launched a ma-jor expansion, a developer signed a contract to build a long-sought hotel in the Heart of the City, and the Burnsville Performing Arts Center got a naming-rights sponsor and a new management contract.

Anarae Schunk Mourners filled the Performing Arts Center’s 1,000-seat main theater Oct. 6 to remember a young woman described as an “old soul.” An accom-plished chess competitor and coach, a BHS gradua-tion speaker in 2011 and a sociology student and aca-demic tutor at the Univer-sity of Minnesota, Schunk was mourned by family, friends and former teach-ers. “Anarae, this is just not the way things were sup-posed to play out,” said Brian Ribnick, coach of the powerhouse Metcalf Junior High chess team, which Schunk captained in 2008, her freshman year. “It should be the other way around. I had hoped you’d be speaking some-day at my memorial. I just don’t know how things got so messed up.” Police believe she was killed in Rosemount Sept. 22 after her ex-boy-friend allegedly murdered Palagor Obang Jobi, of Savage, outside Nina’s Grill in Burnsville at clos-ing time. Anthony Lee Nel-son, aka Shavelle Os-car Chavez-Nelson, 31, charged with killing Jobi, is a suspect in Schunk’s murder. Nelson’s girl-friend at the time, Ashley Marie Conrade, 24, told police she and Schunk were with Nelson at the bar and drove with him back to Conrade’s Rose-mount townhouse after the shooting. Conrade is charged with aiding an offender for allegedly har-

boring Nelson. It was Schunk’s trusting nature and faith in human-ity that family and friends say led to her involvement with Nelson, whom she dated for several months last year before breaking it off around Thanksgiving. She had reportedly ar-ranged to meet him Sept. 21 in Burnsville to retrieve $5,000 she had loaned him while they were dating. Nelson, who has a long criminal history, was free on bail on a first-degree burglary charge when the meeting took place. “We are committed to doing everything we can to bring to justice the person responsible for this hor-rific crime,” Rosemount Police Chief Eric Werner said in October.

Crime concerns The Nina’s shooting was one of three homicides in northeast Burnsville since June. Police Chief Eric Gieseke described the string of crimes as an anomaly, but arranged a Nov. 14 meeting at Mary, Mother of the Church to help calm unsettled resi-dents, discuss larger crime trends and strengthen ties between the community and police. The two other homi-cides remain open cases. A 4-year-old boy was killed June 11 at his home at 31 Horizon Heights Road. Keyontay Miller-Peterson died of compli-cations from blunt force abdominal injuries, the

Hennepin County medical examiner announced July 25. Police say the suspect is 24-year-old William Al-phonso Warr, who had a protection order barring him from the residence. Warr was charged with violating the protection order, criminal property damage, fleeing a police officer, giving false infor-mation to police and driv-ing after revocation. Warr, the boy’s mother’s boyfriend, pleaded guilty to all five counts and was sentenced July 17 to two years and two months in prison, the St. Paul Pio-neer Press reported. The county attorney’s office has yet to bring charges in the homicide. “We haven’t given up on it,” Gieseke said in an Oc-tober interview. There are also no charges in the Aug. 13 shooting on the 2100 block of East 117th Street that killed 23-year-old Abdifatah Ahmed Mahu-mod. He and another man were shot and driven from the scene by a woman who then stopped at the Supe-rAmerica station at 2250 Cliff Road in Eagan. Po-lice found Mahumod dead in the vehicle. “That’s an open case, too,” Gieseke said. “We hope to bring closure to that in the future.”

Taylor Ziebol Ziebol was a high achiever in the classroom and on the soccer field.

She played at Burnsville and started 15 of 18 games as a freshman midfielder for Red Hawks of Ripon College in Wisconsin. “Taylor and I formed an instant bond when she was in my 11th-grade class,” BHS English teacher Jen Waller McDevitt said in July. “She would stay after school with me and just want to talk. That’s what Taylor did. She was close to many teachers in our school district.” She took post-second-ary classes for two years, her senior year at Nor-mandale Community College. Also during her senior year, Taylor tutored two days a week in the AVID college-readiness program at Nicollet Junior High, which she had at-tended, and did volunteer work in the office. She exuded “positive energy wherever she went, and whatever she had go-ing on in her life, she al-ways came in with that great attitude,” Nicollet Principal Renee Brandner said. Taylor’s brother, Adam, returned home to Burns-ville Oct. 12, three months after the crash. He had undergone 16 surgeries and had multiple segments of his intestines removed. He’s awaiting major sur-gery next year. He briefly left Regions Hospital in St. Paul on Sept. 27 so sister Shan-non, a member of the BHS homecoming royalty, could escort him across the field during halftime of the homecoming game. “I just lost my beau-tiful daughter, and they lost an incredible sister,” the Ziebols’ mother, Lesa Hess, said in October. “That in itself is hard, let alone Adam with all of his injuries. But we’re a strong family, and we have great support.”

Leadership

change Craig Ebeling retired after serving as Burnsville city manager for 10 years, a period that included

budget retrenchment, con-struction of the Perform-ing Arts Center and cul-mination of a “trust fund” to help finance repair and replacement of the city’s aging infrastructure. “I think the city’s had a very good run over the last 10 years, and longer,” said Ebeling, whose last day of work was March 29. “I think that we should take some pride in continuing to flourish through some very difficult economic times. The council had to make some really tough decisions.” Ebeling’s career in Burnsville spanned 26 years. A former city engi-neer in Worthington and Savage, he was hired as Burnsville’s assistant city engineer in August 1987. Promotions to city engi-neer, public works director and deputy city manager followed. Ebeling left the city in 1995 to work for the How-ard R. Green Co., an en-gineering consulting firm. Burnsville hired him back in 2001 as director of de-velopment in charge of community development, planning, inspections and engineering. In April, City Council members chose Heather Johnston, Burnsville’s chief financial officer and director of administrative services, to replace Ebel-ing. She was chosen over two other finalists with many years of city man-ager experience — Mark McNeill, of Shakopee, and Walter Wysopal, of North St. Paul. Before coming to Burnsville in October 2011, she spent nearly eight years directing the Management and Budget Division of Minneapo-lis’ Finance Department. Johnston has also worked for the U.S. Office of Management and Budget and Minnesota Manage-ment and Budget. A new City Council member, Suzanne Nguy-en, took office in January. An open seat was left by the retirement of two-term Council Member Dan

Gustafson, who didn’t seek re-election.

Fairview Ridges

expansion Ground was broken this spring on a $60 mil-lion expansion at Fairview Ridges Hospital on the Ridges Campus. It includes a 130,000-square-foot spe-cialty care medical office building, 40,000 square feet of hospital expan-sion and a 400-stall park-ing ramp. The five-story office building will have a skyway connection to the hospital. It’s the largest expan-sion in the history of Fair-view Ridges, which opened in 1984. “We’re working to cre-ate spaces that are more convenient for patients at a lower cost,” Fairview Ridges President Beth Krehbiel said.

Heart of the City

hotel

It’s not built yet, but the city has a contract with a developer to build a 100-room Hilton Garden Inn on the remaining 1.75 acres of the city-owned AAA property in the Heart of the City. A hotel has long been part of the “vision” for the downtown redevelop-ment district, city offi-cials say. The contract, ap-proved by the City Coun-cil in November, requires NLD Holdings III LLC, an investor group that has built hotels and re-tail centers in Minnesota and nationally, to pay $503,600 for land north of the Burnsville Per-forming Arts Center and the adjacent Heart of the City parking deck. The property sale must be closed by July 15, 2014, and the hotel completed by June 30, 2015. In June the council, meeting as the Economic Development Authority, approved a similar con-tract with Akota Hospi-

Taylor Ziebol and her siblings, Adam and Shannon, are pictured prior to setting out on their fateful car trip. (Submitted photo)

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tality LLC, but the com-pany missed its Oct. 31 deadline for closing on the property and aban-doned the deal.

Performing Arts

Center

Burnsville had been hoping to sell naming rights to the city-owned Performing Arts Center since it opened in Janu-ary 2009. A deal came through in 2013. The center will be rechristened the Ames Center under a deal the council approved in De-cember. Burnsville-based Ames Construction Inc., a national mega-compa-ny with a long history of local philanthropy, will donate $100,000 per year for 10 years for the nam-ing rights. A new logo and sign are expected to be un-veiled in January. In July, the City Coun-cil approved a new three-year management con-tract with VenuWorks, the firm that has man-aged the $20 million cen-ter since it opened. The new contract in-cludes benchmark incen-tives for boosting the center’s gross revenue and authorizes creation of performance measures that include raising atten-dance, reducing the num-ber of “dark days” with no booked events and guaranteeing customer service and satisfaction. The council chose VenuWorks over one competitor seeking the contract. The city has two one-year extension options after three years.

Prince of Peace

turns 50

Prince of Peace Lu-theran Church, a Burns-ville institution know in the early 1970s for holding outdoor services at the old Lucky Twin Drive-In Theater, turned 50 in 2013. Events to mark the birthday were held in Oc-tober.

The congregation had 63 families when it held its first service in October 1963. Membership rose as high as 8,000 or 9,000 people but has leveled off at 6,000 or 7,000, said the Rev. Jeff Marian, the church’s fifth senior pas-tor. The church has been successful because of its “willingness to try things in distinctly different ways to connect people,” he said. “We now need to re-peat that process,” said Marian, who followed the Rev. Michael Foss as senior pastor in 2008. “We’re celebrating our 50th anniversary, but now is the time to repeat his-tory.”

