April - 
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Table of Contents
Hopkins Police Department's
Annual Bike Helmet Sale
Excelsior Boulevard
Streetscape Work To Start
Hopkins Police Department's Annual Bike Helmet Sale
Hopkins Police Department will be holding its 8th Annual Bike Helmet Sale on Saturday, May 6, 2006 from 9:00 am–4:00 pm in the Raspberry Room at City Hall. The cost of the bike helmet is $10.00 and the cost of the multi-sport helmet is $15.00 (cash or check only). These are top-of-the-line helmets ranging in sizes for small children (no toddler sizes will be available) to adult. They come in a wide variety of colors and styles. All helmets will be individually fitted before purchase. We can only sell helmets to individuals who are there to be fitted—do not plan on buying one for someone that is not with you at the sale. If you have a helmet and are not sure if it fits properly, bring it with you to be checked.
Reasons To Wear Bike Helmet
- Wearing a bike helmet during a crash can reduce the chances of brain injury by 88%.
- Without a helmet even a low speed fall can cause a serious head injury or death.
- 75% of all bike-related injuries and deaths involve some type of head trauma.
Bicycle helmets are not just for kids—people of all ages should wear them! May is Bike Safety Month and one of the most important ways to ride a bicycle safely is to wear a helmet. Remember…you're in the driver's seat when you're on your bike! You are subject to the same "rules of the road" and many of the same laws as automobile drivers. Be a responsible traffic participant.
The areas to be cleaned in 2006 are all streets and avenues east of 5th Ave N to the Hopkins/St Louis Park border and north of Co Rd 3 to Hwy 7; and the area north of Hwy 7. For more information on the sanitary sewer cleaning program, visit www.hopkinsmn.com.
Each year, after property valuations notices are sent out, property owners have an opportunity to discuss their valuations with appraisers. This year Hennepin County, which handles property appraisal for the City, will again be holding its "Open Book" meeting on May 1 from 4:00 to 7:00 pm at Hopkins City Hall. This informal meeting lets you meet with appraisers and ask questions about the value of your property.
However, you do not have to wait for this meeting to talk with an appraiser. If you have a question, after receiving your valuation notice, call the phone number on the notice and discuss the value with an appraiser. After the Open Book process there will be additional opportunities to appeal valuations through the County Board of Appeal and Equalization and the Minnesota Tax Court.
For more information on this process or to receive information about assessments call 952-548-6310.
The sixth annual Hopkins Heritage Celebration will be held Saturday, May 20 in Downtown Park. The Heritage Celebration is a celebration of all the cultures that together create our thriving community. It's a day of music, art, good food, learning, fun, and getting to know each other. If you would like to know more about the Festival or want to help out, call 952-939-1426.
Community Mediation Services, Inc (CMS) provides a wide variety of mediation services at little or no fee for area residents, businesses, and organizations. Mediation services are designed to help people quickly and effectively resolve disputes or make decisions. Mediation sessions are voluntary, confidential, and effective, and are scheduled at the convenience of the participants.
Common issues that can benefit from mediation include:
- Builder/contractor-homeowner
- Business-consumer disputes
- Elder parent care
- Family conflict
- Harassment situations (excluding domestic violence)
- Housing issues
- Landlord-tenant disputes
- Neighborhood relations
- School conflict
- Victims/Offenders
Working in teams, mediators help participants by facilitating a conversation or negotiations in a civil and productive manner. The participants themselves determine the terms of a mutually agreeable settlement and the mediators help them write down their agreement.
If you are interested in determining if mediation might be helpful, Case Developers at Community Mediation Services, Inc. can help answer your questions. If you choose to pursue mediation, CMS will contact the other party(-ies) on your behalf. For more information, please contact CMS at 763-561-0033 or or visit www.mediationprogram.com.
Excelsior Boulevard Streetscape Work To Start
Major landscape and lighting work between 9th Ave and Highway 169 on Excelsior Boulevard will start this spring.
Another phase of Excelsior Boulevard improvements is scheduled to start in April. There will be no road reconstruction with this phase. However, there will still be lane closures during work on the medians and roadside boulevard areas. This $1.7 million city improvement project will run from April–September 2006.
- In April, Xcel Energy will remove overhead electrical lines and install new underground cables along north edge of the road between 5th and 8th Ave
- May thru September, city contractors will install:
- new street lights
- sidewalks
- new center medians with plantings
- irrigation system
- boulevard sod and trees
- city monument sign and upgraded intersection at 8th Ave
- Irrigation, sod and some replanting will also be done between Shady Oak Rd and 9th Ave
If you have questions or would like more information, call Public Works at 952-939-1382.
Green Is The New You:
The Fifth Annual Living Green Expo Offers Easy Ways To Live Green
May 6–7, 2006, 10:00 am–5:00 pm
Minnesota State Fairgrounds Grandstand Building, 1265 N Snelling Ave, Saint Paul, MN
This two-day event is FREE and open the public! The Living Green Expo is the Minnesota's gateway to all things good and green. Expo goers can talk with over 200 exhibitors, enjoy mouthwatering, organically grown foods, access to some of the area's finest ‘green' residential builders, low-impact, indoor, and outdoor products, and an eco-friendly fashion show. Sixty-six workshops will be ongoing both Saturday and Sunday, highlighting smart solutions and good ideas for Minnesotan's green lifestyles. For more information, visit www.hopkinsmn.com.
Yard Waste & Brush Curbside Pick-Up
Brush Pick-Up: Collection Change From Fridays To Tuesdays
Brush is collected on Tuesdays weather permitting (excluding holidays). To schedule a pick-up, call before 2:00 pm on Monday. Brush is collected FREE from April 25–May 9. After May 9, the following fees apply: 0–5 cu yd ($8), 5–17 cu yd ($20), each 18 cu yd truck load ($30). Stack brush in a neat pile on the boulevard NOT in the street (NO alley pick-up)—butt ends all one way, parallel to the street. Keep brush at least 5 feet away from overhead wires, fences, refuse containers, parked cars, etc. DO NOT put brush in your refuse containers. Only brush that is generated on Hopkins' residential properties will be picked up.
Yard Waste Pick-Up
Yard waste is collected the same day as regular refuse. Pick-up is FREE April 24–May 11. After May 11, yard waste bags must have yard waste stickers (available for $2) attached. Yard waste must be bagged—maximum size bag of 55 gallons and maximum weight of 40 lbs. Place yard waste at the normal refuse collection site at least 4 feet away from your refuse and recycling containers.
For more information, call 952-939-1382 or visit www.hopkinsmn.com.
(Hopkins Residential Refuse Customers Only)
1414 7th St S
April 20 & 21, 3:00–7:00 pm
April 22, 9:00 am–4:00 pm
Visit www.hopkinsmn.com or call 952-939-1382 for more information.
Recycling collection is April 3-6 and 17-20.
Refuse collection is April 3-6, 10-13, 17-20, and 24-27.