Covering life, work, and play in the Historic Mill District and Downtown Minneapolis Riverfront neighborhoods. Have an opinion, local news or events to share? Contact us.
When I noticed the 35W Memorial fully encased in a tent and fenced off, my first thought was vandalism. I checked with the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board office this morning, and was relieved to hear it's just annual maintenance, which will hopefully be completed on Friday.
;)
Attention photography enthusiasts - the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) announced their 3rd annual 'Picture A Park' photo contest, sponsored in conjunction with People for Parks(PFP) and National Camera.
The contest is designed to highlight the year-round beauty, events and fun throughout Minneapolis’ parks.
Photos and completed entry forms are being accepted until September 3, 2012. Photos from any time of the year may be submitted. Click here for full contest information.
The Police 1st Precinct recently generated a notice with tips on preventing bicycle theft, as well as what to do if you are a victim of this crime.
Many bikes are stolen when poorly secured outside a store, park building, business or library. Police recover numerous bicycles during their investigations and when people call 311 to report abandoned bikes. Unfortunately, hundreds of bikes are never returned to their owners because there may be no proof of ownership available. These bikes and many other items are sold through the Minneapolis Police public auctions.
A Message from the Police 1st Precinct
This is the time of year when bicycles are stolen due to underground garage burglaries. Many bikes are also stolen when poorly secured outside a store, park building, business or library. Police recover numerous bicycles during their investigations and when people call 311 to report abandoned bikes. Unfortunately, hundreds of bikes are never returned to their owners because there may be no proof of ownership available. These bikes and many other items are sold through the Minneapolis Police public auctions.
TO REDUCE THE CHANCE OF HAVING YOUR BIKE STOLEN, RECORD THE MAKE, MODEL, and SERIAL NUMBER OF YOUR BICYCLE AND KEEP THE INFO IN A SAFE PLACE. ALSO, save your purchase receipt; it is proof of ownership and value. This information is essential if you want to get it back if it is recovered by the police.
You can find the serial number on the “bottom bracket” of the bike. This is the cylinder on which the pedals rotate. Turn the bike upside down to see the number. Take some photos of the whole bike as well, especially if the bike is unusual looking or has extra features. Put your name on the rim under the tires.
HOW TO REPORT STOLEN OR LOST BICYCLES:
CPS Renee Allen; Minneapolis Police 1st Precinct
MacPhail Center for Music is hosting a book tour on Thursday, June 21, at 4:00pm for Mannie Jackson and his new book, "Boxcar to Boardrooms".
This is an amazing American success story. Literally born in a boxcar, Mannie lived there with 14 family members for several years as a child. He went on to become a senior executive at Honeywell in Minneapolis for years, and eventually became the owner of the Harlem Globetrotters and sat on five different Fortune 500 boards.
I see a pattern forming - when Nick is scheduled for Mill City Cooks, there's a chance a few rain drops will fall... Despite some on and off sprinkles, we had no problem filling our basket with organic goodness at the June 16 Market.
What the deuce ? ? ?
Authors Brenda Langton (The Spoonriver Cookbook) and Atina Diffley (Turn Here Sweet Corn: Organic Farming Works) recently conducted a "farm to market" discussion and book signing at the Mill City Museum. Atina's husband Martin provided background on how he met Atina and Brenda, and their commitment to growing, preparing and educating people about healthful food.
Just like the complex eco-system web of species, farmers and consumers are intricately linked. The food decisions consumers make every day drive and directly impact the land management decisions farmers make, which have a huge impact on local ecosystems and ultimately, the health of all life on the planet. A committed and supportive relationship between farm and market is crucial to the creation of an economically viable, local-organic, resilient and renewable, food system.
Attendees were treated to sample recipes from The Spoonriver Cookbook, showcasing a few of the many simple, delicious and healthy recipes found in the book.
About The Spoonriver Cookbook
For nearly forty years, Brenda Langton has been one of the most recognizable guiding lights of Twin Cities organic dining. The Spoonriver Cookbook is a tribute to her acclaimed Spoonriver restaurant and the Mill City Farmers Market, as well as a presentation of the vision and philosophy behind Spoonriver’s delicious creations and their remarkable chef.
