Issue 53 - Heights Highlights Winter 2001PAGE 1 February, 2001 ISSUE 53
City Council Unveils Amended Concept
Plan for T Center
We are excited to report that on February 20th, the Mendota Heights
City Council approved a concept plan for the Town Center project.
This Concept Plan evolved into the adopted stage after a public
planning process that included a two-day public Open House, five
public focus meeting -workshops, and several City Council work-
shops. The City also contracted with Maxfield Research, a highly
respected market research firm who provided the City with a detailed
analysis of the mix of retail
and residential uses that
would be the most successful
on the Town Center site. In
their professional opinion,
this location is ideal for this
type of mixed-use develop-
•nt.
fhe proposed Town Center
Redevelopment will be lo-
cated on a 23 -acre site at the
northeast corner of Dodd
Road and Highway 110, a
corner of historical signifi-
cance as the former site ofthe
original Mendota Town Hall.
This proposed Town Center
will offer citizens a mix of
residential, commercial and
retail uses, linked by green
space to create a Village with
the unique character of the
Mendota Heights commu-
nity.
The proposed retail and of-
fice component will be cen-
tered around a "town
square." The City plans for
the retail to include a mix of srA,E Hiuewnr o aww
neighborhood convenience
(bakery, pharmacy, grocery, bank, dry cleaners, pet grooming) spe-
cialty (floral, art gallery) and destination uses such as a restaurant,
deli or coffee house. The plan for the design and layout will be both
pedestrian and automobile friendly.
The proposed Town Center will also include a wide range of
-cycle housing (housing which meets the needs of the many
empty nesters" currently living in Mendota Heights who are having
difficulty finding a town home), including senior center housing,
town homes and condominiums. A 60 unit Dakota County CDA
senior housing facility will be located close to the central shopping
area. Two town home neighborhoods are planned: the East and
West neighborhood that will both offer 1-2 story units. Six of the
town homes facing the central commercial area will offer a live/work
option (Hoffice) with a street level office space and additional front
door. There will also be a North neighborhood that includes four
mansion -style, two story condominium buildings with eight units,
four flats per floor. These combined housing options will provide a
possible 132 housing units for the development.
The proposed Town Center will be organized around a network of
green spaces, interconnected
by pedestrian sidewalks and
bike paths. These spaces in-
clude a "welcoming green"
with a pond, arbor gazebo
and a small dedicated parking
area for a trail head; the "vil-
lage green" lined with live -
work town homes which will
be informally landscaped
with water gardens; and the
"town square" which is the
primary civic space for the
commercial center is de-
signed around an urban gar-
den with a fountain, flagpole
and annual and perennial gar-
dens. More informal open
spaces will also link the
North and East neighbor-
hoods with the Town Square.
The City has set a goal of
25% of the site to be retained
as open space and to provide
trails through the site con-
necting to the existing Big
Rivers Regional Trail System
and the Mississippi River.
M—u- HEIGHFS, Muuieso,A The approved Concept Plan
will be subject to adjustment
for technical and design reasons related, but not limited to open green
space, architectural and engineering requirements, and any impact
related to the retention of the existing animal hospital. Implementa-
tion of the Concept Plan is subject to all City Ordinances related to
zoning, wetlands, green space, platting and PUD developments.
The adoption of the Concept Plan by the Mendota Heights City
Council allows the City to move forward with plans to assemble the
site. The next steps include property appraisals, acquisition of the
land and further refinement of the design guidelines for the develop-
ment.
For more information on the proposed Town Center Project, please
call Mendota Heights City Hall at (651) 452-1850.
PAGE 2 HEIGHTS HIGHLITES
Welcome New Council Member Jack Vitelli
The City of Mendota Heights is pleased to welcome the newest addition to the City Council:
Jack Vitelli. This position was vacated by former Council Member John Huber whose term
ended in 2000.
Vitelli, 1134 Sylvandale Road and his wife Char have lived in Mendota Heights since 1989.
