2000s

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Mayor Kautz sets 2007 goalsFebruary, 2007 - Sun News:

Mayor Kautz reviewed the city's progress in 2006 and sets goals for 2007 during her annual state of the city address...

ABLE - (Apple Valley, Burnsville, Lakeville, Eagan) Fire Training FacilityLocated at 12321 River Ridge Blvd, the jointly operated building is scorched about 85 times a year by 270 firefighters from Apple Valley, Burnsville, Lakeville, Eagan and other city departments that rent the center. The four large cities have shared the cost and use of the center, including a three-story training tower without burn rooms, since it was built in 1987.

The Civic Center Amphitheater sign 2017Although the City has introduced a new logo - not all signs have been updated, as shown in this 2017 photo.

Burnsville Minnesota Community Guide (approx 2000)An online guide to Burnsville including population, geography, demographics, history along with Governmental contacts and major employers.

Burnsville City Hall and Police Station 2017A different angle showing the attachment of the City Hall to the Police Station.

Images of Burnsville Calendar - 2001 City HallThe City of Burnsville and the Lake Alimagnet Center for the arts produced Images of Burnsville 2001 Calendar featuring photos of Burnsville. The photographs in the calendar were the work of members of the Minnesota Valley Photography Club and the following photographers contributed to the calendar: Vicki Benson, Marvin Brown, Joe Ferrer, Mark Freier, Noreen Nelson, Sue Olson, Deb Shoemaker, Darrell Tangen and Mitch Voehl. The photographers were not identified on the photos. All proceeds benefited youth arts activities.

Interior of Burnsville City HallInterior photo of the City Hall in 2017.

City Hall in the Winter100 Civic Center Pkwy, Burnsville, MN 55337

Sign at City Hall complexThe City of Burnsville begin phasing in new signs at city owned cities including city hall.

City of Burnsville TruckCity of Burnsville truck 2020.

The complete 2000 Census of BurnsvillePage one appears blank, but all information appears in the following pages of this report.

Burnsville Comprehensive Plan 2000From the City of Burnsville - the Comprehensive Plan for the year 2000.

Profile of Burnsville MNProduced by Dakota County -this booklet provides an overview of each city - This is the Burnsville page.

Index to book: Apple Valley, Burnsville, Eagan, Farmington, Hastings, Inver Grove Heights, Lakeville, Mendota Heights, Rosemount, South St. Paul and West St. Paul. Also two colleges - Dakota County Technical College and Inver Hills Community College, maps and a glance at County Business, agriculture and leisure.

Developer launches bid for homes at Orchard Gardens 2002August 8, 2002 - Dakota County Tribune reports: The would-be developer of homes on the Orchard Gardens Golf Course property has begun preliminary steps toward getting the project approved. That has stirred the resolve of residents fighting to preserve the nine-hole southwest Burnsville course....

Burnsville City Council and other elected officials 2017Mayor - Elizabeth Kautz, Council members- Bill Doughlin, Dan Gustafson, Dan Kealey and Cara Schulz are shown in the City of Burnsville Community Guide, published 2017 - 2018.

City of Burnsville City Hall 2000Photo of unidentified person entering City Hall.

Evelyn Kjos Feb 2012Evelyn worked full time for 38+ years as the City Clerk for the growing city of Burnsville. After retirement she did consulting work in records management for the cities of Lakeville, Savage and the Apple Valley Fire Department.

Chief Farrington retires 2004by Jim Adams Star Tribune
June 9, 2004

When Police Chief Dave Farrington started out as an officer in 1971 in Burnsville,he carried handcuffs, ammunition, keys and a six-shot revolver.
Now, as he's joining a wave of chiefs retiring from suburbs · and small towns, the tools his officers carry symbolize the dramatic changes and new hazards he and his peers have seen:
rubber gloves to guard against diseases, a Taser stun gun intended to more safely subdue unruly suspects, and a 16-shot semiautomatic pistol to bolster officers' firepower.
While four or five chiefs retire in Minnesota in most years, at least 11 are retiring between last December and this coming September, said Dennis Delmont, executive director of
the state Chiefs of Police Association. (more)

Fire Chief Ron Payne retires 2005byJohn Gessner
THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS
March 26 2005
Burnsville Fire Chief Ron Payne would have received full retirement benefits had he left the job at 55.
But Payne was so fond of the work and his staffers — he might call them colleagues — he stuck around until age 59.
“I think of the people in our department as friends,” he said. “I think of myself as belonging, as one of them.”
Payne will resign April 29 from the department, which has 36 firefighter/paramedics. The city will search for a replacement inside and outside the department, and Assistant Chief Steve Harklerode will likely be named acting chief, said City Manager Craig Ebeling.

Payne admits to a little “compression” after 27 years in Burnsville public safety, 12 of them as fire chief.

First Employees of City(dated 2002)
perhaps Evelyn Kjos?

