Saturday, September 10, 2005
9:00 a.m. to noon
Ray Anderson & Sons
North of East 7^th St. at the end of Atlantic
(933 Atlantic)
This cleanup is for Dayton’s Bluff residents only

What to bring
 A proof of Dayton’s Bluff residency in the form of a driver’s license or utility bill is required to gain entry. Be prepared to unload your own materials.  Assistance is not available at the cleanup site.  Materials will be sorted at the site into different dumpsters to maximize recycling.

In order to simplify unloading, vehicles should be loaded up in the following manner:
On the bottom of the load: concrete, bricks, rocks, construction debris, brush

What not to bring
Not all materials are accepted at the cleanup.
For more information about how to recycle or dispose of these or other items, call 651-222-SORT (7678). TTY for the hearing impaired: 651-221-9832.                           

No Rail Road ties or Chemically treated wood:

Sponsors and Rules
The Cleanup is sponsored by the Dayton’s Bluff Community Council and the Eureka Recycling, with funding provided by the city of Saint Paul. 

Coummunity Council Seeks Board Members

The Dayton’s Bluff Community Council would like to have you on board if you can attend two meetings per month, want to make a difference, and like to meet other people.

Benefits of serving as a board member for the Dayton’s Bluff Community Council include: Your voice and input count; you have the opportunity to network with other great people from the neighborhood; you can learn about neighborhood issues and how to run a non-profit organization; and it provides a great reference for future opportunities.

Criteria for serving as a board member:  Must be at least 18 years old, live or own property or operate a business in Dayton’s Bluff, care for the betterment of the neighborhood, and a have great smile.

Election for new board members is Monday, October 17, 2005.  If you are interested in coming on board or would like more information, please call 651-772-2075.

Koj thiaj li yuav pab tau.  Xav tau koj tuaj ua ib tug npauj.

Lub koom haum Dayton’s Bluff Community Council xav tau koj kev pab yog tias koj muaj sij hawm tuaj sab laj ob zaug ib lub hli twg, muaj lub siab pab thiab xav ntsib lwm cov neeg.

Kev zoo rau yus yog yus tau ua ib tug npauj. Yus tej tswv yim thiab kev pom zoo muaj nuj qhi, muaj sij hawm ntsib lwm cov neeg zoo nyob rau ntawm thaj chaw no thiab, muaj kev kawm txog tej teeb meem nyob ntawm lub zej zog los yog thaj chaw, kawm txog kev dhia koom haum, thiab yus kuj siv tau yus txoj kev pab no mus nriav dej num lawm yav tom ntej thiab.

Kev xaiv tsa ua npauj no muaj xws li:  Yus yuav tsum muaj hnub yug 18 xyoo, nyob rau ntawm thaj chaw hu ua Dayton’s Bluff los yog muaj vaj muaj tsev los yog muaj lag luam nyob rau ntawm thaj chaw, muaj siab pab thiab txawj txog thaj chaw nyob, thiab yus yog ib tug neeg muaj cwj pwm zoo.

Hnub xaiv tsa yog hnub Monday tim 17 lub 10 hli ntuj, xyoo 2005.  Yog koj xav tuaj ua ib tug npauj no, thov koj hu rau tus xov tooj yog 651-772-2075.  Yog koj xav paub txog ntxim lub koom haum cov dej num thov koj mus saib nws hauv Internet, www.daytonsbluff.org.

El Dayton’s Bluff District Four Community Council es una organización de ciudananos que anima la participación y el sentimiento de comunidad del vecindario de Dayton’s Bluff.

El Dayton’s Bluff Community Council aboga por los derechos de la gente de la comunidad, da una vía de decir al gobierno los intereses de los ciudadanos e aconseja al gobierno de las cuestiones del vecindario.  El Council educa al público, sin embargo él depiende de que el público colabore activamente en la definición de lo que es importante a la comunidad.  Las reuniones son abiertas al público para que él pueda expresar sus opiniones.  Las reuniones tienen lugar los segundo y tercero lunes del mes a las 7 p.m.