However, the extended Vitelli family has lived in West St. Paul for decades.
Vitelli retired from Honeywell three years ago after serving as International Vice President
of Operations. He now enjoys spending time in his woodworking shop and with his six
children and four grandchildren.
This is not the first post that Vitelli has served with the City. He was appointed to the
Planning Commission in March of 2000. He is also the City's new official representative on
the Northern Dakota County Cable Commission (NDC4), replacing former Council Member
John Huber. Vitelli was sworn in on January 4t', and will serve as a City Council Member
for the next four years.
Welcome Jack!
New Commissioners Appointed
Each year on February 1 st, terms for several seats on each of the City's three Commissions
expire (Planning Commission, Airport Relations Commission and Parks and Recreation
Commission). This year, the City received an overwhelming response from interested
candidates. On Tuesday, January 30th, the City Council interviewed twenty-one people for
the eight possible Commission openings. On February 6th, the City Council announced the
following Commission appointments:
Sally Lorberbaum, 890 Douglas Road, was reappointed to the Planning Commission.
Sally has served on the Planning Commission since 1994.
Eric Hesse, 1083 Overlook Road, was appointed to his first term on the Planning
Commission. Eric is a registered professional engineer and works for an environmental
consulting company in Plymouth. He is a five-year resident of Mendota Heights.
Chris Dolan, 1882 Walsh Lane, was appointed to his first term on the Planning Commis-
sion. Chris, a four-year resident of Mendota Heights, is an attorney practicing primarily in
real estate development, leasing, acquisition and lending.
Bruce McManus, 720 Marie Avenue, was appointed to fill the remainder of Council
member Jack Vitelli's seat on the Planning Commission. Bruce, a nine-year resident of
Mendota Heights, is the former Deputy Commissioner for the Minnesota Department of
Corrections, and has been a consultant on a number of non-profit housing projects.
Dave Libra, 737 Knollwood Lane, was reappointed to the Parks Commission. Dave has
served on the Parks Commission since 1993. Dave is a 17 -year resident of Mendota Heights,
and has served in a variety of posts with the Mendota Heights Athletic Association (MHAA).
Paul Portz, 1058 Avanti Drive, was appointed to his first term on the Parks Commission.
Paul is a fourteen -year resident of Mendota Heights and has volunteered with MHAA for
over ten years. He is currently a CPA working for the Minnesota State Colleges and
Universities as an Audit Coordinator.
John Roszak, 1235 Culligan Lane, was reappointed to the Airport Relations Commission
(ARC). John has served on the ARC since 1998.
Vern Edstrom, 637 Marie Avenue, was appointed to his first term on the Airport Relations
Commission. Vern is a 31 -year resident of Mendota Heights, and is retired from the United
States Air Force. He is also recently retired from the position of Director of Purchasing for
Seagate Technology.
Congratulations and welcome to our new and returning commissioners. The Council was
very excited about the quantity and caliber of candidates who showed interest in serving the
community.
The City would also like to thank the following outgoing commissioners for their years of
hard work and dedication to the City: Ultan Duggan — Planning Commission, Sharon Koll
— Planning Commission, Jack Vitelli — Planning Commission, Ann Connelly — Parks and
Recreation Commission, and George May —Airport Relations Commission. These individu-
als were recognized at the March 6 Council meeting for their years of dedicated service to
the City of Mendota Heights.
2001
Trees Available
The City Council has budgeted funds to
continue the boulevard tree program for
2001. For many years, this program has pro-
vided trees to residents interested in dressing
up their boulevards.
For a pre -payment of $50 per tree, home-
owners may select from several varieties of
trees approximately 1 to 2 inches in diame-
ter, depending on the variety selected. The
trees will be planted in the fall by a landscape
contractor hired by the city. Each tree will be
guaranteed for one year.
If you are interested in participating, con-
tact Nancy at City Hall, (651) 452-1850, to
place your name on a priority list. The lim-
ited quantity of trees are available on a first-
come, first-served basis.