I am writing in behalf of the devoted group of employees that worked for the City of Burnsville.
The very first employee of the City was Edward Giles. He was first hired as a Township employee in 1957. At that time he plowed snow and graded the country roads during the summer. When the township incorporated into a Village in 1964 a Police department was created, a Bookkeeper was hired, as well as a Village Engineer, Building Inspectors, Sewer and Water Inspectors, more Street Maintenance help and some clerical help. By 1965 the village employed 29 people. In June of 1965 Patrick J. Mclnnis was hired as Burnsville’s City Administrator. He became the city’s first City Manager in 1967 when the city adopted the Plan B form of government.
In the current year of 2002 the city has 298 regular full-time and part-time employees.
I am attaching a list of employees who have retired from city employment throughout the years. The first employee to retire from city service was Fran Gaston who retired as the City’s Assessment Clerk in the year 1977.
At the present time, September 2002, a group of retirees meet monthly for the “City of Burnsville Retirees Monthly Breakfast. It is a close-knit group who enjoy the monthly meeting with a lot of reminiscing and family updating.

Birnamwood Golf SignThe 1990's early 2000 version of the sign at the City operated golf course.

Hawkins is new Police ChiefbyJohn Gessner
THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS
August 28, 2004
A Burnsville Police Department veteran whose roots in the community date back to childhood is the city’s new police chief.
Bob Hawkins, 44, was one of two finalists being considered to replace former Chief Dave Farrington, who retired May 31. Hawkins got the job this week when the other final ist, Shakopee Police Chief Dan Hughes, withdrew.
“Either one of those people would have been great for us, and Hawkins is going to be terrific,” said City Manager Craig Ebeling, who’s charged with the hiring decision.
Hawkins, whose parents moved to Burnsville in 1964, had held a second-in-command captain’s position and was was named acting chief after Farrington retired. Knowing that Farrington, who served for 32 and a half years, was nearing retirement, Hawkins set his sights on the 100-member department’s top job. He recently completed a master’s degree in police leadership and administration.

Farrington’s retirement “came a little bit sooner than I thought it would,” Hawkins said. “But I think that I was ready. I’ve been part of the community for 40 years now.”
Hughes is also a Burnsville police veteran, having joined the department in 1976. A for mer captain, he got the Shakopee job shortly after then- Capt. Farrington was hired in 1998 to replace longtime Chief Mike DuMoulin. Hughes had sought the chief’s job at that time.
Hawkins and Hughes were among six semi-finalists for the job. The others were Crystal Police Chief Harold Algyer, Whitewater, Wis., Police Chief James Coan, Rosemount Police Chief Gary Kalstabakken and Northfield Police Chief Gary Smith.(more)

Planning for the future - 2017Posters invite residents to plan for the future. State law requires that all cities and counties in the Twin Cities seven-county metropolitan area adopt a Comprehensive Plan. These plans provide a road map for communities looking 20 years into the future. In May 2016, Burnsville began work on a major update of its existing 2030 Comprehensive Plan to help set the stage for the city’s growth and development into the year 2040.

City of Burnsville facility improvements for City Hall/Police Station 2016In 2014, the City contracted to have an independent space needs study conducted. This informational piece provides residents with more information.

Burnsville City Hall This photo shows the 1976 version of the City logo placed when the City Hall was built.

Greg Konat - departing manager saw 20 years of change 2002This Week News November 16, 2002 reports: City Manager Greg Konat came to Burnsville in 1982 when the city was booming with new houses and parks and young families, he now leaves 20 years later to work for Dakota County.

Traditional mailbox still in use 2017There are still individuals, businesses and churches using a traditional mail box for their mail pick-up and delivery.

Burnsville City Hall Main entry - 2017These doors lead into the lobby of the City Hall.

Commissioner Mike Turner retires after 20 yearsAfter 20 years as a Dakota County commissioner, the upbeat guy who abhors conflict is set to retire with a strong history of solving contentious issues.