El Dayton’s Bluff District Four Community Council se compone de gente del vecindario, y todos ciudadanos adultos viviendo en District 4 tienen derecho de ser miembro.  Después de las elecciones, un miembro sirve  durante un periodo de dos años.  Las elecciones tendrán lugar en octobre 17, 2005.  Cualquier persona que desea servir la comunidad debe ponerse en contacto con la oficina del Council para informarse de las elecciones próximas. 

El Dayton’s Bluff Community Council se esforza por realizar adecuadas viviendas, una mejora de educación, jardines y parques públicos, un comercio mejor y más variado, y buenas oportunidades artisticas y de recreo para los vecinos. 

You Are Invited...

Friday, September 19 - In cooperation with the University of Minnesota’s College of Natural Resources Capstone Class, The Dayton’s Bluff Community Council will host a public meeting for a natural resources project.
   University of Minnesota students will begin a project  to assess and plan for the future of our natural features, parks, trails, and recreational facilities as well as environmental educational opportunities. This meeting will allow them to hear from District residents about what they value most about the neighborhood as well as challenges and issues of concern. Everyone is welcome to attend, observe, and participate. Come and let your voice be heard for the planning of our neighborhood!
   Each year seniors in the College of Natural Resources undergraduate program work with a client to perform ‘real world’ projects involving land use planning. This year the Dayton’s Bluff District Council is working with the students. They have identified four project or study areas:
*Public plantings, vegetation assessment and management
*Trail infrastructure, linkages and management
*Playground and recreation assessment and management
*Environmental education programming and centers development
   Each study involves evaluating the current natural resource and infrastructure inventory, developing a vision statement and recommendations for management, and linking the recommendations to relevant plans previously developed by the Community Council, the City of St. Paul, and regional groups.
   Students work in groups of four to six people.  The group’s goal is to gather data relevant to the client’s needs, analyze the data and, based on the data, make recommendations for future use.  Students will produce a final written report, develop a formal presentation describing their findings, and present their findings to the community in December at the Dayton’s Bluff Community Counci l offices at 798 East 7th Street.  Contact Karin at 651-772-2075 for more information.  .

Sacred Heart's Annual Fall Festival

Faculty Art Exhibition

Owner Wes Linstrom (far left), Eric Wickstrom, and Kristen Kuehn show off the acclaimed cafe's newest features.  The rich hues of the gleaming counter, bountiful display case, and product shelves do justice to the rich flavors within.  They still offer the great time-tested breakfast, lunch, and dessert items that have make the Swede Hollow Cafe a best-kept secret, only now the cabinets are as fresh as the cookies!

Starting Gate Opens New Season at Mounds

  Starting Gate Productions is delighted to announce that it will be moving to the Mounds Theatre located at 1029 Hudson Road in Dayton’s Bluff for its fourth season. The season opens with “Godspell” in September 2005.
   Starting Gate’s fourth season is being called “The Wonder Season: A Tribute to the Sixties”.  It was a time unlike any other.  The 1960s was a turbulent decade of change and upheaval for America and the world as individuals and communities redefined themselves and their place in society. Starting Gate Productions brings you four opportunities to experience the Wonder Years.
Godspell
Written by Stephen Schwartz; directed by Christopher Teipner
September 9 - October 1, 2005
The gospel of St. Matthew re-imagined for the generation of the Age of Aquarius. Against the backdrop of war, this uplifting musical sings a song of peace.
A Raisin in the Sun
Written by Lorraine Hansberry; directed by Dawn Renee Jones
November 4-19, 2005
On the brink of the Civil Rights movement, this compelling drama electrified both Black and White, and illuminated the experience of being a Negro in America.
Butterflies are Free
Written by Leonard Gershe; directed by Lynn Musgrave
January 13-28, 2006
Blind Donnie learns the lessons of freedom as he struggles for identity in this innocent and passionate comedy.
The Boys in the Band
Written by Mart Crowley; directed by K. Jason Bryan
May 19 - June 10, 2006
Arguably the most significant gay play ever written, this groundbreaking, searing comedy-drama brought the gay community out of the closet and placed it center stage.
   For more information or to order tickets, call Starting Gate Productions at 651.645.3503 or visit their website at www.startinggate.org.

