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THURSDAY, SEPTEM SEPTEMBER MBE BER R 22 22, 20 201 2011 11
EDEN PRAIRIE
news Governor touts infrastructure investments
Art in action
Mark Dayton visits EP Chamber of Commerce BY LEAH SHAFFER lshaffer@swpub.com
City’s Art Crawl offers demonstrations, home studio visits BY LEAH SHAFFER lshaffer@swpub.com
T
he Eden Prairie Art Crawl, now in its third year, will offer not only an inside look at studios but also art demonstrations. A total of 17 local artists will be participating in the this weekend’s event, which is organized by the city of Eden Prairie. “It’s just a lot of fun to come and explore,” said Ann Rorem, a participating painter and chair of the Arts and Culture Commission. Rorem said that this year, eight artists will be offering art demonstrations, something new to the event. Richards Poey is among the Eden Prairie artists who will offer a view into how his creative process works. Poey is a local sculptor most known for making humanoid penguin sculptures cast in bronze. His wife,
Art Crawl to page 10 ®
Eden Prairie Art Crawl A total of 17 artists will be participating in the Eden Prairie Art Crawl events this weekend. The event runs from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 24, and from noon to 5 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 25. Visit www.edenprairie.org for a full list and map to all the participating studios.
PHOTO BY LEAH SHAFFER
Richards Poey will be offering clay modeling demonstrations at his home starting at 3:30 p.m. Saturday during the Eden Prairie Art Crawl. Poey creates figurative bronze sculptures and is best known for his whimsical penguin sculptures.
New American Another step for United Academy reaches out Health Group campus BY KARLA WENNERSTROM editor@edenprairienews.com
Somali-run nonprofit responds to needs in the community BY LEAH SHAFFER lshaffer@swpub.com
A packed house fi lled the lobby of New American Academy last Wednesday as Eden Prairie’s community leaders got an up-close view of Eden Prairie’s de facto Somali community center. New American Academy, which was founded in 2008, offers afterschool tutoring to students along with vocational and continuing education for adults. In many ways
NAA to page 10 ®
$1
PHOTO BY LEAH SHAFFER
Asad Aliweyd is the executive director of New American Academy, a nonprofit that serves the East African community.
New office buildings for United Health Group received preliminary approvals from the Eden Prairie City Council Tuesday. Plans include four buildings totaling almost 1.5 million square feet of office space on 71 acres. “We have taken some very measured steps as we promised to do in the journey,” said Dennis Spalla, senior director in charge of development for United Health Group’s real estate division. United Health Group’s headquarters are in Minnetonka. The Eden Prairie City Council gave the OK to the preliminary plat and planned unit development concept for the new United Health Group office com-
United Health Group location 62
W. 62nd St.
Site
City West Parkway
212 Shady Oak Road
N
Minnesota Gov. Mark Dayton is in the midst of touring the state as part of a series of regional economic development summits. In these meetings, he’s heard common themes, including an acknowledgement of the importance of the partnership between good government and the private sector, he told Gov. Mark members of the Eden Dayton Prairie Chamber of Commerce last Wednesday. “There’s a much greater recognition on the part of business men and women of the importance of government,” he said. Those he spoke with stressed the importance of the early opt-in for Medicaid enrollment, which the governor supported through an executive order in January. The move not only provides better health-care for many in the state, but also means the “difference between solvency and bankruptcy” for smaller hospitals in outstate Minnesota, he said. The governor emphasized the importance of government investment in developing jobs in the state. In Chisholm, the antiquated wastewater facility means the town is not permitted to add any more manufacturing facilities to the system, he noted. Eden Prairie has benefited from the governor’s push for infrastructure funds. As part of the government shutdown compromise, legislation included a $ 500 million bonding bill. The legislation included $10.5 million for renovations to Hennepin Technical College, which has an Eden Prairie campus. HTC President Cecilia Cervantes thanked the governor for his support of technical colleges. Delaying necessary investments in highways and infrastructure is going to hamstring future economic growth, noted Dayton. “Our failure to keep pace in that is going to be catastrophic, in my view,” he said. The number one tax problem he’s heard from businesses around the state is related to property taxes, he said. Property taxes have gone up 75 percent in the past eight years. Cities who rely on local government aid have little choice in the matter, when it comes to fi nding revenue. “At a certain point, you’re getting into police and fire and the other essential protections,” he said. Eden Prairie Mayor Nancy TyraLukens asked Day ton about his support for the Southwest Light Rail Transit Project, which recently
Graphic by Barbara Tieben
Council to page 10 ®
Chamber to page 10 ®
VOL. 37, ISSUE 46/38
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