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VOL. 42 NO. 15 www.quadcommunitypress.com $1.00
POLAR PLUNGE: ‘Bucket list’ item for many. PAGE 6
Anoka County requests $6.75 million for missing trail link BY SHANNON GRANHOLM MANAGING EDITOR
What will it will take to construct the 1.75-mile trail gap in the Rice Creek North Regional Trail, otherwise known as the “missing link?” A cool $6.75 million. “We have been trying to fund this for about 30 years,” Anoka County Commissioner Jeff Reinert explained. The Rice Creek North Regional Trail is a 10-foot-wide 8-mile paved trail that follows Rice Creek through the southeast quadrant of the county. It provides a connection between Anoka and Ramsey counties and connects the cities of Blaine, Circle Pines and Lino Lakes. The trail also connects to the
East Anoka County Regional Trail, Bunker Chain of Lakes Regional Trail, and the Rice Creek Regional Trail system in Ramsey County. The history of the trail dates all the way back to the 1980s, when Anoka and Ramsey counties partnered to develop the 28 miles of trail. The gap in the trail system is between Golden Lake Elementary School and Baldwin Park in Circle Pines. Anoka County Parks Director Jeff Perry says constructing the missing link is particularly costly, as both pedestrian bridges and boardwalks will be required to traverse through wetlands. SEE TRAIL FUNDING, PAGE 6
SHANNON GRANHOLM | PRESS PUBLICATIONS
Anoka County is requesting $6.75 million in state funds to construct the missing link, or the 1.75-mile trail gap in the Rice Creek North Regional Trail.
Some counties, cities struggle to find election judges BY SHANNON GRANHOLM MANAGING EDITOR
FILE
Snow day at Wargo
On Election Day, there can be as many as 30,000 election judges temporarily employed at polling places across Minnesota. Finding qualified applicants has become a bit of a challenge for many counties and cities. Election judges are temporary, paid employees of local election officials trained to handle all aspects of voting at the polling place. The opportunity allows judges to learn about elections while serving their communities. In Lino Lakes, the number of election judges seems to be down from past major election years, but there isn’t a huge cause for concern just yet. City Clerk Jolleen Chaika says that so far, the city has received around 61 applications. She said she has the number of judges she needs to staff the polling locations in the city for the presidential nominating primary on March 5 and the state primary on Aug. 13, due to historically lower voter turnout than on election day in November. “I would like to see additional election judges for the primaries; life happens, and sometimes folks need to step down at the last minute,” she explained. “I will certainly need many more for the November election. I would like to see at least double what I have now for Nov. 5.”
The Wargo Nature Center will host its annual Snow Day from 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 27. Participants of all ages will have a chance to partake in a variety of winter activities, including: snow shoeing, ice fishing, kick-sledding, fat tire biking, winter crafts, temporary tattoos and a live animal presentation.
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