Dakota County
Tribune
Farmington | Rosemount and the surrounding areas www.dakotacountytribune.com
NEWS Party in blue jeans organized Farmington Area Education Foundation holding casual ball to raise money for School District 192 programs. Page 2A
OPINION Recorded meetings Columnist Don Heinzman says when government meetings are audio or video recorded, it increases public confidence. Page 4A
THISWEEKEND
April 9, 2015 • Volume 130 • Number 6
Another Democrat vies for 2nd District nod Dr. Mary Lawrence seeks endorsement along with Angie Craig by Tad Johnson SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Another Democrat will vie for the party’s 2016 endorsement in the 2nd Congressional District. Dr. Mary Lawrence, who has served as deputy executive director for the Vision Center of Excellence, will vie for the endorsement against Eagan resident Angie Craig. Craig, who said she was running in the 2nd District in January, made her announcement official this week. The newspaper’s story about Craig, vice president of global human resources at St. Paul-based St. Jude Medical, is at sunthisweek.com/?p=161859. The 2nd District seat
Mary Lawrence is currently held by seventerm U.S. Rep. John Kline, R-Burnsville. Lawrence, since 2010 has been responsible for six different divisions at the Vision Center in Washington, D.C., which is a collaborative among the Department
of Defense, the Department of Veterans Affairs and other public and private agencies that are dedicated to vision care, especially traumatic eye and vision injuries. Lawrence told other media outlets that she is relocating from Minneapolis to Prior Lake. She was previously a professor of ophthalmology at the University of Minnesota Medical School, where she was director of cataract surgical education and the director of the Vision Rehabilitation Center. During her time at the university, she was named the Surgical Teacher of the Year. Previous to working in Minnesota, she held a num-
ber of academic posts at Harvard Medical School; Manhattan Eye, Ear, and Throat Hospital; and the Yale University School of Medicine. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry from Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Mass.; a Medical Doctorate from Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, and a Master of Public Health from Yale University. The newspaper was unable to connect with Lawrence before deadline, but she wrote in a statement release to the Pioneer Press: “After serving our nation’s veterans and service members as a physician at the VA for over 17 years, practicing and teaching
medicine, I’ve seen firsthand the negative consequences a hyper-partisan government can have on the people it’s supposed to serve. But there’s nothing wrong with Washington that can’t be cured with some Minnesota commonsense.� Republican David Gerson, who works for aerospace company Meggitt PLC, announced in January he also would be seeking the 2nd District GOP endorsement. Gerson ran against Kline in the 2012 primary and lost a lopsided endorsement vote in 2014. Kline, 66, a 25-year veteran of the Marine Corps See 2ND, 5A
Showering the community with fun Registration open for many Dew Days events by Jennifer Chick SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Back on the case Apple Valley author Jeffrey Burton returns with “The Lynchpin,� the second in his Agent Drew Cady mystery series. Page 17A
SPORTS
There is something for everyone at the 2015 Farmington Dew Days. Each year, Farmington Dew Days activities continue to grow and this year, a sand volleyball tournament and a children’s puppet show have been added to the lineup. Dew Days will be Tuesday, June 16, to Saturday, June 20, in downtown Farmington. The events will kick off with the crowning of Farmington royalty Tuesday night. Wisconsin-based band The Dweebs will close out 2015 Farmington Dew Days Saturday night. The
Dweebs promise a fun, memorable performance full of stage antics, crowd participation, mock rock icons, confetti, flying toilet paper and more. Dew Days chairperson Darla Donnelly said the Dweebs closed out the 2013 Dew Days and the committee was excited to book the band again this year. A new entertainment event this year is the Toonies Saturday afternoon. The familyfriendly event is coordinated through the Dakota County Library and aims to offer a mixture of music, puppets, skits and laughter. The show starts at 1 p.m. on the main stage. Registration for all of the Dew Days events is open at farmingtondewSee DEW, 7A
The Dew Days Parade attracts legions of people to see the many entrants cruise through the streets of Farmington. (File photo)
Wills authors several education-related bills Technical college, change in aid to districts among the proposals Irish baseball opens with loss Rosemount’s baseball team started the season with a loss and is scheduled to play Eagan at home next. Page 10A
ONLINE To receive a feed of breaking news stories, follow us at twitter.com/ SunThisweek. Check out Tad Johnson’s Twitter feed that focuses on Rosemount events @ editorTJ.
by Tad Johnson SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
Second term state Rep. Anna Wills, R-Apple Valley, has introduced 25 bills this legislative session with several focused on education. Among them are measures that would dedicate funds for remodeling at Dakota County Technical College, give school districts more flexibility in how Compensatory Aid is spent, reduce special education paperwork, and make
529 college saving plans more attractive. Though Wills expects the DCTC funding request of $7.733 million will not be approved Anna Wills this session, she chose to introduce the bill to keep the technical college’s needs in legislators’ minds. The request, which would fund the design, renovation and equipping of the transportation and
See WILLS, 7A
Performances during the last Thursday of the month in Rambling River Park by Andy Rogers SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE
The Dakota County Tribune is an official newspaper of the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District.
INDEX Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 10A
required to spend 90 percent of the aid on a per-building formula. The bill would change that to 50 percent, allowing the district to spend the other half in schools where it determines there is the most need. “For kids who don’t have as many opportunities, this can give them a boost,� Wills said. For fiscal year 2013-14 the Burnsville-Eagan-Savage School District has received the most
Music in the Park series coming to Farmington
PUBLIC NOTICE
Opinion . . . . . . . . . . . . 4A
emerging technologies space, was denied in 2014 after late bonding bill negotiations resulted in the item being removed. Wills said she is hopeful the request will be included in the 2016 bonding bill. Dakota County school districts could gain greater flexibility in how they spend Compensatory Aid, which is allocated based on the percentage of students who receive free and reduced priced lunches. Currently school districts are
Sheltered Reality, a choreographed drumline, will headline Farmington’s first Music in the Park on May 28. (Photo submitted)
Announcements . . . . 12A
There’s something about sitting in a park on a summer evening listening to live music. The Farmington Parks and Recreation Department agrees. Beginning in May, Farmington will hold four free Music in the Park events at 7 p.m. the last Thursday of every month at Rambling River Park near the picnic shelter until at least August. The events are free. All one would need is a blanket or a chair. Recreation supervisor Missie Kohlbeck, who helped organize the event, is hoping to see a few hundred people attend. “Farmington is a growing commu-
nity,� she said. “Should the weather be nice, I hope it will be a good night for families to come out. They’re truly acts for all ages. All of them are great.� The first performance is scheduled for May 28 where Sheltered Reality, a high-school aged drumline, will showcase their choreographed drumming. “Their mission is to bring awareness to homeless teenagers,� Kohlbeck said. “I saw them at the (Minnesota) State Fair. They were fantastic.� Bob and the Beachcombers, a local band specializing in music from the 1960s and 1970s and a Music in the Park veteran, is in on deck for June 25. The band has played throughout the Midwest since 1986, which includSee MUSIC, 6A
Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 13A
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