West metro town briefs: U program, Carver County to team up on sustainability

The University of Minnesota's Resilient Communities Project (RCP) has chosen Carver County as its partner community for the 2015–16 academic year.

The partnership will bring the expertise of hundreds of graduate and professional students to sustainability-related projects identified by the county, the Carver County Community Development Agency, SouthWest Transit, Independent School District 112, and the cities of Victoria, Chaska, and Watertown.

Each academic year, RCP chooses a city or county partner through a competitive process that helps identify potential projects and matches them with university courses. The partnership provides the community with access to students from a wide range of programs and disciplines, including architecture, planning, engineering and environmental sciences.

Students who participate in the projects get real-world opportunities to apply their knowledge and training to address local issues.

Just in time for spring, the Minnesota Landscape Arboretum is offering classes for cultivating a better-looking, eco-friendly lawn.

"Your Sustainable Yard: Lawns and Turf" will be held 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Saturday, March 28, at the arboretum's Visitor Center. Sam Bauer, University of Minnesota Extension educator, will discuss alternatives to Kentucky bluegrass varieties and cover fertilizer, seed, and pest control focusing on environmentally sound practices. The class costs $41 for members and $55 for nonmembers.

"Earth Day 2015: Building Sustainable Lawns for a Better Earth," will be held 1 to 5 p.m. April 22 at the Visitor Center. Experts will focus on how to care for your lawn so that it is beneficial as well as beautiful. The class costs $15 for members, $20 for Master Gardeners/and $25 for nonmembers.

To register, go to arboretum.umn.edu/eventsprograms.aspx or call 612-301-1210.

The Friends of the Southdale Hennepin County Library will hold their semiannual used-book sale in mid-April in the community room of the library at 7001 York Av. S.

The sale's hours will be 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday and Saturday, April 17-18, and noon to 4 p.m. (bag sale) Sunday, April 19.

The Excelsior-Lake Minnetonka Historical Society, Wayzata Historical Society and Westonka Historical Society will celebrate the publication of their new book about Lake Minnetonka history, "Images of America: Lake Minnetonka," at a book launch on Saturday, April 4.

The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place from 1-4 p.m. at the Wayzata Depot, 402 Lake St. E., in Wayzata. It includes refreshments, author signings and book sales. The book was written by Lisa Stevens of the Excelsior-Lake Minnetonka Historical Society, Joanie Holst of the Wayzata Historical Society, and Elizabeth Vandam of the Westonka Historical Society.

It will be published by Arcadia Publishing on March 30 and be available at the three historical societies, local retailers, online merchants and Arcadia Publishing.

Maple Grove will host its 11th annual prayer breakfast May 7.

The event, which is open to all faiths and interests, will take place at 7:15 a.m. May 7 at Rush Creek Golf Club, 7801 County Rd. 101 in Maple Grove. It will include keynote speaker Mike Fairbourne, a former longtime WCCO-TV meteorologist, a buffet breakfast and a special performance by the Ave Maria Academy Chamber Choir.

Advanced registration and payment are required by April 23. Sponsored tables are available for $300 for a table of 10, and individual seats are available at $25 each. For more information or to request registration form, contact Carol Morris at 763-494-6002 or cmorris@maplegrovemn.gov.

Plymouth is accepting applications for veterans to be included in the engraving of its new Veterans Memorial.

The memorial wall, which will include up to 1,300 names, is nearing completion.

Veterans don't need to live in Plymouth to be included on the wall. To apply, go to plymouthmn.gov/vetsmemorial to download the application; a fee of $175 is also required. Applications and payment can be sent to: City of Plymouth Parks and Recreation, 3400 Plymouth Blvd., Plymouth, MN 55447. Deadline for the first group of engravings is May 22. Engraving on the wall will take place once a year.

The Robbinsdale Chamber of Commerce is sponsoring its spring "eggstravaganza" on Saturday, March 28.

The egg hunt event, geared for children ages 9 and under, will take place at 1 p.m. at Robbinsdale City Hall, 4100 Lake view Ave. N. It will include about 3,000 eggs, and prizes will be provided by Robbinsdale local merchants and organizations.

Starting Tuesday, March 31, three free informational sessions on Alzheimer's disease will be held in Wayzata.

The community educational event, "Understanding Alzheimer's disease and Planning Considerations," will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on March 31, April 2 and April 7 at 445 East Lake St., Suite 320, in Wayzata.

The sessions, hosted by The Hammer-Johnson Group at Morgan Stanley Wayzata, are free and open to the public. RSVP to Blane Hammer at 952-475-4308 or blane.hammer@morganstanley.com.

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