Metro briefs: Minnetonka skatepark plan on hold

Skateboarders in Minnetonka will have to wait a little longer for a new park.

The Minnetonka City Council had been set to vote last month to approve spending to design and build the park, but the item was pulled from the council agenda.

After Minnetonka purchased the Marsh fitness club from the YMCA of the North earlier this year, city officials wanted to take a pause and look at Minnetonka's whole system of parks and recreation facilities.

City spokesman Andrew Wittenborg said the larger skatepark is still likely to be approved somewhere in the city, but it's no longer certain the park will be at the site of the current, smaller skatepark near Glen Lake.

JOSIE ALBERTSON-GROVE

Columbia Heights Council appoints longtime employee interim city manager

Columbia Heights has a new interim city manager.

Kevin Hansen, 60, is a longtime employee of the north metro suburb.. He replaced City Manager Kelli Bourgeois, who had the job for four years. Bourgeois recently accepted the city manager position in Bristol, Tenn.

In his new role, Hansen will oversee all city departments except the Police Department, and projects including the opening of the new City Hall in June. He will hold the position through December, when the City Council will choose a permanent replacement.

TIM HARLOW

Manitou Fund proposes school for downtown Stillwater

A plan to open a charter school in downtown Stillwater is more accelerated than a typical project, given the timeframe envisioned by the applicant, community development director Tim Gladhill told the City Council this week.

The Manitou Fund announced last month that it has a purchase agreement to buy the Zephyr Theatre building at 601 Main St. N., with plans to lease it to River Grove, a K-6 charter school. The plan would require a multimillion dollar renovation of the shuttered theater building, which would happen before the school opened this fall, according to River Grove school director Drew Goodson.

Gladhill said the timeframe concerns him, given the amount of work necessary to prepare the site.

The school's plan, as presented in their application for a conditional use permit, includes building 13 classrooms, removing the existing bar and kitchen, reconfiguring the existing restrooms, adding three lifts that would meet Americans with Disabilities Act requirements, a new vestibule and removing a one-season porch on the southeast corner.

The school would have about 180 students with 40 to 50 staff, according to the Manitou Fund application.

MATT MCKINNEY

Shakopee approves SandVenture plans

The Shakopee City Council unanimously approved plans last month to complete renovations to SandVenture, the city's sand-bottomed pool.

The 50-year-old pool at Lions Park is one of four sand-bottomed pools in Minnesota. The pool needs repairs, the city has said, and staff have been presenting renovation plans to the council since 2018. Current plans envision the pool becoming a year-round facility with an ice rink in winter.

The $7 million renovation will be funded with $2.74 million in the city's local projects fund, along with an internal loan from the city's building fund for $2.85 million. A third funding source is $1.41 million in "accumulated funding" — monthly rent the Parks and Recreation Department pays to the city.

The city will review bids this summer, with construction slated to begin Sept. 1.

ERIN ADLER