About Turn Here Sweet Corn
In telling her story of working the land, Atina Diffley reminds us that we live in relationships—with the earth, plants and animals, families and communities. A memoir of making these essential relationships work in the face of challenges from weather to corporate politics, this is a firsthand history of getting in at the “ground level” of organic farming.
Both books are available at the Mill City Museum store.
June 9th's Market theme was Brain Food. Market shoppers swarmed The American Academy of Neurology tent for complimentary bike helmets and water bottles.
Look for our newest Mill District neighbor, the American Academy of Neurology, at Saturday's Mill City Farmers Market.
The 2012 Minneapolis Marathon runners took off from The Depot at 6:30a Sunday, and finished up at the gorgeous riverside setting of Bohemian Flats. Know someone who ran? Visit the website for race results.
Also see Amelia Rayno's Star Trib online article regarding the growing popularity of races in the Twin Cities.
After last week's rain out, things were back to normal at the June 2 market. Brenda Langton shared the exciting news that Discovery Channel Canada was at the market shooting footage for a special featuring the highlights Minneapolis. In addition to MCFM, Spoonriver will be the only Minneapolis restaurant included in the special. We'll share details as they become available.
Below, Darrold from Sunrise Flour Mill demonstrated how to toss their new pizza dough.
Looking to learn and grow while having fun this summer? Hennepin County Library is collaborating with many community organizations and businesses, including The Guthrie, Institute for Arts, MacPhail Center for Music, Bakken Museum, Three Rivers Park District and many others, to present hundreds of free, enriching arts and cultural programs for kids, teens, and adults that begin in June.
Here are a few examples:
The Guthrie Theater will present more than two dozen workshops for children, teens, and adults as part of the Library’s “Act Out” series. Teen arts educators trained by the Minneapolis Institute of Arts will teach two dozen “Art Out of the Box” workshops for kids.
MacPhail Center for Music early childhood music specialists will lead hands-on music activities for young children at seven libraries.
I learned about this program through the Hennepin County Library's newsroom. Click here for the full article.
Join MacPhail Center for Music this summer at one of the many camps being offered for ages 3 – adult. It’s not too late to sign up for the following camps:
• Early Childhood Music Camps: Animals on Parade for ages 4-6, June 11-15; Music Around the World (Minneapolis and Apple Valley) for ages kindergarten – first grade, June 11-15, Apple Valley and June 18-22, Minneapolis; Make and Play Those Instruments (NEW) for ages 4-6, June 18-21, Silverwood Park, June 25-28, Apple Valley and July 16-19, White Bear Lake.
• Mallet Keyboard Camp for ages 14-18, June 18-22
• Percussion Camp for ages 11-14, July 9-13
• Composing for Video Games for ages 13-18, June 25-20
For more information or to register go to: http://www.macphail.org/ or call 612-321-0100.
Starting this Friday, June 1, The Musicant Group brings us another way to enjoy downtown life: The Plaza on Nicollet.
;)
The 2012 Twin Cities River Rats season kicks off Thursday, May 31. Shows are scheduled for 7pm Thursday nights through August 30, and take place at 1628 West River Road (between the Plymouth and Broadway).
The Twin Cities Rivers Rats describe their show as an aquatic Broadway musical featuring multiple water ski acts choreographed to music and built around a theme.
If you haven't already enjoyed a River Rats show, their website is loaded with fun videos to give you an idea of what to expect. These are free events.
Via a May 26 article in the Star Tribune, President Obama will be in the Cities this Friday, and The Bachelor Farmer is on his itinerary:
Obama is also scheduled to attend a fundraising lunch Friday at the Bachelor Farmer, a Minneapolis restaurant owned by Gov. Mark Dayton's sons Eric and Andrew. The brothers said they couldn't offer additional information but that they're looking forward to "welcoming the president to Minneapolis."
Part of the fun of the Market is the cooking demo and entertainment, which Mother Nature interfered with for the May 26 Market. Luckily the rain held off long enough to allow us time to get our shopping done.
;)
This year, the Mississippi River Challenge will take paddlers on a new route, spending the first day on the Minnesota River and the second on the Mississippi River!
We’re very excited about the new route this year! On the first day, paddlers will head 17 miles downstream on the Minnesota River from Bloomington Ferry in the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge to Fort Snelling. After staying overnight at the Fort, paddlers will continue 22 miles on the Mississippi River from Fort Snelling to Grey Cloud Island.
