Want a closer look at options proposed in the Gateway Corridor Commission announcement? Click on the links below for maps detailing proposed routes.

Option 1 (Express buses from St. Paul-Minneapolis to Woodbury)

Option 2 (Express buses from St. Paul-Minneapolis to Eau Claire)

Option 3 (Rapid bus transit from Minneapolis to Hudson on I-94)

Option 4 (Rapid bus transit from Minneapolis to Hudson through St. Paul’s east side)

Option 5 (Light rail transit from St. Paul to Hudson on I-94)

Option 6 (Light rail transit from St. Paul to Hudson through St. Paul’s east side)

Option 7 (Commuter rail from Minneapolis to Eau Claire)

Option 5

It’s always nice to get a second person’s opinion.

That is what Afton City Council member Randy Nelson did during Tuesday’s meeting when he asked Belwin Conservancy director Steve Hobbs on one of Afton’s current issues.

One of the issues facing Afton currently is whether or not to impound cats since they are in such great abundance in the city and as a rural community residents tend to let their pets roam free.

Currently the city does impound cats, but the City Council is currently reviewing that.

Nelson asked Hobbs for his professional opinion on whether or not cats should be roaming free in the city since Belwin prides itself on conserving and preserving nature and the environment.

“It’s certainly a concern,” Hobbs said. “Feral cats have been documented to cause quite a bit of damage to birds and other wild life.
“It’s certainly a concern of ours because cats are not a natural animal.”
Nelson agreed with Hobbs that cats should be impounded and not allowed to roam free.

“They’re not a healthy, happy animal,” he said.

City Council beat

Since 1992, Bill Hargis has been a mainstay in the Woodbury City Council Chambers.

Tonight, the long-tenured mayor will bang the gavel for the last time to start a council meeting.

Hargis, who decided earlier this year not to seek a fifth full term as mayor, will officially retire from his elected office on Dec. 31. But his last official council meeting is tonight at 7:30 p.m.

As a reporter who has covered City Council meetings in quite a few cities across the Twin Cities metro over the last 8 years, I’ve found Hargis’s style for running meetings as one that is respectful of his role and of the audience.

In his welcoming remarks and introduction Hargis has made it a habit to welcome first-time council meeting attendees.

From the “I’d like to welcome you all to the Woodbury City Council meeting…” to his explanation of the “green sheet” process that allows those in attendance to sign up to speak during the open forum portion of the meeting, Hargis has gone through the routine more than 300 times over the last 17-plus years as mayor.

And each time he repeats those words to begin the meeting, it seems that, even though it has obviously become a routine for him, Hargis still remains sincere.

It will be interesting to see if there is any emotion tonight in those council chambers as Hargis goes through the introduction routine one last time.

For those who want to watch the meeting, but can’t be there in person, it will be aired live on cable channel 18 at 7:30 p.m. You can watch it via webstream at www.swctc.org.

- Hank Long

How does one spend an entire day filling themselves with: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberries, pumpkin pie and a few frosty beverages and then somehow rise the next morning at 3 a.m. to belly up to the huddled masses outside a department store? I’m not sure if it is possible. But I am about to find out.

I have no plans to get in on the “door buster” deals that are sure to keep stores across the commercial landscape busier than ever on Nov. 26, the day following Thanksgiving, otherwise known as “Black Friday.” But I do plan to find out what motivates others to do it themselves.

So I plan to rise early on Friday, wipe my sleepy eyes, pound a Red Bull energy drink and join the thrill seekers lined up at store fronts across town in anticipation of the deals that will make their holiday season or likely someone else’s.

Feel free to drop me an email (editor@woodburybulletin.com) in the next few days to share with me your best and worst “Black Friday” experiences and we may include them in a Dec. 1 story chronicling Woodbury’s “Black Friday.”

When it’s all said and done, it’s obvious that this ever-growing unofficial holiday is a great boost for the economy during a season in which businesses big and small count on to make their year-end sales goals. Although I will admit to not being a fan of holiday shopping in general. Which means you’re certain to find me among the other desperate, procrastinators scouring for a last-minute gift idea on Dec. 24.

How’s that for a mass of humanity?

- Hank Long

Woodbury election

As the dust settles after the recent election, the results of one race really surprised city officials and others.

Sure, Republicans’ sweep in the Woodbury-area legislative races was a stunner. But on an even more local level, the returns in the Woodbury City Council election caught people’s attention.

Sixteen candidates were vying for two seats. Julie Ohs won re-election easily with 18 percent of the vote, but there was a close outcome for the second seat. Christopher Burns won with 10.62 percent of the vote. Burns had 3,359 votes, but just 174 votes ahead of Mark Wackerfuss, who finished with 10.07 percent and 3,185 votes.

Conventional wisdom suggested Burns and Ohs were leading candidates in the race, given their prior involvement with city government and name recognition. Even retiring Mayor Bill Hargis said he believed Wackerfuss “did stronger” than he had predicted.

Wackerfuss said he was happy with his showing, even though he was not elected.

“I’m pretty happy with how I did,” he said in an interview. “I’ve never run for political office before.”

Wackerfuss said he dropped 10,000 to 12,000 pieces of literature and did a lot of door-knocking.

The results were close, but not close enough to trigger an automatic recount.