SCOTT COUNTY

Another free health clinic for under- or uninsured residents of Scott County is on tap Thursday in Shakopee.

The mobile clinic will set up from 2 to 6 p.m. outside the Russian Evangelical Baptist Church, 1205 10th Av.

A doctor and public health nurses will be on hand to offer services.

The clinic can help those with chronic conditions such as high cholesterol, high blood pressure and diabetes, and clients can get a prescription if needed. The clinic also assists with low-cost prescription drug programs, as well as connecting clients with affordable medical clinics and other resources.

For more information, call Scott County Public Health at 952-496-8584.

DAKOTA COUNTY

Online reservations are being accepted for summer camp sites in two Dakota County parks.

Lebanon Hills Campground has 93 campsites among 2,000 acres of woods. The park, located in Eagan, also offers opportunities to hike, swim, mountain bike, and rent canoes and kayaks.

Lake Byllesby Campground has 57 camp sites, most of them next to the lake on the southern edge of the county. The park and campground offer chances to hike, swim and go boating. Recreational bicycling is also possible along the 25-mile Cannon Valley Bike Trail.

For more information, go to www.dakotacounty.us/parks or call 952-891-7000.

Dakota County is looking for volunteers to wade into local wetlands a few times this summer with the Wetland Health Evaluation Program.

Volunteers will work in teams to collect information on invertebrates such as beetles and dragonflies and plants in the wetlands. No science background is required. Training and equipment, including waders, will be provided.

Each team will take samples from three to five wetlands between June and August. Volunteers are asked to commit 10 to 30 hours for training, fieldwork and analysis.

For more information, visit www.mnwhep.org or call the Dakota County Water Resources Department at 952-891-7000.

Anyone hoping to get on the waiting list for Section 8 housing needs to let the Dakota County Community Development Agency know by the end of the month.

The CDA will be closing the Housing Choice Voucher Program Preference Waitlist at 4 p.m, March 31 .

In the Housing Choice Voucher Program, people who meet limited income requirements pay 30 percent of their monthly adjusted income toward rent and the federal program pays the rest.

Applications will only be accepted from people who live, work or are hired to work or attend school full-time in Dakota County.

People who want to be added to the waiting list must go to the CDA's office, 1228 Town Centre Drive in Eagan. For more information, including income limits and required documentation, call 651-675-4400 or go to www.dakotacda.org.

People interested in transit and transportation in Dakota County can get the latest information on plans for Cedar Avenue at an open house Thursday.

County staff will be available to answer questions about the ongoing work to install bus rapid transit in the corridor by 2012. Project plans are about 90 percent complete, and some construction, such as utility work, is scheduled to begin this fall. Lane closings and more major construction will occur in 2011 and 2012.

The open house will be held at the Dakota County Western Service Center, 14955 Galaxie Av. in Apple Valley, from 4 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday.

For more information, go to www.dakotacounty.us and search for "Cedar." Or call Sam O'Connell, Dakota County's transit specialist, at 952-891-7105.

LAKEVILLE

A new church-sponsored group is aiming to help single women south of the river with low-cost services and informational sessions.

The nonprofit organization, Minnesota Women of Worth, started in January at the Edge Church, 16108 Harmony Path, Lakeville. The group is "a nonprofit ministry whose mission is to help single women find answers to questions and meet needs not currently being met through community resources," said director Kathryn Trevis.

The group's February meeting featured a presentation by a health care expert, and a tax accountant spoke at its March meeting. April's speaker will be a police officer who will discuss self defense.

In addition, the group will offer $5 haircuts on the second Saturday of each month at the church, and $5 oil changes on the fourth Saturday at Mark Trevis Transmission in Farmington. The church also operates a food shelf on the third Saturday of the month that is open to anyone.

For more information about the meetings and how to sign up for haircuts and oil changes, e-mail katy@mnwomenofworth.com.

BURNSVILLE

Paul Oelrich has been named Burnsville's 2009 officer of the year.

He led the police department's patrol unit in drunken driving arrests and moving citations, placed second in total number of traffic stops and ranked sixth in custodial arrests last year.

Oelrich also has worked on numerous Dakota County traffic safety projects over the past three years.

INVER GROVE HEIGHTS

In an important but not unexpected procedural step, the Minnesota Legislature last week lifted a two-year demolition moratorium on what's left of the Rock Island Swing Bridge on the border between Dakota and Washington counties near Inver Grove Heights.

The moratorium was enacted when concerned groups were trying to save the circa 1880 double-decker bridge over the Mississippi River. It halted demolition that was already underway on the Washington County side.

The remnants of the bridge on the Dakota County side will be transformed into a scenic pier allowing grand views of the river. Now that those plans are in place, Washington County plans to finish the demolition on its side of the river while Inver Grove Heights continues with the restoration on its side.

DAVID PETERSON, DYLAN BELDEN, KATIE HUMPHREY AND DEAN SPIROS