Volunteer Opportunity

Bar Scene

Dayton's Bluff Community Recreation Calendar

Eastside LGBT Pride

  You’ve seen the bumper stickers on parked cars… You’ve noted the rainbow flags hanging from windows…  You think you’ve seen your neighbor ‘out’ at the bar…  Well now it’s time for us all to actually meet each other. 
  A few lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Eastside residents are organizing a laid-back, neighborly potluck picnic for the last weekend of September.   If you want to help with the planning, want to bring a dish to share, or just want details, please send an email to: eastsideLGBTpride @hotmail.com.  Your info will be considered confidential.  This will be an all-inclusive, all-ages event.  Families welcome.  

Last Call for Small Business Training

Church Directory

Amazing Grace Assembly of God
1237 Earl St.
651-778-1768    
Sun 9:30 am - Sunday school all ages
Sun 10:30 am - morning Worship
Sun 6:00 pm - evening Worship

Hmong Asbury United Methodist  
815 Frank St.  
651-771-0077

Bethlehem Lutheran Church  
655 Forest St.  
651-776-4737
Sat 5:00 pm - Evening Service
Sun 9:00 am - Morning Service
Sun 10:15-11:15 am - Sunday School & Bible Hour
Sun 11:15 - Hmong Service

Faith Temple - Templo De Fe
1510 Payne Ave
651-778-0096
Sun 10:30 am - Span/Engl Srvc
Sun 6:00 pm – Span/Engl Srvc
Wednesday family night

First Lutheran Church ELCA
463 Maria  
651-776-7210
Sun 9:00 am – Worship
Fellowship following Worship
Sun 10:15 am - Education all ages

Mounds Park United Methodist  
1049 Euclid St.  
651-774-8736
Sun 9:30 am - Worship

Our Savior’s Lutheran  ‘LCMS’
674 Johnson Pkwy  
651-774-2396
Summer Worship Service hours:
Sun 9:15 am, Wed - 7:15 pm
Starting Sept. 18th: no Wed service
Sun - 8am Worship, 9:20 edu hour
Sun 10:45am - Worship

Sacred Heart Catholic Church  
840 E. 6th St.  
651-776-2741
(Subject to change: Call ahead)
Sat 4:00 pm – Mass
Sun 9:00 am – Mass
Mon, Wed, Fri 8:00 am – Service

St. John’s Catholic Church
977 E. 5th St.  
651-771-3690  
Mon-Fri 8:00 am – Mass
Sat 8:00 am & 4:15 pm - Mass
Sun 9:00 am, 11:00 am – Mass
(confession before all masses)

St. John’s Church of God in Christ  
1154 E. 7th St.  
651-771-7639
Sun 9:30 am - Sunday School;
Sun 11:00 am - Worship
Wed 7:00 pm - Bible Study

St. John Ev. Lutheran  
765 Margaret St.
651-771-6406
Sun 9:30 am - Worship
Thurs 6:30 pm - Worship

A Short History of Dayton's Bluff

By Steve Trimble
Chapter 9:  The Turn of the Century

"The bluffs are just beginning to assume their summer garb of green. A picturesque grove lies between the railroad yards and the river. The view of the river is exceptionally beautiful from the park, and on the other lie the flats, with the bluffs of the west side."
                     Pioneer Press May 18, 1902

