Author: Mark Weber

The Eden Prairie City Council is poised to take the final step in creating a replica of the water tank and train depot that, when railroads ruled, stood east of Eden Prairie Road and south of the historic Smith-Douglas-More House. Those original railroad structures are long gone, and the replica depot isn’t identical to the so-called Washburn train depot that was an Eden Prairie transportation hub for many years, starting in 1871, when the Minneapolis & St. Louis Railroad tracks were built here. But, the new buildings will return to life some of EP’s earliest “downtown,” which not only included…

Eden Prairie city officials are taking lessons learned from their 3-year-old Staring Lake Park building and putting them into plans for a new building at Round Lake Park. They’ve incorporated a rentable community room into the design for a new, 4,293-square-foot building that would replace the 40-year-old restrooms and skating rink warming house at Round Lake. That’s because the current, smaller building isn’t rented at all, whereas the relatively new park building at Staring Lake Park is tallying more than 60 rentals a year, according to Matt Bourne, the city’s parks and natural resources manager. Bourne, who presented park-building plans…

For Roy Terwilliger, a lifetime of community service – most of it in Eden Prairie – was sparked by his family’s involvement in a tiny town in South Dakota. “One of my most vivid memories – I was 4 or 5 – was of an old guy who lived by himself in a tarpaper shack in town,” Terwilliger recalls. “His house caught on fire. The town fire truck wouldn’t start. My dad went over with his truck, his gas truck, (and) pulled the fire truck to the fire, so they could use the pumping mechanism and pour water on the…

Rose and Jim Bitter of Eden Prairie think their next vehicle might be a fuel-efficient, plug-in hybrid, and it’s not just about saving money on gas. “I want to do it for our children, our grandchildren,” said Rose, alluding to the global push to reduce fossil-fuel emissions to avoid climate changes that could be disastrous. “This is the right thing to do,” she added. The Bitters were among people attending Monday evening’s Electric Vehicle Ride and Drive Event, organized by the City of Eden Prairie’s Sustainability Commission to encourage the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs). People attending the event at…

A preliminary 2023 budget and tax levy that would increase the city portion of property taxes on a $513,200 home by $106 were set Tuesday, Sept. 6, by the Eden Prairie City Council. The council expects to hold a public meeting on the final tax levy and budget Dec. 6, and make final decisions at that meeting or by Dec. 28. The city is only one portion of the property tax bill received annually by homeowners; the schools and Hennepin County are also major parts. Approved unanimously Tuesday was a preliminary 2023 city tax levy of $44.9 million and a…

It’s a tale of two Eden Prairie Burger Kings: The long-vacant Burger King on Flying Cloud Drive has now been demolished, possibly making way for redevelopment, while construction of a new Burger King at Highway 5 and County Road 4 remains on hold. No plan to redevelop the site at Flying Cloud Drive and Prairie Center Drive, southwest of Eden Prairie Shopping Center, has been submitted to the City of Eden Prairie for review, said Julie Klima, director of community development. The demolition simply cleans up an eyesore and makes way for something new. Klima said the city is assuming…

The Eden Prairie City Council, at its Tuesday, Sept. 6 meeting, will consider setting a preliminary 2023 tax levy of approximately $42.4 million and a total 2023 budget of about $57.4 million, with the final numbers to be determined in December. The proposed tax levy is up 4.5% over the 2022 number, and the total budget number is up 3.2%. The proposal before the city council on Tuesday indicates the city portion of 2023 property taxes would be $1,530 – up $106 or 7.4% – on a $513,200 home in Eden Prairie, if the preliminary budget and tax-levy numbers are…

Candidates for Eden Prairie City Council and mayor have begun putting their campaign strategies into play and differentiating themselves from competitors. The Wednesday, Aug. 31, candidate forum held by the League of Women Voters was an important step in that process. The two-hour forum, held by LWV members from Eden Prairie, Minnetonka, and Hopkins, allowed the six candidates to share their visions and show their knowledge of Eden Prairie city government and the issues on which it deliberates. The six are: two candidates for mayor, incumbent Ron Case and challenger Tracey Schowalter; and four candidates for two city council member…

As expected, the Eden Prairie City Council on Tuesday, Aug. 16, unanimously approved a new ordinance regulating the local sale of “THC edibles,” or products with small amounts of THC derived from hemp that were approved for sale by the 2022 Minnesota Legislature. The ordinance looks a lot like the one used in Eden Prairie for regulating tobacco sales in that it prohibits sales to customers younger than age 21 and requires a city license, background check, site visit, compliance checks, and more. “Almost every city around us is taking the position, at the minimum, to license the sale of…

The latest in a series of local apartment projects was rejected on a preliminary 4-0 vote Tuesday, Aug. 16, by the Eden Prairie City Council. The council said a Ryan Companies plan for a five-story, 211-unit apartment project on seven acres along Valley View Road, near its intersection with Topview Road/Plaza Drive, had too many issues. It instructed staff to prepare findings for a formal rejection of the plan, likely to come in September. It’s the third apartment project reviewed by the City of Eden Prairie in nine months. The 425-unit Blue Stem North, near an under-construction light-rail-transit station in…