Clampdown on

hookah Two hookah shops with indoor smoking lounges opened in Burns-ville this year, but a Dec. 17 vote by the City Coun-cil bans indoor hookah smoking. The council approved a new tobacco ordinance that will limit hours of operation, square footage and seating capacity at tobacco shops in Burns-ville. After a split vote, the council added an in-door use ban on tobacco sampling from devices such as hookah pipes, similar to a ban enacted by Minneapolis in 2011. The new ordinance would not put a ban on cigar bars. Mayor Elizabeth Kautz, council members

Mary Sherry and Suzanne Nguyen voted in favor of the new regulations and ban, while council mem-bers Bill Coughlin and Dan Kealey opposed the new ordinance. The ordi-nance as originally pre-sented by the city staff and city attorney Dec. 17 didn’t include a ban on indoor hookah smoking, which Sherry added dur-ing discussion. At a work session a week earlier, the council directed staff to draft an ordinance with-out the ban. Opponents of the in-door lounges say they ex-ploit a loophole in Min-nesota’s Clean Indoor Air Act that allows indoor sampling of tobacco sold there. Burnsville’s two hoo-kah shops are Taha Hookah at 12010 Coun-ty Road 11 and Ignite Hookah at 2552 Horizon Drive. Police and fire of-ficials say there have been problems such as code violations and overoccu-pancy. But Alex Bajwa, a lawyer representing Taha Hookah, said his client has worked to fix such problems. Bajwa suggest-ed that outlawing indoor hookah smoking but not cigar sampling (a cigar is not considered a smok-ing “device”) is a slight against Middle Eastern and East African tradi-tions.

Playground

replaced With an appreciative nod to the Burnsville Lions Club, the City

Council voted in Janu-ary to purchase a new playground for Cliff Fen Park. The $300,000 play-ground will replace the old Skyland Playground, a popular feature of the north Burnsville park, which is adjacent to the Minnesota Valley Na-tional Wildlife Refuge. The deteriorating structure was replaced by a $300,000 metal and plastic playground called Burnsville Lions Play-ground. The Lions Club is contributing $50,000 over five years for en-hanced playground fea-tures.

Goodbye

Kenneth Slipka, a longtime businessman, philanthropist and civic leader in Burnsville, died Oct. 22 after battling lung cancer. He was 67. He was president of Burnsville-based com-pany FORCE America and a longtime supporter of the city’s annual Fire Muster celebration. He was a leader of Baseball Association 191. Slipka was involved in the Chamber of Commerce (named its Business Per-son of the Year in 2000) and other organizations, including the Burnsville Community Foundation and the city’s Economic Growth Commission. Also passing in 2013 was Richard Vander-Laan, Burnsville’s “Mr. Baseball,” who died Sept. 12 at age 76. VanderLaan contrib-uted more than 30 years of work to help upgrade city fields and parks, earning him the “Mr. Baseball” nickname. VanderLaan began as an amateur base-ball benefactor when he started American Legion baseball in Burnsville in 1982. He founded Base-ball Association 191 in the early 1990s for young men in Burnsville, Eagan and Savage.

John Gessner can be reached at 952-846-2031 or email [email protected].

Craig Ebeling retired after 10 years as Burnsville city manager, and a career with the city that dated back to the 1980s. (File photo by Rick Orndorf)

Heather Johnston was hired as Burnsville’s new city manager in April. (File photo by John Gessner)

BURNSVILLE, from 8A

The group has already found homes for nearly all the dogs after they re-ceived the necessary medi-cal and behavioral atten-tion. The organization that started at the hands of a group of Shih Tzu lovers became an official 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in 2007. Shih Tzu Rescue is an all-volunteer organi-zation with a mission to rescue, rehabilitate, and re-home Shih Tzus and Shih Tzu mixes in need of loving homes. All dona-tions are tax deductible, and 100 percent of dona-tions go toward the care and comfort of rescued dogs. While this is the first time the organization has received a grant from ASPCA, this is not the first time it has rescued dogs from a puppy mill, according to Kathy Dia-mond, Shih Tzu Rescue board member and trea-surer. The 15 dogs seized from the puppy mill in North Dakota were among 174 dogs seized. According to Diamond, the dogs were confined inside a metal outbuilding in small, stacked crates. There was no ventilation or air conditioning. The dogs were housed five to a crate, and the crates were so small that the dogs had to lie down on top of each other. “People say dogs live in the moment, but they have memories,” Diamond said. “The damaging ef-fects of living in a puppy mill are hard to forget.” A key part of rescue is rehabilitation, especially in cases such as these, Diamond said. All dogs rescued by Shih Tzu Res-cue go through a thorough adoption process ensuring a safe home and good fit. Dogs stay in a foster home for at least three weeks as volunteers ob-serve their behavior and offer rehabilitation. Adoptive families must fill out an application and provide references,

and agree to a home visit both prior to and after the adoption. Throughout the process, Shih Tzu Rescue volunteers and a trainer are available to help. The process may be in-tense, but the rewards are plentiful and well worth it, according to Iverson. “Mill dogs spend years in a cage,” Iverson said. “We watched them go from shaky, shy dogs to very playful companions.” The organization has grown over the years, and now includes 60 members and 20 foster homes. But why Shih Tzus? “They have a more human-like temperament than other breeds,” Iver-son said. “They’re very much a companion breed and want to be with you all the time. They’re very loyal to the family and playful.” Shih Tzus are also non-allergenic, making them a good fit for a family pet. Many of the Shih Tzu Rescue foster parents have their own dogs and choose to take more in. “Shih Tzus are like po-tato chips, you can’t just have one,” Iverson said. Shih Tzu Rescue mem-bers unite to celebrate their love of the breed each summer at the Rescue Reunion at Round Lake Park in Eden Prairie. The organization also hosts a meet and greet from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. the last Saturday of each month at the Minnetonka Petco, 13691 Ridgedale Drive. For more information, visit shihtzurescuemn.org. In 2011, the ASPCA launched a national “No Pet Store Puppies” cam-paign, which seeks to raise awareness about the con-nection between puppy mills and pet stores and end the demand for puppy mill dogs. For more information about puppy mills and how to fight animal cru-elty, visit nopetstorepup-pies.com.

Contact Natalie Conrad at [email protected].

RESCUE, from 1A


Sports2013YEAR IN REVIEW

Volleyball title won’t be forgotten

In 2013, Eagan also had its first state wrestling

champ by Mike Shaughnessy


Eagan High School’s volleyball program com-pleted its return to promi-nence by winning the state Class 3A championship in November. That’s one of the biggest stories of Eagan’s year in sports, but by no means the only one. Here’s a review of some of the highlights of 2013:

No. 1 again It’s not as if Eagan’s volleyball program had gone on the skids since winning the state Class 3A championship in 2003, but the Wildcats went back to state only once in the nine years that followed. Teams such as Chaska, Shakopee, Eden Prairie and Lakeville North had taken over as the marquee programs in the large-school class. Adding to the Wildcats’ frustration is they had tried to get past Lakev-ille North in the 2011 and 2012 Section 3 champion-ship matches but were un-able to do so. In 2013, it was differ-ent. Eagan won the Eagle Invitational in Apple Val-ley for the first time in school history, breaking what Wildcat players and coaches called the “Ea-gan Curse.” The Wildcats then had to play Lakeville North again in the sec-tion final after North beat them in a regular-season match. They finally over-came the Panthers in four sets, but that wasn’t the end of the hard work. Eagan outlasted Dela-no in a back-and-fourth, five-set state champion-ship match to win its fifth state title overall and first in 10 years. “At the beginning of the season I didn’t know what to expect,” said Ea-gan senior Taylr McNeil, who later was named Ga-torade Minnesota Player of the Year. “We had a lot of new girls on the team and I thought it could go either way. When we won the Apple Valley tourna-ment, I knew we were go-ing to be a good team.”

A fi rst for Eagan An innocent question turned into a season-long mission for Eagan wres-tler Colin Fisher. Early in the 2012-13 season an Eagan youth wrestler asked Fisher why there were no state cham-pions on the record board in the Wildcats’ wrestling room. The answer, of

course, was that no Eagan wrestler had won a state title. “He asked me if I was going to change that, and I said, ‘Yes sir,’ ” Fisher re-called. He went on to finish 40-2, with his last match a 5-3 victory over Michael Burckhardt of Coon Rap-ids in the Class 3A finals at 285 pounds. It means no one else can ask why no champions are listed on Eagan’s wrestling re-cord board.

Track success One of Eagan’s best girls track and field sea-sons ended with a fourth-place finish at the state Class AA meet at Ham-line University. Distance runner Danielle Ander-son, now at the University of Minnesota, took a shot at an individual title but came up just short, finish-ing second to Shakopee superstar Maria Hauger in the 3,200-meter race. The Wildcats have plenty of power return-ing next spring. All four members of a fourth-place 4x800-meter relay are back, as are sprint-ers Maddie Gourley and Emerald Egwim, both of whom placed in the top five at state in the 200-me-ter dash. Eagan resident and Cretin-Derham Hall ju-nior Megan Linder won her second consecutive state championship in the 400 dash.

Breakout cross

country star Eagan returned to the

state Class AA girls cross country meet and finished ninth and introduced a new star in the process – junior Anna Van Wyk, who finished fourth in-dividually. Van Wyk, the Section 3AA individual champion, had not won a varsity race before this year. She will go into next season as one of the state’s top-ranked run-ners, but it’s a crowded field; the top five finishers at the Class AA meet in November all will be back next year.

Next-level

success Eagan athletes who have gone on to successful careers in college include Sarah McCrady, who was honorable mention All-America in diving at the University of Minne-sota and competed in the World University Games last summer. Zach Zenner had his second consecutive 2,000-yard rushing season for the South Dakota State University football team. He gained 2,015 yards this season for the Jack-rabbits, who made the second round of the Foot-ball Championship Sub-division playoffs. That in-cluded 202 yards and two touchdowns against Ne-braska, the only Football Bowl Subdivision team SDSU played this year.

Email Mike Shaughnessy at [email protected].

