Star Tribune
Westonka Library in Mound will remain open a few extra weeks
The Westonka Library in Mound will remain open a few weeks longer than anticipated as officials finalize the plans for a new net-zero-energy facility.
Hennepin County officials have been saying for years that they need to replace the library, which opened in 1972. Last year, they presented plans for a new $17.5 million facility that will use geothermal and solar energy and will not need natural gas or refrigerants for heating and cooling.
Officials initially expected the current library building would close in December but now say it will remain open until January, with a specific closing date to be announced later this fall.
“As designs are reviewed and fine-tuned, so are the closure and construction timelines,” Joshua Yetman, a spokesperson for Hennepin County, said in an email.
Yetman said construction is expected to last 18 months, with the new building opening in the summer of 2026.
“While we’re excited to construct Hennepin County’s first net-zero library, we’re also trying to minimize the time between closure and demolition,” Yetman said. “Arrangements for alternate services, including holds pickup in Mound, are being finalized and will be included in the public announcement later this fall.”
Two cities that had reservations about approving plans to extend the Blue Line have have given their consent allowing work to move forward.
Robbinsdale and Crystal on Tuesday gave their support for the plan, joining Brooklyn Park, which gave its consent last week.
Minneapolis is set to vote on the proposal Wednesday, as is Hennepin County.
The affirmative votes from the two north metro suburbs are a critical step as planning continues for the light-rail line, which would run from downtown Minneapolis through Robbinsdale and Crystal on its way to Brooklyn Park. The line could cost between $2.9 and $3.2 billion.
Some residents in Robbinsdale hoped the City Council would vote no and cited a long list of concerns, including at-grade crossings along Bottineau Boulevard, a proposed parking garage at 40th and West Broadway, crime and the location of a station near North Memorial Health.
The Metropolitan Council projects the line could provide 12,000 to 13,000 rides a day. The line is projected to start in 2030.
Required by state law, municipal consent calls for cities and counties along a proposed light rail line to grant permission for the project to move forward.
Gov. Tim Walz referenced publicly for the first time Tuesday night during the national vice presidential debate that his 17-year-old son Gus had witnessed a shooting while playing volleyball at a rec center.
The shooting outside the Jimmy Lee Recreation Center occurred Jan. 18 and was widely reported, but Gus Walz’s presence that day wasn’t widely known until August when he became a sensation for standing up and tearfully supporting his dad, who was onstage at the Democratic National Convention at Chicago’s United Center.
After Gus Walz’s moment went viral, St. Paul Parks Aquatics Supervisor and coach David Albornoz posted on social media about his friendship with the governor’s son. Albornoz talked about how he came to know Gus Walz through his love of volleyball and post-match tacos.
He also talked about how Gus Walz was in the building when the shooting occurred in the parking lot at the Jimmy Lee, which sits on the corner of Selby Avenue across Lexington from Central High School. Albornoz wrote that Gus “helped keeping everyone safe and calm, looking after the kids in the gym with us as I rushed out.”
Gus was a sophomore then but is now a senior at Central High. A Walz spokesman confirmed that Gus Walz was present.
Last year, Exavir D. Binford Jr., a 27-year-old employee of the recreation center and a St. Paul resident, pleaded guilty to first-degree assault in the shooting. He was sentenced earlier this year to ten years in prison.
According to a criminal complaint:
Binford said a teenager, identified as J.T., and his group fought at Central and at Jimmy Lee. Binford said that Central staff had called to warn recreation center employees about trouble at the school and rec center staff locked the doors as a precaution, but a fight among girls began.
Dan Feehan, a surrogate for the Harris-Walz campaign, narrowly lost a congressional race to replace Walz in the House in 2018 to GOP Rep. Jim Hagedorn. He said the first call his family got the morning after that election came from Gwen Walz, who asked about Feehan and his wife, Amy, and invited them to visit.
“This is the chance for the rest of the country to know who he is as a person,” Feehan said.
DFLers were in high spirits as the night kicked off. “We are going to kick butt in this debate and then moonwalk out of here!” State Sen. Nick Frentz, DFL-North Mankato, said to a cheering audience before the debate.
When the back-and-forth commenced, attendees at the Democratic event clapped as Walz attacked Trump over Iran’s nuclear weapon capabilities and booed when Vance critiqued the President Joe Biden administration’s stance on Iran. Applause erupted when Walz said, “We trust women; we trust doctors,” while boos rang out as Vance talked about earning trust on abortions.
Attendees at the Republican event jeered when Walz spoke about his stances on health care and immigration policy. Annette Pruitt-Rogers, who came to Mankato from Le Sueur, Minn., yelled “Don’t go there!” when Walz quoted a Bible verse on stage. She said she disapproved of Walz’s invocation of scripture, calling it a touchy subject because she opposes his stances on same-sex marriage and abortion.
Walz and Vance debated at the CBS Broadcast Center in New York, with no audience.
