Apple Valley starts bike rack installation

Ten decorative bicycle racks recently were installed around Apple Valley.

The red racks are located at Valley Bike and Ski, Grandstay Suites, Panino Brothers, the School District 196 Community Education building, Partners in Higher Education and the City Municipal Center.

More racks will be installed next spring at the Apple Valley Transit Station and at Kelley Park.

The racks and their installation cost $4,260. The program was funded by grants from the Minnesota State Health Improvement Program (SHIP), funneled through Dakota County.

Trail land purchase by eminent domainThe city of Inver Grove Heights will use its power of eminent domain to buy property owned by Lawrence Kladek for a trail that will lead to the Rock Island Swing Bridge pier in the city's Heritage Park.

The city has a $92,000 grant from the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources to build the trail and is obligated to use the money by June 2012. The city will pay Kladek $56,548 for about 28,000 square feet at 6600 River Road which is a part of an old railroad bed.

A city appraisal put a $2-per-square-foot value on the property. Kladek had rejected the offer.

The new route will offer daily trips from Minneapolis to the Mall of America, the airport, Eagan, Hastings, Red Wing, Lake City and Rochester. It also will provide a connection to other routes serving more than 4,000 destinations in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The Eagan stop is Jefferson's second partnership with Minnesota Valley Transit Authority. The intercity buses also stop at MVTA's Burnsville Transit Station.

"This route is an important part of Jefferson's plans to expand our transportation network in Minnesota," said Bonnie Buchanan, vice president of Jefferson Lines.

Information and tickets are available at the MVTA Burnsville Transit Station, 100 E. Hwy 13, as well as online at www.jeffersonlines.com or by phone at 1-800-451-5333.

Oktoberfest event to benefit policeThe public is invited to an Oktoberfest fundraiser for the Burnsville Police Department at the Arbors at Ridges Assisted Living campus.

There will be live entertainment, a raffle for prizes and a chance to visit with Burnsville police officers.

The $1,100 raised at last year's event was used to purchase automated external defibrillators for the police department.

For more information, contact Arbors at Ridges at 952-898-4005 or visit the police department website at www.burnsville.org/police.

Homebuilding boosts construction permitsLakeville construction increased again in September, as the city issued building permits of $53.9 million, compared to $41.5 million during the same period a year ago.

The bulk of the permit work is for 94 single-family homes, down slightly from 98 homes a year ago. But the valuation for single-family homes was up about $2 million to $29.2 million.