Eagan’s Madeline McNeil (left) and Celia Bertsch go up to block a shot in the state Class 3A volleyball champi-onship match against Delano. (Photo by Rick Orndorf)

Colin Fisher (left) of Eagan ties up with Michael Burckhardt of Coon Rapids in the state Class 3A wrestling championship match at 285 pounds. Fisher won 5-3 and became the first Eagan High School wrestler to win a state title. (Photo by Rick Orndorf)

Tyler Hanson spearheaded Burnsville to the American Legion World Series. He was MVP of the Central Plains Regional, batting .563 and earning two pitching victories. (Photo by Rick Orndorf)

Legion World Series berth amongBurnsville’s sports headlinesBHS also has one

of state’s best Nordic skiers

by Mike ShaughnessySUN THISWEEK


From a history-making national tournament ap-pearance to a rarely seen soccer comeback, Burns-ville teams made plenty of sports headlines in 2013. Today, we take a look back:

World Series A trip to the Ameri-can Legion World Series capped a 36-12 season for Burnsville’s Legion base-ball team. The Cobras, consisting of current and former Burnsville High School players, finished second in the state tour-nament, then won the Central Plains Regional in Fargo, N.D., to earn their trip to the World Series in Shelby, N.C. Burnsville went 1-2 in the World Se-ries. Tyler Hanson, now at the University of Min-nesota, was MVP of the regional tournament. He batted .563 in the region-als and had two pitching victories. The Cobras played home games on a field named for Rich Vander-Laan, who started Legion baseball in Burnsville in 1982 and later founded Baseball Association 191. VanderLaan died Sept. 12, just a few weeks after the Cobras played in their first World Series.

Standout on snow Burnsville junior Viv-ian Hett finished second in the state girls Nordic skiing meet in February

at Giants Ridge. She was about 22 seconds behind Anna Kubek, a senior from Duluth East. “It was a lot better than I thought,” Hett said of her second-place finish. “I was going for top five and hoping to improve over last year.” She has since signed to ski for Northern Michigan University. Hett also helped Burns-ville’s team to seventh place at the state meet. The Blaze, which won the first two South Suburban Conference meets of the 2013-14 season, is favored to return to state, and Hett is a likely contender for the individual championship. Hett also has run in the state cross country meet five times and the state track and field meet twice. In November, she earned All-State status by finish-ing 15th in the Class AA cross country meet. She also helped Burnsville’s team to 13th place.

Epic comeback Rallying from a two-goal deficit is rare in soc-cer games, especially play-off games. Burnsville was staring at a 2-0 hole and what appeared at the time to be a probable home-field loss to Eastview in the Section 3AA girls championship game. The Blaze didn’t quit. Goals by Abby Soder-holm and Hannah Kei-rstead got them back in the game. Regulation time ended at 2-2 and there was no resolution in 20 min-utes of overtime, so the teams went to a shootout, where the Blaze outscored Eastview 4-2 to earn a place in the state tourna-ment.

Burnsville won its state opener against Andover to reach the semifinals at the Metrodome, where it lost to South Suburban Conference rival Lakeville North 1-0 on a goal with 6:05 remaining.

Knows the

territory Burnsville High School brought in a softball coach who probably won’t feel any pressure from coaching home games at Pat Feely Field. Pat Feely was hired in August to re-turn as the Blaze’s head coach. Feely was head coach or co-head coach at BHS from 1993 through 2005. His teams won six con-ference championships, three section champi-onships and two state championships. Feely and Terry Hunst were co-head coaches of Burnsville’s back-to-back state cham-pionship teams in 2004 and 2005. Both retired af-ter the 2005 season. Feely remained involved in the program, serving as ninth-grade coach for five years and later as a volunteer.

Stylish swimming Burnsville senior Ben Albert won the 100-yard breaststroke at the state Class AA boys swimming and diving meet. He add-ed a third place in the 200 individual medley. Sophomore Angela Le scored 30 of Burnsville’s 36 points at the Class AA girls swimming meet by finishing third in the 100 butterfly and fifth in the 100 backstroke.

Email Mike Shaughnessy at [email protected].

Burnsville’s Lindsey Coleman (left) pursues the ball during a state Class AA girls soccer semifinal game against Lakeville North at the Metrodome. (Photo by Rick Orndorf)


Eastview’s defending champs don’t go out without a fightLacrosse, soccer championship

games go to final moments

by Mike ShaughnessySUN THISWEEK


Highlights of Eastview High School’s 2012 year in sports included first-time state championships for the Lightning’s boys soccer and lacrosse teams. In 2013, those teams were close to writing the same script. Final-moment defeats in the state finals kept those teams from repeat-ing, but they will be re-membered for the spir-ited defense of their titles. Those are a couple of the highlights we look back on in the 2013 year in re-view:

13 seconds

from glory When asked about loss-es, coaches sometimes like

to say, “We didn’t lose. We just ran out of time.” In the case of East-view’s boys lacrosse team, that might be more truth than cliche. Eden Prairie’s J.D. Spielman scored with 13 seconds remaining as the Eagles defeated East-view 9-8 in the state title game at Chanhassen High School. Eastview never led in the championship game and was down 3-0 in the first quarter, but fought back to tie the game in the fourth on goals 34 seconds apart by Mike Stillings and Ryan McNamara. Eastview had a last-second chance to tie the game, but the shot was blocked. It was still an outstand-ing season by a team that had to replace the start-ing goalie and several de-fenders from its 2012 state championship team. Eastview also estab-lished itself as a school that college lacrosse re-cruiters shouldn’t over-

look. Division I signings are still rare for Minne-sota lacrosse players, but Eastview sent McNamara (Marquette) and girls team goalie Taylor Tvedt (Lehigh) to Division I pro-grams.

Wild one

at the dome Eastview and North St. Paul saw to it that the last high school soccer game played at the Metrodome wouldn’t be tentative and defense-oriented. They played a fast-paced, offen-sive-minded game in the Class AA final that went to a penalty-kick shootout before North St. Paul pre-vailed 4-3. The Lightning got goals from Sam Fluegge, Jack Teske and Brett La-Doux, each one tying the game after North St. Paul took a one-goal lead. In the shootout, Eastview could not recover from an attempt that hit the goalpost. North St. Paul

converted on all five of its kicks to win its first state championship. Eastview played in the Class AA championship for the third consecutive year, becoming to first school to do so since Edi-na in 1999-2001.

Climbing

the charts Eastview didn’t start the season far from the top in the state Class 4A girls basketball rankings, but it wasn’t long before the Lightning zoomed to No. 1. After winning its first six games – only one of which was played on its home court – Eastview took the top spot in the state rankings. They beat previous No. 1 Hopkins and No. 4 Lakeville North on the road to take the No. 1 ranking before the holi-day break. The Lightning, led by senior Kari Opatz and juniors Madison Gue-bert and Hana Metoxen,

are aiming to make a third consecutive trip to the state tournament.

Hot goalie There’s a reason people say a hot goaltender can be a hockey team’s biggest asset. In late December 2012, the Eastview boys hockey team was 4-5-1 and wasn’t on anybody’s list of state tournament contend-ers. But the Lightning won 14 of its last 20 and played in the state tournament for the first time in 12 years. One of the keys to the turnaround was the play of sophomore goalie Zach Driscoll, who became the starter in midseason. Eastview upset No. 1-seeded Eagan in the Sec-tion 3AA championship game and went on to fin-ish sixth in the state tour-nament. Driscoll, defenseman Pierce Erickson and for-ward Jake McGlocklin are back this season as the Lightning tries to return to state – a task that be-

comes more difficult with the addition of private school power St. Thomas Academy to Section 3AA.

Also worth noting • One Eastview athlete came away from the state track and field meet with a first-place medal. Senior Ryan Lockard cleared 6 feet, 7 inches to win the boys high jump by one inch. • Sophomore Jordan Kopfer finished third at the state Class AA girls tennis singles tournament, the highest finish for any player in Eastview history. • Allie Funk’s second-place finish in the pole vault helped Eastview to ninth place in the state Class AA girls track meet. • Eastview reached the state Class 6A football quarterfinals for the sec-ond consecutive year be-fore losing to Rosemount 38-7 at TCF Bank Stadi-um.


LEGAL NOTICES

COUNTY OF DAKOTAPUBLIC NOTICE

NOTICE OF INTENT OPERATE AERATION

SYSTEM MCDONOUGH LAKE – LEBANON HILLS

REGIONAL PARKThe County of Dakota, pursu-

ant to the terms and conditions of a Permit to Lake Aeration System, granted by the Minnesota Depart-ment of Natural Resources, hereby gives notice of its intent to operate a winter lake aeration system in the City of Eagan. The system shall consist of an air injection pump. The system shall be in operation on McDonough Lake in the northeast section of Lebanon Hills Regional Park. The period of aeration op-eration shall be during periods of suitable ice cover commencing on or about January 1, 2014, and end-ing on or about April 1, 2014. The aeration system may create open water and thin ice conditions. The public is cautioned to stay clear of all areas marked with warning signs on the lake. For further information call 952.891.7992.

Published inSun Thisweek Burnsville Eagan,

December 20, 27, 2013151132

CITY OF BURNSVILLEMINNESOTA

ORDINANCE NO. 1311SUMMARY OF AN

ORDINANCE AMENDING CITY CODE TITLE 3,

CHAPTER 23 CONCERNING THE SALE, POSSESSION, AND USE OF TOBACCO

PRODUCTS AND TOBACCORELATED DEVICES,

UPDATING THE DEFINITION OF TOBACCO PRODUCTS

TO CONFORM TO NEW STATE LEGISLATION

The City Council of the City of Burnsville on December 17, 2013, ad-opted an ordinance revising the City’s regulations concerning the sale, pos-session and use of tobacco, tobacco products and tobacco related devices.

Printed copies of the entire text ofthe City Code and this ordinance are available, for sale or inspection, at the Burnsville City Hall during regular business hours.

This ordinance shall be effective im-mediately upon its passage and publi-cation according to law.

