This week's workout video of the week is a little extra special thanks to Sunshine & O'Neil Hampton from The Biggest Loser.

By Rev. Paul Jarvis

You’ve seen the coffee table books for sale.

“Lost Twin Cities”

“Minneapolis … then and now”

“St. Paul … then and now”

Readers of these pictorial books marvel at historic beauty that can now be appreciated only in print. Victorian mansions on Summit Avenue in St. Paul, brownstone skyscrapers in Minneapolis.

Each week we publish a detail of a local building. The next week we indentify the building, along with a detail of a different building. Do you know where the heck this is? Post your answer; e-mail [email protected]; or call (952) 345-6574.

Rep. Paul Kohls (R-Victoria) introduced a bill Feb. 11 to sell the Metrodome to the Vikings for $1.

“We currently face a $1.2 billion budget deficit. I don’t support using tax dollars to fund a new stadium when so many Minnesotans are struggling,” stated Kohls, in a press release.

“We just can’t afford it, and I’ve never supported using taxpayer dollars for professional stadiums. We do want the Vikings to stay, and this is one way to try to keep the team here.”

Brick mason Patrick Sieben recently began a project to restore up to 225,000 brick on Guardian Angels Catholic church, it's adjoining friary, and garden walls.

By Mark W. Olson

Chaska brick is our town’s pride and joy.

Homes, businesses and churches constructed from the locally produced cream-colored brick can be found throughout the metro area.

“The beauty of the brick work isn’t something that you see on any modern buildings. You don’t see it in any modern brick structures,” said mason Patrick Sieben.

By Mark W. Olson

The brick walls of Guardian Angels Catholic Church have protected its parishioners from the elements for 125 years. Now the parishioners hope to protect the walls from the elements.

“The skin of the church is peeling off like a bad sunburn,” said the Rev. Paul Jarvis, leader of the Guardian Angels parish.

Are you interested in reading the public notices published in the February 11, 2010 print edition of the Chaska Herald newspaper? The page or pages on which those notices were printed are attached to this item, in the form of .pdf’s that can be opened with Adobe Acrobat.

The fifth annual Hooked on Books wrapped up on Saturday. Feb. 6 at Chaska High School. The literacy and arts fair includes book readings, author visits, book sales, and crafts.

For most people Valentine’s Day is an excuse to hook-up and eat chocolate. Hey, sounds good to me too, but surely we can be more creative than that! Why not mix things up this V-Day with a fun workout you can do in the comfort of your home with your significant other?
Today I am going to demo the concept of partner training. Partner training workouts are essentially a workout that involves performing joint exercises with at least one other person or more. There are a ton of benefits to partner training, including:

Steel beams continue to emerge from the earth at the northeast corner of highways 41 and 212 as the Two Twelve Medical Center goes up.

Construction began on the first phase of the $19 million Ridgeview facility in mid-October. When completed, it will contain a 24-hour emergency room/urgent care, primary and specialty care clinics, a laboratory, a pharmacy as well as imaging and rehabilitation services.

With more money in the coffers, due to a special tax levy, the city is finally ready to resume its street reconstruction program this year. Though the work is overdue, affected homeowners and business owners may not like price tag that comes with it.

“Now the fun really begins,” said City Administrator Matt Podhradsky, tongue-in-cheek.

The following obituaries are from the Feb. 11, 2010 print edition of the Chaska Herald newspaper:

Attachments: To see copies of the letters from the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency and Carver's County response, click on attachments below.

By Richard Crawford

Concerns about the former septic system at the county-owned ballroom in Waconia haven’t been fully put to rest.

Carver County officials and the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) aren’t in agreement on the oversight process for the system that has been in dispute for much of the past year.

The 2010 Winter Olympics kick off in Vancouver, British Columbia on Friday, Feb. 12.(Note that only registered users will see their votes reflected in the totals)

A training session for CoCoRaHS (Community Collaborative Rail, Hail and Snow Network) will be held from 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 18 at the Chanhassen Recreation Center.

Public Works Superintendent Tim Wiebe is asking Chaska residents for their help following the recent snowfall.

Wiebe said many residents are putting their garbage cans in the streets, causing problems for plow drivers.

Weibe asked residents to put their garbage and recycling containers in their driveways on pick-up day to avoid having them plowed down the street or forcing drivers to stop the plow to move them.

After two weeks of interviews, Monday night the Chaska City Council has selected members for the city’s various commissions. Twenty residents applied for the 13 open slots.

Returning to the Planning Commission are Alex Young, Leanne Ashley and Dan Keyport.

Nate Bostrom will resume his place on the Park and Recreation Board. He will be joined by newcomers Jonathan Grau and Nicholas Mason.

Molly Koivumaki will return to the Human Rights Commission along with Barb Colhapp and Tracy Pass.

From the District 112 Web site:

Forecasted snowfall totals from the National Weather Service for our area have been increased this morning and increased wind is expected later today.

With that in mind, we will be closing schools two hours early today. Dismissals will occur and buses will run two hours earlier than the normal dismissal time for each school.

There will be no afternoon kindergarten and all evening activities are cancelled.

Lisa Hammers, 27, of Chaska, died suddenly Friday, Feb. 5, 2010 at her home.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held Thursday, Feb. 11, at 10:30 a.m. at Guardian Angels Catholic Church, 218 W. Second St., Chaska. The visitation will be Wednesday, Feb. 10, from 5-7 p.m. at the Bertas Funeral Home, 200 W. Third St., Chaska, and also one hour prior to the Mass at the church on Thursday.

Funeral arrangements were with the Bertas Funeral Home of Chaska, 952-448-2137.