Friday, April 26, 2013
Mayor Matt Little offers thanks to Patch reporter Derrick Williams for his years of service to Lakeville.
To the editor, I would like to recognize and thank Derrick Williams for his seven years of dedicated service in bringing local news to our community. Derrick has always been committed to working with leaders, staff, and citizens of Lakeville to ensure that every story conveyed information that was accurate and useful for his readers. His time at Thisweek was marked by interesting, pertinent, and detailed feature stories and his time at Patch filled a vital role in bringing us news that fell through the traditional media cracks. Congratulations Derrick on your new position in the Anoka-Hennepin School District. I know you will serve them well. Derrick will truly be missed in the Lakeville community. A sincere thank you for your years of …
Thursday, April 4, 2013
Little closed by referencing his vision of Lakeville in the context of a town square; “where everyone has a part to play, and job to do, to build a better city, and forge a brighter future.”
Editor's note: The following was a press release from Mayor Matt Little. To view the 2013 State of the City address, click here. At the Lakeville State of the City Address, on March 21, Mayor Matt Little addressed a crowd of over 100 people at Brackett’s Crossing Country Club. The mayor discussed Lakeville’s future and present “through the lens of its enduring past.” He illustrated Lakeville as a figurative town square; “Whether from the business, nonprofit, or public sectors, each of you has played a crucial role in building Lakeville’s present strength. As we move forward, we must all work together to build Lakeville’s bright future,” he said. He explained “this vision of my hometown may seem old fashioned but it’s important to me: …
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Lakeville Mayor Matt Little is holding office hours for residents every Thursday morning.
You are invited. Lakeville Mayor Matt Little is making himself available to residents every Thursday from 9 a.m. to noon. Residents can stop by, sip coffee and talk about the city with the mayor, Little announced near the end of his March 21 State of the City Address. Little told Sun Thisweek that he had already been using those hours to meet with staff and meet with people who had made previous arrangements. “If someone called wanting to meet with me, they would schedule it during those hours,” he said. Here's more on Little's state of the city address from his website: At the Lakeville State of the City Address, on March 21, Mayor Matt Little addressed a crowd of over 100 people at Brackett’s Crossing Country Club. The mayor discussed …
Thursday, February 14, 2013
Davis has served more than six years on Lakeville's Planning Commission.
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Davis has served more than six years on Lakeville's Planning Commission.
Longtime Planning Commissioner Bart Davis has been unanimously selected by members of Lakeville's City Council to fill the group's vacant seat. Davis was one of seven candidates to be interviewed. The seat became vacant when Matt Little—who has been on the council since 2010—was elected to be mayor in November. All told, Davis has six years of time served on Lakeville's Planning Commission, something the council agreed was a huge benefit, Sun Thisweek reported. Davis' day-job: he works for U.S. Bank. The council will make the appointment official at its next meeting on Feb. 19, and Davis will be sworn in and officially begin filling out the final two years of the open council term on March 4. In an interview with Sun Thisweek, Davis …
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
"The fact that I'm young is old news," Little said. "People will just have to look at the results of my work to determine whether or not my youth is a detriment or benefit."
In November of 2010, Matt Little was elected to his first term as a Lakeville City Councilor. At the time, Little—who was just 25-year-old—was considered an unlikely choice. He was too young, too green and too liberal for Lakeville's council, opponents said. But his public message emphasising public safety, low taxes, and volunteerism seemed to resonate with voters, and he was elected in spite of what critics said. Fast forward two years. In November of 2012, Little was elected to his first term as Lakeville Mayor. Ok, then. Little, 28-year-old law student at the University of Minnesota, is now a big leader—steering Lakeville, a suburban town with 60,000 people, as it's mayor. And while many things can change in two years, some things, …
Tuesday, January 22, 2013
Little: "You see, in our ideal town square, every organization, every person, has a job to do and role to play, in the right balance; at the right times. So it’s not about extremes or ideology; it’s not 'all or nothing,' 'my way or no way.'"
Editor's note: Mayor-Elect Matt Little was inaugurated and given the oath of office on Jan. 10. The following is the speech he prepared and read at the event. Minnesota Chief Justice Lorie Skjerven Gildea administered the oath to Little. Thank you, Madame Chief Justice, Mr. City Administrator, City Council Members, and, most of all, my family and supporters. I am honored and humbled to accept the oath of office as Mayor of Lakeville. And before I begin, I want to take a moment to thank Mayor Bellows and Councilmember Laurie Rieb for their dedicated years of service to our city. I know both of them will stay involved with Lakeville, and I look forward to working with them in the future. Being elected to public office anywhere, in any …
Thursday, January 10, 2013
Residents have until Jan. 24 to apply to fill the open City Council seat; review will be held Jan. 29 with a final selection will be made in February.
Lakeville's 2013 City Council outlined its plan Monday to fill the vacant seat created by Matt Little's election to mayor. Anyone living in Lakeville can apply to fill Little's vacated council seat, per a resolution approved by the new council on Jan. 7. Applications will be accepted until Jan. 24. On Jan. 29, the council will review applications at a work session, and proceed to interviews if needed. A final replacement will be added to the council in mid-February. When then-Councilor Little was elected to mayor on Nov. 6 last year, his council seat—and the final two years of the term—were to become vacated when he took the oath of office for mayor. That happened on Jan. 7. The council is following the same mold it used last time a …
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Lakeville's City Council agreed at a recent work session to hire a consultant—with a fee of $59,000—to develop a "vision plan."
Lakeville's City Council has agreed to hire a "community visioning consultant" whose job will be to help city leaders drill into where, exactly, residents want the city to go. First discussed and agreed upon at a Nov. 19 work session, the consultant—and their $59,000 fee—are part of the $23.7 million 2013 budget that was presented at the Truth in Taxation hearing at last Monday's meeting. The budget will likely be formally approved on Dec. 17. According to a Star Tribune report, roughly two-thirds of the cost for the consultant will be covered by a federal grant. The report quoted mayor-elect Matt Little, who said the process needs to provide "specific, usable information that provides clear direction for the council." The consultant will …
Friday, December 7, 2012
When mayor-elect Matt Little assumes his new role in January, his council seat will have to be filled.
Lakeville's City Council will soon have a hole to be filled. When City Councilor Matt Little takes the oath of office as the city's newest mayor in January, his current term on Lakeville's City Council will be vacated and in need of filling. (Read more about Matt Little.) According to a Sun Thisweek story, the council gnawed over the topic on Nov. 26 during a special session. Typically, the council will solicit applications from candidates interested in the vacant position, then review the applications and invite some candidates for interviews. The last time the council did this was in 2009 when then Parks, Recreation and Natural Resources Committee member Kevin Miller was tapped to fill Wendy Wulff's seat on the council until Dec. 31, …
John Nerdahl
9:38 am on Friday, April 26, 2013
Eric, please add my thanks to the mayor's for your professionalism and thoroughness--it's not often a reporter is depicted as an asset to the community, which you've been. We'll miss you as your contribution has been equal to your height. I knew you were destined for greater things. Please tell us more about your new opportunity. John Nerdahl more ›