Thisweek Farmington and Lakeville

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N COUPO ION T C E CONN Section

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Louie Anderson is bringing his homegrown stand-up comedy to the Burnsville PAC. See Thisweekend Page 10A

NEWS OPINION SPORTS

Thisweek Farmington-Lakeville

Special issue is inside th

DECEMBER 17, 2010 VOLUME 31, NO. 42

www.thisweeklive.com

Lakeville Messages/2A

Public Notices/5A

Opinion/6A

Puzzle Page/11A

Classifieds/13A

Sports/16A

Lakeville survives ‘Snowmageddon’ Burke censured; investigation Accumulation amounts to nearly 30 inches in one week; crews worked 30 hours to clean roads

forwarded to county attorney by Laura Adelmann THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS

by Aaron Vehling THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS

The weather outside was frightful. People certainly had nowhere to go (they couldn’t if they tried). So they just had to let it snow. The great snowstorm of last weekend (coined “Snowmageddon� by more than a few Minnesotans) dumped 17.5 inches of snow on top of Lakeville’s 11 inches from the week before. For the bulk of Saturday, leaving the house was a treacherous endeavor. “I’ve seen similar storms but probably nothing of this magnitude,� said Chris Petree, director of operations and maintenance for the city. “We’ve received 30 inches of snow in a week. There’s not a lot of room for it.� Lakeville’s operations and maintenance crews were out in full force. There were about 35 pieces of equipment and staff out at any given time over the weekend, Petree said. They tackled drifting snow that would sometimes undo their best

Photo by Krysia Moe

Lakeville resident Krysia Moe submitted this photo of her neighborhood on Saturday, Dec. 11. The storm dumped almost 18 inches of snow on top of the 11 the city received the week before. efforts to clear a roadway. Lakeville has 260 miles of roads, which “are a priority, of course,� he added. Crews spent 30 hours on Saturday and Sunday addressing them with additional time spent on 22 miles of sidewalks and 85 miles of trails on Monday.

In areas where there is not enough room to just push snow out of a right-of-way, such as in one of Lakeville’s 460 cul-de-sacs, crews will haul the snow off-site.

Farmington School Board members voted 4-2 to censure Board Member Tim Burke and forward a thick report of allegations against him to the Dakota County Attorney’s Office for possible prosecution. The report, according to its eight-page redacted executive summary provided to board members Friday and released publicly during the Dec. 13 board meeting, alleges Burke violated the board’s conduct codes and state data practices laws. Based on interviews with 16 witnesses, the report’s most serious conclusions are that Burke allegedly disclosed private personnel data and information discussed in closed board meetings to employees and third parties, said School Board Attorney Mick Waldspurger.

School Board acts on report alleging conduct code violations

Photo by Laura Adelmann

Farmington School Board Member Tim Burke reviewed the executive summary of the board’s investigation of his alleged misconduct. Next to him is a full copy of the report, which he was allowed to review during the meeting. Additionally, the report alleges Burke willfully disclosed attorney-client communications, treated district employees disrespectfully and tried to undermine Superintendent Brad Meeks’ credibility. Conduct also cited in

the board’s resolution, which Waldspurger recommended, was a motion Burke made seeking reimbursement of his legal fees, despite knowing he had a personal financial interest in the outcome of See Burke, 5A

Budgets Despite the depth and See Snowmageddon, 12A

Walking 2,178 miles in his shoes Lakeville man hikes the 14-state Appalachian Trail to experience long-distance backpacking by Aaron Vehling THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS

Photo by Laura Adelmann

On Monday, workers were still moving towering piles of snow from the center of Oak Street after a weekend blizzard dumped more than 17 inches of snow on the area. Due to the weather, most local events, roads and businesses around the Twin Cities were closed.

Farmington recovered from severe winter storm

The first time Freeman Wicklund of Lakeville encountered a bear while hiking the Appalachian Trail was in the famed Shenandoah National Park in Virginia. “I was walking the trail and heard this really loud noise up in the tree,� Wicklund said. “It was too loud to be a squirrel.� Wicklund looked up and saw a young, 200-pound black b e a r eating

fruit. His attempts to photograph the bear were futile, but eventually the animal descended the tree. “He stopped and started walking directly toward me,� he said. Since March of this year, Wicklund, who graduated from Apple Valley High School in the early ‘90s, has been hiking the Appalachian Trail.

See Wicklund, 12A Photo submitted

Freeman Wicklund of Lakeville has been hiking the 2,178-mile Appalachian Trail since March. The route spans between Maine and Georgia, passing through 14 states.

Blizzard blasts Village Christmas event to this weekend by Laura Adelmann THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS

On Monday morning, workers were still cleaning up Farmington roads and parking lots from a blizzard that dumped about 17 inches of snow Friday and Saturday. Around the state, schools, businesses and events shut down throughout the weekend as the storm created near whiteout conditions and hazardous travel across southern

portions of Minnesota. As a result, the “Christmas in the Village� event at Dakota City Heritage Village in Farmington, planned for last weekend, will instead take place Saturday, Dec. 18, from 1 to 8 p.m. The event will feature a 1900s-era Christmas holiday with lighted trees and decorated buildings. Visitors can make crafts, write letters to Santa, ride a horse-drawn trolley and

enjoy musical groups in the church. Admission is $2 per child, ages 4-12 and $3 each for ages 13 and up. Children ages three and under are admitted free, and the maximum charge for a carload will be $10. Dakota City Heritage Village is located at the fairgrounds in Farmington.

Our office will be closed December 20-24th and December 31st

Laura Adelmann is at laura. adelmann@ecm-inc.com.

There will be no delivery of Thisweek Newspapers December 24th

Farmington schools hire Jim Skelly to direct communications in 192 Lakeville school board member, Burnsville communications coordinator chosen by Aaron Vehling THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS

The Farmington school district has hired Jim Skelly to lead its revamped communications department. Skelly has been communications coordinator for the city of Burnsville for 16 years and has served on the school board of Lakeville public schools since 2003. Skelly said in an interview Tuesday night that he is excitGeneral 952-894-1111 Distribution 952-846-2070 Display Advertising 952-846-2011 Classified Advertising 952-846-2000

ed to bring to the table his experience as a communications professional and as a school board memJim Skelly ber. “I want to work on building a partnership between the city and school district,� Skelly said. “My whole career has been based on that.�

As a school board member in the neighboring Lakeville School District, Skelly said he has gained a wealth of experience in how to address the various challenges a school district faces. “I understand the challenges. I understand where we’re at,� Skelly said. In a statement released Monday, Farmington Superintendent Brad Meeks said the district was thrilled

to have on staff someone of Skelly’s caliber. “We are excited to welcome Jim to our school district and look forward to working with him on the district’s communications and marketing plans that will share the great stories that take place in our schools everyday,� Meeks said. Skelly will start in January with the official title of “communications and marketing

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E-mail Aaron Vehling at aaron. vehling@ecm-inc.com.

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coordinator.� Among Skelly’s favorite projects was the partnership between the city of Burnsville and School District 191 in the design and construction of a shared television studio. Skelly replaces Aaron Tinklenberg, the previous communications coordinator, who was fired this fall.

We wish all of our readers a very happy holiday season.

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The 2,178-mile Appalachian Trail begins in Georgia and passes through North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont and New Hampshire. It ends in Maine at Mount Katahdin’s Baxter Peak in Baxter State Park. Thisweek FarmingtonLakeville caught up with Wicklund via phone while he was taking a break in Dalton, Mass. He

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