West news briefs

Southdale YMCA plans major renovations The Southdale YMCA in Edina is abandoning a plan to include housing for people with physical disabilities in its remodeling plans and instead will move ahead with an $8 million renovation and expansion of its current facilities at 7355 York Av. S.

CommonBond Communities and the YMCA had been exploring building a new Y on York Avenue that would have had housing for people with physical disabilities on the same site. But the cost was too high, according to Harold Mezile, president and CEO of the YMCA of Metropolitan Minneapolis, of which the Southdale Y is a branch.

"We're disappointed that the vision for a Southdale YMCA that included housing proved to be unattainable," Mezile said in a news release. "The economic conditions of the past few years have not worked in our favor." The Y will be raising money for the renovation and expansion, and expects to break ground early next year and open the new facilities by the end of 2011.

The renovation will include a 15,000-square-foot addition, a new fitness center, additional studio space for fitness programs, and a new heated pool, among other features.

The Southdale Y was built in 1975 and serves Edina, Richfield, Bloomington, Eden Prairie and south Minneapolis. It has nearly 13,000 members and serves an additional 18,000 people each year.

How should Legacy money be spent? Residents of Minneapolis and the west metro who want to weigh in on how the state should be using its new $40-million-a-year fund for parks and trails are invited to hearings June 8 and 15 in Eden Prairie and Minneapolis.

A state panel with the job of recommending a long-term plan for using the money -- which comes from the Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment voters OK'd in 2008 -- is making stops in the two cities as part of a 17-stop tour around the state.

• June 8 at Bryant Lake Park, 6800 Rowland Road in Eden Prairie.

• June 15 at Minneapolis Park Board headquarters, 2117 West River Road N.

More information is available at two websites: www.patl.intergov.mn.gov and www.citizing.org.

Buckle up or get a ticket, police warn Eden Prairie and Bloomington police are cracking down on seat belt violations in "high-visibility, high-impact, heavy-enforcement locations" beginning this week.

Special enforcement efforts are planned: 7:30-11:30 tonight in Bloomington; 6-10 p.m. June 2 in Eden Prairie; 10 a.m.-2 p.m. June 4 in Eden Prairie; and 2:30-6:30 p.m. June 5 in Bloomington.

Memorial Day event to honor three soldiers The Eden Prairie Veterans Memorial Day Ceremony, set for 11 a.m. Monday at Purgatory Creek Park, will honor an Eden Prairie soldier who was killed in Kandahar, Afghanistan.

Eden Prairie High graduate Maj. Randell Voas died along with three other soldiers on April 9 when their helicopter crashed near Kandahar.

Voas's name will be added to the Eden Prairie Veterans Memorial Honor Wall, for Eden Prairie residents who have been killed in action.

Two other veterans also will be honored: Staff Sgt. Edward L. Kromminga Jr., a World War II veteran awarded the Prisoner of War Medal, World War II Victory Medal and Army of Occupation Medal; and Paul Goldstein, a Vietnam War veteran awarded the Silver Star and the Purple Heart.

Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Paul Anderson will deliver the keynote speech. For more information, go to www.edenprairieveterans.com .

In case of rain, services will be held in the Rockford High School gymnasium.

The Rockford Lions will serve a pork chop dinner starting at 11 a.m. in the Riverside Park-Lions Building. A pie and ice cream social will be held at the Ames-Florida-Stork House from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

For more information, contact Eric Lloyd at 763-477- 5045.

Memorial Day Parade starts at Seeman Park The Golden Valley Memorial Day Parade will begin at 10:15 a.m. Monday at Seeman Park and proceed west along Golden Valley Road to City Hall, at 7800 Golden Valley Road. A Memorial Day ceremony will begin at 11 a.m. at City Hall, with Brig. Gen. Timothy J. Cossalter as speaker.

A flag row stretching 1 1/2 miles along Golden Valley Road will be lined with Old Glory and POW-MIA flags.

Chaska parade set for Memorial Day The Chaska Memorial Day Parade will begin at 10 a.m. Monday at the Carver/Scott Educational Co-op, 401 E. 4th St., and proceed to City Square Park at 300 Chestnut St. For more information, call 952-448-4090.

STAFF REPORTS

Sculpture marks Marsh's 25th year The Marsh in Minnetonka kicked off its 25th anniversary year with the unveiling last week of a bronze abstract by Chinese sculptor Zhu Ming.

The sculpture, nearly 7 feet tall and 9 feet wide, depicts a tai chi form known as "The Single Whip" and is symbolic of the Marsh's "philosophy of balance." It stands in front of the Marsh building at 15000 Minnetonka Blvd. in Minnetonka.

"The Eastern philosophy of yin and yang and the use of tai chi as a metaphor for taking care of ourselves and reaching out to others has been at the center of The Marsh philosophy for 25 years," the Marsh said in a news release. Marsh founder Ruth Stricker, who opened the facility with her husband, Bruce Dayton, in 1985, purchased the sculpture four years ago and had kept it in storage until the time was right to install it.