The Metropolitan Council will sponsor a daylong conference for local planners on Tuesday, Dec. 13, in Brooklyn Center. The conference will include a dozen sessions from which to choose. Urban designer and writer Julie Campoli will deliver the keynote address. Learn more details and register for the conference.

The Council has set a minimum percentage of Minnesota Parks and Trails Legacy funding to be spent on “connecting people and the outdoors” in the Regional Parks System. The goal is to reverse a decline in participation in outdoor recreation by attracting new users and retaining existing users of the parks and trails. Connecting people and the outdoors is one of the top priorities for the first five years of the statewide, 25-year Parks and Trails Legacy Plan. More about the Council's action.

Once famous for its potato farms, Brooklyn Park is now the metro area's fourth largest city with more than 80,000 residents. The northwest suburb is the home of Target's corporate North Campus, and by 2021 will be served by five light rail stations on the METRO Blue Line. The city has reached out to residents to help plan for the next stage of growth. This is the first in a series of articles that highlight issues and opportunities facing individual communities in the metropolitan area as they prepare to update long-range comprehensive plans to the year 2040.

A major expansion of access to jobs and opportunities for Minnesotans is one step closer to reality. Environmental reviews for the Blue Line Extension LRT Project are complete. The Metropolitan Council has approved the project’s final scope and budget, and has applied to the federal government to proceed to the next phase of the project. The 13-mile, $1.536 billion project will extend light rail from downtown Minneapolis to Golden Valley, Robbinsdale, Crystal and Brooklyn Park. Service is scheduled to begin in 2021. Learn about Blue Line Extension progress and next steps.

The Southwest LRT Project is ready to hire more professional and technical staff now that local funding is secured and the environmental review process is complete. Interested applicants can come to a career fair, 3-6 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 18 at the Southwest LRT Project Office, Sixth Floor, Park Place West Building, 6465 Wayzata Blvd., St. Louis Park. 

• Event notice 
• Details about engineering, professional, and specialist staff positions available

The Transportation Accessibility Advisory Committee plays a very important role in advising the Metropolitan Council on how the Council's plans, policies and projects affect people with disabilities. In recent years, the committee has shifted from reacting to plans and projects to shaping them, according to one longtime member. Read about the committee's successful efforts to advance equity for people with disabilities. 

The people who work in Metro Transit's Service Centers don't just sell transit passes and help people find bus schedules. According to representative Lalita Williams, they offer their knowledge about a variety of non-transit resources to visitors and also check up on regulars if they haven't shown up in awhile. Lalita brings a friendly, personal touch to her interactions. She's also a foster parent. Watch the latest Council Close-Ups video.