APPROVED FOR PUBLICATION this17th day of December, 2013, by the City Council of the City of Burnsville.BY ORDER OF THE CITY COUNCIL MACHEAL COLLINS, CITY CLERK

Published in Burnsville/Eagan

December 27, 2013155830

SUMMONS (FORECLOSURE OF MORTGAGE)

State of Wisconsin Circuit Court – St. Croix County Publication Summons - Case No. 13-CV-592 - The Honorable Eric J. Lundell - Case Code 30404 (Foreclosure of Mortgage) - The amount claimed exceeds $10,000.00 - Wells Fargo Bank, N.A., 3476 Stateview Blvd., Ft. Mill, SC 29715, Plaintiff vs. James L. DuBeau, Ashlea M. Drost a/k/a Ashlea M. DuBeau, John Doe Drost and Jane Doe DuBeau, 11751 W. River Hills Dr., Apt. 326, Burnsville, MN 55337-7246, De-fendants – The State of Wisconsin - To each person named above as a defendant: You are hereby noti-fied that the plaintiff named above has filed a lawsuit or other legal action against you. Within 40 days after 12/20/13 you must respond with a written demand for a copy of the complaint. The demand must be sent or delivered to the court, whose address is 1101 Carmichael Rd., Government Center, Hudson, WI 54016 and to Gray & Assoc., L.L.P., plaintiff’s attorney, whose address is 16345 W. Glendale Dr., New Berlin, WI 53151. You may have an attorney help or represent you. If you do not demand a copy of the complaint within 40 days, the court may grant judgment against you for the award of money or other legal action requested in the com-plaint, and you may lose your right to object to anything that is or may be incorrect in the complaint. A judgment may be enforced as pro-vided by law. A judgment awarding money may become a lien against any real estate you own now or in the future, and may also be en-forced by garnishment or seizure of property. Dated 12/2/13, William N. Foshag, State Bar No. 1020417, Gray & Assoc., L.L.P., Attys. for Plaintiff, 16345 West Glendale Dr., New Berlin, WI 53151, (414) 224-1987. Gray & Assoc., L.L.P. is attempting to collect a debt and any information obtained will be used for that purpose. If you have previously received a discharge in a chapter 7 bankruptcy case, this communication should not be con-strued as an attempt to hold you personally liable for the debt.


December 20, 27, 2013, January 3, 2014

65034

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT 191

CLOSED SESSION NOTES DECEMBER 5, 2013

This meeting will be closed as permittedby Minnesota Statutes, section 13D.03 todiscuss ISD 191’s labor negotiation strat-egies.

The school board closed session wascalled to order by Chair Sweep at 8:55

S S

p.m. at the Burnsville High School SeniorCampus in the Diamondhead EducationCenter.

Members present: Directors Luth, Alt, Hill, Currier, VandenBoom and ChairSweep.

Others in Attendance: Joe Gothard, su-perintendent; Lisa Rider, executive direc-tor of business services; Brady Hoffman,director of accounting; Stacey Sovine, ex-ecutive director of human resources; andJami Kenney, executive assistant.

The following item was discussed:• Negotiation Strategies with the Burns-

ville Education Association. The closed session adjourned at 10:27

p.m.Date Approved: December 19, 2013/s/ Bob VandenBoom, clerk

Published in the Burnsville/Eagan

December 27, 2013155661

NOTICE OF PUBLIC SALENotice is hereby given that on

February 18th, 2014 at 10:00 a.m. at 14750 W. Burnsville Parkway, Lot 264, Burnsville, MN 55306 the following property will be sold by public auction by the Sheriff of Da-kota County:

A 1971 Holly Park Manufactured Home, VIN number 27954

and any contents therein or about the premises.

This sale will be held to satisfy a claim upon the above described property held by Camelot Acres MHC, LLC d/b/a Arbor Vista MHC pursuant to Minnesota Statutes 504B and 514. Upon information and belief, this property is owned by Robert James Anderson. The amount of the claim against the above referenced property is $9,140.00 computed from the date of abandonment on November 17, 2012 to the date of the sale at the rate of $20.00 per day, exclusive of the expenses of making said sale.

The grounds for the lien held by Arbor Vista are as stated in M.S.A. §§514.18 (1) and (4), 514.19(2), and 504B.271(1), in that PFS MHC, LLC is holding and storing the personal property described above to its preservation and careDated: December 23, 2013CONLAN LAW GROUP, PLLC/s/ Mick L. Conlan1600 Hopkins CrossroadMinnetonka, MN 55305

Published in theBurnsville/Eagan

December 26, 2013, January 2, 9, 2014

156052

INDEPENDENT SCHOOL DISTRICT 191 SCHOOL

BOARD MINUTES DECEMBER 5, 2013

The meeting of the Board of Educationwas called to order by Chair Sweep a 6:30 p.m. at the Burnsville High School SeniorCampus in the Diamondhead EducationCenter.

Members present: Directors Vanden-C C

Boom, Luth, Hill, Currier, Alt, and ChairSweep. Others in attendance were Su-perintendent Gothard, Student Advisor Shreedaran, administrators and staff. Di-rector Schmid was absent.

Sweep welcomed the public and askedHill to lead the Pledge of Allegiance.

The board recognized the Girls’ SwimTeam, Girls Soccer Team and NationalMerit Commended Students.

Moved by VandenBoom, seconded byLuth, to approve the agenda. Motion car-ried (6, 0).

Moved by Alt, seconded by Currier, toapprove the consent agenda as follows:

- Approved minutes of November 21, 2013, regular board meeting.

- Approved personnel changes for M.Burke, R. Debronsky, D. Bernard, E. Moe,and M. Crispino.

- Adopted a resolution to approve andaccept donations as presented. A com-plete list of donations is on the districtwebsite.

- As authorized by Minnesota StateStatute 169.443 subd 3, approved as pre-sented school bus stops at which school bus drivers shall not activate the eight wayflashing red signals and authorize the di-rector of transportation to modify the listas necessary as school bus routes aremodified.

- Accepted the 2013-2014 AmericanIndian Parent Advisory Committee Reso-lution.

- Approved, on a second reading basis, Board Policy 706: Acceptance of Gifts.

- Approved, on a second reading basis, Board Policy 709: Student TransportationSafety Policy.

- Approved changing the Policy ReviewCommittee meeting scheduled on De-cember 23, 2013, to December 19, 2013,at 5:00 PM at the Campus Cup Café (200W. Burnsville Parkway, Burnsville, MN55337).

- Approved scheduling a closed meet-ing on December 19, 2013, to discussIssues related to security as permitted byMinnesota State Statute 13D.05 Subd. 3. The closed meeting will follow the regular board meeting that is scheduled to beginat 6:30 p.m. at the Senior Campus, 200W. Burnsville Parkway, Burnsville, MN, 55337.

- Approved appointing Director Luth as an alternate on the Ad Hoc TechnologyCommittee.

Motion carried (6, 0).Received a report from Dr. David Ber-

nard on the ISD 191 and ISD 194 Collab-orative Integration Plan.

Received a report from SuperintendentGothard regarding Community Days.

An oral report was given by Student Ad-visor Sangeetha Shreedaran.

An oral report was given by Superinten-dent Gothard.

Oral reports were given by Director Altand Chair Sweep.

Moved by VandenBoom, seconded byAlt, to adjourn to a closed session at 8:47p.m. to discuss the negotiation strategy.Motion carried (6, 0).Date Approved: December 19, 2013/s/ Bob VandenBoom, Clerk

Published in the Burnsville/Eagan

December 27, 2013155676

CITY OF BURNSVILLEBURNSVILLE, MINNESOTA

ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS2014 ANNUAL PURCHASE OF WATER TREATMENT

CHEMICALSNOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that

sealed proposals will be received by the City Council of the City of Burns-ville at 100 Civic Center Parkway,Burnsville, MN 55337, until 11 a.m. on Tuesday the 7th day of January,2014, for the furnishing of water treat-ment chemicals. Specific chemicals to be bid are Fluoride, Phosphate, Ferric Chloride, Polymer, and Sodium Permanganate. Details regarding typeand quantity are in the bid documents.

Digital copies of the Contract Docu-ments can be obtained at www.questcdn.com or www.burnsville.org/bids. Bidders can download the Con-tract Documents for $20 by search-ing for the project on the QuestCDNwebsite’s Project Search page or se-lecting the Engineering/Public Work Bid link and then the project on the Burnsville website. Please contact QuestCDN.com at (952) 233-1632 or [email protected] for assistance in free membership registration, down-loading and working with this digital project information. Bidders can also view the Contract Documents at either website free of charge.

All Bids must be submitted on the Proposal Form provided for in accor-dance with the Contract Documents. No Bids will be considered unless sealed and filed with the City Clerk ofthe City of Burnsville and endorsedupon the outside wrapper with a brief statement or summary of the work for which the Bid is made. All Bids must be accompanied by a Bid Security in the amount of five percent (5%) of the Bid, to be forfeited as Liquidated Damages in the event that the Bidis accepted and the Bidder fails to promptly enter into a written Contract, provide documentation of the required insurance and/or the required Bonds in accordance with the Instruction to Bidders.

Immediately following expiration ofthe time for receiving Bids, the Bidswill be opened and read aloud by atleast two officers or agents of the Cityof Burnsville. The City of Burnsvillereserves the right to reject any or all Bids, to waive informalities, and to award the Bid in the best interest of the City. Bids are subject to accep-tance and may not be withdrawn fora period of forty-five (45) days. The City Council is tentatively scheduled to consider such Bids on Tuesday, January 21, 2014 at 6:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers.

BY ORDER OF CITY COUNCILMacheal Collins, City ClerkCity of Burnsville, Minnesota


December 27, 2013, January 3, 2014153990

CITY OF BURNSVILLE ORDINANCE NO. 1310CITY OF BURNSVILLE,

MINNESOTA AN ORDINANCE AMENDING CITY CODE

TITLE 1, CHAPTER 9 OF THEBURNSVILLE CITY CODE REGARDING DEFERRED SPECIAL ASSESSMENTS

The City Council of the City of Burnsville ordains as follows:

S C O C S

SECTION 1. Title 1, Chapter 9, Sec-tion 1 of the Burnsville City Code isamended to add the underlined lan-guage to read as follows:

1-9-1: DEFERRED SPECIAL AS-SESSMENTS PROVIDED: The Council may defer the payment of any special assessment on homestead property owned by a person who is sixty-fiveyears of age or older, or retired by reason of permanent and total dis-ability, or a member of the Minne-sota National Guard (or other militaryreserves) ordered into active military service when payment of the assess-ment would create a hardship upon the property owner as defined herein. The deferment shall be granted upon a certification by the owner on the form prescribed by the County Audi-tor supplemented by the City Clerkto establish the qualification of theowner for such deferment. The appli-cation shall be made within thirty (30) days after the adoption of the assess-ment roll by the Council and shall be renewed each following year upon thefiling of a similar application not laterthan September 30. The Council shall either grant or deny the deferment.If the Council grants the deferment, the Clerk shall notify the County Au-ditor who shall, in accordance with Minnesota Statutes, section 435.194, record a notice of the deferment withthe County Recorder setting forth the amount of the assessment.

