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CITY COUNCIL: Thank you and farewell to outgoing members, mayor PAGE 11

’22 in Review A look back with

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Before we say goodbye to 2022 and hello to 2023, it is a tradition of the Vadnais Heights Press to look back at some of the most memorable stories of the year. In 2022, pages were filled with a variety of news, including stories

about crime, events, schools, churches, sports, businesses, city government and more. Perhaps some of the most memorable stories are the ones that feature local residents. SEE YEAR IN REVIEW, PAGES 7-9

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PARTICIPATE IN DEMOCRACY: Attend a precinct caucus PAGE 7A

World’s coolest block party comes to town The city of Stillwater is preparing to host the inaugural World Snow Sculpting Championship competition Jan. 18-23. Ten to 12 teams from around the world will travel to Lowell Park in Stillwater to create amazing snow sculptures while competing for the title of the World Champion.

Stillwater Area Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Robin Anthony said this is an event that involves a lot of planning with the city of Stillwater, Discover Stillwater and the chamber. “In September 2020, the mayor and I brought together the city and business owners to help the businesses get through COVID and to do something in the wintertime. Last summer, the

city of Stillwater updated their strategic plan that now states that their focus is to make Stillwater a year-round destination,” Anthony said. The city and chamber researched for things do in the winter and discovered the national snow sculpting competition at Lake Geneva, Wisconsin.

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Snow sculptures similar to this one, created by Stillwater resident Jon Baller and his team, are on display at the World Snow Sculpting Championship through Jan. 23.

SEE SNOW SCULPTING, PAGE 9A

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Getting ready for the summer boating season After dealing with ice damage and delays getting replacement parts, work was recently completed on the installation of the City of White Bear Lake Municipal Marina docks in Commercial Bay — just in time for the start of the summer boating season. Work was delayed more than five weeks until the manufacturer that originally supplied the parts for the docks came through with a delivery.

BY NOELLE OLSON SHOREVIEW PRESS EDITOR

With help from the Ben Jackson Foundation, White Bear Lake native Angela Hall is coming home for her sister Hanna’s funeral. Angela lost her sister Hanna last year on May 25, 2021, from an accidental fentanyl overdose. Angela is a senior airman in the U.S. Air Force and stationed at Langley Air Force Base in Virginia. “We did not have a proper burial for Hanna when she died, and Angela flew back to Virginia,” said Angela’s mother, Susan. “As a family, we decided to have her burial a year later on Friday, June 3, 2022.” Susan said flights home can cost $400 to $500. “This is almost what Angela makes in a month, so it can be very difficult to get home,” she said. “The Ben Jackson Foundation knows firsthand how difficult it is. They had a son stationed overseas and he asked if his parents could help him out with

some money for his flight. Little did they know that this was the last time they would see their son alive.” The Ben Jackson Foundation was established to help young military service members go home to visit their friends and family with a Ticket Home Award. According to the Ben Jackson Foundation’s website, the Ticket Home Award helps new military members pay travel expenses for a visit home after arriving at their first permanent duty station. Typically, a Ticket Home Award is worth $500 if a soldier is coming home from somewhere in the U.S., and up to $1,000 if they are returning home from an overseas base. The foundation reviews applications and give Ticket Home Awards monthly. The number of awards given depends on fundraising. Angela applied online for a Ticket Home Award in March. Her application was accepted, and she received $500 for travel expenses. “What a great surprise it was for

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members earned their Eagle Scout awards this year. They are: • Aaron Ames designed and built a boardwalk for Vadnais Heights Elementary’s Bears backyard nature walk, and earned 36 merit badges. • Quinn Anderson built six picnic tables and a teaching platform for the Vadnais Heights Elementary Bears backyard outdoor classroom, and earned 45 merit badges. • Carson Cooper built a gaga ball pit for Vadnais Heights Elementary, and earned 56 merit badges. • Jacob Hagen completed a gaga ball pit at White Bear Montessori School, and earned 36 merit badges. • Lucas McGladdery designed, built, and installed four benches at St. John’s School in Little Canada, and earned 38 merit badges. The bounce house, obstacle course, hippo chow down game and other inflatables will be open from 12 to 9 p.m. on SEE HERITAGE DAYS, PAGE 13

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The annual Vadnais Heights Heritage Days community celebration, featuring games, music, vintage car show, parade and traditional Fire Relief Association Booya runs through Sunday, Aug. 21. (Above) The classic car show is a popular event at Heritage Days.

regarding water appropriation permits. “Most, but not all, of these permit holders have requested a contested case hearing, so we are asking them to voluntarily abide by the ban,” said Randall Doneen, DNR section manager for conservation assistance and regulation. “For those permittees that did not request a contested case hearing, we are informing them of the need to implement the residential irrigation ban.” When asked for a status update on the hearings, to be held before an administrative law judge, Doneen said the process is “going pretty slow.” “The DNR and attorney general’s office are doing what we can to move this along,” Doneen said. “The District

WHITE BEAR LAKE — Under different circumstances, a residential irrigation ban would be in effect now that lake level has dropped below 923.5 feet. Municipalities within a 5-mile radius of White Bear Lake that provide water to residences have been informed by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) that lake levels have dropped below the elevation trigger established by court order. The 2017 order is stayed, however, while municipalities wait for hearings

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Lake drops to trigger point for irrigation ban