   As the Twentieth Century unfolded, Dayton’s Bluff continued to develop into a modern community. While the pace of building slowed down a bit, new houses, businesses and local amenities were a common sight. There were improvements in the infrastructure, new commercial enterprises and advances in education. In a few years, important technologies such as the automobile would greatly affect the area, as shown by the quote above that hints at the growing concern over parking.
   A new generation of East Siders would build on the foundation that had been laid in the preceding years. Two of the areas that had begun in the earlier decades and continued to develop were streetcar service and the amenities and size of Mounds Park.
   The neighborhood streetcar service was greatly improved with the switch to electricity. According to the Pioneer Press “the advent of the electric railway systems has minimized the distance to the central business portion of the town.” Until recently, it said, “the East Seventh street line of street cars was the slow, jerky cable line, which has recently been replaced by the more elegant and speedy electric cars.” 
  The Seventh Street line paralleled the railroad that had originally attracted industry Harvester Plant, located near today’s Earl and Seventh.  The Pioneer Press remarked that  “every morning some time before the seven o’clock whistles sound, a long line of men with their dinner pails in their hands can be seen tramping out East Seventh street, bound for the Wood Harvester works.”
    Even though mass transit in the form of streetcars was available, people did make the trip on foot, possibly to save money. “It is a long tramp to the work,” the article concluded, “but many if not the majority of the men employed prefer to walk, though the… electric trains run right to the works every half hour. Most of the men do not have so far to walk, as the majority of them have made their homes in the East St. Paul district.”

Photo courtesy of the Minnesota Historical Society Street car barn that once stood on East 7th and Earl.