SECTION 2. Title 1, Chapter 9, Sec-tion 4 of the Burnsville City Code isamended to add the underlined lan-guage to read as follows:

1-9-4: DEFERENT TERMINATION:The option to defer the payment of special assessments shall terminateand all amounts accumulated plus applicable interest shall become due upon the occurrence of any one of the following events:

(A) The death of the owner when there is no spouse who is eligible for deferment; (B) The sale, transfer or subdivision of all or any part of theproperty;

(C) Loss of homestead status on theproperty;

(D) The City determines the owner or owner’s spouse no longer qualifies forthe deferral (return from military duty)

(E) Determination by the Council for any reason that there would be no hardship to require immediate or par-tial payment; or

(F) Failure to file a renewal applica-tion within the time prescribed by Sec-tion 1-9-1.

Upon the occurrence of the one ofthe events specified in this Section, the Council shall terminate the defer-ment. Thereupon, the City Clerk shallnotify the County Assessor and the County Auditor of the termination, in-cluding the amounts accumulated on unpaid installments plus applicableinterest which shall become due andpayable as a result of the termination

SECTION 3. Effective Date. This or-dinance shall be effective immediatelyupon its passage and publication ac-cording to law.

PASSED AND DULY ADOPTED by the City Council of the City of Burns-ville this 17th day of December 2013.

ATTEST: Elizabeth B. Kautz, MayorMacheal Collins, City Clerk


December 26, 2013155821

camps to be run in one of two ways. Camp directors can run the camps sepa-rately, in which the direc-tor is responsible for fees associated with the camp, or the camp can be hosted by the district, in which the proceeds and expenses are managed solely by the district. District officials discov-ered Virgin had chosen to do both, which enabled him to accept checks made payable to him and avoid paying rental fees. Virgin also oversaw fundraising efforts for Eagan’s boys basketball teams. Prosecutors alleged that between April 2009 and December 2011, Viri-gin took $29,184.42 from accounts belonging to sev-eral youth sports camps

and teams. He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor ordinance violation for failing to ob-tain necessary permits for time at the district’s gyms and was sentenced to one year probation. Virgin spent several decades with District 191 prior to retiring. In addi-tion to overseeing sports programs at Eagan High School, he coached girls basketball and soccer for eight seasons at Apple Valley High School and established the Eagles soc-cer program as a power in the mid-1980s. He started the boys soccer and basketball programs at Eagan High School when it opened in 1990. Jessica Harper is at [email protected] or facebook.com/sunthisweek.

COACH, from 1A Family event encourages healthy habits Valley Natural Foods, a food co-op at 13750 Coun-ty Road 11, Burnsville, will hold a free commu-nity night, “A Lunchbox & Snowshoe of Healthy Habits,” from 5-7 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 7. Activities include: • Dakota County Parks’ snowshoeing: An instruc-tor from Dakota County Parks will teach kids how to snowshoe outside in the snow at the co-op. Snow-shoes will be provided. Dress warm. The instruc-

tor will lead a new group outside every 20 minutes. Meet in the classroom. • Lalo’s lunch box: Lalo is a whimsical jani-tor with a magical lunch box who will bring his healthy eating antics. Kids can have fun taste-testing vegetables that spring up from his lunch box in the produce department. Lalo is played by Gillette Chil-dren’s Specialty Health-care employee and actor, Ed Jenkins. • Vote for your favorite

healthy soup recipe: Four students are finalists in the co-op’s Healthy Soup Recipe Contest. Taste test all four of the soup recipes at the demo kiosk and vote for the best. The winning student’s family will receive a $50 Valley Natural Foods gift card. The four recipes are Spin-ach and Sausage Soup (Westview Elementary), Nana’s Hamburger Soup (Northview Elementary), Colorful Soup (Sioux Trail Elementary), and

Low Sodium Potato Corn Chowder (Dakota Ridge School). • The deli will be serv-ing Cincinnati or vegetar-ian chili along with all the fixings and rosemary oven-roasted fries. The cost is $3.99 for adults and children. • Other products will be available for sampling. For more information, visit valleynaturalfoods.com/community or http://bit.ly/K2o2an.

Job Transitions Group meets Dec. 31 Warren Gustafson will present “How to Make Tough Choices When

They Come Your Way” at the Dec. 31 meeting of the Easter Job Transitions

Group. The group meets at 7:30 a.m. at Easter Lu-theran Church – By the

Lake, 4545 Pilot Knob Road, Eagan. Call 651-452-3680 for information.

Tax Guide

2014


a u t o • e m p l o y m e n t • r e a l e s t a t e • b u s i n e s s s e r v i c e s

-- or --TO PLACE YOUR ADAds may be placed Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Apple Valley location and 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at Eden Prairie location.

Deadline: Display: Tuesday 4 pm* Line Ads: Wednesday 12 pm* * Earlier on holiday weeks

By Phone: 952-846-2000 or 952-392-6888

By FAX: 952-846-2010 or 952-941-5431

By Mail: 15322 Galaxie Ave., Ste. 219 Apple Valley, MN 55124

10917 Valley View Road Eden Prairie, MN 55344

In Person: Visit our Apple Valley or Eden Prairie office to place your Classified ad, make a payment, or pick up your Garage Sale Kit.

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SERVICES & POLICIESSun Thisweek reserves the right to edit, refuse, reject or can-cel any ad at any time. Errors must be reported on the first day of the publication, and Sun Thisweek will be responsible for no more than the cost of the space occupied by the error and only the first insertion. We shall not be liable for any loss or expense that results from the publication or omission of an advertisement.HOW TO PAY We gladly accept VISA, American Express, Mastercard, Discover, personal checks, and cash.

INDEX

Garage Sales Transportation$44• 3 lines, 4 weeks, All zones• Additional lines: $7.00• Private party only

Merchandise Mover $44• 3 lines, 4 weeks, All zones• Additional lines: $7.00• Merchandise $151.00 or more

$40 Package• 3 line ad• 2 week run• FREE Garage Sale Kit*• Metro Wide Coverage – 318,554 homes

$42 Package

$42 Package• 3 line ad• 2 week run• FREE Garage Sale Kit*• Metro Wide Coverage – 318,554 homes• Rain Insurance – we will re-run your ad up to two weeks FREE if your sale is rained out.

Additional Lines $10.00Ads will also appear on sunthisweek & minnlocal.com each Wednesday by 9:00 a.m.

*Garage Sale Kits can be picked up at the

Eden Prairie office.

classifieds• Wheels 1010-1070• Sporting 1510-1580• Farm 2010-2080• Pets 2510-2520• Announcements 3010-3090• Merchandise 3510-3630• Sales 4010-4030• Rentals/Real Estate 4510-4650• Services 5010-5440• Employment 5510-2280• Network Ads 6010

2510 Pets

1020 Junkers& Repairables

2510 Pets


5170 Concrete/Mason-ry/Waterproofing


5110 Building &Remodeling

5370 Painting &Decorating

TheOrigina

Family Owned & Operated

TheOrigina

Free Estimates

QUALITY SERVICE Since 1949

Licensed (MN# BC215366) • Bonded • Insured

612-824-2769612-824-2769952-929-3224952-929-3224

TheOriginaThe

Origina

Concrete & Waterproofing, Inc.We Specialize In:

• Buckling Walls• Foundation Repair• Wet Basement Repair• Wall Resurfacing• Garage/Basement Floors

READERS’READERS’CHOICECHOICE

READERS’CHOICEAwards

www.MinnLocal.com

www.gardnerconcrete.netwww.gardnerconcrete.net

The Original



1000 WHEELS


$$$ $200 - $10,000 $$$Junkers & Repairables

More if Saleable. MN Licensed

www.crosstownauto.net 612-861-3020 651-645-7715

$225+ for most Vehicles Free Towing

651-769-0857

1060 Trucks/Pickups

2004 Chevrolet Long-bed 2500 Pickup 72K mi. Wench front end guard $9K. SOLD IT!!!!

1500 SPORTING

1540 Guns

GUN & KNIFE SHOWDecember 28-29

(Sat 9-5, Sun 9-3) $5 Adm.Bloomington Armory

3300 West 98th Street763-754-7140

CrocodileProductionsInc.com

2500 PETS

2520 Pet Services

Rich’s Pet Sitting ServiceDogs, cats etc! Will come to your home. 952-435-7871

3000 ANNOUNCEMENTS

3010 Announcements

Burnsville Lakeville

A Vision for You-AA

Thursdays 7:30 PMA closed,

mixed meeting atGrace United

Methodist Church

East Frontage Road of I 35 across from

Buck Hill - Burnsville

3010 Announcements

Recovery International

Self-help organization offers a proven method to combat depression,

fears, panic attacks anger, perfectionism, worry, sleeplessness,

anxiety, tenseness, etc. Groups meet weekly in several locations.

Voluntary contributions. Dona:

612-824-5773

www.LowSelfHelpSystems.org

3500 MERCHANDISE

3520 Cemetery Lots

For Sale: 4 Lots Glenhaven Good Samaritan Garden$5,000/BO. 320-243-3165

3540 Firewood

Firewood - 2 Years DriedOak & Birch - $125

4’ x 8’ - Delivered.Quantity discounts. 1-888-265-8532

FIREWOODMixed Hardwood - 2 years dried. 4’x8’x16” $125; or 2/$230. Delivered & stacked. 612-486-2674

Ideal FirewoodDry Oak & Oak Mixed

4’x8’x16” $120; or 2 for $220 Free Delivery.

