Chaska Herald | www.chaskaherald.com
December 29, 2011 | Page 5
TOP 11 continued from page 1
rose, the highway closed. And downtown Chaska remained a topic of conversation among city and business leaders. We saw what was once mere concepts on paper become tangible structures like the Two Twelve Medical Center, while we witnessed the Chaska / Carver Union Pacific railroad spur become something for the history books. And so we close the book on 2011 and begin to look forward to all the news 2012 will hold.
1. Booming Two Twelve
2. Downtown dilemmas The economy continued to wreak havoc on local businesses in 2011 – most notably downtown where Chaska Farm and Garden closed after 30 years in operation and Kentucky Fried Chicken quietly shut down. But perhaps signaling a bit of recovery, the public excitedly welcomed news that a couple new restaurants were going to give it a go downtown. Patron Mexican Restaurant and Pistol Pete’s are both anticipated to open in early 2012. Meanwhile, the city continues to refine the Downtown Master Plan and its recommendations for creating a vibrant place to live, shop and work. And in the hopes of getting rolling on some of the shortterm goals listed in the plan, a handful of local business owners formed the Downtown Business Alliance in April. The group will be focused on bringing together downtown business and property owners to support efforts that make downtown a more desirable place to shop and do business.
3. Fatal stabbing Things got ugly in the early morning hours of June 3 when a Chaska man was fatally stabbed outside Kelley’s Bar in downtown Chaska. Jason Foster, 34 was killed in the altercation. Jesse James Rogers remains in jail facing seconddegree murder charges. Though the details of the night are being disputed in court, witnesses reportedly told police the incident was a bar fight that eventually spilled out into the parking lot and ended with Foster being stabbed multiple times. Facing scrutiny from the city and Chaska’s police department for failing to call police when fights occurred, Kelley’s Bar owner Kelley Sharp opted not to renew the establishment’s liquor license. The bar closed at the end of June and the building at the southwest corner of Highway 41 and Chaska Boulevard remains empty. Ro ger s’ t r i a l i s s e t for March.
4. River ebbs and flows Few were surprised when the spring thaw began and the already high Minnesota River started to rise for the fourth time in just over a year. Up, up, up it went collecting moisture from the melting snow pack and making residents anxious about the prospects of breaking 1965 records. The city of Carver heightened its levee, preparing for the onslaught, and the area became the center of attention on network news. However, in the end, the fraught was for naught as the melt slowed enough to keep the river high without topping area
SUBMITTED PHOTO COURTESY OF HOMELAND SECURITY AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
Water rushes across Highway 41 south of the river bridge during spring flooding. levees. The Minnesota crested at 12.13 feet over f lood stage on March 31 (seventh highest on the flood record). The river remained above flood stage for 59 days with Highway 41 closed for nearly two weeks. Gradually – and thanks to a lack of any measurable precipitation in the late summer and fall – river levels swung from a high of 30 feet to a low of five feet. The dramatic sandbars created by the low river levels brought the anglers out in droves.
186625
Sitting like a beacon atop a hill, Ridgeview’s Two Twelve Medical Center opened the doors to its standalone emergency room and clinic at the northeast corner of Highway 41 and Highway 212 in February. It’s been a busy location ever since. By October, the emergency room/urgent care alone had treated 20,000 patients from 670 different zip codes. Chief Administrative Officer Mike Phelps said more than 10,000 people are estimated to visit the medical center each month. Less than a year old, all of the existing space within Two Twelve Medical Center is already spoken for, making it a shiny feather in the city’s cap. But there are some more shiny feathers set to open along Highway 212 in 2012. United Heath Group’s data center at Highway 212 and Engler Boulevard is expected to open early next year. Southwest Christian High School is going up fast at its new location at Highway 212 and Bavaria Road in the hopes of opening during the 2012-2013 school year. And Carver’s Fleet Farm at Highway 212 and Jonathan Carver Parkway is well under construction and on target for an August opening.