    A large street car barn was built at East 7th and Duluth. Because of employment, many workers built or bought homes nearby. There was a building boom on streets like Ross, Bush and Reaney. The developing street car system soon extended into the evolving Mounds Park. The line went from Seventh, followed Maria Avenue to Hastings (today’s Hudson Road) then east to Earl and into the park.
    Like the miles of streetcar lines, the acres and amenities of the park increased. By the turn of the century, the city had purchased bought over 35 acres of lots and unplatted land. The park went from a narrow fringe of seventeen-and-a-half acres along the bluff to over sixty acres. 
     The boundary was pushed to the twenty-two acre area owned by the state Fish Hatchery. With the agreement of the Game and Fish Commission, the park was now 82 acres, though Fish Hatchery land was not officially under the control of the Park Board. The city then built a road with an easier grade down the hill to the Hatchery.
   At this time, St. Paul was developing a network of boulevards. One of the earliest was Mounds Boulevard, which replaced the older Hoffman Street. It ran from 7th street, went through the park all the way to a new Johnson Parkway that would go to Phalen Lake.
   “Its chief object,” said an annual reports of the Department of Parks, “is to supply an ornamental driveway between the two parks. For this service it is very popular and when it is finished it will be a useful and important improvement in the boulevard system.”
     New businesses were regularly popping up in the early 1900’s. One of them was the George H. Trout Grocery at 201 Bates — just off Plum St.  Around 1902 he bought two lots on Hastings and built a house. His son Karl later said that “on the corner lot, a group of young ‘blades’ built a tennis court which became a popular ‘hangout’ for the boys and their girl friends.
   “All of the boys were from families who were members of the Dayton’s Bluff Methodist Church,” Karl recalled. “Our new home, therefore, was the scene of constant action, nights and weekends with the boys playing tennis and their girl friends cheering them from benches along the side.”
    “Dad’s store was on a very popular corner,” Karl continued. “Three streets came together—Bates Avenue, Plum Street and Hastings Avenue. These three streets joined in a wide plaza. In the center of the plaza, between the car tracks and dad’s store was a large circular cast-iron drinking fountain for thirsty horses. Six or more horses and wagons could gather around this fountain to quench their thirst.”
   In addition to neighbors, “the farmers from the extended area… were primarily responsible for making Trout Brothers a profitable business…The location on a main entrance to St. Paul by the Hastings Road to the tri-corner plaza with its large cast-iron drinking fountain made it the finest location on Dayton’s Bluff.”                
   Turn-of the-century society columns provide a glimpse of life in the bluff, at least among those who bothered to send items in to the newspapers. In December, 1901, for instance, the Globe reported that Mrs. Charles Weinhagen of Bates Avenue had an “entertainment” for  “little folks” at her son Fred’s ninth birthday. Prominent neighborhood names included Gustave Seeger, whose parents owned a refrigerator factory and Paul Bremer of the banking family.
   Smaller weddings were often in homes instead of churches. In 1901 Miss H. Weimar and Oscar Erickson were married at the bride’s house on Euclid and would be living nearby at 989 Euclid. Miss Agnes Wright married J. J. Dunlop one Wednesday evening in the home of Rev. and Mrs. George Parker of Maria Avenue.  They were going to live at 1054 McLean.
     There were numerous clubs, especially for the women of Dayton’s Bluff. In the spring of 1901, Mrs. Larpenteur of Eichenwald Street entertained the Ladies Afternoon Club one Thursday. The guests included women that were among the area’s elite: Mrs. Deebach, Mrs. William Brink and Mrs. E. O. Zimmerman. Prizes were awarded to some of the lucky members.
   Many activities revolved around area churches. In November, 1901, the Ladies Aid Society of the Bates Avenue M.E. Church was having a turkey supper and Christmas sale at Iron Hall, East Third and Bates. As a display for the celebration, “there will be handkerchiefs from every state in the nation.” 
   In 1902, the members of the Atlantic Congregational Church—whose old building is still located at the northeast corner of Bates and Conway—were holding an entertainment  for their music fund. The program featured Sam Johnson, described as a character impressionist and a monologist who was accompanied by Miss Edith Shaw, an elocutionist.
   Social page notices also showed that people sometimes moved with the seasons. In May, 1902 it was reported that Mr. and Mrs. Charles Hauser of E. 6th Street “have taken a cottage in Lake Elmo for the summer.” S. C. Morris and family who during the winter had occupied the Giesen house on Mound Street (the red brick Victorian you can see from the freeway) had returned to their home on Christmas Lake.
     During this era, some of the older mansions split off their excess land and had it platted out into new lots. The estate of the grocery magnate P. H. Kelly, for instance, hired an architect to plan and construct a series of two and a half story homes along Maria and Hoffman-today’s Mounds Boulevard .   
   Like other area landmarks, Kelly’s old limestone house found a new use. For a time it was used by the Episcopal Church as a home for seniors. Then, in 1906, a group of young community activists leased the structure for a private club they called the Tuxedo. It lasted until the 1920’s when the property was taken over by the city. For many years afterwards it was known as the Tuxedo playground.
   While the structures were smaller and less ornate than the mansions of the 1880’s and 1890’s, many stately new homes were built by prosperous community families in the early 1900s. One of them was the Kempien House constructed on a corner lot at 197 Maria in 1905. He was a prominent businessman engaged in the coffee and tea trade.
   At the age of seventeen, Kempian had started selling coffee and tea door-to-door, eventually bought an established firm and prospered. He was civic-minded, a member of the Knights of Columbus, and served on the board of the Mounds Park Sanitarium and was elected to the city council.

Photo courtesy of the Minnesota Historical Society The John House around the time it was being constructed in 1906.

    Another example of a structure from this era is the John House at 373 Maple. Owner Peter John started as a pioneer grocery and saloon owner, with his 1880’s store located first on Payne Avenue then at 819 Minnehaha. He sold it and became a foreman for the Hamms Brewery in 1896.
     He married one of the Hamm’s daughters and joined the brewery’s management team. The family hired the architectural firm of Buechner and Orth to build this Georgian Revival style home in 1906. John died in 1911, but the house remained in the family until the 1980’s.
    The name most often mentioned by old-timers who remembered Dayton’s Bluff at the turn-of-the-century was Miss Laura Hand. Her career at Van Buren School spanned two centuries. From 1893 to 1917, she was the school’s principal. Miss Hand was especially interested in art and brought back many beautiful prints from European trips. She bought the school’s first victrola and electric lantern (an early version of a slide projector) with a collection thousand slides.
    Miss Hand introduced home economics and manual training classes at the school. Raised in an earlier era, she tried her best to provide quality education and to try to continue and older set of social values into a new century.
   According to a former student, “Miss Hand felt that the girls should have fine Irish Linen and beautiful silver” when they entertained their mothers at the school luncheons. “Linens and silver were purchased and the latter engraved with the initials V. B.” The boys from the Manual Training classes made the chest to hold the linen and silver which was “always treasured and used only on special occasions.” 