Review Board
Meeting Scheduled
At 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, April 3, the City
Council will convene its annual Review
Board meeting. At this meeting, the Dakota
County Assessor will review community
valuation information and answer general
questions regarding property valuations for
real estate taxes payable in 2001. Following
the approximate half-hour presentation, rep-
resentatives from the Assessor's Office will
meet with individual property owners who
have questions or concerns about their valu-
ations.
"Notices of Assessment for the Year
2000" were mailed to all property owners by
the Assessor's Office in January. If you feel
that the market value for taxation shown on
the notice exceeds the actual value of your
property, you can appeal the valuation. To do
so, you must either send a letter to the City
Council, at City Hall, before April 3 or you
must attend the Review Board or an informal
open book meeting. The dates and locations
of the open book meeting are listed on y
"Notice of Assessment."
The Review Board meeting will be held in
the City Council Chambers at City Hall,
1101 Victoria Curve.
PAGE 3 HEIGHTS HIGHLITES February, 2001
Seventh Annual Spring Clean -Up Day
Saturday, May 5,8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Mendota Plaza Shopping Center, Highway 110 and Dodd Road
(Enter and Exit from South Plaza Drive)
Take advantage of the city-wide spring clean-up day to clean out the garage, storage areas, and tidy up the home and yard. The collection
site will again be located at Mendota Plaza (Highway 110 and Dodd Road). You should enter and exit the Mendota Plaza from South Plaza
Drive.
The City-wide Spring Clean up is limited to Mendota Heights Residents Only! Identification will be required. No contractors or commercial
debris will be accepted. Only cars, pick-ups and small trailers will be allowed to unload items. No Yard waste or Household Hazardous waste
will be accepted. Commercial, industrial and institutional customers are nut eligible. For further information call (651)452-1850.
Each spring, Mendota Heights designates one day when residents can discard items otherwise difficult to dispose of. Below is a list of items
accepted and also not accepted at the collection site.
ACCEPTED MATERIALS.
(Charges to be applied per item)
A. Car Tires..............................................$3.00
(must be removed from rim)
Furniture.............................................$3.00
Mattresses............................................$3.00
-,k Scrap Metal .........................................Volume Based Fee
(remove all non-metal components)
Home Remodeling Debris and
�A, Miscellaneous Junk ............................Volume Based Fee
MATERIALS NOT ACCEPTED
X Items that can be recycled curbside.
X Yard Waste
• Household Hazardous Waste (motor oil,
batteries, paint,household cleaners, etc.) -- Contact the
Dakota County Eco -site (651)9054520 for disposal info.
• Home Electronics (computers, TVs, stereos, etc.)
Contact the Minnesota Pollution Control
Agency(651)681-8099.
Spring Clean-up is made possible by a grant from Dakota County Environmental Management.
Mendota Heights
Appliance Collection Day
Monday, May 14, 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m.
In conjunction with Spring Clean -Up, the city will again hold an
appliance collection day. Old appliances can be picked up from your
driveway! Put your appliances out the night before and they will be
picked up by JR's Appliance. Call JR's by Friday May 4 for prices
and to schedule your appliance pick-up. Dial JR's at 454-9215 and
ask for operator 33.
On pick-up day, make your check payable to `JR's Appliance' and
place it inside your appliance. Items will not be picked up unless you
call JR's and a check is attached to the appliance.
ACCEPTABLE APPLIANCES:
Air Conditioners Furnaces Refrigerators
Dehumidifiers Garbage Disposals Stoves
Dishwashers Heat Pumps Trash Compactors
Dryers Humidifiers Washers
Freezers Microwaves Water Heaters
Wetlands Health Evaluation
Project Needs Volunteers
Over the past three years, Mendota Heights has been cooperating
with Dakota County's Environmental Education Department by
sponsoring a Wetland Health Evaluation Team. The city's team is
currently looking for new members for the spring and summer of
2001.
