Town briefs

'Simple Steps' has 1,000 participants County officials are trumpeting a new milestone: 1,000 people have signed up for the county's Simple Steps walking program in its first month.

The program encourages participants to increase the number of days that they exercise 30 minutes or more. So far, participants have reported a combined total of 4,744 days when they were able to exercise for 30 minutes or more, the county said.

Participants can form a group of two to 12 or can join an existing group to walk at least once per week. To sign up online, go to www.dakotacounty.us or call 651-554-6100.

Chamber awards announced Five businesses earned kudos from the Dakota County Regional Chamber of Commerce at an awards lunch last month.

Anchor Bank Farmington; Chroust Dental Office in Rosemount; Mark's Towing in Eagan; Richard C. Schmitt, CPA of Mendota Heights; and Complete Health, Environment & Safety Services (CHESS) in West St. Paul were presented awards for business excellence.

Performing Arts Center celebration A community celebration will be held from 10 a.m. to noon Saturday to salute Burnsville's progress on its new $20 million Performing Arts Center in the Nicollet Commons Park, off Nicollet Avenue and Hwy. 13.

In a light-hearted press release, new Executive Director Wolf Larson and other officials are trumpeting that the last of the "red cranes" will depart from the high beams then. (No, not real birds. They mean construction cranes.)

Police station receives real estate award The Lakeville police station received a real estate award from the Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal at an April 17 ceremony in Minneapolis.

The $15.1 million station, under construction at Dodd Boulevard and 183rd Street, won honors for best nonprofit/government development project.

Police anticipate moving into the station in early August.

New compost site Residents are invited beginning this month to use a compost site being created and manned jointly by the city and the Shakopee Mdewakanton Sioux Community.

Leaves, brush, grass clippings, and other yard waste can be taken to a site just west of the corner of County Roads 42 and 83 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month.

The city will host an open house at which residents can weigh in on the candidate search from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. on May 15 at City Hall, 2875 W. 145th Street.

The city aims to have a new administrator by late summer or early fall.

Disputing tax values Property owners in Shakopee who'd like to challenge the value that the government is putting on their property for tax purposes next year may do so on Tuesday.

The city's Board of Appeal and Equalization is the group that hears such disputes. It will meet at 7 p.m. in the council chambers at City Hall, 129 S. Holmes St.

The group hears challenges both to the value that appraisers assign to property and to the classification, such as residential or commercial, assigned to it. City officials recommend bringing evidence to support any disagreement.