Eden Prairie News - County Politics - Comments

Bravo, Mr. Flaherty.

JazzOnThePrairie — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 09:38:11 -0500

Bravo, Mr. Flaherty. Bravo.

Apparently, only dollars make sense. Well, here is a different way to put that into perspective:

Yes, it’s true that a city and its council must be fiscally responsible, but you are making one big mistake: The City of Eden Prairie is NOT a business. If it were, we’d be plowing under every park and athletic field and replacing them with tax-income-producing residential developments and industrial parks. Along with them would go free concerts, 4th of July celebrations, and countless other city-sponsored community events, in favor of some type of “pay-per-view” system. Under a “responsible business plan”, every culturally and/or historically significant building (such as the Goodrich-Ramus barn on Pioneer Trail) would be seen as unnecessary liabilities and immediately torn down, regardless of the fact that the chance for their rescue comes once, and ONLY once; when they’re gone, they’re gone forever.

If, years ago, when our forward thinking City Council was considering what to do with the Smith-Douglas-More property, their only concern had been for the budget, the property would have been sold, the trees and house removed, an office building erected, and a “more appropriate” tenant would have moved in: A law firm. A bank. An insurance company. Instead, what they envisioned was the preservation of one of Eden Prairie’s most important ties to its historic past through an innovative adaptive-use program that would attract a business that, through its very nature, would offer something back to the community, while providing income to maintain what could very well be defined as a living museum. And, so it has been. Dunn Brothers Coffee has not only preserved Eden Prairie’s culture, they have been growing it.

SO it isn’t what would be considered the perfect business plan.
SO they are asking for a temporary break in the rent.
SO Eden Prairie’s 60,000-plus residents would be asked to fork over 50 cents a piece more in property taxes next year to make up for the $31,000 shortfall in order to keep this experiment going…
SO WHAT: Over the past few years, Eden Prairie has consistently ranked among the nations best places to live and raise a family. Why? What’s the term? Oh, yes, “Quality of Life”. This term relates to both the tangible and intangible assets a community provides. Assets that have set our city apart from the others, and, in turn, have increased all of our property values, and – consequently – increased property tax revenue dramatically for the city.
Frighteningly, some members of our current city council and the mayor can’t seem to see that far down the road or think that far outside the box as to realize that investing these dollars now makes good business sense… for ALL of us. And THAT, sir, is BAD business.

Tom Knauer

The Star Tribune is

Karla — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 16:09:50 -0500

The Star Tribune is reporting that in the race for Supreme Court Associate Justice Court 4, a recount has been triggered, because Hedlund and Jill Clark's vote totals were so close.
See story here:
http://www.startribune.com/28160204.html

(Karla Wennerstrom is the editor of the Eden Prairie News. She can be reached at editor@edenprairienews.com.)

Ms. Veurink, I understand

twoputttommy — Thu, 08 May 2008 10:54:11 -0500

Ms. Veurink, I understand you're partisan. And I understand you're trying to paint your party in the most favorable light. But do try to remember that Erik Paulsen's most notable "achievement" while in the legislature was, while serving as Majority Party Leader, leading the state to a shutdown because he - and the Governor - refused to work in a bi-partisan manner.

While local school districts were waiting for the legislature to finish work, so they would know what their budget was, Paulsen "worked" to shut the state down.

And now you're touting Jenifer Loon? Her "record" includes working with Newt Gingrich and on the "Contract On America", which has increased the partisan rhetoric to the intollerable level it is at, today. Newt Gingrich was the author of the seminal treatise on name-calling, "Language: A Key Mechanism Of Control". His "Contract On America" directly led to the Abramoff scandal, the K-Street lobbying scandal, etc etc etc.

Most recently, according to an intro speech for Ms. Loon at the recent SD-42B Convention, she was deeply involved with George W. Bush's re-election.

So, Ms. Veurink, to be clear - you are touting the election of someone that is an entrenched adherent to the architecht for today's bitter partisanship, and the worst president in American History.

Until George W. Bush came along, I did not think I'd ever miss Richard Milhous Nixon. And until Cheney came along, I thought Sprio T Agnew's place as the worst Vice-President was secure.

If you like George W. Bush, vote for Jenifer Loon. If you want more of the same, and want to "Stay The Course!", volunteer for Jenifer Loon.

If you want change, vote for Jerry Pitzrick.

An interesting interview

Karla — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:40:14 -0500

An interesting interview with Madia in "The Rake."
Visit www.rakemag.com for story.

(Karla Wennerstrom is the editor of the Eden Prairie News. She can be reached at editor@edenprairienews.com.)

Here's my slide show of the

Gavin — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 12:30:03 -0500

Here's my slide show of the same convention. I posted this piece on the CD3 DFL convention, too, on my blog, http://www.gavinsullivan.com

Minnesota Monitor reports a

Karla — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:41:00 -0600

Minnesota Monitor reports a missed connection at the Eden Prairie caucus found on Craigslist:
http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/mis/564439714.html
Also, a local blogger described his experience with the caucus.
http://gavinsullivan.blogspot.com/2008/02/precinct-caucus-night-on-prair...
So what was your story from caucus eve?
(Karla Wennerstrom is the editor of the Eden Prairie News. She can be reached at editor@edenprairienews.com.)

Are there any other roads in

Leah Shaffer — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 14:35:08 -0600

Are there any other roads in Eden Prairie that may be long overdue for work?

Here's a breakdown of the

Leah Shaffer — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 14:33:47 -0600

Here's a breakdown of the project:

- Originally the project was to end just west of Gould Road, but it now extends to Shetland Road

- The Pioneer Trail construction is scheduled to begin in late spring.

- The construction is set to cost $17.5 million and will involve the reconstruction of Pioneer Trail from Shetland Road to Flying Cloud Drive.

- The project will widen the roadway to four lanes and add right-turn lanes at every intersection. The width of the roadway is to be 74 feet from curb to curb, which does not include right turn lanes and trails along the road.

- Dual left turn lanes are planned at Pioneer Trail's intersections with Flying Cloud Drive and Eden Prairie Road.

- New traffic signal systems are planned at Flying Cloud Drive, Staring Lake Parkway, Mitchell Road and Eden Prairie Road

- Next: The federal government will need to complete its environmental assessment of the project