Beyond the Bluff

"Quaint Irish Families at the Foot of Dayton’s Bluff"

    If you are… inclined for a long walk, let your outing take you down Fifth street below Robert, then down around the big railroad offices and out over a bridge until you reach a little settlement that lies at the foot of Dayton’s Bluff… It was one day last week that-one of those balmy spring days that made everybody glad just to be alive-that the writer had occasion to take such a walk….
   Everything drew the eyes upward and if it had not been for the happy shouts of some children, he would never have seen the settlement. It was just a collection of tiny huts that lay in evident discouragement at the foot of some sheer bluffs…. The soft spring mud was spread like a treacherous carpet… at all sides of the huts.
   Evidently, whoever had placed the huts had been governed by no uncomfortable sense of mathematical precision in the matter of street or boulevard line… a happy recklessness had led each builder to follow his own fancy with the result that front doors faced rear doors in blissful confusion with just a foot or so of space between….
   There were the little children. A group of them had joined hands and in the midst of the mud and the refuse were playing “ring around a rosy” as contentedly and as happy as their little sisters up on the aristocratic avenue. They were pretty children too, in spite of unkempt hair, dirty faces and tattered garments…
   The day was pleasant, so nearly all the doors were opened. In one of these opened doorways sat an old man, smoking a pipe… unlike the children, he did not run away when he was spoken to… He removed his pipe from his mouth and nodded civilly in response to the ”Good morning” that was given him.
   Beyond his bent shoulders a glimpse could be seen of the single room that comprised the house. A bed, a cooking stove, chairs, a table, and a number of live chickens and a lordly rooster occupied the room….
   The writer… asked if the neighborhood was entirely Irish and was in turn he was rewarded with its history, for it has a history and an interesting one, too. The old man first explained, however, with a brogue so rich that at times it was difficult to catch his meaning at all…
    According to the old man, the writer had stumbled on the Connamara settlement or “patch” as he called it. Early in the ‘80’s there had come over from Ireland a little band of Irish peasants from the mountain districts They came direct to Minnesota, part of them settling in Graceville and part in St. Paul at the foot of the bluffs they had the usual illusions about the abundance of dollars that  could be had almost for the asking….
   In one little hut live twin sisters, one of whom makes the exquisite Irish point lace that is the delight of the fashionable world.… she explained that she just picked it up; that she had made lace of that sort ever since she was a little girl. Yet she confessed that she could not read, and that she had never attended school for one day in her life… She said that she and her sister supported themselves by washing and scrubbing when they could get employment.
   The evident pride of the settlement is a haunted house… The haunted house… stands a little apart at the head of the settlement, and is guiltless of windows…the old man that strange voices were heard there at night and that no one in the settlement cared to go near it after night.

Create a Safe Neighborhood
     - Stand up against crime and drugs!

McCollum Brings Home Funds for Vento

2005 Regular and Special Session Summary

Saturday, September 10, 10:00 am - 12:00 pm
  Explore Saint Paul’s newest park as National Park Service historian Dr. John O. Anfinson, towboat pilot Hokan Miller and Lower Phalen Creek Project steering committee member Dennis Thompson lead a walk through this 27-acre wilderness in the heart of the city.  Officially opened to the public in May of 2005, the Bruce Vento Nature Sanctuary has undergone a dramatic transformation from a former contaminated rail yard into a beautiful natural area with spring-fed wetlands and forest habitat, unique caves, walking paths and a regional trail loop.
   Situated at the foot of towering limestone and sandstone bluffs between Swede Hollow Park and the Lowertown district, the park offers a tremendous opportunity to learn about the area’s fascinating ecology and cultural resources that include Carver’s Cave/Wakan Tipi, a Dakota sacred site and landmark for early European explorers.  The efforts of over 25 community and environmental groups working together have made the restoration of this area possible.  Join us to experience the results of this collaboration.
   This tour is free however pre-registration is required.  For more information or to register, contact Katie Galloway at Friends of the Mississippi River, 651/222-2193 x14 or kgallowa@fmr.org.