952-881-2122 763-381-1269

3580 Household/Furnishings

Ent Ctr: Oak, $100. Lighted hutch, $300. Cash only. You haul. 763-535-0159

QN. PILLOWTOP SETNew In Plastic!! $150

MUST SELL!! 763-360-3829

3600 MiscellaneousFor Sale

FREE Christmas Kittens! 6 wks, lite orange, 1 girl, 3 boys. 952-469-5155

Kawai Full Upright Piano Excellent cond. $1750/obo 952-894-2450

3610 MiscellaneousWanted

Buying Old Trains & ToysSTEVE’S TRAIN CITY

952-933-0200

* WANTED * US Coins, Currency Proofs,

Mint Sets, Collections, Gold & 14K Jewelry

Will Travel. 30 yrs exp Cash! Dick 612-986-2566

◆ ◆ WANTED ◆ ◆Old Stereo / Hifi equip.

Andy 651-329-0515

3620 MusicInstruments

1940s Mason and Hamlin,baby synetrigrand, inte-rior completely refinished. $7500. 952-412-7607

Everett Upright Piano, good condition, including bench & piano light $300 will send pictures. Kirk 612-998-6190

4500 RENTALS / REAL ESTATE

4510 Apartments/Condos For Rent

Rosemount, 2 BR Off St. prkg. No Pets. Available NOW. $600 952-944-6808

4530 Houses For Rent

2 BR Manuf. Home One level living, New carpet. W&D Hook-ups, skylight

in BA, DW, Microw. Side x Side fridge. $865/

mo. 952-435-7979

Farmington, Beautiful 4 BR, 3 BA Sngl Fam. Home 612-865-7124

4550 Roommates &Rooms For Rent

Lakeville: Rm Shr kit, bath, laundry, fam rm. Inclds utils & cable $470 plus dep. 952-892-6102

4570 StorageFor Rent

Castle Rock STORAGE 6X 8 just $45. Outside starts at $29 [email protected] 651-463-4343

5000 SERVICES

5080 Child &Adult Care

Lic’d Daycare Provider Fgtn.w/over 20 yrs exp. Immed. opngs for 1 yr & up. Marge 651-344-7335

5140 Carpet, Floor& Tile

Above All Hardwood Floors Installation-Sanding-Finishing

“We Now InstallCarpet, Tile & Vinyl.”

952-440-WOOD (9663)

Escobar Hardwood Floors Carpet & Ceramic Tile

We offer professional services for your wood floors!

Installs/Repair Sand/RefinishFree Ests Ins’d Mbr: BBB

Professional w/12 yrs exp.952-292-2349

5% Discount With Ad

◆ ◆ ◆ MAC TILE ◆ ◆ ◆mactilemn.com

Ed McDonald 763-464-9959

SANDING-REFINISHINGRoy’s Sanding Service

Since 1951 952-888-9070

5150 Chimney &Fireplace Services

SWEEP - INSP. - REPAIRFull Time - Professional Ser.

Certified/ Registered / Insured29 Yrs Exp. Mike 651-699-3373

londonairechimneyservice.com

5160 Commercial &Residential Cleaning

Melissa’s HousecleaningReliab. 13 yrs exp. Exc rates S. Metro 612-598-6950

SunThisweek.com


CONCRETE & MASONRYSteps, Walks, Drives,

Patios Chimney Repair. No job to Sm. Lic/Bond/Ins

John 952-882-0775

5210 Drywall

3-D Drywall Services36 yrs-Hang • Tape • Spray • Painting 651-324-4725

PINNACLE DRYWALL*Hang *Tape *Texture

*Sand Quality Guar. Ins., 612-644-1879

5220 Electrical

JNH Electric 612-743-7922Bonded Insured Free Ests

Resid, Comm & Service. Old/New Const, Remodels Serv Upgrades. Lic#CA06197

5220 Electrical

Lew Electric: Resid & Comm. Service, Service Upgrades,

Remodels. Old or New Constr. Free Ests. Bonded/Insured

Lic#CA05011 612-801-5364

TEAM ELECTRICteamelectricmn.com

Lic/ins/bonded Res/Com All Jobs...All Sizes

Free Ests. 10% Off W/AdCall 952-758-7585

Visit us atSunThisweek.com

5260 Garage Doors

GARAGE DOORS & OPENERS

Repair/Replace/Reasonable

Lifetime Warranty on All Spring Changes

www.expertdoor.com 651-457-7776




5390 Roofing, Siding& Gutters

5510 Full-time

5420 Tree Care &Stump Removal

5510 Full-time



123456789

• Use the grid below to write your ad.• Please print completely and legibly to

ensure the ad is published correctly.

• Punctuate and space the ad copy properly.• Include area code with phone number.• 3 line minimum

Please fill out completely. Incomplete forms may not run.

Amount enclosed: $________________________

Classification: ___________________________ Date of Publication: _________________

Credit Card Info: ■■ VISA ■■ MasterCard ■■ Discover ■■ American Express

Card # ____________________________________

Exp. Date __________________CID #__________

Name: _______________________________________________________________________

Address: _____________________________________________________________________

City: _______________________________________________ Zip _____________________

Phone: ________________________________

TO PLACE YOUR CLASSIFIED ADPLEASE FILL OUT THIS FORM COMPLETELY

• Deadline to submit ads is 12 p.m. Wednesday

• Cost is $48 for the first 3 lines and $10 each additional line

Mail order form to:Sun•Thisweek Classifieds, 15322 Galaxie Ave., Ste. 219 • Apple Valley, MN 55124

OR 10917 Valley View Road • Eden Prairie, MN 55344

Or fax order form to: 952-846-2010 or 952-941-5431

Note: Newsprint does not fax legibly, you must fax a photocopy of the completed order form below.Please use this order form when placing your Classified ads.

classifiedsAdvertise in Sun•Thisweek Newspapers and reach 62,000 homes every Friday!


5280 Handyperson

0 Stress! 110% Satisfaction!Status Contracting, Inc. Kitchens & Baths, Lower Level Remodels. Decks.

Wall/Ceiling Repair/Texture Tile, Carpentry, Carpet,

Painting & Flooring#BC679426 MDH Lead SupervisorDale 952-941-8896 office

612-554-2112 cellWe Accept Credit Cards

“Soon To Be Your Favorite Contractor!”

Statuscontractinginc.comFind Us On Facebook

A-1 Work Ray’s Handyman No job too small!!

Quality Work @ Competitive Prices! Free Estimates.

Ray 612-281-7077

All Home Repairs! Excell Remodeling, LLC Interior & Exterior Work

One Call Does it All!Call Bob 612-702-8237or Dave 612-481-7258

Dakota Home Improvement

Kitchens, Baths, Bsmts Drywall, Tile & Decks

CCs accept’d 952-270-1895


3 Interior Rooms/$250Wallpaper Removal.

Drywall Repair. Cabi-net Enameling and

Staining. 30 yrs exp. Steve 763-545-0506

SunThisweek.com

*A and K PAINTING*Get ready for the Holidays

schedule Interior Paint-ing now! Free Est.

952-474-6258 Ins/BondMajor Credit Card Accepted

**Mike the Painter Interi-or/ exterior, Wallpaper, 35 yrs exp, Ins 612-964-5776


Ben’s Painting

Int/Ext, Drywall Repair Paint/Stain/Ceilings. We accept Visa/MC/Discvr.,

952-432-2605 DAVE’S PAINTING

and WALLPAPERINGInt/Ext • Free Est. • 23 Yrs.

Will meet or beat any price! Lic/Ins

Visa/MC 952-469-6800

5380 Plumbing

SAVE MONEY - Competent Master Plumb-er needs work. Lic# M3869.

Jason 952-891-2490


Re-Roofing & Roof Repairs - 30 Yrs Exp

Insured - Lic#20126880 John Haley #1 Roofer, LLC.

Call 952-925-6156

* Roofing, Siding, Gutters Greg Johnson Roofing

612-272-7165. Lic BC48741


A Family Operated Business

Roofing/Tear-offsNew Construction

BBB Free Est. MC/Visa Lic # BC170064

No Subcontractors Used. Ins. 952-891-8586

SunThisweek.com

◆ ROOF SNOW & ICE REMOVAL

Roofing ◆ Siding ◆ Insulation

TOPSIDE, INC. 612-869-1177 ◆Insured Lic CR005276 ◆ Bonded

34 Yrs Exp. A+ Rating BBB

5410 Snow Removal

$350* For The SeasonDriveway Plowing and

Small Parkinglots. *Most Drives 651-592-5748

5410 Snow Removal

SNOW PLOWINGCommercial & ResidentialDependable - Insured - Exp’dLSC Construction Svcs, IncMbr: Better Business Bureau Free Ests. 952-890-2403


A Good Job!! 15 yrs exp.Thomas Tree Service

Immaculate Clean-up! Tree Removal/TrimmingLot Clearing/Stump Removal Free Ests 952-440-6104

5500 EMPLOYMENT

5510 Full-time

Boiler Operator Bachman’s Inc. Lake-ville, MN. Full Time Union. Must have Minnesota 2nd Class Boiler Opera-tor’s license. Greenhouse work is an essential part of work duties.

Contact Eric 952-469-2102

5510 Full-time

Company DriversFarmington. Class A CDLat least 24 yrs old with 2 yrs experience. Must have current health card and

able to pass drug test. Local, 5-6 days a week Call: 651-423-5388

Experienced dry cleaning presser. FT M-F. Perfect Cleaners. Cedar Ave & Cliff Rd. Eagan. Apply in person 612-724-3603 Bob

Get Your GED or HS Diploma now!

Prep and [email protected]

952-431-8316

Head TellerResponsible for super-vising the day to day operations of the teller area. Candidate must be focused on providing ex-ceptional customer ser-vice while performing a variety of duties. Teller experience preferred. Send Resume to:

Lakeview Bank 9725 163rd St W

Lakeville, MN 55044

Reduce • Reuse • Recycle

We’re

BIGGERthan you think!

