October2013

Special materials drop-off is October 12

Th e Hennepin Recycling Group, which includes the city of New Hope, will hold a drop-off event from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, October 12. Th e drop-off site is the Brooklyn Park maintenance facility, 8300 Noble Ave. N.

A variety of items will be accepted at no charge:

paper, shredded paper and cardboard•

electronics (TVs, stereos, computers, • monitors, printers, cell phones, etc.)

used oil, oil fi lters, antifreeze•

batteries - household and automotive•

scrap metal - steel, brass, aluminum • items with non-metal parts removed

Other items will be accepted for a small charge:

carpet and carpet pad ($10/load)•

mattress, boxspring ($15/item)•

tires ($2 each for car or light truck size)•

appliances - dishwasher, stove, oven, • furnace, refrigerator, microwave, etc. ($10 each) residential AC ($15)

Th e Vietnam Veterans of America will also be accepting reusable household items. For more details about accept-able items, call 763-493-8006 or visit www.hrg-recycling.com.

October/NovemberCity Council regular meetings: October 14 and 28, November 12 and 25, 7 p.m.

City Council work sessions: October 21, November 18 - Council meal at 6, meeting at 6:30 p.m.

Citizen Advisory Commission meetings: October 8, 7 p.m.

Human Rights Commission meetings: October 7, November 4, 7 p.m.

Planning Commission meetings: No October meeting, November 5, 7 p.m.

Events: Veterans Day Observance - November 11, City offi ces closed Th anksgiving Observance - November 28 and 29, City offi ces closed

All activities are at City Hall, 4401 Xylon Ave. N. unless otherwise indicated. Agendas and minutes for meetings are available on the city’s website. Schedule is subject to change. Call 763-531-5100 for more information.

Leave your leaves at yard waste site

Th e Maple Grove yard waste site is a great place to dispose of leaves, gar-den waste, branches (up to 10 inches in diameter), brush, grass clippings and small quantities of sod or dirt.

Th e site, which is located at 14796 101st Ave. N., is free for residents of New Hope to use with proof of residency.

Th e site is for bulk waste only. Residents need to unload their own materials and take bags or containers home with them. Hours of operation are 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. from Monday through Saturday, and noon to 7 p.m. on Sundays, through November 30.

For more information about the yard waste site, including directions, listen to the recorded message at 763-420-4886, or visit the facility’s website at www.mgyardwaste.com.

Mayor’s Prayer BreakfastTh e annual New Hope Mayor’s Prayer Breakfast will be Friday, October 25, from 7 to 9 a.m. Th e event features inspirational words from local clergy of many faiths, music and a continen-tal breakfast. Th e theme of this year’s event is “Public Servants: To Serve is to Lead.” Th e breakfast will be held in the New Hope Community Gyms on the north side of Cooper High School, 8230 47th Ave. N. Single tickets are $10, or a table of eight is $80. Tickets are available at City Hall or by con-tacting Jan at 763-383-1341, or janko-cur.mn@gmail.com.

Register for fall fun!New Hope Parks and Recreation is accepting registrations for fall pro-grams. You can register with a major credit card by calling 763-531-5151 or on the city website with Rec Express.

If your sewer line is blocked, call the New Hope Public Works Department before you call a sewer cleaning ser-vice. You could save yourself the cost of a sewer cleaning bill.

Public works personnel will come to your home, 24-hours-a-day at no charge, to determine the location of the problem. If the problem is in the city sewer main, the city will correct the problem as soon as possible. If the blockage is within your sewer line, city utilities staff will advise you to contact a sewer service company.

To report a sewer backup during regular business hours, call the Public Works Department at 763-592-6777. After 4:30 p.m. or on weekends and holidays, please call the police dis-patcher at 763-531-5170. Th ey will notify public works of your problem.

Call the city fi rst if your sewer line is blocked

Change your clocks...

change your detector batteries!

Safety Tipof the Month

Recreation CornerA day of safety learning and funTh e city and West Metro Fire are sponsoring a Half Pint Safety Camp during the MEA break from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., on Wednesday, October 16. Th e one-day camp is a great way for kids in Kindergarten and grade 1 to learn about safety and have a great time. Safety topics will include electrical safety, fi re safety, personal safety and more. Lunch, snacks, a camp t-shirt and a graduation event are all included in the $20 fee for residents of New Hope or Crystal.

