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WEDNESDAY, MARCH 6, 2024 VOL. 129 NO. 21 www.whitebearpress.com $1.00
HOCKEY: Bears, Zephyrs state tournament bound PAGE 6
Daylight Savings March 10
Bruce Vento Trail gets council approval for new expansion BY ERIK SUCHY STAFF WRITER
Cyclists, rejoice! More path is on the way for bike lovers and enthusiasts alike. A new extension plan for the Bruce Vento Trail is receiving a thumbs-up from the White Bear Lake City Council and is set to begin construction in late 2024. The trail starts in downtown St. Paul and runs north to just north of I-694 near Buerkle Road in White Bear Lake. The council intends to construct an additional 2.7 miles from Buerkle Road to just north of the intersection of Hoffman Road and Highway 61. The project is headed by Scott Yonke, director of planning and development at Ramsey County Parks and Recreation. The Phase 1 Project initially took shape in 2014 after Ramsey County Parks and Recreation found few pedestrian facilities within the proposed trail extension area, in which major transportation routes for vehicles and various industrial and office buildings take up the corridor. The county then launched a large-scale planning effort to find an alternative three-mile trail connection away from Buerkle Road to Highway 96 to close the trail’s remaining gap. Additional designs were established in 2018 for the planned 2.7mile extension between Buerkle Road and the intersection of Hoffman Road and Highway
PAUL DOLS | PRESS PUBLICATIONS
617 celebrates 90 years as local social hub Mary Montpetit and her daughter Kim take a brief break from their bartending duties during a recent, busy, early evening rush at the 617 Cocktail Bar in downtown White Bear Lake. The venerable establishment is celebrating 90 years of business this week. Find story and more photos on pages 12-13.
SEE TRAIL, PAGE 11
Retired director leaves legacy of hope for the homeless BY ERIK SUCHY STAFF WRITER
Her time fighting for people experiencing homelessness may be drawing to a close, but the legacy of Trisha Kauffman is far from over. Kauffman officially retired in August 2023 from her position as executive director at Solid Ground. The organization, based out of White Bear Lake, assists homeless families in finding affordable housing across Minnesota. Her replacement, Diamond Hunter, was named a short time later.
Kauffman, originally from Ohio, previously worked as an associate director for The Domestic Violence Project in Canton before she moved to Minnesota in 1996. “I really developed a special interest in housing for families with children,” Kauffman said. She became executive director for Solid Ground in 1997. As her time at Solid Ground began, Kauffman became instrumental in improving and expanding the nonprofit’s programs, which were originally intended to serve low-income women with children area. Although the organization also
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helped serve single fathers and two-parent families, the only program available at the time was through traditional housing, which limited the occupancy of these families to a maximum twoto-three-year stay. Kauffman helped the nonprofit add a permanent housing subdivision and provide rental assistance to people outside the company’s housing program, including originally site-based housing. “The rental market is very tight, so it’s tough to find affordable units for lowerSEE KAUFFMAN, PAGE 9
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Trisha Kauffman poses with her successor, Diamond Hunter, the new executive director.
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