The team works under the direction of a naturalist to sample and
document the plant, frog and invertebrate (insect) communities
found in local wetlands. Volunteers follow techniques developed by
the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. Volunteers collect samples
from five wetlands between June and August, analyze the samples
collected and complete data sheets. The time commitment for the
volunteers is approximately 40 to 50 hours including training, field
work and analysis.
This Dakota County Wetland Health Evaluation project is an
excellent educational opportunity for anyone who wants to learn
more about the ecology of wetlands. Interested residents should
contact Public Works Director James Danielson, 452-1850.
�04; Recyclee Be part of the so�
�
PAGE 4 HEIGHTS HIGHLITES February, 2001
MENDOTA HEIGHTS PARKS AND
RECREATION
YOUTH TRIPS
All youth trips depart and return at the front entrance of the West St. Paul City Hall, 1616 Humboldt Avenue. You may register by
mail using the form located on page 7 of this newsletter or you can register in person at City Hall, 1101 Victoria Curve. Parents
wishing to chaperone trips should contact the Parks & Recreation Department at 651-452-1850.
Monday, March 19
Camp Snoopy at the Mall of America
Spend an entire day at Knott's Camp Snoopy. This trip includes
a ride wristband for the entire length of our stay plus lunch. Bring
additional money for snacks. Remember, you're only young
once, so let's have fun!
Registration Deadline: Monday, March 12
Ages: 8-12 years of age
Time: Pickup/Return 9:30 am/3:15 pm (WSP City Hall)
Fee: $19.00
Wednesday, March 21
Grand Slam & Roller Skating — Skateville
Looking for a fun way to spend your spring break? Get
your friends together and sign up now for a fun filled day of
games and skating. Price includes mini -golf, a bumper car ride,
batting cages, 4 game tokens and lunch (piece ofpizza or hot dog
and pop) and two hours of skating.
Registration Deadline: Tuesday, March 13
Ages: 7-12 years of age
Time: Pickup/Return 9:15 am/3:15 pm (WSP City Hall)
Fee: $16.00
OFFICE INFORMATION:
Open Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m.- 4:30 p.m
Mendota Heights City Hall, 1101 Victoria Curve
Phone: (651)452-1850
Park Maintenance Phone: (651)454-4059
PARKS AND RECREATION STAFF:
Mary Hapka, Recreation Programmer
Terry Blum, Parks Leadperson
John Boland, Parks Crew
Mike Maczko, Parks Crew
PARKS AND RECREATION INFORMATION LINES:
Park and Ballfield Reservations (651)255-1172
Ballfield Conditions and Rain -outs (651)255-1173
Available Recreation Programs (651)255-1175
Thursday, March 22
Science Museum of Minnesota & Tropics Indoor Water
Park (Shoreview)
Join us for a morning of fun at the New Science Museum
touring exhibits and then, a "day of play" at the Tropics Indoor
Water Park which will include: open gym, swimming and
waterslide. Participants will purchase lunch and snacks on their
own at the Tropics concession stand. Don't forget your towel,
swimsuit and gym clothes/shoes.
Registration Deadline: Wednesday,
March 14
Ages: 7 - 12 years of age and older
Time: Pickup/Return 9:10am/3:30pm
(WSP City Hall)
Fee: $13.50
ENJOY OUR CITY PARKS AND TRAMS
We invite all residents to enjoy the parks and trails in Mendota
Heights. Explore the amenities your city has to offer while
enjoying the great outdoors!
City parks are open from 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. In order to
allow everyone the most enjoyable experience without conflict-
ing with the rights of fellow park users and neighboring resi-
dents, we ask everyone's cooperation in abiding by the posted
park rules.
Park shelters and facilities are available for reservation on a
first come, first-served basis. For information on rental proce-
dures and fees, please contact the Recreation Programmer at
651-452-1850.
