A group of Eagan High School actors are bound for Britain to take part in the prestigious Edinburgh Fringe Festival. SEE STORY IN THISWEEKEND ON PAGE 7A
A NEWS OPINION SPORTS
Thisweek Burnsville-Eagan JULY 23, 2010
VOLUME 31, NO. 21
www.thisweeklive.com
Announcements/5A
Opinion/6A
Puzzle Page/8A
Real Estate/9A
Classifieds/11A
Sports/15A
Community rallies, questions remain in crash that killed boy Joey Balistreri, 11, dies when driver crosses median, collides with family’s SUV by John Gessner
BURNSVILLE
munity support for his family will have to do. A funeral service for Joey has yet to be scheduled as his father, Geoffrey Balistreri, 43, recovers from severe leg injuries suffered in the crash. But support has come from many quarters, including St. John the Baptist Catholic Church and
THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS
Answers will come later in the death of Joey Balistreri, the 11-year-old Burnsville boy killed July 18 when a woman who had been drinking crossed the Highway 13 median and crashed into the Balistreri family’s SUV. For now, a blanket of com-
School in Savage and Joey’s youthsports leagues. “Those are all families in their own way that they’re tied into,� said the Rev. Michael Tix, head pastor at St. John’s. Joey was “a kid who always had a big smile on his face,� Tix said. “He liked his sports and he liked being around his friends. He loved his family, and he was certainly loved by them.�
The family released a brief statement after the crash, which occurred at 8:05 p.m. west of Washburn Avenue in Burnsville. “Sunday’s accident was a tragedy,� it said, in part. “Give your kids an extra hug tonight.� While questions swirled around the driver who caused the crash, 27-year-old Leah C. Graeber of Savage, members of the Burnsville Athletic Club youth baseball community tried to absorb the loss. “The outpouring of support
and affection for Joey and the family really tells you what kind of a boy he was and what kind of a family they are, how much they are loved and how much we enjoyed being around them,� said Steve Ellingson, assistant coach of Joey’s traveling baseball team. Joey “lived and breathed� baseball, Ellingson said. “Joey was a very good ballplayer, a very smart ballplayer,� he said. “He was primarily a catcher See Crash, 3A
Man charged with threatening farmers on neighboring land Some say it’s racism, others say argument over deer fence was likely a misunderstanding by Erin Johnson THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS
An Eagan man faces charges after he allegedly threatened neighboring Hmong farmers over a fence they erected to keep deer out. Richard William Schliesing, 62, is being charged by the Dakota County Attorney’s Office with one count of making terroristic threats, a felony. According to police, Schliesing confronted two farmers about the fence, which he said was preventing deer from feeding in his yard. Schliesing’s property is adjacent to the land being farmed, a Hmong community garden on the east end of Deerwood Drive. The farmers, who speak limited English, told police through an interpreter that Schliesing made threatening gestures, then brought a shotgun outside and loaded it while sitting in a chair in his yard. One of the farmers told officers he knows what a shotgun looks like, and was “100 percent certain� that’s what he saw. Both said they were
Photo by Erin Johnson
Eagan City Council members Gary Hansen, Cyndee Fields, Paul Bakken and Mayor Mike Maguire help paint some fire hydrants green at a groundbreaking ceremony for the city’s new fire station, which boasts numerous environmentally friendly features.
