Playground equipment at Bottineau Field Park was surrounded by temporary fencing on Wednesday, Feb. 5, as Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board workers prepared for the park’s upcoming renovation, due to start in April. The equipment will be replaced. Renovations will include a new splash pad. (Cynthia Sowden)
Audubon, Bottineau Parks slated for summer renovation
Audubon Park, 1320 29th Ave. NE, and Bottineau Field Park, 2000 NE 2nd St., will undergo renovations this summer.
As part of MPRB’s East of the River Master Plan, Audubon will be outfitted with with new play equipment and a resilient playground surface. The existing tennis courts will be upgraded for pickleball, ecuavóley — an Ecuadorian version of volleyball that uses a higher net and a soccer ball — and futsal. The existing basketball court will also be renovated, and paths and lighting will be upgraded to improve accessibility and safety. Additional benches and some landscaping will also be involved. The recreation building and the wading pool will remain as-is.
Project Manager Bianca Pas said, in response to the Northeaster, “The dog park would be implemented in a later phase of improvements. When we engaged with the community and consulted about prioritizing improvements for this phase of construction, the dog park was not among the priorities. For most people (even many dog owners), the priorities were to improve the existing sports courts, playground and lighting. We also had to address stormwater management requirements in this phase of construction.”
Bidding will take place in March or April. Work in the park is anticipated to begin by the end of June.
The renovation of Bottineau Field Park is set to begin this spring — probably in April. Playground equipment was fenced in Wednesday, Feb. 5, in preparation for removal.
The park will feel completely new when finished. It will include an upgraded wading pool, a new splash pad and play areas, a new full-size basketball court with an artficial surface, new picnic tables and other site furnishings, paths, upgraded lighting, new stormwater management features funded by the Mississippi Watershed Management Organization (MWMO) and areas with native plants for pollinator and wildlife habitat, also funded by MWMO.
The park is slated for a new gymnasium at a later date.
Northeast Library closing for most of 2025
The Northeast Library, 2200 Central Ave. NE, will close for renovations beginning Monday, Feb. 24. The project will include refreshing the interior with new paint, carpet and some furnishings; adding new play structures in the children’s area and two new study rooms; and completing preservation work while replacing the roof and tuckpointing exterior brick.
During the closure, all holds will be redirected to the Pierre Bottineau Library, 55 Broadway St. NE. Patrons may select an alternative pickup location by logging into their online account to adjust their settings or by reaching out to staff for assistance. The library is expected to reopen late this year.
Congratulations, graduate
Jackson Macguire Hafele, Minneapolis, received a Master of Science in computer engineering from Iowa State University.
On the dean’s list
Erika Dierke of Minneapolis was named to the University of Mississippi’s (“Ole Miss”) fall 2024 honor roll list. The university is in Oxford, Miss.
Carthage College, Kenosha, Wis., recognized James Keiser from Minneapolis for academic achievement and being named to the fall 2024 dean’s list.
Florence Ofosu Boateng, Columbia Heights, made the dean’s list at Minnesota State University-Moorhead.
The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point honored more than 2,600 undergraduate students for attaining high grade point averages during the fall semester. One of them was
Sophia McPherson, St. Anthony, who received highest honors.
The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire announced its dean’s list: Christine Myhre, Columbia Heights, and Ayla Carr, Dakota Johnson, Anna McCleary and Charles Rusnacko, Minneapolis.
Douglas Dunn, St. Anthony, was named to Western Technical College’s president’s list of high distinction for the Fall 2024 term. Western Technical College is in LaCrosse, Wis.
Isaac Velasco, a Bemidji State University student from Minneapolis, has earned dean’s list honors at BSU for the fall 2024 semester.
Ramla Abdi of Columbia Heights and
Yeraldi Valdez Sosa of Hilltop were named to the Hamline University School of Business fall 2024 dean’s list, while Aaron Cardenas
Borsani, Christabel Asare and Justine Morris of Columbia Heights, Anisa Mohamed, Blake Neumann and Madelyn Ramsey of St. Anthony, and Iris Eichinger, Josephine Skrivseth and Michael Penafiel of Minneapolis made Hamline University’s dean’s list.
Theodore Trench, Minneapolis, was among the more than 8,700 undergraduate students at the University of Iowa, Iowa City, named to the dean’s list for the 2024 fall semester.
Ladarah Ross of Columbia Heights was named to the fall 2024 dean’s list at Georgia State University, Atlanta.
Boulevard veggies, anyone?
The Minneapolis City Council will consider a measure that allows residents to grow vegetables on boulevard strips along the sidewalk without a permit. (Previously, only grass and flowers were allowed.)
The ordinance change would prohibit planting within 3 feet of a fire hydrant, and plants can be no taller than 18 inches. Hedges and shrubs must be 6 inches in from the sidewalk and no closer than 2 feet from the gutter.
The amendment has been referred to the City Council, which will likely vote on it Thursday, Feb. 13.
Below, Rose Kembitsky as Shrek and Hanan Mohamoud as Donkey in Columbia Heights High School’s production of “Shrek the Musical.” The Hylanders received 11 awards from the Hennepin Theater Trust Spotlight Education program. (Columbia Heights Public Schools)
CHHS’s “Shrek” in the “Spotlight”
Columbia Heights High School’s cast of “Shrek the Musical” received 11 honors through the Hennepin Theater Trust Spotlight Education program. The program sends trained theater professionals and educators to watch and assess participating schools’ theater productions. Over 100 schools across Minnesota participate in the Spotlight Education program.
Four Outstanding Awards were given: Rose Kembitsky as “Shrek,” Hanan Mohamoud as “Donkey” and Friday Lee as “Lord Farquaad,” and lighting designer Daniela Caizapanta. The school received seven honorable mentions, including Fernanda Mendez Chamba as “Fiona,” Leo Pham as “Pinocchio” and Alice Sabatke for technical leadership.
Evaluators also praised Emmy Barre as “Dragon” and Livie Powers as “Gingy,” and commended the ensemble’s overall performance.