Metro briefs: Blaine City Council names new city manager

Wolfe was chosen from among five finalists who participated in an on-site interview process on June 24-25. According to a news release, she was the top choice for all finalist interview panels.

The finalists were selected with the help of a Texas-based recruitment firm from a field of 38 applicants from 12 states and two countries.

Wolfe was city administrator for Arden Hills from 2003 to 2007 and has more than 26 years of experience in local government. Blaine Mayor Tom Ryan called her selection as city manager "a home run."

KEVIN DUCHSCHERE

Carver County once again has been named the happiest county in the United States by SmartAsset.com, a personal finance company that ranks counties with populations greater than 50,000.

Carver ranked No. 1 on the same list in 2018 and third or fourth in the three previous years on the list, which is based on family stability, physical health and economic security.

Neighboring Scott County is ranked seventh this year, its first time in the Top 10.

Katy Read

Plans to install a splash pad in Shakopee's Lions Park are moving forward after the Shakopee Public Utilities Commission voted Monday to waive a water connection fee that some considered too high.

Greg Stoks, a Shakopee native who works for a company called Landscape Structures, had offered to donate a $50,000 splash pad with a hydraulic system he had designed for installation in the park. The Lions Club planned to donate the labor and equipment, said Mayor Bill Mars.

But installation came with a $211,000 connection charge that the Lions would have had to foot. The hefty fee had spurred talk of moving the splash pad elsewhere.

Mars is happy that the plan is back on, though he said he doesn't know an exact timeline for construction. "This is a real win for our community as a whole," he said.

The Greater Stillwater Chamber of Commerce will launch a community leadership program in September, offering nine one-day sessions for 25 participants selected by a committee.

The Leadership in the Valley program is designed to enhance leadership skills and foster and understanding of trends in the Stillwater area. Across the nation, two-thirds of chambers of commerce offer leadership programs, said Robin Anthony, executive director of the Greater Still­water Chamber of Commerce.

"Now the Stillwater area will be included in that statistic," she said. "We have so much to be proud of with our history, passion for community and the future of the St. Croix Valley."