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Apple Valley www.SunThisweek.com NEWS Abdallah looks to expand The longtime familyrun Burnsville candy company is seeking larger quarters for its factory and retail shop. Page 3A

OPINION Don’t deny school lunches The 2014 Minnesota Legislature should approve the governor’s proposal to support schools in providing lunch to all students. Page 4A

THISWEEKEND

February 28, 2014 | Volume 35 | Number 1

Debate on marijuana bill reignites County’s top law enforcement officials want to put out medical marijuana bill by Tad Johnson SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE

Dakota County’s top two law enforcement officials are urging people to press state legislators to strike down proposed medical marijuana legislation. County Attorney James Backstrom and Sheriff Dave Bellows spoke to a group of Rosemount leaders Thursday, Feb. 20, to tell them why the bill as proposed shouldn’t become law. They say in states where similar bills were passed with the intention to help people with serious illnesses, a result has been marijuana ending up in the hands of people who don’t really need it for medical purposes. “If we approve it for medical use, we have just approved it for recreational use,� Bellows said, referring to the experiences in other

Jim Backstrom

Dave Bellows

states. The bill has too many qualifying conditions for patients who would be able to possess 2.5 ounces of marijuana, according to Backstrom and Bellows. Those conditions range from cancer to severe pain. In Colorado, they said 3 percent of cancer patients were approved for medical marijuana while about 95 percent of people with chronic or severe pain were approved.

Supporters say generally medical marijuana laws in 20 states and Washington, D.C., are working well and providing patients with relief and protection from arrest, according to the Marijuana Policy Project. Backstrom and Bellows said most of the patients using medical marijuana are young while males. They added that 50 percent of medical marijuana purchasing cards were approved by 12 doctors in Colorado – an indication that there is lax oversight and abuse in the system. The state has about 900 doctors who can approve use. The county attorney and sheriff said they are sympathetic to people who suffer from serious medical conditions, but feel that there are medications on the market that have the same chemicals as marijuana and are more effec-

tive. “(Those medications) have restricted, controlled use in terms of their quantity and quality and are sold in pharmacies,� Backstrom said. “We need to continue to study� these medications. It has been reported that allowing marijuana extracts in a pill or inhaler form could emerge in a compromise bill this session. The current bill would allow marijuana to be sold in dispensaries that would be limited by size, with four counties having two or more, 45 having one and 38 having none. The proposal also details conditions for prescribing, licensing, growing and dispensing marijuana. The Minnesota Legislature approved a bill to legalize medical See MARIJUANA, 11A

Longtime legislator will not seek re-election

Winter waterland

Holberg: ‘16 years is a long time’ by Laura Adelmann SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE

Frozen Apple concert This year’s Frozen Apple music series concludes March 1 with a concert by Michael Monroe at Valleywood Golf Course. Page 16A

SPORTS

Members of the Los Puerto Ricans team plunged into the icy waters of Crystal Lake in Burnsville on Saturday, Feb. 22, as part of the annual South Metro Polar Bear Plunge. Polar Bear Plunge events are organized by Minnesota law-enforcement groups to raise money for Special Olympics Minnesota. Plungers at Crystal Lake swam or walked a short distance to shore before hustling into a warm-up tent. A total of 878 plungers were registered for the event, raising $197,000 in pledges, according to the event website. (Photo by John Gessner)

Eagles to send several to state The Apple Valley wrestling team will send a large contingent of members to the state individual tournament. Page 10A

Republican fiscal and social conservative leader state Rep. Mary Liz Holberg will not seek re-election to the Minnesota House this fall. Holberg, of Lakeville, announced her decision not to seek a ninth term in office at the Republican caucus Mary Liz in Farmington on Holberg Saturday. “It was a tough decision,â€? Holberg said. “It’s certainly a job I love. It’s exciting and you learn new things and I’ve gotten to work with people across the state ‌ but 16 years is a long time.â€? See HOLBERG, 11A

In winter, fire safety starts with a shovel Fire chief urges residents to clear 3-foot space around hydrants by Andrew Miller SUN THISWEEK DAKOTA COUNTY TRIBUNE

ONLINE To receive a feed of breaking news stories, follow us at twitter.com/ SunThisweek. Discuss stories with us at facebook.com/ SunThisweek.

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A garage fire last month on the 4900 block of Upper 148th Court in Apple Valley could have been a lot worse, according to Apple Valley Fire Chief Nealon Thompson. But a civic-minded neighbor had cleared the snow from around the fire hydrant nearest the garage, giving the first firefighters to arrive on the scene immediate access to water needed fight the blaze. “Because the hydrant had been cleared by the neighbor, we were able to confine the fire to the garage and prevent it from going into the house,� Thompson said. The fire chief is asking Apple Valley residents to clear 3 feet of space around fire hydrants near their homes, giving firefighters access to the hydrants from the street.

Apple Valley Fire Chief Nealon Thompson is asking residents to clear 3 feet of space around fire hydrants, as shown above, near their homes, thus giving firefighters immediate access to water when responding to fire calls. (Photo courtesy Apple Valley Fire Department) The basic idea, Thompson said, is that every second counts when there is a fire, and the sooner firefighters can connect hoses to hydrants, the sooner they can get water on fires. There are more than 2,500 fire hydrants in the city, and the city’s volunteer Fire Department doesn’t have the resources to clear snow from them all. “With the high amount

of snowfall we’ve had this year, fire hydrants are becoming harder and harder to access,� Thompson said. “Firefighters having to spend five minutes digging a fire hydrant out of a snowbank is just going to slow down our efforts.� Clearing the snow with a shovel is best, the fire chief added, as using a snowblower has the potential to damage both the hydrant and the snowblower. Thompson said there

haven’t yet been any fire calls this year in which firefighters were delayed by buried hydrants, though there have been a number of fire calls in which “properly dug out hydrants have assisted us.� “We’ve had no significant impact so far, but of course we want to prevent Fire hydrants buried under that from happening,� he snow can delay firefightsaid. ing efforts. (Photo courtesy Apple Valley Fire DepartEmail Andrew Miller at ment) andrew.miller@ecm-inc.com.

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