Champions at last
All aboard
Lakers win first-ever section crown
Local woman sets sail
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PRIOR LAKE
SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2011
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www.plamerican.com
AMERICAN Property-tax relief likely, but mayor and council still disagree on method
More area bank robberies keep police on alert BY ALEX HALL AND SHANNON FIECKE sfiecke@swpub.com
Another day, another bank robbery. Police believe the same suspect who robbed Prior Lake State Bank on Oct. 22 and Paragon Bank in Shakopee on Nov. 1 also robbed banks this week in Richfield and Albertville. In each case, the suspect has worn a dark ski mask and a black, zipped-up hooded sweatshirt, and has displayed a handgun and demanded cash.
However, police say another Prior Lake bank robbery – shortly after noon on Nov. 5 at U.S. Bank, 15830 Franklin Trail – is not likely connected with the others. In the U.S. Bank case, a suspect approached the teller counter while speaking on a cell phone. He demanded cash, and after obtaining an undisclosed amount of money, he fled from the bank on foot. He left in an unknown vehicle that witnesses described as possibly gray in color. He was described as a white man in his mid-20s with a medium
BY LORI CARLSON editor@plamerican.com
PHOTO COURTESY OF FBI
The man who robbed U.S. Bank in Prior Lake on Nov. 5 appeared to have a head cold. So far, nothing indicates he’s the same person who held up other local banks in the last few weeks, officials said. build and short black hair, and he appeared to be about 5 feet 8 inches or 5 feet 9 inches tall.
Robberies to page 14 ®
Prior Lake City Council members are inching closer to using reserve funds to lower property taxes, though Mayor Mike Myser disagrees with the rest of the council about how to offer that propertytax relief. Myser prefers to give taxpayers a larger-sum reduction all in one year, while the remaining council members support reducing the levy over several years. The city anticipates having a $ 550,0 0 0 surplus from the current year, which will bump up the general-fund reserve to more than $7.6 million – about $2 million more than planned. That would leave the city with a 60-percent reserve level, about 15 percent more than needed.
“We’re making changes to the budgeting process so we don’t have these kinds of increases in reserves.” Mike Myser Mayor In a workshop on Monday, Myser offered a proposal for a one-time, 10-percent levy reduction that got no support from other city leaders.
Budget to page 3 ®
‘FOOTLOOSE’
Theater students cut a rug ‘80s classic goes from film to Broadway to PLHS stage BY MERYN FLUKER mfluker@swpub.com
The stage in the Prior Lake High School auditorium is filled with girls in loose-fitting sweatshirts with the collars cut off, wearing side ponytails and leggings. That’s right, folks: The ‘80s are back. But it’s more than just the resurgence of some regrettable fashion trends: the school’s theater department is staging “Footloose” as its fall musical, debuting at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17 in the auditorium at the high school, 7575 150th St., Savage. “It’s a fun flashback to the ’80s,” says director Karina Nelsen. Many of the hallmarks of the 1984 film classic starring Kevin Bacon are present in the PLHS stage adaptation – which is actually based on the Broadway musical – including soundtrack hits like “Let’s Hear it for the Boy” and, of course, the eponymous theme song that was a hit for Kenny Loggins.
PHOTO BY MERYN FLUKER
The cast of “Footloose” rehearses “I’m Free (Heaven Helps the Man).” The musical is based on the 1984 film starring Kevin Bacon, which was later turned into a Broadway show and remade as a film earlier this year. The stage show still finds the hero, Ren McCormack, transplanted from the big city to a small town where dancing is outlawed after some kids die in a car accident coming back from a dance. McCormack battles the local reverend – who happens to be the father of Ren’s love interest, Ariel – when he teaches his high-school peers to cut a rug and challenge the law. “The show, at its core, is about learning how to heal,” Nelsen says.
“I think [audiences] will have a good flashback to the fun of that film, but they’ll see it in a new light.” Karina Nelsen Director, “Footloose” “Dancing is really a metaphor for all of that. It’s not really about dancing at all.” The show is called “Footloose,” though, and anyone who has seen
the original – or the remake released earlier this fall – knows there a whole lot of moving and grooving.
Footloose to page 5 ®
INSIDE OPINION/4 OBITUARIES/6 SPORTS/11-13 AMERICAN SLICE/17 CALENDAR/21 CLASSIFIEDS/24-27 TO REACH US SUBSCRIBE: (952) 345-6682 EDITOR: (952) 345-6378 OR E-MAIL EDITOR@PLAMERICAN.COM.
To go What: Prior Lake High School’s production of “Footloose” When: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 17 through Saturday, Nov. 19; 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 20 Where: Auditorium, Prior Lake High School, 7575 150th St., Savage Cost: $10 for adults, $7 for students
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The best tastes of the season are at your Village Market!
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Great Food for Great Gatherings! Hwy. 13 So. • Prior Lake • 952-440-3900 www.villagemarket.net