Local news briefs October 2026

By Jake Spitzack | Staff Writer | October 2026

Cities of West St. Paul and Mendota Heights set preliminary budgets; ISD 197 proposes levy

City of South St. Paul to plant 500 trees this fall

Foundation commits $15M to downtown St. Paul revitalization

West St. Paul
Wentworth Library Fall Book Sale
The Friends of the Wentworth Library Fall Book Sale will take place October 16-20 at Wentworth Library, 199 E. Wentworth Ave., West St. Paul, featuring a wide selection of books for all ages, audio books, DVDs and CD’s. Friends members may attend the preview sale on Friday, Oct. 16, from 1-5 pm. You can become a Friends member by joining at the preview sale. Membership is $10 and good through 2027. The public sale is 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 17; 1-5 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 18; and 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Monday, Oct. 19 and Tuesday, Oct. 20. A $3 bag sale takes place 10 a.m.-7 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 20. Donations for the sale are accepted during library hours Oct. 11-15.

Open house for new city park
The City of West St. Paul is gearing up to complete a schematic plan by the end of October for the new 2.5-acre park to be built at 150 Thompson Ave. E. An open house detailing concept plans will be held 5:30-7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 29, at city hall, 1616 Humboldt Ave., and residents can give feedback on the proposed design by taking an online survey through October 2 – the link was not available as of press time.

Plans call for a bandshell, lawn space, picnic shelter, playground, pond overlook, a water feature like a splash pad, restroom building, connections to the River to River Greenway trail and more. Previous estimates put the project cost at about $7 million. The city was awarded $1 million from the state legislature for the project and has the remainder earmarked in its park improvement fund. Work to prepare the park site is being done in conjunction with Greco Properties’ approximately $145 million redevelopment of the adjacent 12-acre site formerly home to the YMCA. That project, which broke ground in August, includes creating two apartment buildings with a total of 457 market-rate units, 19 townhomes and new retail space including a restaurant on the former AutoZone site. The park is expected to open in 2028.

Makers Market
Mark your calendar for The Makers Market, held 9 a.m.-3 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 14 at Two Rivers High School, 1897 Delaware Ave., Mendota Heights. The market features unique gift items by local artists and small businesses.

Tree planting
Great River Greening will plant 250 trees on public property across the city of West St. Paul by the end of October. The work is being done to replace ash trees lost to emerald ash borer. The project is funded by an approximately $100,000 grant from the Metropolitan Council and each tree will have a one-year warranty.

South St. Paul
Disc Golf 101
An introduction to disc golf, one of the fastest-growing recreational sports, is offered 4-5 p.m., Oct. 15 and 22 at Kaposia Park, 1028 Wilde Ave. It is designed for beginners of all ages who want to learn the basics, improve their skills and enjoy time outdoors. Discs are provided during class courtesy of Gray Duck Disc Golf. Free.

SSP Arts Council annual meeting
The South St. Paul Arts Council will host its annual meeting 5-7 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 25 in the large meeting room of Kaposia Library. The Council will review its accomplishments and solicit ideas for programming in 2027. Light refreshments will be provided. Free and open to the public.

St. Paul
Candidate forum
The St. Paul Chapter of the League of Women Voters is hosting a Ramsey County Commissioner District 5 candidate forum at 7 p.m., Oct. 12 at Keg House Commons, 928 West 7th St. Seeking election are St. Paul City Council president Rebecca Noecker and State Rep. Maria Perez-Vega (65B). For more information, visit lwvsp.org/blog/2026-candidate-forums.

Rand acquires two more downtown buildings
Real estate investor Jamie Rand has acquired 375 Jackson St. and 135 5th St.– two connected, multi-tenant office buildings totaling 270,000 square feet – through his Downtown Revival Trust. The acquisition makes him the largest private owner of commercial real estate in downtown St. Paul. Both buildings were most recently owned by Madison Equities.

Rand, a Tampa, Florida-based real estate investor and senior managing director of Prime Asset Fund, created the Downtown Revival Trust to preserve and revitalize significant buildings in downtown St. Paul, including the Great Northern Building, First National Bank Building, and now 375 Jackson St. and 135 5th St. Since acquiring the properties, he has focused on making repairs and improvements, including the recent relighting of the iconic ‘1st’ sign atop the First National Bank Building. For more information on the Downtown Trust, visit downtownrevivaltrust.com.

Diverse Futures discussion series
Northern Commons, a community gathering space in Lowertown, will host Scott Keever as part of its Diverse Futures: Visions of Care in a Complex World speaker series. His presentation “Folk Music as Catalyst to a Diverse Future” takes place 7-8:30 p.m., Wednesday, Oct. 21 at Northern Commons, 308 E. Prince St., Suite 246, St. Paul. On November 18, Patrick Stein will present “Life Before JumpNet.” For more information, visit northerncommons.space.

Candidate forum
The St. Paul Chapter of the League of Women Voters is hosting a Ramsey County Commissioner District 5 candidate forum at 7 p.m., Oct. 12 at Keg House Commons, 928 West 7th St. Seeking election are St. Paul City Council president Rebecca Noecker and State Rep. Maria Perez-Vega (65B). For more information, visit lwvsp.org/blog/2026-candidate-forums.

Ward 2 updates
St. Paul City Council President Rebecca Noecker hosts the Downtown Action Series to keep residents informed about issues facing downtown St. Paul. All are held 4:30-6 p.m. on Thursdays at Union Depot, 214 4th St. E. Upcoming dates are October 15 and December 10. RSVP at https://forms.office.com/g/BnTA0F52Bq.

Budget meeting
The City of St. Paul is hosting a meeting at 5:30 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 6, at Palace Community Center, 781 Palace Ave., to give residents the chance to share feedback with city councilmembers and city staff about budget priorities for 2027. The City Council will vote to set the maximum property tax levy on September 23 – the proposed increase is 6.8%, or $58 on a median-priced home. That amount can be reduced before the budget is adopted on December 2.

Skyway walkers
The Skyway Walking Group meets at 9 a.m. on Tuesdays at US Bank skyway level, 101 5th St. E. The group travels a mile and a half through the skyways at a casual pace.

Street team
The Downtown Street Team welcomes feedback from downtown residents in their ongoing work to improve safety and aesthetics in the city. Team members are on the streets daily from 7 a.m. to 11 p.m. and are available to escort people to their car or downtown destination, give directions and provide other assistance. They also take reports of troubling behavior, garbage spills and graffiti, and address those issues themselves or contact the proper authorities. The team, which is easy to spot on the street in their bright yellow clothing, is a program of the St. Paul Downtown Alliance’s Downtown Improvement District. For more information, call 651-236-0284 or visit spdid.org.