When walking or bicycling along the city's trails, please re-
member that the trails were designed,for mixed use. When you
ride your bike, please be cautions and considerate, keeping your
speed at a level that is safe for both you and pedestrians. Walkers,
please be alert for bicycles that may be rounding a bend or
coming over a hill.
City ordinances require all dogs in the city to be leashed. This
especially pertains to park property. Pet owners are permitted to
have their leashed pets in city parks and on city trails but they
are required to clean up any droppings left by their animals.
Finally, to assist the city in the maintenance and appearance
our parks and trails, we ask for everyone's cooperation in using
the trash and recycling receptacles provided.
PAGE 6
HEIGHTS HIGHLITES
CELEBRATE
MENDOTA
HEIGHTS PARKS!
Mark your calendars for Saturday June 2, 2001 as we Celebrate
Mendota Heights Parks! The celebration will be from 10:00 am
to 1:00 pm. Activities will include:
• 10:00 am Breakfast With The Bears
(Teddy Bear Band — BYOB — Bring • •
Your Own Bear) O o O
• Ziggy's Deli will be selling juice/donuts
• 11:00 Boltz's Tae Kwon Do Demo
• 11:30 Turner's Gymnastics Center Demo v O
• 12:00 Team Ramp In Line -Skate Show
• 12:30 Alpha Bits Band
The following events will run between 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
• Walton's Hollow Petting Zoo/Pony
Ride
• Fire Truck Rides
_ • Mendota Heights Athletic Association
x, Ball Tournament
• Sibley Area Sting Soccer Shoot -Out
• Mendakota Animal Hospital
• Face Painting by PROTEC Environ-
mental Consultants
• Caricatures
• Inver Grove Heights Clown Club
• Concessions by Ziggy's
Deli & Ice Cream
This event is made possible by the generous support of resi-
dents, community groups and community businesses. Please
remember to sponsor your local businesses and community
groups. If you are interested in making a donation, volunteering
for this year's event or are a business or community group
interested in participating in next year's event, please contact the
Parks & Recreation Department at 651-452-1850.
Saturday
June 2
endakotn Park
Februarv.2001
SOUTH 'REGION "STARS"
The Area 12 Special Olympics "Stars" are "in training" and
participating in a wide variety of Spring -Summer -Fall -Winter
sports and activities. The activities include bowling, floor
hockey, tennis, basketball, swimming, table tennis, softball,
track & field.
New athletes can be registered at any time during the year.
Interested athletes, volunteer coaches or assistants should con-
tact Marcie at the Inver Grove Heights Parks and Recreation
Department at 651450-2588.
Maintenance Workers
Needed
Applications are now being taken for summer workers for the
Public Works Department, Parks Division. Full-time and part-
time positions are available. There is a special need for Park
Workers to help out on weekends with softball and soccer
events. Applicants must be at least 18 years of age.
Interested persons should contact Nancy Bauer at (651)152-
1850. The City of Mendota Heights is an AA/EEO employer.
FISH ROGERS LAKE
When the snow and ice fi-
nally melt, treat yourself to a
quick trip to Rogers Lake Park.
The park provides a great set-
ting for a family picnic. It also
offers an excellent opportunity
to test your fishing skills. The
Department of Natural Re-
sources completed installation
of a fishing dock on Rogers
Lake last fall. The dock ex-
tends 108 feet into the lake with
a thirty foot "I" at the end.
If you enjoy fishing, Rogers
Lake is defmitely worth a cast,
but please don't bring your
boat! Motorized watercraft are not allowed on Roger's Lake or any
other bodies of water located within the city's corporate limits.
The Parks and Recreation Deparment is making plans for a
Rogers Lake Fishing Derby in June. Watch for more details in the
summer issue of "Heights Highlites."
Parent/Guardian Name:
Dome Phone:
Work Phone:
Address:
City: Zip Code:
o Please check
for $5.00
Non -Resident Fee
Participant Name
1.
Gender
(Circle)
M F
Birthdate
/_/
Activity Name
Start
Date
/ /
Time
FEE
$
2.
M F
3.
M F