The Mill Pond officially reopened to the public after an $838,000 restoration project that included draining the recreational lake in Jordan's Lagoon Park.

Jordan Mayor Ron Jabs spoke about a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Wednesday, May 7. Here's some of what he said:

- Lagoon Park was originally dedicated to the city in 1929 by the flour company International Milling.

- The flood of 1960 deposited sediment in the Mill Pond that was many feet deep.

Cosmic Journey

Jordan Middle School students got a chance to explore the final frontier from the safety of the gym last week. The school hosted the Minnesota Planetarium Exloradome portable planetarium. The program – housed in an inflatable dome in which students laid on the floor and gazed at projected video on the ceiling – allowed students to visit almost anywhere they wanted within our solar system. They also had a chance to see most of the known universe when the projected video brought them outside the solar system and outside the Milky Way galaxy.

Jordan High School’s graduation ceremony is fast approaching, and the Jordan Independent is working to make sure that all of this year’s graduates earn some recognition.

The newspaper is organizing its annual senior graduation section and is looking for information and senior pictures from each Jordan graduate, including graduates from schools other than JHS.

Thirty years ago, in an election, Edith Lucas and Tom Meyer won seats on the Jordan School Board. Lucas was an incumbent.

For more information, read the Looking Back column in the May 15 issue of the Jordan Independent. Read it online in the Print Edition section, or subscribe by going to www.jordannews.com/subscribe.

Fifty years ago, Beverly Kipp finished her career at Jordan High School with a 3.78 grade-point average to earn the valedictorian honor.

For more information, read the Looking Back column in the May 15 issue of the Jordan Independent. Read it online in the Print Edition section, or subscribe by going to www.jordannews.com/subscribe.

The Jordan School Board voted tonight to keep paying for a school resource officer, but the school liaison’s position could still be in jeopardy.

The issue came to the board after Superintendent Larry Kauzlarich and the superintendents of the five other member districts in the Minnesota River Valley Special Educational Cooperative decided to make a recommendation to the cooperative’s board to cut their funding for the position. The cooperative, the Jordan district, and the City of Jordan each pay about 1/3 of resource officer Shane Schultz’s $58,000 salary.

Ten years ago, Jordan High School's senior band donned new marching uniforms for its concert.

For more information, read the Looking Back column in the May 8 issue of the Jordan Independent. Read it online in the Print Edition section, or subscribe by going to www.jordannews.com/subscribe.

Seventy years ago, the Jordan High School senior class performed the play "Once There was a Princess."

The cast consists of Alice Gerold, Lambert Hennen, Ruthie Nielsen, Marie Herzog, Valeria Schneiderhan, Lorraine Ptacek, Mary Ryan, Irene Fehlandt, Mary Stoldt, Leo Deutsch, Loren Radke, Joe Berg, Ruth Mickus, Leona Eichers, and Helen Ryan.

Here's what's been going on in and around New Prague lately, according to the New Prague Times:

- A proposal for the final plat and an 8-foot-by-12-foot addition to the Knights of Columbus Hall in New Prague passed with city council approval, despite opposition from city staff. 

- The New Prague school district's proposed budget shows just shy of $30 million in expenditures.

Here's what's been going on in and around Belle Plaine lately, according to the Belle Plaine Herald:

- Scott County Commissioner Jon Ulrich of Savage and the rest of the
county board unanimously directed staff to look into ways of opening
Cedar Lake Farms regional park in 2009. The land, which is owned by the
county, is located along Cedar Lake in Helena Township.