Let there be light!
Youth in Blaze pool
Readers share photos of favorite displays
Team has a lot of new faces this season
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www.savagepacer.com
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 17, 2011
SAVAGE
PACER Pregnancy Resource Center going mobile
SAVAGE CITY COUNCIL
Sports dome decision to be made Monday BY AMY LYON editor@savagepacer.com
NEIGHBORS A neighborhood meeting was held at City Hall Dec. 5 and drew about 25 residents. City Administrator Barry Stock gave an overview of the sports dome project and allowed time for questions.
“A lot of the questions I didn’t have answers to because we haven’t gone through a formal site plan review process,” said Stock, noting that site plan review comes after a project is given the go-ahead by the City Council. Questions from residents centered on monitoring noise, hours of operation, visitors parking on neighborhood streets, additional demand on the police department, loitering and vandalism. A question was also asked about the possibility of an operating loss and where the City would find the money to cover a deficit if one occurred. The estimated project cost for the sports dome and 5,000-square-foot permanent structure is around $ 5 million and the City would utilize 15-year bonds as a funding source. Initial fi nancial analysis presented by Stock showed annual revenue of $800,000, annual operating expenses of $300,000 and an annual debt service payment of $500,000. “The project budget is conservative as it does not include any revenue related to concessions and indoor advertising,” said Stock. “The budget also includes a $20,000 contingency fund. With that being said, I believe it would be appropriate to be prepared for a potential annual operating loss.” Stock said the two sources of funds to cover losses would be the Park Reserve Fund and the General Fund. If the General Fund were used to make up for a shortfall, each $100,000 would equate to about a $9 increase in taxes for residents. “Is it worth it to our community if this facility would lose $100,000 or $200,000 per year?” Stock asked. Additionally, Mayor Janet Williams talked about the possibility
Alpha Center will put its Savage building on the market Jan. 1
Community Park Current baseball/ soccer field Proposed sports dome
BY AMY LYON editor@savagepacer.com
Alpha Pregnancy Resource Center in Savage has decided to sell its commercial building and turn to a mobile means of delivering its mes-
N
Future baseball fields
Currect Savage baseball Community fields Park
sage in 2012. “We feel at this point that our mission is to be able to go mobile to meet the people,” said Board of Directors President Ianthe Hermann. “As soon as we raise enough money, we’ll go mobile.” Alpha hopes to more effectively reach “abortion-minded” women in Scott and Carver counties utilizing an ICU (Image Clear Ultrasound) Mobile unit, which would
Alpha to page 2 ®
Dakota Ave.
The Savage City Council is expected to make a decision Monday night related to the indoor sports dome proposed at Community Park. The dome would be owned by the City’s Economic Development Authority (EDA) and leased to the city of Savage. During a City Council work session Monday, Dec. 12, council members unanimously agreed to put the sports dome topic on the Dec. 19 agenda; however, Councilwoman Jane Victorey openly expressed her concerns about the amount of debt the City would take on, the size of the dome and the location. “I’m not comfortable with this whole thing,” said Victorey. “I know that it’s only up half the year, but it’s half the year that it’s up.” Councilman Al McColl said “due diligence” has been done over the last two years with research related to the dome. “Regardless of how the vote goes, it has to come to a head,” said McColl. “The only way we can do that is by bringing it to the Council.” The question that will be put before City Council members on Monday will be whether the City should move forward with the project and select an architect. According to City Administrator Barry Stock, the City has received proposals for the sports dome from five architects.
$1
The proposed sports dome would be located in the northern quadrant of the Community Park just beyond the tennis courts.
SUBMITTED PHOTO
Alpha Pregnancy Resource Center hopes to trade in its building on Highway 13 in Savage for an ICU Mobile unit like this one, which would be equipped with an ultrasound machine, bathroom, sofa and meeting space.
Graphic by Lorris Thornton
of increased traffic in the City as a result of games and tournaments at the dome, which she suggested could result in individuals eating at Savage restaurants and getting gas at Savage gas stations.
Savage man gets 20 years for sexual abuse of daughters BY SHANNON FIECKE sfiecke@swpub.com
ATHLETIC GROUPS Nearly a dozen representatives from local sports agencies including Burnsville Athletic Club (BAC), Prior Lake Athletic Youth (P.L.A.Y.) and Prior Lake/Savage Soccer, attended the Dec. 12 Council work session and verbally committed to
Dome to page 3 ®
A 44-year-old man from Savage who sexually abused his daughters for several years was sentenced on Monday in Scott County District Court to nearly 20 years of prison. The women are now in their 20s. The oldest daughter, who suffered the longest, recalled the fi rst instance of sexual abuse occurring
in her parents’ bedroom when she was 7 years old. As a teenager, she told police, she was raped nearly every day. The abuse stopped for the younger daughter after she went to authorities in 2003, but it continued against her sister until last year. No criminal charges were fi led against the man until the second
Abuse to page 12 ®
BURNSVILLE HIGH SCHOOL
Baking club stirs up culinary creations for a cause BY ALEX HALL ahall@swpub.com
PHOTO BY ALEX HALL
Burnsville High School Senior Santiago Espinoza of Savage carefully peels his freshly cut sugar cookie off the cutting board. (Photo reprints available at photos.savagepacer.com)
A lot of people take great pride in their ability to bake. But how many people can say their frosted sugar cookies are feeding American soldiers stationed in Kuwait over the holiday season? Started earlier this month, a new baking club at Burnsville High School aims to make the world around them a better place through sugary delights. The club’s name, WHISK, stand for “Where Happy Individuals Serve Kindness,” and that’s exactly what they intend to do. Earlier this semester, BHS senior Kelsey McGuire of Burnsville approached family and consumer sciences (FACS) teacher Laurie King about starting a baking club at the school. Within a matter
of days, another student, senior Stephanie Andrews of Eagan had also approached King about starting a baking club. But McGuire’s idea had a twist: the baked goods that the club would make could be donated to places around the community. “I’ve always had a passion for baking,” said McGuire, “and I knew I wanted to add in some volunteering aspect to it.” The group meets after school on Tuesdays in room G140, and the cost is $10 to join. At their second official meeting on Tuesday, the group made 350 sugar cookies to send to soldiers stationed in Kuwait. But why Kuwait? King has a son stationed in Kuwait, as does another FACS teacher, so it seemed like a natural fit. To bring attention to the new
INSIDE OPINION/4 OBITUARIES/5 LET’S GO/9-10 SPORTS/13-15 POLICE/16 CLASSIFIEDS/21-23 TO REACH US SUBSCRIBE: (952) 345-6682 EDITOR: (952) 345-6376 OR E-MAIL EDITOR@SAVAGEPACER.COM.
club, McGuire (who now serves as president), her friend, fellow senior and club Vice President Leah Niemeyer of Eagan, and Andrews (who serves as treasurer) handed out 650 mini-cupcakes outside of the school in early December, and at their first meeting they gave away cookies to those who attended. At Tuesday’s meeting, the first where students actually got to bake, 30 students participated. “We were hoping people would still come today even though we aren’t giving away free stuff,” said Niemeyer, “and thankfully they did.” The group also plans to draw people in through Facebook. McGuire said they will start offering deals through their page (W.H.I.S.K.) where
Baking to page 3 ®
VOL. 18 ISSUE 20 © SOUTHWEST NEWSPAPERS
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