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LOCAL BANK: Celebrates milestone PAGE 18
Heartbeat for Hunger to raise funds for, awareness of local food insecurity BY SHANNON GRANHOLM MANAGING EDITOR
Organizers of Heartbeat for Hunger said they hope an inaugural beach concert, slated for the first Saturday in August, will grow into a longstanding tradition with a lasting impact. Heartbeat for Hunger will take place the evening of Aug. 2 at White Bear Lake County Park. All proceeds will be donated to the White Bear Area Food Shelf. The
food shelf has staffed a booth every week at Marketfest to promote the event, sell tickets and spread awareness of food insecurity. “We want to do this every year. We hope to have it be a capstone of the Marketfest season,” said Executive Director Perry Peterson. A couple of years ago, Peterson spoke at a Greater White Bear Lake Community Foundation event. There he ran into White Bear Lake resident Joel Moline, who told him about an idea he had for a beach
concert that would benefit the food shelf and, in turn, the community. Moline, a former Stillwater resident, said the concept for Heartbeat for Hunger was born many years ago. In fall 2005, a group of friends and wine enthusiasts, including Moline and Jeff Morris, were inspired to develop a unique event. They sought to host a tasting of the best wines from around the world and SEE HEARTBEAT FOR HUNGER, PAGE 8
PAUL DOLS | PRESS PUBLICATIONS
White Bear Area Food Shelf representatives Mark Miller, Julie Mumm, Executive Director Perry Peterson, June McCarthy and Jim McCarthy were promoting the upcoming Heartbeat for Hunger Beach Concert during a recent Marketfest installment.
New medical specialty center coming to Vadnais Heights BY ERIK SUCHY STAFF WRITER
applying pressure to his abdomen and talking to him to keep him conscious. On the way to Regions Hospital for emergency surgery, paramedics lost Mason’s pulse four times. “It was a miracle that he
A 10,000-square-foot medical office building, tentatively named Vadnais Heights Specialty Center, will come to the city under the direction of Davis Healthcare Real Estate, a Minneapolis-based company specializing in real estate services in the health care sector. Construction is scheduled to begin in September or October, with an anticipated completion date of summer 2026. The project, which lists St. Paul Eye Clinic as its future tenant, will be constructed on an undeveloped site at the southwest corner of City Center Drive and City Center Lane, just west of Labore Road. The site borders land recently approved for a multifamily residential development to the north; a Fairfield Inn and Suites to the south; the Helene Houle Medical Center to the east; and an office building to the west. The 18-foot-tall center will be positioned at the northeast corner of the property. A proposed parking lot will have 52 spaces. According to city code, the required parking standard is six spaces per 1,000 square feet of floor area. To meet this requirement, the property owner will allow the proposed tenant to use 12 additional spaces across City Center Lane for employee parking. The development plan includes access driveways that lead into both City Center Drive and City Center Lane. Because sidewalks already exist along the north and east sides of the property, no additional pedestrian improvements are planned. Although a slight rise in traffic is anticipated, Planning and Development Director Nolan Wall said the increase will likely be spread throughout the day and won’t disrupt existing roadway operations. Additionally, no direct impacts on public roads are expected. The center will also include private connections
SEE ROAD TO RECOVERY, PAGE 7
SEE SPECIALTY CENTER, PAGE 15
One year later: Mason Fike’s road to recovery
CONTRIBUTED
Nearly a year after St. John’s University senior Mason Fike experienced a near-fatal stabbing near his home in White Bear Lake, the Fike family is sharing their story for the first time.
On the night of July 27, 2024, lifelong White Bear Lake resident Mason Fike was walking with his girlfriend, Katie Klaphake, when an assailant emerged from a nearby house and
attacked him with a knife, according to a criminal complaint filed by the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office. First responders arrived at the scene near his home on Southwood Drive to find Mason suffering from 1214 stab wounds. Katie was
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