Richfield Patch has been steadily growing the past two months and we plan to keep pushing forward.

As a Richfield native, this community and those who make it up are extremely important to me. With that said, my team of writers and I are working on a variety of stories right now to keep the community as informed and inspired as possible.

Schools

Currently the Minnesota State Legislature is considering freezing pay increases for public school teachers and employees from July 2011 through June 2013. With news of potential freezes, the Richfield School Board is worried about interrupting the district's progress. The schools have attracted more than 130 new students over the past couple years and the board wants to keep the momentum going, Superintendent Bob Slotterback told Patch.

In addition, and while the school district has great long-standing relationships with its teachers and workers, the freeze would help the school out with its budgets for two years.

Government

Richfield like many cities is considering passing a domestic partnership ordinance, which would allow long-term couples to register themselves and receive certain priviledges such as hospital visiting rights.

The city council will most likely vote on this issue at its next meeting on Jan. 25.

Community Development

The City of Richfield is working on many projects to revitalize the city. Two main redevelopments are the Lakes at Lyndale and CVS Pharmacy.

The Lakes at Lyndale project would revamp the northern stretch of Lyndale where the vacant Lyndale Garden Center and Kmart properties sit and around the Richfield Lake area.

The city is working with the owners of Woodlake Plaza, a strip mall across from Lyndale Garden Center, to build a new 90-unit apartment complex to quick the Lakes at Lyndale off. The project is waiting for funding verdict from the Minnesota Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Originally, property owners and the city were hoping to hear about funding this month, but now it could be as late as June, according to John Stark, director of Community Development for the City of Richfield.

The CVS Pharmacy project on 66th Street West and Penn Avenue recently got approval from the city council to rezone part of the property it will be built on. Velmeir Properties, the contractor building the CVS, is currently working on construction plans and expects to begin building this summer.

Community

Richfield Patch's Emily Schmidt is working on a follow-up story to her interview with long-time resident Camillo DeSantis, getting perspectives from some of Richfield's longest residents.

There are so many stories to tell in this little-big town and I welcome you to send me your ideas to Caitlin.Burgess@patch.com. Stay tuned for the above mentioned stories and more from Richfield Patch.