Letter to the Editor

Dear Editor:
 
   I just wanted to take a minute to compliment the writing in the Dayton’s Bluff District Forum and in particular that of Steve Trimble in his on-going series entitled, “A Short History of Dayton’s Bluff.”  I look forward each month to a new installment of this fabulous record of St. Paul history.
   Since I bought my World War One era home in Dayton’s Bluff five years ago, I have been fascinated by the history here and Mr. Trimble’s columns have been instrumental in my growing interest in the area and all the people who have lived their lives here throughout the years.
   Thank you Steve for your impeccable research and wonderful photographs and tantalizing tidbits of Bluff memorabilia. I’m looking forward to Chapter 9, 10 and beyond.
 
Sincerely,
  Barbara Sommerville,
  an appreciative reader.

Got Trash?

   District 4 Greenspace Committee Members, Dayton’s Bluff Achievement Plus Elementary School and Metropolitan State University collaborated to take on the “Trash Can Project”. 
   Over the years, community members have noticed that the increase of foot traffic along business areas on the East Side has also led to an increase in trash being discarded on the ground.
   Greenspace Committee members came up with the solution of having additional trashcans placed in heavier traffic areas and worked with Dayton’s Bluff Achievement Plus Elementary School third grade classes to integrate children’s art into the project.
   Budget Towing donated fifteen 20-gallon steel drums for the project and on Saturday, April 2, Greenspace Committee members and Metropolitan State staff removed rust and painted the cans with primer to prepare for children to paint.
   As part of National Youth Service Day efforts, Dayton’s Bluff Elementary third grade students painted designs and messages on the cans.  The students also learned about community art, complimentary colors and designs. 
   University students and staff also participated in the painting activities.
   The cans are being placed around the community in front of East Side businesses and organizations that have agreed to maintain them.
   Funds for this project were provided through an Ecolab grant awarded to Metropolitan State’s Center for Community-Based Learning and donations from Greenspace committee members.  If you would like to learn more about the Greenspace Committee or future projects, contact Karin DuPaul at 651-772-2075.         

Something New on Brunson Street

by M. Grover
   When Sadie Benson (Director and Violin Teacher) found the white-pillared house on Brunson Street she saw great possibilities. The Brunson Street hill had been a gathering place for children in the past. The area knew laughter. She liked the feeling in the area.

Photo by Toni Thomas Guitar lessons at Simply Strings.

  The house was purchased, classrooms painted bright happy colors. A new baby grand piano arrived. Now it’s time for something special. Mark Johnson, local artist, was contracted to create and paint whimsical animals. These animals found their homes on the walls. Busily practicing their music, they welcome students as they come and go. Add a professional and competent staff already working with students and you get the picture.
   What’s new for fall? Sara Waters with her Story Time for Babies joins the Studio. Sara formerly packed the Red Balloon Book Store on Grand Ave. She brings with her violin, auto harp and puppets all working together to fill babies world.
   Mark Johnson, local artist whose musical animals cover the walls will offer a class blending music with visual art. Wonder what those animals are playing? Could be the assignment.
   Help spread the word — Simply Strings Studio was created as a place where learning Music will be fun. A place where Stop, Look and Listen will take new meaning. A place that will work to keep music in the air.  Contact us at www.SimplyStringsStudio.com.        

No Experience Required!  No Commitment!!

   Just show up the last Thursday of every month at 6:30pm and tell us what we could be doing  better.   The next meeting will be Sept 29 at The District Council office: 798 East 7th Street, Saint Paul.