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🍨 Your community roundup: accessible government, juried art, DIY maple, major ballot

🍨 Your community roundup: accessible government, juried art, DIY maple, major ballot

Dustin Hart
January 31, 2026

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Good day, Wayzata. This is Wayzata Scoop: the local newsletter that's the light at the end of the dark-at-4pm tunnel.

In today’s Scoop:

City Council Listening Sessions: Four Chances for Informal Plymouth Conversations 👂
Enter by March 6: Plymouth's Primavera Offers $600 in Art Prizes 🎨
Sign Up for 2026 Maple Tree Tapping Program (Space Limited) 🍁
Plymouth City Council Seeks Half-Cent Sales Tax for $135M Recreation Projects 💰

Let’s keep warm.

— Dustin Hart

📢 TALK OF THE TOWN

Plymouth City Council's Listening Sessions: Where Feedback Doesn't Require a Three-Hour Meeting

When city council members actually schedule informal sessions specifically to hear from residents without requiring you to sit through agenda items and procedural votes, that's worth acknowledging.

Plymouth City Council is holding a series of listening sessions over the coming months – open house-style gatherings where residents can share feedback, ask questions, and engage with council members in settings that don't feel like formal government proceedings. Four sessions scheduled, each hosted by At Large Council Member Clark Gregor plus one ward council member, rotating through different Plymouth locations.

The lineup: Sunday, Feb. 22 from 1-2 p.m. at Parkers Lake Park Building (15205 County Road 6) with Gregor and Ward 2 Council Member Julie Peterson. Saturday, March 14 from 11 a.m. to noon at Bass Lake Playfield Building (5450 Northwest Blvd.) with Gregor and Ward 4 Council Member Julie Pointner. Saturday, April 18 from 11 a.m. to noon at Meadows Playfield Building (5805 Peony Lane N.) with Gregor and Ward 1 Council Member Kimberly Nelson. Saturday, May 9 from 11 a.m. to noon at West Medicine Lake Park Shelter 2 (1920 W. Medicine Lake Drive) with Gregor and At Large Council Member Joel Spoonheim.

One hour each, scattered across different Plymouth neighborhoods, designed for actual conversation rather than public comment time limits. Whether you've got specific concerns or just general curiosity about city direction, these sessions offer direct access without the formal meeting structure.

Four opportunities, four locations, open house format. Local government accessibility that doesn't require sitting through Roberts Rules of Order.

Plymouth's Primavera Art Show: Where $250 Awaits the Best of Show

When a free community art exhibition offers $600 in total prize money and actually displays winning work for two months, that's more than just a participation trophy situation.

The City of Plymouth and Plymouth Arts Council are accepting entries for the 2026 Primavera juried show through Friday, March 6. The exhibition runs April 24-26 at Plymouth Community Center (14800 34th Ave. N), with winning art remaining on display in the Community Center gallery through June 5. It's free for the public to attend, making it one of those rare opportunities to view quality art without admission fees or gallery intimidation.

Artists can enter up to two pieces of original work competing for Best of Show ($250), Primavera Award ($100), Myrna Kaner Student Award ($100), Award of Excellence adult ($100), and Award of Excellence student ($50). Entry costs $30 for the first piece, $10 for the second (non-refundable, payable to Plymouth Arts Council). Jury decisions get announced by March 20.

Applications at plymouthmn.gov/primavera are only accepted for adult category artists (18+ and post-high school). Students must coordinate submissions through their school's art teacher. Submit photographs of artwork marked with artist name, media, and framed dimension with the application – submissions won't be returned, so don't send your only copy.

Two months of gallery display for winners. Six hundred dollars in prizes. One chance to get your work in front of Plymouth's community through an actual juried show.

Applications due March 6. Exhibition April 24-26. Gallery display through June 5. Apply at plymouthmn.gov/primavera.

Wayzata's Maple Tree Tapping: Where You Learn to Make Syrup the Hard Way

If you've ever wondered where maple syrup actually comes from beyond "the grocery store," here's your chance to find out through direct participation and physical labor.

Wayzata's 2026 Maple Tree Tapping Program is accepting sign-ups for participants who want to learn the full process – tapping trees, collecting sap, and attending a community boil that turns your sap into actual syrup. You'll receive equipment and instruction on how to tap a maple tree properly, then collect your own sap before joining the group to boil it down into the sweet stuff that makes pancakes worth eating.

Space is limited, so this isn't a "sign up whenever" situation. Registration happens at the link provided, and you'll be notified when tapping time arrives – likely sometime when temperatures cooperate with sap flow, which means late winter/early spring depending on weather patterns.

It's the kind of hands-on educational program that transforms "maple syrup" from a commodity into an actual process you participated in. Plus you get to tell people you tapped your own maple trees, which sounds significantly more impressive than it probably is in practice but still counts as a legitimate skill.

One program, limited spots, real equipment, community boil, homemade syrup. Winter survival through sugar production.

Sign up here. Space limited. Notification sent when tapping begins.

Plymouth's $135M Rec Facilities Plan: Let Visitors Help Pay Through Sales Tax

When a city needs $135 million for recreational facilities and decides to split the bill between residents and visitors through sales tax instead of dumping it all on property owners, that's strategic financing worth understanding.

Plymouth City Council approved a resolution Jan. 13 seeking legislative authorization for a half-cent local sales tax to fund three major projects: $55 million Plymouth Ice Center expansion and renovation, $55 million new year-round Fieldhouse to replace the seasonal dome at Plymouth Community Center, and $25 million regional sports complex at the former Four Seasons Mall site. If the Minnesota Legislature approves this spring, the projects and sales tax go to Plymouth voters in November for final say.

The logic: these facilities face decades of heavy use, need repairs/replacements/upgrades for safety, accessibility, and efficiency, plus there's growing demand for year-round recreation space and outdoor athletic fields. City Manager Dave Callister calls it a response to community feedback requesting more sports and recreational spaces that keep pace with demand.

Here's the financing angle: University of Minnesota study shows about 55% of the sales tax would be paid by people living outside Plymouth. So visitors using the amenities help fund them, rather than placing the entire cost on property owners through levy increases. If approved by Legislature and voters, the tax stays in place up to 20 years or until projects and financing costs are covered.

A project website launches in coming months with detailed information about investments, timelines, costs, and public feedback opportunities. November ballot decides if this happens.

City Council approved Jan. 13. Legislature vote this spring. Plymouth voter decision November 2026 if approved.

📖 QOTW (QUOTE OF THE WEEK)

"You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." - C.S. Lewis

🌪️ WEATHER WATCH

Thursday climbs to 37° like a brief glimpse of hope before Friday yanks it back down to 30° – classic Minnesota fake-out.

Sun 01 28°/12° AM Snow Showers 🌨️ | 💧52%

Mon 02 19°/-1° Partly Cloudy 🌥️ | 💧6%

Tue 03 17°/7° Partly Cloudy 🌥️ | 💧7%

Wed 04 26°/20° Mostly Cloudy 🌥️ | 💧15%

Thu 05 37°/27° Cloudy ☁️ | 💧24%

Fri 06 30°/13° Partly Cloudy 🌥️ | 💧6%

Sat 07 24°/17° Partly Cloudy 🌥️ | 💧11%

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