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guess what impressed me most about Mr. West though was the few minutes he took to scratch
<br />my collie's ears. It's so nice to receive a personal touch when you're dealing with a ,
<br />government agency.
<br />After thepluRnbing inspector, two gentlemen from Arden Hills Public Works department '
<br />came to install the water meter. Known as Big Wayne (Wayne Brunette) and 14ttle Wayne
<br />(Wayne Launderville), they were completely stunned when I came out with my notebook and
<br />pencil. They said NO ONE ever cares what Public forks does as long as the streets are
<br />clear., water comes from the tap, and the toilet flushes. Their supervisor, Bud Johansen, ,
<br />arrived in the middle of my interview and suggested the headline "Jack of all trades;
<br />master of none".
<br />In addition to installing water meters, the Public Works department plows and black -
<br />tops streets, maintains the 12 sewage lift stations 24 hours a day, repairs hydrants, reads '
<br />meters, removes fallen trees, and generally keeps the village running. They maintain 22
<br />miles of road, 28 miles of sanitary'sewer, and 10-12 miles of storm sever. The five
<br />employees are not highly visible because "nobody Over looks down a sewer hole".
<br />Mr. Johansen said that AH has a new power generator conning soon that can pump sewage
<br />for us in case of a power outage. If the sewage jams up for even an hour, you get over-
<br />flows and screams frcm the Pollution Control Agency. ,
<br />All in all, the three men were quite efficient and entertaining, and they could
<br />probably replace Sanford and Son anytime.
<br />Reminder f ram the Parks and Recreation Department -- The summer playground program
<br />at the various parks began on June 20 and will run for six weeks until July 29. As the '
<br />days begin to get long for the kids, it's a good deal to have these activities for them.
<br />Most of the instructors are teachers or college students, so the level of leadership is
<br />quite high. And you sure can't beat the price --it's free. Just wander over to your s3closest'
<br />park at these timess Pre-schoolers, 90 a.m. until loon, Mondays -- --
<br />Floral Park, Ingerson Park, or Johanna Elementary; Tuesdays and Fridays at Freeway, Sampson,
<br />or Valentine Parks. Older children, ? and up, 1s00 p.m. to 4s00 p.m., Mondays and
<br />Wednesdays at Freeway, Sampson, or Valentine Parks; Tuesdays and Fridays at Floral Park, '
<br />Ingerson Park, or Johanna Elementary.
<br />Regular attendance is not necessary, so if you missed the first week, come anyway.
<br />At the May 23rd Council meeting was another episode in the continuing saga of North-
<br />western Bible College vs. the World. The neighbors in the immediate area are called Arden
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<br />III, and Arden III is generally opposed to the proposed new fine arts building and associated
<br />parking lot. At this Council meeting they were also nervous about having the city attorney,
<br />Jim Lynden, represent Arden Hills in court against Northwestern. Arden III feels that
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<br />Mr. Lyndon has already expressed his feelings in the matter and could not sincerely argue
<br />any other way in court. (He told -the Council to allow Northwestern to build.) The Council
<br />offered the job to Lyndon's law firm, but they 'respectfully declined', so Pierre Regnior
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<br />of the firm Jardine, Logan & O'Brien will do the honors for Arden Hills in court.
<br />I talked to a few of the Arden III people in the parking lot afterwards and found out
<br />they are really angry over the situation. One lady said she had received a letter from a
<br />real estate company suggesting that she sell before her property value went down. I men-
<br />tioned that it didn't make much difference to me what Northwestern did; I live far enough
<br />away. She got sort of mad at that and said I would take a different attitude if it were
<br />in my back yard. I agreed and said I had fought Hunter's Park every stop of the way, only
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<br />to lose. Her comment to that was, "Where's Hunter's Park?"
<br />Exactly. You care about a project only if it is close and affects you directly. The
<br />Council has to take the overview for the entire village. And I might add, while I am still
<br />not enthralled about Hunter's Park and the water problems it has apparently caused several
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<br />of my neighbors, there are sure some nice people there. And very active in Arden Hills'
<br />civic affairs too.
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