There were 61 homes sold in Blaine during October 2010. The $150,000 median sales price of a Blaine home sold in October was an -11.8% decrease from last year. The median is the point at which half of all homes sell for more and half sell for less. New listings in Blaine MN were down -8.4 percent in October.

Anoka County as a whole saw just a -3.6% median price decrease, to $154,450. That was on 272 sales that closed in October, down from 490 in October 2009. There were 558 new Anoka real estate listings during the month, a decline of just -1.9% from 2009.

The steep declines for October are in line with year-over-year changes since the tax credit for first-time and move-up homebuyers ended.

Buyers have the edge in negotiating. The percent of original list price received at sale declined -4.2% to 90.9%. For Anoka County as a whole, the decline was -4.3 to an even lower level of 90.1%.

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Dog owners in Blaine can bring their dogs to Happy Acres Park for fun and exercise. A dog park and off-leash area opened there earlier this month with signs, bag dispensers, waste containers, and all.

Both the Blaine Park Board and Blaine City Council agreed to allow dogs within the three hockey rinks at Happy Acres Park. The first hockey rink to the east will be for small dogs, and the second and third hockey rinks will be for medium and large dogs.

New Hope, Crystal and Eden Prairie are successfully using hockey rinks as dog parks at a very minimal cost. The dog park and off-leash area at Happy Acres Park, located at 11900 7th Street in Blaine MN, will stay open through mid-November.

The dog park is available on a 1-year trial basis. It will be monitored, and a follow-up study will be presented to the Park Board and City Council.

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Although Arbor Day is officially recognized in Minnesota on the last Friday in April, the City of Blaine will observe the day at its annual tree sale, which will take place on May 8 from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Blaine’s Public Works facility.

To learn more about the available trees, ordering trees, and Arbor Day History, please visit the City of Blaine website.

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Though the Blaine City Council is contemplating an ordinance to promote the creation of rain gardens to catch runoff, Jim Hafner has already installed one in his own yard, at 12309 Goodhue St. NE, in Blaine. The demonstration rain garden is meant to appeal to and educate neighbors and other interested people.

“Storm water is the No. 1 polluter of our surface waters. I don’t think we can be that cavalier about it. It is either naive or arrogant to think that our water resource is always going to be there for us.”

Rain gardens are depressed garden plots planted with native plants that capture runoff and get the water back into the ground where it is needed. They are becoming popular landscaping alternatives that aesthetically brighten yards and provide much needed assistance to managing stormwater.

Blaine residents who are willing to take street runoff may soon be able to get help to create rain gardens. The council is considering providing aid and materials to residents for rain gardens built in the city’s right of way between residents’ yards and the streets.

What is one of the best parts of having a rain garden? There is less need to water the lawn and garden surrounding it.

“I don’t think people think about capturing water to reduce the amount they have to put on the yard themselves,” Hafner said. “The missing link in creating a rain garden is if you catch the flow, it will look nice and also save money.”

Hafner will teach a water conservation/rain gardening classes on May 8, with a deadline to register on April 30. The cost is $5 to attend. To register, go to www.blaineparks.com, click registration and search for stormwater.

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