Sun•Thisweek Classifieds952-846-2000


5530 Full-time orPart-time

5520 Part-time

5510 Full-time


5520 Part-time

5510 Full-time5520 Part-time

Market Research Firm: Seeks detail oriented peo-ple to edit mystery shop reports online. Excellent spelling, grammar and phone skills a must! Paid online training; flex PT hours; pay averages $12-14 per hour. Requires min of 4hrs/day M-F & 1 wknd /mo. Email resume & cover letter to: [email protected]

Need Extra Cash? Looking to start a new ca-reer? Domino’s is hiring for all positions:

*Management*Delivery Specialists

*Customer Service RepsCall (651) 289-3000 ext 111 for more information

or pick up an application at one of the following

locations: Chanhassen, Hopkins, Minnetonka, Ea-gan, Farmington, Lakeville

Part-timeCNA/Home Health Aides needed at The Rivers Se-

nior Living Community in Burnsville. All shifts avail-able. Apply in person at

11111 River Hills Drive, Burnsville.


Crystal Lake Golf Course &

Banquet FacilityNow accepting appli-cants for qualified PT/FT Bartender. Year round positions available. Contact Lorie – Ext 6 at 952-432-6566 or stop in at the golf course for an application.

• LPN PT & FT evenings/night/wkends

• DON/RN MGR FT Days. Needed at The

Rivers Senior Living Community in Bville.

Apply in person at 11111 River Hills Drive, Bville

or send resume to: [email protected]

5540 Healthcare

RNs/LPNsRegency Home Health-Care is seeking part time and full time day, evening, and overnight RN/LPNs to provide services to ven-tilator dependent clients in private homes in the Blaine, Maplewood, Ros-eville, Little Canada, St. Paul, Brooklyn Center, Minneapolis, Plymouth, Crystal, Minnetonka, and Farmington areas. Must have great attention to de-tail, strong problem solving skills, excellent commu-nication skills, and strong clinical skills. Current MN nursing license and CPR required. If interested, please sub-mit an online application at www.regencyhhc.com or fax resume to Allison @

651-488-4656. EOE

Nests

for every

Niche

Turn to Sun•Thisweek

ClassifiedsReal Estate & Rentals


The Burnsville Performing Arts Center will be ringing in the new year with laughter when it hosts legendary Minnesota funnyman Louie Anderson on New Year’s Eve. The St. Paul native known for his TV and film roles (“Coming to America,” “Life with Louie”) has two stand-up shows scheduled – at 7 and 10 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31 – in the Burnsville venue’s 1,000-seat main hall. Tickets are $33-$73 and are available through Ticketmaster online or by calling 800-982-2787. (Photo submitted)

theater and arts briefs

theater and arts calendar

family calendar

‘A Christmas Carol Scrooged’ Heartbeat Perform-ing Arts Center in Ap-ple Valley will present “A Christmas Carol Scrooged” at 1 and 6 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 11, at Eastview High School. Dancers, singers and actors from age 3 to adult star in this humor-ous tale that takes the audience from Christ-mas past and present to future, with a few notori-ous characters as passen-gers. Tickets are available at Heartbeat Studios or at the box office 30 min-utes prior to the start of each show time. To pur-

chase a ticket by phone, call 952-432-7833 by Jan. 8.

‘Best of Bonnie’ at BPAC “The Best of Bonnie and Friends” art exhibit, featuring 31 artists un-der the direction of Bon-nie Featherstone, is on display through Feb. 1 in the gallery at the Burns-ville Performing Arts Center, 12600 Nicollet Ave. The exhibit showcases various media by local award-winning artists. It is on display during gallery hours (9 a.m.

to 5 p.m. weekdays, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays, noon to 4 p.m. Sundays and during arts center events). More information on the show is at www.face-book.com/bonnieand-friends.

Yearwood at Mystic Grammy Award-win-ning country singer Trisha Yearwood will take the Mystic Showroom stage at 8 p.m. Saturday, March 1. Tickets are $55 and $69. Contact the box office at 952-445-9000 or visit mys-ticlake.com for more de-tails.

To submit items for the Arts Calendar, email: darcy.

[email protected].

Auditions “Snow White and the Seven or Eight Dwarfs” au-ditions for youths in grade one and above, Friday, Jan. 3, and Saturday, Jan. 4, by Giant Step Theatre. To sign up for an audition or for more information, email [email protected] with the child’s name, grade level and preference for a Friday evening or Saturday after-noon audition time. Registra-tion fee is $98. Information: LakevilleAreaCommunityEd.net, 952-232-2170.

Comedy Chris Franjola featuring Brent Terhune Dec. 27-29 at Mystic Lake Comedy Club. Tickets: $19. Information: mysticlake.com, 952-445-9000. Louie Anderson, 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, at the Burnsville Perform-ing Arts Center, 12600 Nicol-let Ave. Tickets range from $32.95 to $102.95 at the box office, by phone at 800-982-2787 or Ticketmaster.com. SNL Legends: Rob Sch-neider, Tim Meadows and Chris Kattan, 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, Mystic Comedy Club in Prior Lake. Tickets: $45. Informa-tion: mysticlake.com, 952-445-9000.

Exhibits Best of Bonnie Feather-stone & Friends exhibit will be on display Dec. 19 through Feb. 1 in the art gallery at Burnsville Performing Arts Center, 12600 Nicollet Ave. Information: 952-895-4685, facebook.com/bonnieand-friends. Wildlife paintings by Rosemount artist Lynda Dyk-house are on display through December at the Robert Trail Library, 14395 S. Robert Trail, Rosemount. Winter Art Experience, an exhibit sponsored by the Eagan Art Festival and Ea-gan Art House, is on display through February at the Ea-gan Byerly’s, 1299 Prome-nade Place. Information: 651-675-5521. Savage Arts Council’s December exhibit features digital works by illustrator Franklin Haws. It can be

seen during business hours through Dec. 30 at Savage City Hall, 6000 McColl Drive, Savage.

Music The BoDeans, 8 p.m. Sat-urday, Dec. 28, at the Burns-ville Performing Arts Center, 12600 Nicollet Ave. Tickets are $40-$45 at the box office, by phone at 800-982-2787 or Ticketmaster.com. Cedar, “Human/Nature” CD release show, Saturday, Jan. 11, Amsterdam Bar and Hall, 6 W. Sixth St., St. Paul. Doors open at 6 p.m., mu-sic at 7 p.m. Admission: $7, $10 with pre-order of CD. Ticket link: ticketfly.com/event/447515. “Hope is Alive” benefit concert for St. Jude Chil-dren’s Research Hospital, 7 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 18, at the Burnsville Performing Arts Center, 12600 Nicollet Ave. Silent auction and activities begin at 5 p.m. Elvis tribute artists Steve and Tommy Mar-cio perform at 7 p.m. Tick-ets: $25 at the box office, by phone at 800-982-2787 or at Ticketmaster.com.

Theater “Junie B. in Jingle Bells, Batman Smells” Dec. 13-30 at Lakeville Area Arts Center, 20965 Holyoke Ave., Lakev-ille. Tickets: $13, www.lakev-illeareaartscenter.com, 952-985-4640. The Church Basement La-dies in “A Mighty Fortress is our Basement,” 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 9, at the Burnsville Performing Arts Center, 12600 Nicollet Ave. Tickets: $30 and $40 at the box office, by phone at 800-982-2787 or at Ticketmaster.com.

Workshops/classes/other Winter art classes are open for registration at the Eagan Art House. A class list is at http://www.cityofeagan.com/images/recreation/Ea-ganArtHouse/Fall_2013.pdf. Information: Eagan Parks and Recreation at 651-675-5500 or the Eagan Art House at 651-675-5521. Teen Poetry Jam/Rap Battle, 4-5 p.m. the first Tuesday of each month at Ap-ple Valley Teen Center, 14255 Johnny Cake Ridge Road, Apple Valley, 952-953-2385. Ages 12-18. Adult painting open stu-

dio, 9 a.m. to noon Fridays at the Eagan Art House, 3981 Lexington Ave. S. Fee is $5 per session. Information: 651-675-5521. Drawing & Painting (adults and teens) with Chris-tine Tierney, 9 a.m. to noon Wednesdays, River Ridge Arts Building, Burnsville. In-formation: www.christinetier-ney.com, 612-210-3377. Teens Express Yourself with Paint, 5-7 p.m. Mon-days at Brushworks School of Art in Burnsville, www.BrushworksSchoolofArt.com, 651-214-4732. Drama/theater classes for ages 4 and up at River Ridge Arts Building, Burns-ville, 952-736-3644. Show Biz Kids Theater Class for children with spe-cial needs (ASD/DCD pro-grams), In the Company of Kids, 13710 Nicollet Ave., Burnsville, 952-736-3644. Broadway Kids Dance and Theater Program for all ages and abilities, In the Company of Kids, 13710 Nicollet Ave., Burnsville (Co-lonial Shopping Center), 952-736-3644. Join other 55-plus adults at the Eagan Art House to create beaded jewelry. The Jewelry Club meets on the third Friday of each month from 1-3 p.m. Information: 651-675-5500. Soy candle making classes held weekly in Eagan near 55 and Yankee Doodle. Call Jamie at 651-315-4849 for dates and times. $10 per person. Presented by Making Scents in Minnesota. Country line dance classes held for intermedi-ates Mondays 1:30-4 p.m. at Rambling River Center, 325 Oak St., Farmington, $5/class. Call Marilyn 651-463-7833. Country line dance classes on Wednesdays at the Lakeville Senior Center, 20110 Holyoke Ave. Begin-ners, 9-10 a.m.; Intermediate, 10 a.m. to noon. $5/class. Call Marilyn 651-463-7833. The Lakeville Area Arts Center offers arts classes for all ages, www.lakevillemn.gov, 952-985-4640. Rosemount History Book Club meets 6:30-8 p.m. the second Tuesday of each month at the Rob-ert Trail Library. Information: John Loch, 952-255-8545 or [email protected].

To submit items for the Family Calendar, email:

[email protected].

Friday, Dec. 27 “The Princess Bride,” 10:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., Gal-axie Library, 14955 Galaxie Ave., Apple Valley. Enjoy this bent fairy tale, complete with fencing, fighting, chases and escapes in a time when men were men and swamps were fire swamps, full of quicksand and rodents of unusual size, and the most beautiful wom-an in the world was named Buttercup. For all ages. Free. Information: 952-891-7045. “Despicable Me 2,” 2:30-5 p.m., Burnhaven Library, 1101 County Road 42 W., Burnsville. Comedy adven-ture featuring the return of super-villain Gru, the girls, the unpredictably hilarious Min-ions, and a host of new char-acters. Popcorn and cocoa provided. Ages: 6-15. Free. Information: 952-891-0300.