by Laura Adelmann
THISWEEK NEWSPAPERS September 26, 2008

If reaching across the political and ideological divide can be considered an art form. Commissioner Mike Turner is a natural-born master.
In November, Turner's service to the county ends as he retires, leaving a legacy unlike any other.
Despite abhorring conflict, for 20 years Turner has negotiated heated issues with a range of individuals, including constituents, county judges and business leaders. He balanced tensions between board members and contended for county positions to state and federal representatives. Some of the biggest problems he's tackled include working with business owners to move traffic along County Road 42 by closing accesses;
• determining if and where a waste-to-energy facility (garbage burner) should be located:
•adding subsidized housing for seniors and low-income workers in established neighborhoods:
• resolving tensions involving the judiciary and the County Board.
Despite the difficult topics, Turner's consistent optimism, humor and candor won him friendships and allies of all kinds, regardless of whether they agreed with his moderately conservative viewpoints.
“I’ve never tried to make this a partisan office — it is a nonpartisan office” said Turner, who has not been challenged for the board seat in 16 years.
Reflecting on the past isn't something Turner indulges in often (“One person said, ‘Never look back because you run into fences,’” he said.), but his childhood experiences shed light on some of the decisions lie's made and causes he's championed.
He grew up in Bloomington in a home without plumb ing because his family didn’t have enough money to pay for needed repairs.
When the bread man came, he remembers hiding in the closet because they had no money to buy it.
“He'd feel sorry for us and leave bread down there for us,” Turner said. “It was very tough on us.”
Determined, he worked his way out of that past, mar ried wife Joyce in 1964. They would eventually have four children, all of whom are grown, successful and living in Minnesota.
Always eager to try new technology, in the 1970s, he worked with a then-cutting- edge ink-jet printer to create large-scale murals.
“There were only two ma chines in the world that could do it,” Turner said, enthusi astically adding, ”1 love the cutting-edge, the state of the art.”
In 1981, Turner opened the first one-hour photo lab in the state and continued to grow his business.
His Burnsville company, Varsity Photos Inc., still keeps him and his staff of about 20 busy photographing sporting events around the state.
Turner’s political career began when he served for six years (1972-1978) on the Dis trict 191 School Board and was board chair of what is now called the Community Development Agency.
Russ Streefland, a county commissioner from 1977 to 1988. later encouraged Turner to run for the District 5 seat on the County Board that he was vacating, and in 1988, Turner
won by 300 votes.
Initially, Turner said he
hoped to slay for two terms (eight years), and looking back, he seems a little amazed that 20 years have gone by.
“I'm like the guy who came for dinner and never left,” Turner laughed.

Avisionary’
Despite Turner’s self-dep recating sense of humor, his colleagues say the contribu tions he has brought to the table have had lasting impact on Dakota County.
County Commissioner Joe Ilarris, who with 28 years as a commissioner (five times elect ed chair), is the only board member who has served lon ger than Turner.
Harris said his then-new colleague garnered respect and easily transitioned to the board.
“We got along almost im mediately,” Harris said. “With his mild-mannered attitude, lie’s always been very good to work with. He tries to get something accomplished, and if it means collaborating with various individuals in a give- and-take type of way, he’s al ways willing to do that.”
Affable and diligent. Turn er became a trusted leader on the board, and fellow com missioners elected him chair six times, more than any other commissioner.
As commissioner, Turner worked for improved traffic flows on 1-35 and Cedar Avenue; advocated for new technologies to improve efficiencies; was instrumental in establishing the county’s court/commissioner policy committee; promoted collaboration with other agencies and governments; and championed affordable housing when it wasn’t a popular position to take.

Community Development Director Mark Ulfers said Turner was one of the first local officials in the 1980s to see the need to begin build ing senior housing in Dakota County.
“A lot of people thought we were crazy to even think about building senior housing in Dakota County,” he said. “But Mike was one of our biggest supporters. He could see how the county was going to change and evolve and why it was needed. I guess you’d call him a visionary.”
A great guv’
County Board Chair Nancy Schouweiler described Turner as “a great guy,” easily rolling off a list of traits she sees in him.
“I think he's a man of integrity,” she said. “He’s very honest and reasonable. He's always open to listening to other opinions and respectful > of others. He's easy to work with.”
Those characteristics have obviously endeared him to his constituency, several of whom recently greeted him during a meeting at a Burnsville restaurant.
“He’s very warm. He has a great personality,’’Schouweiler said, adding, “I’m going to miss him.”
She said Turner helped create a strong camaraderie among board members and with county staff. She said the good-natured teasing helped her feel more comfortable when she first was elected to the board.
Some of the teasing has be come an ongoing joke.

For example, after Turner spilled his coffee repeatedly, County Administrator Brandt Richardson presented Turner with a tippy-cup.
Turner wouldn’t reveal his farewell plans, but laughed and would only say, “The time's coming; paybacks are hell. I’ve got plans and I’m go ing to go out with a flourish.”

Future plans
For a guy who’s planning retirement, Turner doesn’t talk much about slowing down.
Although he acknowledges he’ll miss the decision-making, seeing through projects he’s dedicated himself to, and people he’s worked with, he is forward focused.

Turner said he plans on spending more time with family, traveling with Joyce and yet will continue building his business.
As for the District 5 commissioner seat he vacates, voters will decide between Burnsville Planning Commission member Vicki Turner, wife of Turner's nephew, and Burnsville City Council Member Liz Workman as his replacement.
Turner said county government is a lot different from city government because each commissioner represents different constituents.
“Therefore, you have to learn to compromise,” he said. “You have to respect other people’s differences. Try to get politics out of it.”

Laura Adelmann is at dceditor@frontiernet.net.

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