Recall effort launched against Hopkins officials over diverted 169 traffic

by MinnPost staff 04/28/201704/28/2017

Nothing riles people up quite like cars. The Star Tribune’s Tim Harlow writes: “A big traffic flap is brewing in Hopkins where a group of residents fed up with rogue motorists cutting through neighborhoods to bypass the official Hwy. 169 detour has launched an effort to oust the mayor and four city council members, claiming they have not done enough to address the problem.”

Sounds like a healthy relationship. The Star Tribune’s Adam Belz and David Chanen report:“Minneapolis Mayor Betsy Hodges learned that Police Chief Janeé Harteau would appoint Lt. John Delmonico as inspector of the North Side’s Fourth Precinct 90 minutes before police announced the decision. … The mayor urged Harteau to come to her office for a meeting, and Harteau declined, according to sources with knowledge of the situation who requested anonymity because of the matter’s sensitivity. … Finally, Hodges said that either Harteau needed to undo the appointment of Delmonico, or Hodges would undo it herself. Harteau left the task to the mayor, and Hodges issued a statement late Wednesday overruling the decision.”

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Water mess. City Pages’ Susan Du reports: “Members of an Amish community in southeast Minnesota have been sued, fined thousands of dollars, and threatened with the dismantling of their homes if they don’t install sewage systems. … They’ve remained intractable in their belief, however, that the Bible has directed them to disobey. … Led by Ammon Swartzentruber, Menno Mast, Amos Mast, and Sam Miller, the Swartzentruber Amish are suing the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) and Fillmore County in return, claiming that the government’s incessant demands that they alter what they do with their wastewater violates their right to religious freedom.”

Two in a week. MPR’s Tim Nelson reports: “For the second time this week, a pedestrian has been struck and killed on a metro freeway. … The latest incident happened early Friday. The State Patrol said the driver of a pickup truck lost control and rolled his vehicle on northbound Interstate 494, just south of Interstate 394 in Minnetonka around 1:15 a.m. … Authorities said the driver, a 31-year-old man from Sartell, got out of the vehicle and tried to cross the northbound lanes of I-494, but was struck by an oncoming car and killed.”