Town Square: May 13

Six Coon Rapids homes will be open for a look from noon to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 17, as the city holds its second Home Remodeling Tour in conjunction with its Home for Generations II program.

The program offers incentives to Coon Rapids residents for private remodeling projects worth $35,000 or more for homes at least 20 years old. Program benefits include grants of up to $5,000 for eligible projects, building permit fee rebates and subsidized consultations with architects. There are no income limits.

The homes on the tour range from ramblers and split entries to a two-story house with a completely remodeled kitchen. Visitors will be able to talk with homeowners, contractors and city representatives.

For more information, go to http://tinyurl.com/ob4a78e.

On Wednesday, May 13, and Monday, May 18, the Coon Rapids Sustainability Commission will hold the final two sessions of a three-part series promoting local food and sustainable growing methods.

Each session will be presented by Coon Rapids resident Marcia Baudino and will run from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Coon Rapids Civic Center, 11155 Robinson Dr.

The Wednesday, May 13, workshop will discuss summer farmer's markets and the opportunities they offer to use local food. This session also will look at Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) programs, including where they can be found and how to join them.

The session on Monday will focus on how to "build, mulch, plant and maintain raised beds using permaculture principles." Organizers say this approach holds the promise of "abundant yields of annual vegetables with minimal labor."

Another season of "Ghosts of Anoka" walking tours has begun. The tours, presented by the Anoka County Historical Society, go through downtown Anoka with a costumed guide and last about 90 minutes. The tours look at "the history and unexplained stories of homes and businesses" in the city, as the society puts it.

The next tour is scheduled for Saturday, May 23, starting at 7:30 p.m. The cost is $9 for adults and $7 for ages 6-17. Advance registration is required and can be done online (www.anokacountyhistory.org) or by calling 763-421-0600.

After May 23, the next tours are scheduled for Thursday, June 4, and Saturday, June 6, also starting at 7:30 p.m.

Third-graders from the DaVinci Academy charter school had a standout year in the Continental Math League, an organization that holds leagues and contests for students across the country.

About 75 DaVinci students in grades 2-8 participated in the league. Second- and third-graders took three six-question tests during the school year, while the others took five tests each.

The third-grade DaVinci team finished in a three-way tie for first out of 374 teams.

Here's how students in the other grades did:

• Second: ninth out of 225 schools.

• Fourth: 45th out of 194.

• Fifth: 51st out of 198.

• Sixth: 16th out of 166.

• Seventh and eighth: 37th out of 129.

Across all grades, 13 DaVinci students answered all questions correctly on all of their exams.

Back to the third-graders for a second; here's an example of a practice question for them:

Connie has three times as many nickels as dimes. If she has 40 cents in dimes, how much money does she have altogether? (Answer is at end of news briefs.)

Garage sales will take place throughout Brooklyn Park from Thursday through Saturday, May 14-16, as part of the city's community building initiative. Printed maps of the sales are available at:

• Brooklyn Park City Hall during normal business hours.

• The Community Activity Center, 8 a.m.-10:30 p.m. through Friday, and on Saturday, May 16, starting at 9 a.m.

Maps will be available at the North Precinct Police Department and Brooklyn Park library, too.

Online maps wills be available.

For more information, go to the city's website, www.brooklynpark.org.

A service marking Memorial Day and Holocaust Remembrance Day (May 17) will be held at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, May 17, at Adath Chesed Shei Emes Cemetery, 3740 Winnetka Av. N., Crystal.

The service at the cemetery, which is that of the Adath Jeshurun congregation in Minnetonka, will honor Holocaust victims and survivors and local Jewish veterans, particularly those who have died since last Memorial Day. The service is free and open to the entire community.

Keynote speaker will be Mort Naiman, director of the Jewish Community Foundation at the Minneapolis Jewish Federation. Cantor Neil Schwartz, of Temple Aaron, will lead the singing of the national anthem and prayers, and trumpeter Dave Haberman will play during flag-raising and taps. The service will conclude with the mourners' Kaddish and memorial prayers.

The Main Street railroad crossing in Elk River will be closed on Thursday, May 21, for rail replacement. The intersection will be closed all day. (Note: A previous version of this item listed a different date; the date was changed.)

An event on Sunday will offer a chance to explore the 2.2-mile adaptive trail at Elm Creek Park Reserve that's built specifically to accommodate wider and more stable arm-powered bikes.

The open house for adaptive mountain bikes will be held 6 to 8 p.m. Sunday. Meet at the trailhead for an open ride.

This program, sponsored by Three Rivers Park District, is free and open to all ages.

The University of Minnesota prostate cancer support group will meet Thursday, May 14, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Hope Lodge, 2500 University Av. SE., Minneapolis. Dr. Susan O'Connor-Von, an associate professor at the U, will discuss spirituality and palliative care topics related to having prostate cancer. Family and friends are welcome to attend. There is no charge, and free parking is available behind the Lodge or on adjacent streets. For more information, call 612-388-3588.

Brooklyn Park and Youth Intervention Services of the YMCA will hold the 5th Annual North Suburban Youth Connection on Tuesday, May 19, from 2 to 5 p.m. at the Brooklyn Park Community Activity Center, 5600 85th Av.N.

The free event is a resource fair that organizers say is "designed to provide 200 to 300 middle- and high-school-age students facing barriers to success in the community with access to resources and organizations available to help them with their education, career and health." More than 40 agencies will be represented and the event is open to the community.

Buses will be provided to and from: Brooklyn Junior High School and Park Center High School; Northview Elementary School; Zanewood Recreation Center; Maple Grove Junior and Senior High School, and Osseo Junior and Senior High School.

For further information, or if you are interested in volunteering at the event, call Matthew Smith at 612-547-9467 or email him at Matthew.Smith@ymcatwincities.org

the answer

Here's the answer to the math question at the end of the item about DaVinci Academy in Blaine: It's $1. If Connie has 40 cents in dimes, that means she's got four dimes, and if she has three times as many nickels as dimes, she's got 12 nickels, or 60 cents. That gives her a dollar.

Staff reports