Dakota County briefs

The Schmitz-Maki Ice Arena is back in skating form after about $1 million in repairs.

The city of Farmington celebrated completion of the repairs with a ribbon-cutting and free open-skate session on Sept. 25.

The rink, built in the 1970s, had been springing leaks in its cooling system in recent years, jeopardizing the ice. After much debate about what to do given tight budgets, the city decided to spend about $1 million to repair the in-floor cooling system and replace the dasher boards around the rink.

Most of the repairs, including the new subfloor heating system, insulation and 50,000 feet of plastic refrigeration piping, aren't visible to arena visitors.

Firefighters plan an open houseA demonstration of a rescue from a wrecked vehicle, complete with a medical helicopter swooping onto the scene, will be the centerpiece of the Rosemount Fire Department's annual open house next Sunday.

The event is scheduled from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Rosemount Fire Station No. 2, 2047 Connemara Trail. Food will be available, and the department will display its smoke house and perform a demonstration of how to deal with a kitchen fire.

Dam holds up well as waters riseThe Byllesby Dam looked more like a rushing waterfall, but it was working as planned after rain drenched and flooded nearby areas in late September.

Lake Byllesby, which is formed by the dam, rose from its normal pool of 856.7 feet above sea level to a height of 858.5 feet on Sept. 27. Gates were opened to let water through.

"The dam functioned just as it's supposed to, which is to move water through in a controlled and sequenced fashion," said Michelle Beeman, the county director of environment and natural resources.

The county has approved a plan to purchase the dam, which it has jointly owned with Goodhue County. The historic hydroelectric structure is in need of an upgrade to withstand a "probable maximum flood." County staff said the recent rains and flooding were nowhere near that 100-year flood mark.

Waste collection days draw huge turnoutsAcross Dakota County, basements and garages must be a little bit cleaner.

Two household hazardous waste collections in September -- one in Inver Grove Heights and another in Burnsville -- attracted more than 3,000 vehicles to drop off tons of electronics, fluorescent bulbs and paint.

In Burnsville, about 2,200 cars waited in line, sometimes for more than an hour, to drop off hazardous waste. It was the largest collection in Dakota County history. Among the collections: 60,000 pounds of paint and as many as nine roll-away garbage bins full of electronics.

"The pile of used lawn mowers made an amazing sculpture," Michelle Beeman, the county director of environment and natural resources, said in explaining the "whopper" of a collection day to the county commissioners.

People who wish to dispose of household hazardous waste don't have to wait for such cleanup days. The Recycling Zone at 3365 Dodd Road in Eagan accepts hazardous waste.

For more information, go to www.dakotacounty.us and search for "recycling zone."

Judicial center may get new eateryGood news for hungry courthouse dwellers: The long-dormant cafeteria in the Dakota County Judicial Center may be reopened.

The district already operates the Cafe Hero food service at Dakota County Technical College.

Details are still being worked out, but the new cafeteria could be opened as soon as November.