Christmas Tree Recycling Where to Drop off:
5. Tech levy One of the more hotly debated issues of the year was a school technology referendum. The levy would have provided approximately $1.98 million a year for 10 years toward District 112 technology equipment and programs – approximately $220 per pupil. District officials argued that the levy would pay for needed expenses, such as wireless infrastructure, laptops and technology training. If not approved, officials worried that classroom technology would compete with expenses such as fi xing roofs and parking lots. Many of those opposed pointed to the already high taxes paid by district residents. Others cast protest votes, arguing of inequities between Chanhassen and Chaska high schools. In the end, the levy failed by 216 votes, with one-fi fth of registered voters casting ballots.
6. End of the line It’s gone. Finished. Kaput. After more than 140 years, the railroad running through downtown Chaska and Carver is no more. The rails were torn out, the railroad bed was dug up, and the iconic bridge in Carver was blown up. It was a 2007 trestle collapse that eliminated the last use of the Chaska spur – hauling sugar products to and from the United Sugars plant. The 5.6 mile stretch of track between Chaska and Louisville in Scott County was rendered useless – and too pricy to fi x. Completed by the Minneapolis-St. Louis Railway in 1871, the railroad line spelled the end of steamboat traffic on the Minnesota River. Now it’s the end of the railroad. Scott and Carver counties, and Carver and Chaska, plan to use the property for other uses – pumping sewage, building trails, connecting streets. But it’s doubtful if any of the future uses of the property will be as glamorous as the era of the railroad.
7. Who are we? Every 10 years, the U.S. Census paints a portrait of who we are as a community. This spring, the Census told us we are now a town of 23,700 people – 36 percent larger than 10 years ago. The average Chaskan takes a half-hour commute to work, owns a $ 244,0 0 0 home, and pulls in $67,000 in household income. Most Chaskans are white, but over 10 percent of our population is Latino. Almost 1,850 residents both live and work in Chaska and 37 percent of all households are composed of married couples with children. These, and many more, statistics were released in 2011, helping us understand what Chaska is, and what it may become.
8. Historic buildings change hands The future of some of the city’s most prominent historic Chaska brick buildings came into question more than once in 2011. After years of trying to get a fi ne dining restaurant into the long-vacant C.P. Klein mansion on Wa l nut St reet
FILE PHOTO BY MOLLEE FRANCISCO
After 30 years in business, Chaska Farm and Garden left its perch alongside Firemen’s Park in mid-2011.
Christmas trees can be brought to the following location: Chaska – Carver County Environmental Center 116 Peavey Circle (Open Wed., 12:00 noon – 7:00 p.m., Thur. 11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Sat. 8:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon; Closed on Sat. Jan. 1)
Holiday Christmas Lights accepted at no charge. Please remove trees from plastic bags! Do NOT include! Ornaments, stands, lights, artificial trees and wire wreaths. Trees will be chipped and used for compost or mulch. Questions? Call Carver County Environmental Services at 952-361-1800. 218340
FILE PHOTO BY MOLLEE FRANCISCO
Jason Foster was fatally stabbed outside Kelley’s Bar on June 3. downtown, the city released its hold on the century-old building and put the house up for sale. With a $239,900 price tag and hundreds of thousands of dollars in repair needed, the property has yet to sell. Meanwhile, its twin – the C.H. Klein mansion – less than a block south also endured some changes in 2011. After operating as the Peacock Inn Bed and Breakfast for years, owner Joyce Bohn approached the city about subleasing the building to Five Stars Recovery Center for use as a nine-person residential treatment facility. The council reluctantly approved a five-year agreement with Five Stars, but is holding out hope that in that time the economy will rebound and Bohn will be able to reopen her bed and breakfast. In late December, the Jonathan Association asked the city to consider using eminent domain to take over the Eitel House in Neighborhood Eight with the notion of ultimately passing it through to the Arts Consortium of Carver County. The association wants to see the building preserved, but cannot afford the costs associated with radon and mold mitigation as well as the repairs needed to make the old farmhouse usable.
