Mound Minnesota on Lake Minnetonka Blog.MoundWestonka.com
Writer calls for less bias and more civility
This entry was posted on 12/8/2006 11:14 PM and is filed under uncategorized.
In this weeks Laker, Robin Thorson takes issue with the paper during the period leading up to the recent election, as I see it. (No link found) Perhaps it can be said that a democracy belongs to those that show up. Wake Up Westonka showed up along with Yes! Westonka. A lot of citizens wrote the Laker, and we even saw negative ads run. I would disagree with Thorson's suggestion that there was perhaps, support by the Laker for one side, the anti-community types, as they were called.
Here is what I think are some of the Laker's goals. Wide readership, and wide participation on their "Laker Voices" page. To show a bias towards one side or the other is to risk losing in the neighborhood of half their readers, and I don't think that is their plan.
We might ask Managing Editor Eric Serrano what are his most difficult decisions to make at the paper? I'd guess it would be sorting through the reader's letters during an election.
I do believe there is a positive corellation between civility and the effectiveness of ones arguments. That is something to keep in mind.
Welcome to the Mound Westonka Blog that covers subjects related to
Mound Westonka, located on Western Lake Minnetonka in Minnesota. We'd like to hear your comments about anything local. My name is David Greenslit, and
some of you know me as the CPA who with his partner, runs Tulberg
& Greenslit, CPAs on Commerce Boulevard. I hope you enjoy this
blog.
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Lake Minnetonka Facts
Lake Minnetonka was formed by melting ice blocks in glacial moraines 15,000 years ago. The Lake is 929.4 feet above sea level at its outlet, Grays Bay dam. Its greatest length is 10.9 miles (Halsteds Bay to Grays Bay). 30 feet is its average depth. April 12 - 17 is the range of its average ice-out dates. - from the Hennepin County Library.
Fact of the Day:
Lake Minnetonka Cities
There are 14 cities on Lake Minnetonka. They are: Deephaven, Excelsior, Greenwood, Minnetonka, Minnetonka Beach, Minnetrista, Mound, Orono, Shorewood, Spring Park, Tonka Bay, Victoria, Wayzata, and Woodland.
Mound Minnesota's name
"Mound derived its name from the Indian mounds once found within the present day limits. They were not built by the Dakota Indians but were made by prehistoric Indians...." - Melvin Gimmestad, from the book, Historical Backgrounds of Mound, Minnesota.
Tonka Toys
Mound was known as the "Trucking Capital of the World." Tonka Toys was once located in the present day Balboa building near the intersection of Shoreline and Wilshire.
Lois Lane and Hercules
Lois Lane and Hercules both once lived in Mound. Noel Neill appeared in the TV show "Superman". Kevin Sorbo starred as Hercules in the TV show of the same name in the 1990s.
Saint Bonifacius
This city was named for its Catholic church. Saint Boniface was the Apostle of the Germans. Bonifacius in Latin means, of good fate or fortune.
City of Minnetrista
"The City of Minnetrista is located on the western bays of Lake Minnetonka and the agricultural rich plains and idyllic woodlands of southwestern Hennepin County.....The 32 square miles is home to 5,250 residents who enjoy the rural residential and lakeside settings." - from the City's web page.
Busy Corners
The corner of Lake and Central Avenues used to be the center of Mound. Lake Avenue is now called Bartlett Boulevard and Central changed to Commerce Boulevard. Kirby's Bait Shop is located on Busy Corners.
The Island
Island Park is also known as Phelps Island, and once was called North Shore Park. Phelps is the largest island on Lake Minnetonka, and some say it was originally a peninsula. There was a lot of dredging done in Lake Minnetonka's past. It lies East of Cook's Bay and West of Spring Park Bay. Island Park merged with Mound in 1960. It is still called "The Island".
Early Lake Minnetonka
In 1822 Joe Brown, a drummer boy at Fort Snelling and the Commandant's son Will Snelling discover Lake Minnetonka. The two 14 year old boys canoed up Minnehaha Creek and found its source. It appears that relations with the Dakota Sioux at the time required that the Lake remain off limits. It wasn't until the 1850s that its existence becomes general knowledge. In 1852 Simon Stevens and Calvin Tuttle built a dam and sawmill on Minnehaha Creek some distance East of Lake Minnetonka. The next year a hotel is built nearby. In 1854 the Cook House is built in Mound. The 1850s are the beginning of significant settlement around Lake Minnetonka.
