Metro briefs: New signs honor Walter F. Mondale's contributions to the St. Croix River

All but one of the new signs renaming trails, landings and a visitor's center along the St. Croix River for late Vice President Walter F. Mondale have been installed, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources reported.

The signs went up over the past few months in areas chosen to commemorate Mondale's work to protect the river, chiefly through co-sponsoring the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act in 1968 as a U.S. senator. The law shielded select waterways such as the St. Croix from dams, development and dumping.

Mondale, who died in April, was at a 2019 event at William O'Brien State Park announcing the name changes. He told the story then of taking his wife, Joan, on a canoe trip down the St. Croix on one of their first dates.

The new signs are at the Sunrise, Wild River, Lions Park, Interstate, Franconia, Osceola, Log House and William O'Brien landings; at river trails at Wild River and Interstate state parks; at the day-use area at William O'Brien State Park; and the visitor's center at St. Croix State Park.

Interpretive panels that honor Mondale's conservation work were installed at the Boom Site Landing and Interstate, Wild River and St. Croix state parks; a final interpretive panel is to be installed at William O'Brien State Park.

Matt McKinney

The Eagan Fire Department celebrated a historic moment Nov. 6 when it staffed an all-female crew for the first time in its 58 years.

"It's great to be part of Eagan history," Hoffman said in a video released by the city. It's "something that all three of us are very proud of."

Only 4% of career firefighters are women, according to the National Fire Protection Association. In Eagan, women make up 10% of the department, according to the city — and Hoffman said the department is striving to reflect the fact that more than half of the city's residents are women.

The Eagan Fire Department is staffed with a combination of 20 part-time and 36 full-time career firefighters after shifting in 2017 from an all-volunteer department.

Erin Adler

The Eden Prairie school board will have a temporarily vacant seat after a member requested a leave of absence for military deployment.

Dwivedy declined to say where he was being deployed.

In a leave of absence letter submitted to the board last week, Dwivedy wrote that he is a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army Reserve currently serving on active duty orders "to help execute missions to protect our country from enemies, home and abroad. Hence I am missing the aforesaid mentioned meetings, and I hope that you will excuse my absence."

Dwivedy said he would watch recorded meetings while away so he's up to speed upon his return to the school board.