City Beat: Honoring Dakota Winter Carnival, 2023 City Council, and New Life in an Old Building

January 10, 2022

Experience and learn about Dakota culture at the Honoring Dakota Winter Carnival from noon to 5 p.m. this Sunday, January 15. The carnival is free and open to the public. Enjoy storytelling, ice fishing, and lots more at Prairie Island – just follow the signs and you'll get to the right place! To learn more about the Winter Carnival, click here. Get more information about other Honoring Dakota activities going on this week here.

Sunday January 15

Noon to 5 p.m.

Free – All are invited!

New Year, New Council

Three new faces joined Red Wing's City Council last week. On January 3, Janie Farrar, Ron Goggin, and Vicki Jo Lambert were sworn in, along with re-elected Council Member Becky Norton. We welcome the newly-elected members as their terms begin and thank outgoing Council Members Erin Buss, Dean Hove, and Laurel Stinson for their service. At Tuesday's meeting, Kim Beise was elected Council President, Donald Kliewer was elected Council Vice President, and Janie Farrar was elected Council President Pro Tem.

Connecting With Candidates

After the November election, you probably thought you were done voting for awhile. For many Red Wing residents, though, that chance is almost here again. Ward 3, Ward 4, and Wacouta Township voters will select the District 5 Goodhue County Commissioner in a February 14 special election. The League of Women Voters Red Wing is hosting a candidate forum at 5:30 p.m. on January 19 to provide an opportunity for voters to get to know the two candidates. The non-partisan forum will be held in the Library's Foot Room. Get more information about the forum here, and get details about the special election from Goodhue County here.

A Permanent Dose of Sunshine

The "Sunflowers" sculpture has brightened the corner of Third and Plum since it was installed as part of the Red Wing Art Walk last June. The sculpture will no longer be just a temporary addition to the Red Wing art scene, though. While most of the sculptures on the walk will move on, "Sunflowers" will find a new permanent home in Red Wing just a few blocks away, thanks to a generous donation from an anonymous donor. City Council accepted the donation last night, and when the sculpture's time on the tour is done, it's to be placed in front of the Library. We're grateful that this artistic piece of sunshine will be sticking around.

New Life in an Old Building

Redevelopment is on the horizon for the long-vacant former Associated Bank building on the corner of Third and Bush streets. The Advisory Planning Commission and City Council have approved a Conditional Use Permit to allow Red Wing Development, LLC, to convert the building to 28 to 32 residential apartments with approximately 1,500 square feet of commercial space retained on the ground floor. The residential units would be a mix of single and double apartments. The developer must submit final floor plans to the City's Community Development Department for review and approval before a building permit is issued. We're looking forward to seeing the next chapter for this historic building. Keep an eye out for more details as they're available.

All in a Career's Work – 2022 Retirees

Rick Moskwa – 38 years

Public Works

Mark Milkanin – 37 years

Engineering

Dawn Ableidinger – 34 years

Administrative Business

Doug Lantis – 28 years

Fire Department

In 2022, we said a fond farewell to four City employees as they headed off to retirement. We'll certainly miss them around here, and we want to congratulate them on their remarkable careers!