Classes help kids develop basic sport skillsNew Hope is off ering soccer, basketball and volleyball classes through Revo-lutionary Sports that focus on skill development and fun, beginning the fi rst week of November. Revolutionary Sports Volleyball is scheduled on Saturday afternoons or Monday evenings, and Revolutionary Sports Basketball will meet on Tuesday evenings. Th ere are separate sessions for kids ages 6 to 8 and youth ages 8 to 11. Revoluntionary Sports Soccer meets on Tuesday evenings with two sessions - one for kids ages 5 to 7, and another for those ages 6 to 8. Th e resident fee for any of the six-week sessions is $45. Call for details.

Lots of fun activities scheduled for MEA breakAre you looking for something fun to do during MEA break, October 16 to 18? New Hope Parks and Recreation has lots of fun activities planned. For those who like sports, there are skateboard and tennis camps on Th ursday for kids ages 6 to 11. And, instructors from Revolutionary Sports will lead four, half-day camps for kids ages 6 to 12 on Th ursday and Friday, each focusing on a diff erent assortment of sports. For youth ages 10 to 15 who like crafts, there’s “My Own Pizza Plate” on Wednesday. And, for science buff s in grades 1 to 5, a Science Explorers ses-sion will examine optical illusions on Th ursday. Call for additional details.

Men’s BasketballAre you ready for a little hoops action? Registration is underway for an of-fi ciated, men’s Class C/D basketball league off ered by the New Hope Parks and Recreation Department. Th e league will play on Monday evenings from November 4 through early March. Th e league champion will receive a paid berth in the Men’s Class D state tournament. Th e team registration fee is $570 per team plus $12 for each non-resident player. Th e league will play at the New Hope Community Gyms, 8230 47th Ave. N.

For more information about these programs or to register, call the New Hope Parks and Recreation offi ce at 763-531-5151.

Prevent Kitchen FiresTh e theme of Fire Prevention Week this year is “Prevent Kitchen Fires.” Th e National Fire Prevention Associa-tion’s annual event is October 6 to 12.Kitchen fi res are the number one cause of fi res and fi re-related injuries in homes across America. By follow-ing the safety tips below you can help prevent these fi res.

Cook with caution• Always be alert when you're cooking. If you are sleepy or have consumed alcohol, don't use the stove or oven.

• Stay in the kitchen while you are frying, grilling, or broiling food. If you leave the kitchen for even a short period of time, turn off the stove. Un-attended cooking is by far the leading cause of cooking fi res.

• Keep anything that can catch fi re – oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels or curtains – away from your stovetop.

• Keep pan handles turned inward to prevent pans from being spilled.

• Have a “kid-free zone” of at least three feet around the stove and areas where hot food or drink is prepared or carried.

If you have a cooking fi re...• Remain calm. If you try to fi ght the fi re, others should leave the house and make sure you have a clear way out.

• With a pan fi re – while wearing an oven mitt, slide a lid over the pan and turn off the burner (never use water on a grease fi re!). Leave pan covered until it is completely cool.

• With an oven fi re – keep the door closed, turn off the oven, then unplug.

• Microwave fi re – keep the door closed and unplug the oven.

• If the fi re spreads at all, get out!

• Call 9-1-1 after you leave the house.

For more fi re safety tips visit www. nfpa.org or www.wmfrd.org

With the home heating season right around the corner, it’s a good time to think about making energy effi -ciency improvements to your home. New Hope homeowners are eligible for a low cost home energy audit and a zero percent energy improvement loan program through the Center for Energy and Environment (CEE).

Residents can have a Home Energy Squad Enhanced home energy audit done of their home for only $50. Th e energy experts spend 1½ to 2 hours in your home to identify places it is losing energy and install materials to help you start saving money on home

energy. Plus, they’ll show you easy ways to improve your home’s energy effi ciency.

Homeowners who complete an ener-gy audit through CEE are eligible for a zero percent loan for many home energy effi ciency upgrades including air sealing, insulation, windows, high effi ciency heating systems, and more. Th e term of the loan is between 12 and 36 months, the maximum loan amount is $10,000, and there is no maximum income limit.

For more information, call CEE at 612-335-5858, or visit their website at mncee.org.

Home energy effi ciency programs through CEE