South news briefs: Mendota Heights cracks down on public building upkeep

Updated: June 19, 2012 - 12:19 PM

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MENDOTA HEIGHTS

Mendota Heights is considering cracking down on unsightly commercial property.

The city's planning commission is to discuss a proposed new ordinance requiring business and industrial owners to maintain their properties after a public hearing on the ordinance at 7 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall.

The proposal would require routine maintenance of building exteriors and landscaping. The intent is to prevent commercial properties from falling into disrepair, with potentially negative impacts on surrounding property values, officials say.

To read the proposed ordinance, go to www.mendota-heights.com.

SAVAGE

Beer, wine tastings will kick off festival

Tastings of beer and wine are among the events Thursday evening on the opening day of Dan Patch Days in Savage, which runs through the weekend.

The tasting event is in its sixth year, sponsored by Savage Rotary. It's expected to draw more than 500 people, though, of course, no one under 21 is permitted. It takes place from 7 to 9 p.m. in the big tent at Community Park.

Tickets are $20, either in advance or at the gate. You can buy one from Marketplace Liquors or from Rotarians.

For more on the festival, go to danpatchdays.org.

PRIOR LAKE

Downtown road work to end next month

Intersection work at Arcadia Avenue and County Road 21 in Prior Lake is to be complete by the end of July, officials say.

County Road 21 has been down to one lane of traffic in each direction for a stretch during construction. Workers are widening the road from Duluth Avenue to Main Street while working on sewers and water mains.

Duluth Street will be closed toward the end of the job for two to three weeks for heavy work on one short section.

SAVAGE

System of citizen alerts is pondered

Officials in Savage are considering a "reverse 911" system that would allow the city to ring you up in an emergency - or just because some new plan could affect your area.

City Council members were told late last week that senior managers have met with a firm called Global Connect to learn more about the concept and will speak with other providers as well.

The technology allows a city to place phone calls to everyone in town in case of severe weather, or to hone in on a particular neighborhood.

Depending on what the city wants to do, the service could cost between $6,000 and $7,500 per year.

A recommendation will be included in the 2013 budget process for council members to consider, Administrator Barry Stock wrote in a memo.

Government entities of various kinds have moved in this direction in recent years. Universities, for instance, even alert parents across the nation when there is a security concern around campus.

BURNSVILLE

City's teen center gets financial help

Local teen center The Garage won a $25,000 grant from Youthprise, a nonprofit that supports education outside the classroom, to pay for after-school programs.

Located in a former maintenance facility near City Hall, The Garage offers teens a place to hang out, participate in tutoring sessions, and listen to and perform music. Grants have financed many of the programs at the city-run center.

The city has been talking about reinventing The Garage, likely as a chapter of the Boys and Girls Club of the Twin Cities. City leaders have said that this move would create more-stable funding and open the center to all school-aged children. The details are still being worked out.

Youthprise, founded by the McKnight Foundation in 2010, gave out 101 grants totaling $2.1 million. Recipients are to use the money to improve educational opportunities outside of school.

SHAKOPEE

Riverside music and films all summer

Bring a lawn chair and the kids to Shakopee's riverside Huber Park for free movies and live performances on Thursdays through September.

Most shows start at 7 p.m. and last 45 to 60 minutes. Free movies start at sunset, with the next ones coming up on July 7 and on Aug. 1 and 25. Movie titles are announced at www.ci.shakopee.mn.us two weeks beforehand.

There's a weather hotline at 952-233-9502 reporting storm-related cancellations. Movies switch to the community center when there's a problem.

Upcoming events include Jazz on the Prairie Big Band at 7 p.m. Thursday and Battle of the Bands at 7 p.m. June 28.

A full schedule is at www.ci.shakopee.mn.us/parks_events.cfm.

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