Also new this year, the Mississippi River Challenge offers three route options – a half day, a one day, and a two day paddle. With any of the three options, you will enjoy a beautiful stretch of river paddling as well as festivities and music by the Roe Family Singers at Historic Fort Snelling!
We hope you can join us as we Paddle it! Protect it! in 2012!
;)
Via a May 23 email from the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board:
Four Minneapolis regional parks and trails were among the five most-visited regional parks in 2011, according to the Metropolitan Council’s "Annual Use Estimate of the Metropolitan Regional Parks System for 2011" report released Tuesday.
The Minneapolis Chain of Lakes Regional Park was the most-visited regional park with 5.1 million visits in 2011. Mississippi River Gorge Regional Park was No. 3 with 2.3 million visits, Central Mississippi Riverfront Regional Park was No. 4 with 1.6 million visits and the Minnehaha Parkway Regional Trail came in at No. 5 with 1.5 million visits. The second most-visited regional park was St. Paul’s Como Regional Park, Zoo and Conservatory with 4 million visits.
Other Minneapolis regional parks and trails ranked on the list include Minnehaha Regional Park at No. 7 with 1.4 million visits, Nokomis-Hiawatha Regional Park at No. 8 with 1.4 million visits, Cedar Lake Regional Trail at No. 11 with 881,000 visits, Kenilworth Regional Trail at No. 17 with 624,000 visits and Victory Memorial Parkway Regional Trail at No. 18 with 614,000 visits.
Walking and biking rank as the top activities in the regional parks system, followed by swimming, jogging, picnicking and relaxing.
Nearly 44 million visits were made to the Metropolitan Regional Parks System in 2011, which is an increase of 7.5 percent from 2010. Minneapolis regional parks saw an increase of more than 330,000 visits, or 2.2 percent, from 2010.
More than 40 percent of visits to regional parks were made in the summer, followed by spring (21.9 percent), fall (21.9 percent) and winter (8.9 percent), while 6 percent of visits were for special events or camping.
The Metropolitan Regional Parks System includes approximately 54,631 acres of parkland and features 38 regional parks, 12 park reserves, 7 special recreation features and 308 miles of regional trails. The park units are owned and operated by the following 10 agencies: Anoka County, City of Bloomington, Carver County, Dakota County, Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board, Ramsey County, City of St. Paul, Scott County, Three Rivers Park District, and Washington County.
For more information about the Minneapolis Park System, visit www.minneapolisparks.org. To learn more about the Metropolitan Regional Parks System, visit www.metrocouncil.org.
Our Friends at Cupcake have asked us to share their exciting news:
Kevin VanDeraa of Cupcake bakery Minneapolis competes with fifteen previous winning bakers in first ever Cupcake Wars Championship series airing throughout the month of May on the Food Network!
After winning Cupcake Wars’ Yo Gabba Gabba- themed episode on April 15th, local café and bakery Cupcake, was invited back to compete on the national Cupcake Wars’ Cupcake Champions series.
The top sixteen winning bakers from previous episodes compete, four baking teams at a time, all vying to be the first Cupcake Champion, and take home the $50,000 prize. The series finale is scheduled to air on June 10th. Our championship episode has a Glee theme, and the cupcakes will be available for sale in the bakery following the air date.
This will mark Cupcake’s third appearance on Cupcake Wars. Last summer was Kevin’s first opportunity to represent Cupcake on the show, which had a Bollywood theme, and placed second. Second time’s the charm, and Cupcake took home first place on the most recent Yo Gabba Gabba episode.
Cupcake has been serving gourmet cupcakes and café food since 2004.
For more information or interviews, contact Kevin VanDeraa kevin@cup-cake.com or Jeanne Lundell at 612-378-4818.
Follow Cupcake's Food Network progress on their Facebook and Twitter. Watch Cupcake compete on Cupcake Wars Sunday, May 27, at 7:00pm on Food Network.
Thanks to Bossy Acres, I discovered pea shoots at the May 19 market. They taste like the peas we shelled by the bucket as kids for my mom to can. In addition to filling our market basket, we picked up an herb garden from Paul at Schultz Farm Organics. I'm looking forward to having fresh basil, rosemary, thyme, chives and other herbs on hand.
Mill City Times | 35W Bridge Memorial | Mill District Block Party | Mill City Media
Thursday, June 21, 2012 at 9:54AM