3 Things for September

- Sample Ballot - More Hummingbird Info! - Lane Splitting

Three Things

- Nemawashi - Opossums - Roundabouts

The Mighty Oak Meets Road Construction

There are sixteen slabs of wood drying in Dan Malone's garage on Strawberry Lane. They're all that's left of a 250 to 300-year-old oak that stood on his property until the city of Shorewood decided it needed to come down.

Policing by the numbers: The SLMPD budget

The South Lake Minnetonka Police Department Joint Powers Agreement (JPA) dictates the management and funding of the department. The JPA follows good governance principles like shared decision-making, but falls short on transparency and accountability.

Flock Safety: A National Citizen Revolt

When SCA first covered Shorewood's Flock ALPR cameras in fall 2025, few other examples of citizen resistance existed. That has changed. Citizen pressure, not policy handed down from above, is now driving the shift away from Flock nationwide.

Monitoring Driver Behavior on Hwy 7

SCA first noted the curiosity generated by an orange trailer-like apparatus that appeared in Feb. 2025 along Hwy 7 near Excelsior. The structure remains, originally as part of a $450,000 grant awarded to the then newly formed Highway 7 Safety Coalition.

Dispute: One Mayor, Two Committees

A year-long dispute between the member cities of the South Lake Minnetonka Police Department Coordinating Committee came to a head at the June 6 meeting. The issue: Is Greenwood Mayor Tom Fletcher violating the SLMPD Joint Powers Agreement by serving on both of the SLMPD governing committees?

Three New Things For This Week

• Painted Lady Butterflies • Fireflies • Hugelkultur

Three Things For You

- Emerald Ash Borer and the LRT - Asian Jumping Worms - Eastern Moles

Mass Adoption of AI is Happening Is Shorewood Ready?

Mass adoption of AI is happening. Generative AI will reach its peak in the US by 2028. Cities like Chanhassen, Plymouth, Brooklyn Park are already embracing AI and the League of MN Cities has published its 2nd set of AI guidelines as of April 26th, 2026.

SCA: The New Era in Local Journalism

In Shorewood, the retreat of legacy media like the Sun Sailor and other print publications directly enabled the creation of a "news desert"—a dangerous reality that the Shorewood Citizen Advocates (SCA) has stepped in to combat.

Youth Program Calls Shorewood Community Center Home

While the Shorewood Community & Event Center (SCEC) has struggled to change its identity from “just for seniors”, a youth program has quietly and successfully used the center as its home base for over a decade. Who knew?

Shorewood Citizen Advocates

Education