Steve Peterson -- Bloomington City Council

The Farmers Market is back for 2010, through October 16.  Times are the same as last year -- 8 AM until 1 PM.  The market has the same focus on locally-raised food as it has had in past years, but with slightly more vendors.

The 2010 dates for Bloomington's Curbside Cleanup have been set.  All dates are Saturdays:
April 10 - East of Portland
April 17 - Portland to Penn
April 24 - Penn to France
May 1 - France to Normandale
May 8 - West of Normandale.

Normally, this site is about events in Bloomington.  I hope you'll indulge me in calling your attention to my endorsement by the Bloomington Sun Current.
I'm thankful for all of the support the community has showed me over the years, and am excited to serve District 1 again if I'm reelected.

According to news reports, real estate prices in the Twin Cities increased by 4.6% in July over a month earlier.  There seem to be a lot of signs that the real estate market has hit bottom and may be returning to some growth.

For those of you who have been avoiding 106th Street, the bridge work was completed about a month early.  The project involved repaving the bridge, replacing the bearings, and other maintenance.
My kids are missing the bump before the bridge -- who knew it was so much fun in the school bus?  I won't miss it, though.

Bloomington's Relay for Life event is this coming Friday and Saturday, starting at 6pm.  The featured speakers are Mayor Winstead and his daughter, Becky Waldock.  I've heard Gene relate Becky's cancer story, but never from her.  The story of how she discovered her cancer has the air of "wouldn't believe it if it was in a movie."
More information is available on the American Cancer Society web site.

The June 17th Star Tribune had an article on how Richfield is encouraging residents to adopt neighboring vacant homes, mowing lawns, picking up trash, etc.  This is a good idea, and I suspect there are people in Bloomington doing the same thing.  I'd be interested in hearing if you know of someone doing this.

The developers of the Nine Mile Creek Senior Living building have announced their groundbreaking on Tuesday, June 23.  This building will complete the redevelopment of the old City Hall site at Penn Avenue and Old Shakopee Rd.  I'm not able to find a web site for the project yet;  the Planning Staff Report has some details on the project.

If you've been following the legislative session, and want a first person account from our legislative delegation, you should consider attending the Motion to Adjourn program, which is scheduled for Friday, June 5 from 7:30 to 9 AM.  More info from the Bloomington Chamber of Commerce at 952-888-8818.

Starting this summer, the Metro Council will be constructing a new LRT station in Bloomington at American Boulevard.  This station was originally planned as part of the LRT line, but was cut due to cost considerations back in 2003.  The city has worked closely with the Metro Council to get this station added to the line.