9. Traffic plummets; beefed-up crossing A MnDOT report that came out late this year shocked many. Highway 41 traffic through downtown Chaska had plummeted. In 2007, there were 18,500 vehicles traveling through downtown. Now there are 12,500. The city of Chaska thinks the new Highway 212, as well as the recession, is to blame for the lower numbers. With the recent high waters of the Minnesota River frequently closing all area river crossings, a move is afoot to flood-proof either Highway 101 in Shakopee or Highway 41. For officials, the drop in traffic through downtown Chaska bolsters the case for flood-proofing the Highway 101 crossing. If the Shakopee crossing becomes the bridge of choice, officials believe downtown Chaska traffic would remain low. Some are concerned that a dead-end main street during flooding will continue to hurt downtown Chaska businesses. However, the city is eager to revisit turning downtown’s Chestnut Street (Highway 41) to three-lanes with parking on both sides, versus the MnDOTproposed five-lane highway with no parking.
FILE PHOTO BY MOLLEE FRANCISCO
Local Realtor Gayle Dungey is trying to sell the historic C.P. Klein mansion on Walnut and Fourth streets.
Top news of 2010 1. Three floods. 2. Big development plans 3. Bad economy 4. Dysfunctional wind turbine 5. Prominent developments on horizon 6. Second Street stoplight finally installed 7. New elected politicians 8. Special mayoral election 9. Tentative agreement on abandoned U.P. line 10. Lots of activity at local churches
k “Like” us on Faceboo e for two awesom ways to win! “Like” Fitness Together – Chanhassen on Facebook for a chance to win: One-month Personal Training & Nutritional Counseling Includes 10 personal trainings sessions with Fit Consultation, 2 PACK small group training sessions, and 2 Nutrition Together sessions. | $1,000 Value
“Like” Savvy.mn Magazine on Facebook for a chance to win a family fun package: 4 Movie Passes to Five Star Cinemas 4 Passes to the Minnesota Zoo 4 Passes to Sea Life Aquarium – Mall of America $100 for dinner at Houlihan’s – Chanhassen
your chance to win! “Like” us both by January 31, 2012 for
10. Local poet laureate Everyone loves a “Local does good” story, and there was one Chaskan who did exceptionally well in 2011. In August, Gov. Mark Dayton appointed Joyce Sutphen, Chaska resident and Gustavus Adolphus College professor, as poet laureate. “Joyce Sutphen is a talented writer and teacher who will be a great voice for poetry in Minnesota,” the governor said in his announcement. An author of five books of poetry, Sutphen writes poems that often draw on her rural upbringing. She said in a Herald interview earlier this year. “We’re so busy, we don’t get a chance to savor the details or pay attention as much as we should. Poetry does that.”
11. Surly Brewery Last September, we reported about the city of Chaska’s attempt to prompt the Su rly Brewing Company, a beloved Minnesota micro-brewery, to relocate to downtown. “Well we’re a German town,” Chaska City Administrator Matt Podhradsky joked to the newspaper. Chaska’s last brewery, Beyrer Brewery, closed in 1955. Truth be told, we probably never had a chance. The brewery ultimately deemed Chaska just too far out of the Twin Cities beltway. So this could also be one of the top “non-stories” of the year. Regardless, the city’s attempt to woo the business captured Chaskans’ imaginations. It prompted numerous online comments and dominated the talk-around-town for more than a few days.
SEND US YOUR … Opinion: What’s the best book you read in ’11? It’s list-mania time: Top news stories … biggest newsmakers … craziest celebrities … best new restaurants. And, we’re piling on by asking all of you bibliophiles: What’s the best book you read in 2011? If you have a book recommendation – whether it’s fiction, nonfiction, poetry or (heaven forbid!) reference – then send us the title, author and a couple of sentences describing why it’s great. Share your recommendation with Chaska Herald readers. Send your suggestion – no more than 200 words, please – to Editor Mark Olson, editor@chaskaherald.com, before noon on Friday, Jan. 6. Include your name and city of residence. We’ll run some recommendations online at chaskaherald.com and the best in the Jan. 12 Herald print edition.
CHASKA
HERALD