EAGAN frightened they were going to be shot and very afraid for their safety at the time. But some who know Schliesing say that kind of behavior is out of character for a man who took great pleasure in feeding the deer that would regularly visit his yard. “He had a big feeder out back. He loved those deer,� said Ben Bergum, who has lived next door to Schliesing for the past three years. Schliesing would also take pictures of the deer and proudly show them off, he said. Bergum said that he wasn’t there when the confrontation took place, but he feels his neighbor is being wrongly portrayed in news reports about the event. “He’s been through a bit of a rough couple of years, and he was pretty attached to the deer. I think that was kind of his last refuge,� he said. Some have even accused Schliesing of racism, which Bergum See Dispute, 17A
New fire station boasts bevy of green features Facility will be first in nation to receive ‘Green Globes’ certification by Erin Johnson
EAGAN
THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS
City officials are seeing green – not red – over Eagan’s planned new fire station, which will be the first in the nation to receive “Green Globes� certification for energy efficiency. According to the city, Green Globes is an internationally recognized certification process aimed at reducing a building’s overall environmental impact. Construction is already under way on the facility, located on four acres of the former Carriage Hills golf course property, at the corner of Yan-
kee Doodle Road Road and Wescott Woodlands. The $6.3 million building is slated for completion next April and will include numerous environmentally friendly features, which officials highlighted at a groundbreaking ceremony July 15. The “much-needed� fire safety center will do more than improve fire response times in the busiest area of the city, Mayor Mike Maguire said. “It helps carry out one of the city council’s goals to foster a broad-based
Schools to use creative funding
A book club for kids Vista View program aims to help students retain learning by Aaron Vehling THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS
Harnessing the creative power of reading, a Vista View Elementary teacher wants to make sure students in the Burnsville-Eagan-Savage school district don’t lose ground during the hazy, lazy days of summer. The Summer Reading Club is a season-long program featuring story circles, one-on-one reading help with teachers and interactive experiences. This summer about 100 students are registered for the program, which runs from 1 to 3 p.m. every Tuesday. First-grade teacher Kathy Silvers started the club last summer because she is concerned about summer learning loss in students. Silvers said that students who attended the reading club last summer not only maintained what they learned the previous school General 952-894-1111 Distribution 952-846-2070 Display Advertising 952-846-2011 Classified Advertising 952-846-2000
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Photo by Aaron Vehling
Kathy Silvers read a story and fielded questions at the story circle station of the Summer Reading Club at Vista View Elementary in Burnsville. Move.� program. this week at Vista View’s library. He said he brings his The club son Robbie to the Reading Robert Morrison of Club because “I want him Eagan was one of several to excel.� parents dropping off a child See Club, 16A
Like the community it serves, the Rosemount-Apple Valley-Eagan School District is resorting to creative avenues for income during financially uncertain times. Officials at District 196 are hoping to open up their websites to advertising. As part of the 2010-11 budget, there is a revenue category for about $25,000 for revenue from that form of advertising, said district communications specialist Tony Taschner. The actual revenue from web ads is unknown. The type of ads would likely encompass restaurants and local businesses, Taschner said. He has been looking at districts in other states that have web ads and noted some obvious arrangements,
such as ads for orthodontists. Taschner discussed the issue with the School Board at its retreat last week. The idea is still in a nascent stage because there are still guidelines and content questions to address. For example, Taschner told the board about the size limitations for banner and display ads on the district’s front page. “There are designated areas and maximum sizes of where you are going to place (an ad),� he said. Taschner suggested serving up “logo size� ads that link to an external site. “It’s more subtle in terms of how it is incorporated into the page,� he said. The site’s users, he added, could click on the ad link, which would lead to a website for the See Funding, 3A
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by Aaron Vehling
The Dakota County Tribune is your source for Business information south of the river.
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District 196 aims to earn revenue from website ads beginning this fall
DISTRICT 191 year, but they “actually gained ground.� She and her group of volunteers work to ensure this process of retention by tracking the students’ reading abilities throughout the summer. Some of the reading aptitudes they help with include decoding (the ability to understand and discern what they read) and selfmonitoring skills, Silver said. Concerns about a loss of learning over the summer are prevalent in national policy circles as well, according to Education Secretary Arne Duncan. “We encourage all youngsters to take on this challenge and read at least five books over the summer months to keep their skills sharp,� Duncan said earlier this month in a media advisory promoting the Department of Education’s “Let’s Read. Let’s
and comprehensive commitment to environmental sustainability and energy efficiency,� he said. Green features include geothermal energy for heating and cooling; a solar-reflective roof to project light and minimize heat effects; natural indoor lighting and LED outdoor lighting; and low-impact landscaping, rain gardens and catch basins to minimize storm runoff. Even some of the wood used to build the facility is recycled – the city is using ash trees that needed to be removed to prevent infestation by the See Station, 16A
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