South news briefs: Golf tournament benefits Lewis House

The 22nd Annual Lewis House Charity Golf Tournament will be held Aug. 24 at Brackett's Crossing Country Club in Lakeville.

The tournament raises money for the nonprofit 360 Communities and its work with the Lewis House shelters for people escaping sexual and domestic violence. The shelters serve about 3,000 women and children each year.

The tournament, previously only for women, has expanded to include men this year. It costs $125 per golfer and starts at 7 a.m. for men and women. A round for women only begins at 1 p.m. and the golfers will decorate their golf carts and wear costumes that fit with this year's theme, Hero.

For more information or to register, go to www.360Communities.org or contact Laurie Bolin at 952-985-4004 or lbolin@360communities.org.

The Hastings Police Department is accepting applications until Aug. 28 for its eight-week Citizen Academy.

The academy runs from 6:30 to 9 p.m. each Thursday between Oct. 1 and Nov. 19. Participants learn about policing from more than a dozen officers. Topics include drunken driving, criminal investigation, narcotics, SWAT team, traffic stops and more.

Applicants must be 18 and over and live or work in Hastings. Class size is limited to 20 people and applicants are selected on a first-come, first-served basis.

The nonprofit Downtown Lakeville Business Association is hosting a block party, with food trucks and live music, from 6 to 11 p.m. Aug. 21.

The party will be in Market Plaza at Holyoke Avenue and 208th Street. Music will be provided by Erin and Madison, an acoustic duo, and FlashMob! a pop rock cover band.

Moral Omnivore, El Jefe and NateDogs will serve food, and beer and other beverages will be available from Brackett's Crossing Country Club.

Tickets are $5 in advance and can be purchased at any Lakeville ACE Hardware, Ben Franklin, Pink Door Boutique or Citizens Bank. Advance tickets include a complimentary beer for people 21 and over. Tickets at the event are $10.

Prior Lake Recreation will sponsor a horseback riding event at River Valley Ranch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday. The ride is for children 50 inches or taller.

The group will meet at the Lakefront Park Pavilion. Children should wear long pants and closed-toe shoes. The cost is $40 for Prior Lake residents and $45 for nonresidents.

To register, call 952-447-9820.

A change to the city of Savage's parking ordinance that went into effect last month is expected to reduce hassle for neighborhood residents and cut paperwork for police officers, city staff and dispatchers.

The City Council voted on July 6 to allow on-street parking at all hours between April 1 and Oct. 31.

Previously, street parking was not allowed between 2 and 6 a.m. year-round unless a vehicle owner had gotten a variance from the police department. In 2014, police issued 969 variances, with 747 of them given in the summer. Many of those were for students home from college for the summer or for out-of-town guests.

Parking will still be prohibited on city streets between 2 and 6 a.m. from Nov. 1 to March 31. Other parking-related ordinances and parking restrictions will remain. One of those is that a vehicle must not be left in the same spot on the street for more than 48 hours.

Shakopee residents who took photos at last week's Night to Unite can enter their photographs in the Shakopee Police Department's photo contest.

The deadline for submitting photos is 4 p.m. Friday. Submit up to five photos via e-mail to jgrassel@shakopeeMN.gov.

The top two photos will be used in the city's 2016 Night to Unite ads.

Scott and Carver counties are joining forces to teach residents how to be experts in recycling and composting.

The cost of the workshop is $30. When participants complete the course and make a commitment to do 30 hours of volunteering, they will be named Master Recycler/Composters.

Registration deadline is Aug. 31. To sign up, call 952-361-1823. For more information, go to www.carverscottmrc.org.

The Minnesota Valley Transit Authority will have special buses running between the south metro and the Minnesota State Fair from Aug. 27 to Sept. 7.

The fair buses will operate on weekdays (except Labor Day) from the Burnsville and Eagan transit stations and on weekends and Labor Day from the Burnsville, Eagan and Marschall Road (Shakopee) transit stations.

The round-trip fare is $5 for riders age 5 and older. There are no one-way fares. Payments must be made in bills or coins; passes are not valid for the State Fair buses.

On weekends, buses will run every 30 minutes from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Burnsville and Eagan and every hour from Shakopee.

Buses will return from the fair to Burnsville, Eagan and Shakopee on the same schedule from noon to midnight.

For more information, call 952-882-7500.