Author: Jim Bayer

Eden Prairie’s Arctic Blast defeated the Wisconsin’s Onalaska Force 12-1 on July 30 in the first round of bracket play in the NAFA North Nationals 18-and-under girls fastpitch tournament. The tournament is being held at Miller Park in Eden Prairie and Chaska Community Park. After going 1-2 in pool play July 29, the Blast landed in the tournament’s 30-team Silver Division. The Blast sent 12 batters to the plate in the fourth inning against the Force, scoring six runs on three hits and assisted by two Force errors. Shortstop Tanna Peterson went 3-for-4, centerfielder Alexa Mann went 3-for-5, and first…

The filing period to run for the open seat on the Eden Prairie School Board is now open. Candidates can file between now and 5 p.m., August 10 for the Nov. 2 special election to fill the seat vacated when Veronica Stoltz resigned in May. Individuals interested in learning more about the position can attend an information meeting from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Monday, Aug. 23 in the Riley Creek Meeting Room, Administrative Services Center, 8100 School Road. The meeting immediately precedes the board’s regular business meeting. Candidates must meet the following requirements: be 21 years old by Nov. 2have…

Eden Prairie’s Arctic Blast 18-and-under girls fastpitch softball team got off to a rocky start Thursday, July 29 in the first round of the Northern North American Fastpitch Association (NAFA) Nationals. The Blast lost an early morning pool game to the Wisconsin 5 Diamonds 12-0. The bats the Blast couldn’t find early were rediscovered 90 minutes later. The Blast shut out the Southwest Wisconsin All-Stars 10-0 in five innings. Abby Sailer got the win, giving up just one hit. Tori Turgeon got the Blast on the board in the fourth inning with a two-run double. Shortstop Tanna Peterson followed up…

Two informational meetings are scheduled for potential candidates for the Eden Prairie School Board special election on Nov. 2. Meetings are scheduled for Mondays, July 19 from 6 to 7 p.m. and August 23 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Both meetings will be held in the Riley Creek Meeting Room in the Administrative Services Center, 8100 School Road in Eden Prairie. The August 23 meeting immediately precedes the school board’s 6 p.m. meeting. Participants will learn more about Eden Prairie Schools and its current board. Current board members also will share information about board governance and answer questions. The open…

A 14-year-old Eden Prairie High School student recently was named a finalist at the International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) for his invention to help senior citizens remember to take their medications. Inspired by his grandparents in India, Shreshth Shrivastava created an app and combined it with a precision weight measurement tool that determines if a medication has been removed at the prescribed time. If not, the app contacts the patient and reminds them. Shrivistava calls his inspiration “bringing soul into technology for seniors.” He believes that the increasing number of seniors combined with shortages of health care workers will…

Anyone interested in running in the special election for an open seat on the Eden Prairie School Board can file for the Tuesday, Nov. 2 special election beginning at 8 a.m. on Tuesday, July 27. Filings close at 5 p.m., Tuesday, Aug. 10. Qualified applicants must: – be 21 years old by Nov. 2 – have been a resident of the district for 30 days before the special election – and have filed for no other offices in the same special election (there aren’t any) Affidavits of candidacy must be filed in the office of the school district clerk. You…

Eden Prairie residents likely won’t be asked to approve a school operating levy referendum this November, despite the findings of a community survey indicating that they might be open to the idea. Eden Prairie’s school board discussed a possible referendum at its June 28 meeting after board Chair Adam Seidel broached the subject, asking Superintendent Josh Swanson to outline the steps necessary to add a referendum question to the Nov. 2 special election. That special election is scheduled to elect a board member to fill the spot vacated by Veronica Stoltz, who resigned at the end of May. Swanson told…

Veronica Stoltz laughs now at the memory of paying her filing fee to run for school board with a jar full of pennies. But she still believes that the “silly gesture” she admits that it was, reflected her reason for running. “I wasn’t going to treat issues as broad and collective issues,” she said, “but the way they trickle down to the individual.” Her own struggles to receive specialized services for her daughter ultimately drove her to seeking a spot on the district’s governing body. “I think growth is born of struggle and that would be true for me in…

The Eden Prairie School Board appointed former board member Karla Bratrud to fill the position vacated by the resignation of Veronica Stoltz. Bratrud will join the board at its July 26 regular meeting. The board set the 7:30 a.m. Friday special meeting at its June 14 workshop meeting. “The meeting details, and Zoom link, were published to the School Board’s webpage on Tuesday morning (June 15),” Brett Johnson, senior director of communications and community relations told EPLN. “There were about 10 people in the audience this morning, so the public was aware of it.” The board approved a motion by…

The rate of COVID-19 cases in Eden Prairie, Hennepin County, and surrounding communities has reached the lowest levels in more than a year, according to data on the Hennepin County COVID-19 Public Dashboard. Eden Prairie’s case rate as of June 7 was 5.5 positive cases per 10,000 residents. The city’s rate topped 100 positive cases per 10,000 residents in November, 2020. There have been 5,160 reported cases in Eden Prairie and 21 Eden Prairie residents have died of COVID-19 as of June 13, according to dashboard data. More than 60 percent of Hennepin County residents had received at least one…