Author: Stuart Sudak

Larry Kleven acted like a proud dad every time he saw one of his former pupils around town. No matter how many years passed since they were in his classroom, his wife Grace said Kleven called all of them “his kids.” Before retiring in 1995, Kleven taught math (plus a few years of history) at Central Middle School in Eden Prarie for 35 years. Along the way, he also helped start the Spanish language and wrestling programs in the district. “Boy, did he just love his kids,” Grace said. “He just loved seeing them again. Some came to the house…

When Rod Rue was named the “2021 Engineer of the Year” during last month’s City Engineers Association of Minnesota annual conference, it came as a surprise—at least for him. The Eden Prairie city engineer’s family knew. They were hiding in the back, waiting for the big reveal. His co-workers did, too. He joked that his “boss” Robert Ellis, the city’s public works director, made sure Rue didn’t leave for a bathroom break during the announcement. “It was a little humbling; well, a lot humbling,” Rue said. “I don’t think I deserved it. But it’s voted on by your peers, and…

Alex Arredondo was in search of an old house. Finding the right one would be pivotal to setting the stage for the short horror movie “The Doll” that he wrote and hoped to direct there. The filmmaker plans to enter it in this spring’s Z-Fest Film Festival, a Twin Cities-based contest that features original, seven-minute short films made by local filmmakers. Arredondo wanted a house with a lot of history. “Something that looks like it’s been in a family’s name for generations,” he explained. Enter the historic Cummins-Phipps-Grill House on Pioneer Trail in Eden Prairie. The resident of St. Paul’s East…

Eden Prairie Schools will maintain its current face-covering requirement through Friday. Feb. 25. According to a Jan. 27 parent post, that decision was made after reviewing the current data and seeking input from school and community leaders. This safety measure will be reviewed again in February, and any updates will be communicated in the parent post. A rise in COVID-19 case rates due to the rapidly spreading omicron variant was why the face-covering requirement was instituted on Dec. 27, shortly after winter break began, for all students and staff. Before winter break began, only pre-K through 6th-grade students were required to…

Eden Prairie Schools’ next move in its ongoing efforts to mitigate the rapidly spreading COVID-19 omicron variant in the district could be made known in the next couple of days. At the Jan. 24 School Board meeting, Supt. Josh Swanson said the incident command team would meet later this week to review, among other things, the district’s temporary face-covering policy. The face-covering requirement expires on Jan. 27, the last day of the first semester. It was instituted on Dec. 27 for all students and staff after a spike in COVID-19 cases.  Without any action, face coverings will be required only…

In the few times they met over the years, Eden Prairie resident Rob Barrett said he always seemed to learn something new from Louie Anderson. The meetings happened while both appeared as guests on the KSTP’s afternoon TV show, “Twin Cities Live.” Barrett was there doing cooking segments as part of his Cooking for Dads persona. Anderson, the legendary standup comedian and Minnesota native, was there to be funny.  After Anderson died of blood cancer complications on Friday, Jan. 21, in Las Vegas, Barrett reminisced about the late comedian on Facebook. “The biggest lesson I learned from him was to be gracious…

Eden Prairie resident Christopher Ferguson is resigning as the Metropolitan Council District 3 representative on Jan. 31. The president and CEO of Bywater Business Solutions announced his decision during the Met Council’s Jan. 19 meeting. He also told district residents in a Jan. 20 newsletter. According to Ferguson, he is in the process of blending families with his significant other. He will be moving out of Eden Prairie (and the district) after 22 years to another part of the metro in March. Ferguson has been on the 17-member policy-making board that guides the metro area’s strategic growth since his appointment in May…

Eden Prairie City Center was the place to be on Monday, Jan. 10, if you were a governmental leader in the Twin Cities concerned about rising vehicle-related crimes. The presence of about 100 city, county and statewide officials filling a first-floor conference room revealed in itself just how serious they thought the region’s outbreak of crimes such as carjackings and car thefts has become.  That was confirmed when they began brainstorming ways to work together to quash the rising crime trend. It was part of an extended session of the January meeting of the Regional Council of Mayors, hosted in…

Wildfire, a sled dog, injured last weekend in a hit-and-run snowmobile collision in northwestern Wisconsin, is on the mend after having surgery Jan. 11 in Eden Prairie. The Alaskan husky who turns 3 in April has a long road to recovery after his badly broken left rear leg was repaired at Mission Animal Hospital, 10100 Viking Drive. Wildfire is part of musher Ryan Redington’s dog sled team that finished seventh during last year’s Iditarod race in Alaska. The dog was one of six on Redington’s team of 14 to run the entire 846 miles. Sarah Keefer, Redington’s training partner, said that…

Longtime Eden Prairie Cemetery caretaker Mike Rogers takes a few steps between gravestones before stopping in a spot shaded by a tree on a warm afternoon last fall. Established in 1864, the hillside cemetery at 8810 Eden Prairie Road celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2014. Miller Park, Staring Lake, Anderson Lake and Mitchell Road all got their names from the pioneering families buried there. “It just is Eden Prairie,” Rogers said of the cemetery. “Of all the things left in Eden Prairie, this is one of the few that are the same way as it was before.” Call him caretaker or sexton.…