Saturday, Dec. 28 Free children’s concert led by Colorado-based duo Jeff and Paige, 10:30-11:15 a.m., Presbyterian Church of the Apostles, 701 E. 130th St., Burnsville. Information: 952-890-7877.

Monday, Dec. 30 Board Games, 1:30-3:30 p.m., Burnhaven Library, 1101 County Road 42 W., Burnsville. For all ages. Free. Information: 952-891-0300.

Tuesday, Dec. 31. Dakota County New Year’s Eve party, 5-8 p.m., Visitor Center, Lebanon Hills Regional Park, 860 Cliff

Road, Eagan. Cost is $8 per person if pre-registered by Dec. 30 and $10 per person at the door. Children age 5 and younger are free. Infor-mation: dakotacounty.us/parks or 651-554-6530.

Friday, Jan. 3 Forever Wild Family Fri-day: Fun on the Ice, 7-8:30 p.m., Lebanon Hills Visi-tor Center, 860 Cliff Road, Eagan. Bring your own ice skates or try out the Visitor Center’s kicksleds. All ages. Free. Registration requested at www.co.dakota.mn.us/parks.

Saturday, Jan. 4 Ross Sutter – Animal Folklore, 11 a.m. to noon, Schaar’s Bluff Gathering Center, Spring Lake Park Reserve, 8395 127th St. E., Hastings. Have fun dancing, singing and learning about animals. A Minnesota Legacy Program. All ages. Free. Reg-istration requested at www.co.dakota.mn.us/parks.

Tuesday, Jan. 7 Community Night – A Lunchbox & Snowshoe of Healthy Habits, 5-7 p.m., Valley Natural Foods, 13750 County Road 11, Burnsville. Free family event that en-courages healthy habits in the new year. Includes free tastings and activities. Infor-mation: valleynaturalfoods.com/community/lunchbox-snowshoe-healthy-habits-community-night-january-7/.

Ongoing Alpha, 6-8:15 p.m. Mon-days, Jan. 13 to March 24 (no class Feb. 17), Hosanna

Church, 9600 163rd St. W., Lakeville. Explore the mean-ing of life through the Chris-tian faith in a relaxed and friendly environment. No cost. Register online: www.hosannalc.org.

Blood drives The American Red Cross will hold the following blood drives. Call 1-800-RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) or visit redcrossblood.org to make an appointment or for more information. • Dec. 28, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Culver’s, 3445 O’Leary Lane, Eagan. • Dec. 30, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wescott Library, 1340 Wescott Road, Eagan. • Dec. 31, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Sam’s Club, 14940 Flor-ence Trail, Apple Valley. • Jan. 7, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Messiah Lutheran Church, 16725 Highview Ave., Lakev-ille. • Jan. 7, 2-7 p.m., Ameri-can Legion, 12375 Princeton Ave., Savage. • Jan. 8, 1-7 p.m., Wal-greens, 2200 Highway 13 E., Burnsville. • Jan. 9, 1-6 p.m., Hope Church, 7477 145th St., Ap-ple Valley. Memorial Blood Centers will hold the following blood drives. Call 888-GIVE-BLD or visit MBC.org to make an ap-pointment or for more infor-mation. • Dec. 31, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Lifetime Fitness, 1565 Thomas Center Drive, Eagan. • Jan. 8, 8-11:45 a.m., US Federal Credit Union, 1400 Riverwood Drive, Burnsville.

That’s entertainment 2013A selection of A&E head-lines from 2013 | Concerts offer solace from the snow | An evening with the Man in Black | Hobbits are afoot | Oboe with your cup of Joe | Classical mu-sic – and an oenophile’s bounty | Bluegrass bash | ‘Hollywood’ comes to Burnsville | Controversy came with bestseller sta-tus for young-adult author | Another dimension of sight and sound | Take a stroll down musical lane | Piano prowess times two | Teens experience Myracle | Spinning a web of won-der | Comic is ‘Too Big to Ignore’ | Who killed Edwin Drood? You make the call | Last call for bluegrass | Local author returns with time-travel tale | Lakeville North grad to be Bon Jovi roadie | Slapstick beside the water cooler | Percus-sion ensemble Crash is crazy creative | Fairy tale on Bourbon Street | Indie film puts local actor on the big screen | Adventures in banjo land | Get your kilt ready for Minnesota Scot-tish Fair | Fairy tale love,

against a backdrop of war | ‘Voice’ appearance is latest milestone for local singer | War comes to Farm-ington | ‘What Did You Say?’ author speaks up | Jazzed up at the Galaxie Library | Poetry prowess | Heartbeat: A dream that became reality | For lat-est role, local performer’s lips are sealed | The case of the ambitious young actor | Music at the mar-ket | For festival’s featured artist, photography is an adventure | The Immortal Bard, abridged | An un-likely muse | Exploring the magic of sound | Pixie dust aplenty | Bluegrass brings brothers together | Exploring a post-human future | Young actors head ‘under the sea’ | Sounds of summer | Fiesta in the woods | Peculiar percus-sion | Whole lotta shakin’ in Lakeville | Ramble Jam brings country to city | In Eagan, Beethoven with a modern twist | Shutterbug splendor | Ballet blossoms in south metro | Autumn brings ‘Harvest of Art’ | Farm family with a knack

for the arts | Middle Ages come alive in Eagan | Lakeville actor has Hol-lywood on her resumé | Family reunion for Ole & Lena | Heart songs | 50 miles of fine art | Expert advice on visual wonders | Guitar virtuoso’s jour-ney continues | One-man band on the mend | Rat Pack is back | Family ar-tifact launched Civil War book project | Probing the hidden world of paranor-mal activity | Your own personal Santa | Artwork paints joyful noise | Stars align for bluegrass | Novel draws from dark chapter of family’s history | Tech-nicolor dreams | Holiday hijinks | Author probes reptile mysteries | Animal art | Buffalo dreams and maps of spiritual territory | Windows into women’s worlds | Sex, drugs and rock ’n’ roll come to North Dakota | A blast of Christ-mas facts | Calling for an ‘Encore’ | Holiday show features ‘world’s funniest first grader’ | It’s a ’50s Christmas | Compiled by Andrew Miller

New Year’s with Louie


ThisweekendThisweekend

Children’s theater group launches in Rosemount Backyard Bunch classes begin in January

It’s curtain call for children’s theater in Rosemount. Based at the city’s Steeple Center, Back-yard Bunch Children’s Theater will begin offer-ing classes for students in grades K-8 in January. Among the ini-tial class offerings are Speech Wars, focusing on monologues; Steal the Scene Without Say-ing a Word, touching on stage presence, mim-ing and slapstick com-edy; and Performance Puzzle, a general acting and stage management

course. Backyard Bunch di-

rector Amy Kamarainen, who previously operated the Young Actors The-ater Company in Eagan, said the new children’s theater group will have three or four instructors (in addition to her), with a maximum class ratio of 10 students for every one instructor. Classes will be offered evenings and weekends, with a summer camp schedule in the works. “It is a great new op-portunity for the Rose-mount area – one that is greatly needed for the south metro,” Kamara-

inen said of the launch of Backyard Bunch. “The skills kids learn are lifelong, whether they stay in drama or not.” The children’s theater group is a Rosemount Area Arts Council pro-gram, and is a sister or-ganization to The Front Porch Players, the com-munity theater group the arts council established last summer. More about Backyard Bunch, including class registration information, is at www.bbctmn.com.

—Andrew Miller

Amy Kamarainen

Post-‘Cougar Town,’ Cedar returns with new album

‘Human/Nature’ CD release show set Jan. 11 by Andrew Miller


Rock band Cedar has scored some major coups since the 2009 release of its debut album “Someday Soon.” They’ve opened for Hanson (of “MMMBop” fame), were featured on a Cities 97 sampler CD, and saw two of their songs aired on primetime TV – on ABC’s “Rookie Blue” and “Cougar Town.” “That was a pretty weird situation,” drum-mer Shawn Burtis said of the band’s song “Some-day Soon” appearing as background music on the Courtney Cox sitcom “Cougar Town.” “I’ve been told that (Cedar frontman Jesse Mathews’s) aunt is a hair stylist for Courtney Cox or something. Our tape was passed around at the stu-dio – it was kind of passed around the makeup room and made its way into the hands of the right people.” The band with roots in the Apple Valley-Eagan area – three members are Eastview High School graduates – is set to release its new album, “Human/Nature,” next month, with a CD release show set Jan. 11 at the Amsterdam Bar in St. Paul. Cedar has under-gone some changes since the release of “Someday Soon” four years ago, the most conspicuous being the name change. They were for-merly known as

Cedar Avenue – an hom-age to the north-south thoroughfare running

through their hometown of Apple Valley. “The name ‘Cedar Av-enue’ was kind of just an

o f f - t h e -cuff thing when we made the band in 2005,” said Burtis. “We decided that d r o p p i n g the ‘avenue’ s o u n d e d cooler, and it didn’t dis-tance us too far from the old name.” The band has also seen some lineup

changes. Mathews’ wife and Cedar’s keyboard-ist, Derrin, left the group about a year ago after the birth of the couple’s first child. Joining original mem-bers Burtis, Mathews and bassist Kyle Wachter are two new additions – gui-tarist Justin Lansdowne and keyboardist Nathana-el Raway. “We really didn’t know what the band would do after the last disc came out,” said Burtis. “It sounds kind of cli-che and corny, but we all just like hanging out with each other. A lot of the guys have one or two kids, but we still rehearse every

The members of Cedar are, from left, Kyle Wachter, Nathanael Raway, Jesse Mathews, Shawn Burtis and Justin Lansdowne. (Submitted photo by Jonker Portrait Gallery)

Thursday in Jesse’s base-ment – he has a neat little man cave where we have a glass of whiskey and play some tunes.” More about Cedar and the release of “Human/

Nature” is on the band’s website, www.cedarave-nuemusic.com.

Email Andrew Miller at [email protected].