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Looking forward to Vadnais Heights Heritage Days The annual Heritage Days festival will be held Friday and Saturday, Aug. 20-21 in Vadnais Heights. The weekend will be packed with activities, live music, and good food. Attendance is free and all are welcome. Saturday kicks off with a kiddie parade. Free goodie bags will be given to the first 50 kids in line. “We have several local organizations bringing activities out for kids day on Saturday,” said Katie Everett, recreation supervisor for the City of Vadnais Heights “We’ll kick the day off with a hero-themed kiddie parade at 11a.m.” The Grande Parade is at 12 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 21. The route begins at Commerce Ct. and McMenemy St., following McMenemy St. south to County Road F, ending at Community Park. The Grand Marshals for this year’s parade are local Eagle Scouts from BSA Troop 212. Five

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her to receive this award,” Susan said. “It allows Angela to come home for Hanna’s funeral.” “This opportunity was given to me at the right time,” Angela said. “Just being surrounded by my family means everything to me during this time.” Angela enlisted in the Air Force in 2020, a year after her father passed away from a terminal illness. “I was still in college when my dad passed away,” Angela said. “My life got put on hold, and I didn’t have a set future plan. It was a time in my life where I was grieving, and throughout that process, I thought my dad would be proud of me if I joined the Air Force.” She continued, “I was intrigued by serving my country and I want to further my education without going into more debt.” Press readers may remember Angela as the star goalie for the White Bear Lake High School Girls hockey team a decade ago. After graduating in 2014,

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Gift helps soldier return home for sister’s funeral

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Giorgia Birkeland of White Bear Lake has earned a red, white and blue uniform as a member of the U.S. Olympic team in long track speed skating. Birkeland, 19, and Ian Quinn, 28, of St. Louis, Missouri, were the last two athletes to secure their spots on the 12-person roster by winning the Mass Start Event at the Olympic Trials on Sunday night in Milwaukee. A 2020 graduate of Mahtomedi High School, Birkeland is by far the youngest member of the speed skating team headed for the 2020 Winter Olympics, slated SEE BIRKELAND, PAGE 9A

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BERRY FARMERS: Face shorter growing seasons PAGE 9

WHITE BEAR LAKE — The game clock is ticking at The Village Inn and Stadium Sports Bar. By year’s end, the restaurant and ballfield will be gone, replaced by a 243-unit apartment complex. This shouldn’t come as a surprise. Three years ago, real estate developer Schafer Richardson began phase one construction of a two-phase apartment project on County Road E. Now it’s time to start the process for the second phase. Stadium owners have been leasing the site from the developer since 2018. The city has few parcels that would accommodate a large-scale apartment building. One of those parcels was the corner of Linden Avenue and County Road E, now a 192-unit building called The Barnum. A second parcel is the almost 6-acre site on the corner of E and Hoffman Road, the longtime home of the popular

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Birkeland set for Olympic Games

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Giorgia Birkeland was all smiles after qualifying for the Olympic team Sunday evening in Milwaukee.

Tyler Gengenbach trades his ice skates for snow boots after participating in the recent outdoor hockey jamboree at Podvin Park. He is a member of the White Bear Mite 4 Black Team. 18 teams from White Bear Lake and 18 teams from surrounding communities participated in the youth hockey tournament.

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Residential irrigation would be banned per court order at the current lake level. The order is stayed, however, as municipalities contest changes to water appropriation permits.

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Court recently clarified that the residential irrigation ban and per capita water use goals were only intended for public water suppliers. With that, some parties are attempting to settle and get removed from the contested case. No one has been removed yet. That has been the most activity as of late.” The list of permit holders contesting changes to their water appropriation include Hugo, Lake Elmo, Lino Lakes, Mahtomedi, North St. Paul, Oakdale, Stillwater, Vadnais Heights, White Bear Lake and White Bear Township. When the city of White Bear Lake was asked to voluntarily implement the residential irrigation ban, City Manager Lindy Crawford directed staff to put

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Top 10 most read stories at PressPubs.com 1. 2022 White Bear Lake Vadnais Heights Area Election Results 2. Vadnais Heights man completes ‘adventure of a lifetime’ 3. Best of Vadnais 4. Jimmy’s Food & Drink gets exclusive catering rights at Vadnais Heights Commons 5. Local Pastor captures Hmong spirit with Lego 6. Residents get a look of concept designs for Vadnais Boulevard Trail project 7. Residents express concerns over boardwalks on Vadnais-Snail Lakes Regional Park trails 8. ‘No Mow May’ proposed in Vadnais Heights 9. Looking forward to Vadnais Heights Heritage Days 10. Brandt to skate in 2nd Olympics for Team USA

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County Road E corridor initiative gets support from City Council BY RANDY PAULSON STAFF WRITER

WHITE BEAR LAKE — City staff have the City Council’s blessing to continue working with a plethora of partners on the proposed County Road E Corridor Development Initiative. The initiative is a collaborative endeavor between Gem Lake, Vadnais Heights, White Bear Lake and Ramsey County to “create a more cohesive and connected corridor along County Road E and to guide future development of key op-

portunity sites located in each city,” according to the initiative’s Action Plan Summary Report and Final Recommendations. Gretchen Nicholls, senior program officer with Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Twin Cities, said the three overarching goals of the action plan are as follows: • Pursue improvements along the corridor that would slow down traffic, improve safety, support bike and pedestrian movement and build a cohesive SEE COUNTY ROAD E, PAGE 14

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Five areas in Gem Lake, Vadnais Heights and White Bear Lake have been identified as opportunity sites for potential development as part of the County Road E Corridor Development Initiative.

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