A 19-year-old man was killed in a crash on Minnesota 55 in Inver Grove Heights on Thursday night.

The crash occurred shortly after 8 p.m. in the westbound lane near the Minnesota 3 junction, killing Carter S. Weber of Eagan, according to a report from the Minnesota State Patrol.

Weber was driving a 2006 Audi A4 when the car went off the roadway and into the center median, crashing into a guardrail and bridge pillar.

No other cars were involved, and Weber died at the scene, the State Patrol said.

Inver Grove Heights police hope to track down who drove their car or truck on two soccer fields at Rich Valley Park on Saturday night, causing thousands of dollars in damage to the grass.

Eric Carlson, parks and recreation director, said the vandalism is the worst damage to park grass the city has seen.

“It happens once or twice a year — someone who acts like a 2-year-old and does something like this,” he said. “It just takes away from our ability to make improvements when we have to fix people’s disrespect. It’s a waste of taxpayers’ money.”

Repairs to the grass will have to be made next spring, affecting soccer and lacrosse teams “because of this senseless disrespect for public property,” he said.

Carlson urged anyone with information to contact Inver Grove Heights police at 651-450-2525.

Larry Stanger, the Inver Grove Heights police chief who has been on paid leave since April while being investigated for alleged wrongdoing, will resign as part of a separation agreement reached between him and the city.

The city council is scheduled to consider approving the agreement at its regularly scheduled meeting Monday. City Administrator Joe Lynch and City Attorney Tim Kuntz are recommending approval.

Stanger was accused of tipping off the owner of a Prescott, Wis., auto-detailing business that the business would be searched for stolen construction vehicles.

In August, Scott County Attorney Ron Hocevar declined to charge Stanger with public corruption or violating data privacy laws, saying at the time that his office was not able to “connect the dots between what was alleged and the police chief to prove in court beyond a reasonable doubt.”

But whether Stanger violated any Inver Grove Heights city policies, procedures or codes was the focus of an investigation by Quinlivan & Hughes, a law firm the city hired in September.

The investigation concluded at the end of November, but city officials have yet to release a report, citing a state law that keeps it private until discipline is imposed or a resignation. The city council discussed the report in a closed meeting Nov. 28.

Neither Stanger nor his attorney returned calls Friday for comment.

WHAT HAPPENED

Late last year, the Inver Grove Heights and Prescott police departments started working together on the theft case after surveillance and GPS tracking of the stolen vehicles led Inver Grove Heights investigators to the Wisconsin town.

The business owner initially said he learned about the raid beforehand from Stanger, but when pressed by Scott County investigators he said the tip came through his son, who had talked to Stanger’s son, who had spoken with his father.

Stanger’s son and the business owner’s son are friends.

Scott County’s investigation included interviews with three Inver Grove Heights detectives, all of whom said the police chief regularly asked them for updates in the theft case — and that it was unusual for him to do so.

In a June interview with a Scott County detective, Stanger denied sharing any information about the theft case with his son. According to an investigation report, the police chief said he did ask his son “very pointed” questions about the business owner, such as, “Have you ever been at his shop in Prescott? … Have you ever bought any parts, auto parts?”

Stanger added, “Again, he’s a smart kid. He’s gonna know that, why would my dad ask me this stuff? But he can draw his own conclusions. He’s an adult.”

LEAVE WILL CONTINUE

Stanger, who lives in Cottage Grove, has been with the Inver Grove Heights police department since 1989 and has been its chief since January 2012. His salary this year is $128,000.

In his absence, Lt. Sean Folmar has been acting police chief.

Under terms of the agreement, Stanger’s resignation will become effective April 30. He will remain on paid leave through Jan. 2 and then use his accrued paid vacation time and personal leave through April 30. The city will also pay for his health care coverage through April 30.

The agreement includes a 15-day period during which Stanger or the city can rescind it.

Stanger is the second Dakota County police chief to resign this month. Mendota Heights Police Chief Mike Aschenbrener resigned on Tuesday, after the controversial firing of a longtime sergeant and the release of a consultant’s report that concluded the department has a culture of “divisiveness.”

An Inver Grove Heights couple has set up a Christmas lights display and a Santa Claus meet-and-greet for their second annual fundraiser.

Ed and Dana Abrahamson co-own the nonprofit Soldiers 6, which raises money to buy service dogs for military veterans and retired police officers.

Ed Abrahamson, a veteran and retired police sergeant, has dealt with post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, fibromyalgia and chronic pain since returning from deployment to Iraq in 1992. After a California-based nonprofit called Rebuilding Warriors gave Abrahamson a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois in May of 2015, the couple decided to “pay it forward.”

The Abrahamsons kicked off their fundraiser Dec. 9.

Last year’s event brought in $6,500, which the two hope to surpass this year.

Soldiers 6 — the “6” is Army-speak for “back,” which Ed Abrahamson said “we have” — has fitted two people with service pups and will award a third in January. The dogs cost $6,000 to $10,000.

Visitors can bring monetary donations for Soldiers 6 or food for a local food pantry, and can have their photograph taken with Santa from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Dec. 15 through Dec. 18 and Dec. 21 through Dec. 23.

The Abrahamsons’ home is at 8238 Copland Way in Inver Grove Heights.

Nancy Brown got a slap in the face when she stepped outside her Inver Grove Heights home Thursday morning — and it wasn’t from the bitter cold.

“I was hurt, very hurt,” Nancy Brown said.

Sometime between 10 p.m. Wednesday, when the lights went off, and 7 a.m. Thursday, she said, a vandal or vandals knocked over and broke a Santa train, an angel and several other statues. Electrical cords were yanked from outlets, causing the front side of the home to go dark.

On Thursday evening, she had stern words for those responsible: “What you’re doing is you’re hurting everyone who comes to see this.”

Brown estimated the display at 8450 Ann Marie Trail attracts more than 500 visitors on weekdays and up to 3,000 a day on weekends.

“It’s a regular traffic jam around here,” she said.

The Browns have more than 400 statues in their yard — and countless lights.

“We don’t count the lights,” said Brown, 62. “We count the smiles.”

The Browns spend every weekend and most nights from Labor Day until Thanksgiving setting everything up.

The couple spent nearly $8,000 this year alone on all the lumber, paint, electrical cords, new items for the displays and inflatables — and that doesn’t include the electric bill.

Every night, no matter the weather, the Browns also become Santa and Mrs. Claus to greet visitors and pass out candy canes.

“We try to make everyone feel welcome,” she said.

On Thursday, Brown shared the vandalism news in a post on the Facebook page “Santa’s House in Inver Grove Heights,” which has more than 4,000 likes. The bad news attracted plenty of angry comments, and lots of gratitude to the Browns.

“This is so heartbreaking! My kids love stopping,” one Facebook user commented. “People are so rude!”

The vandalism also spurred someone to set up a GoFundMe page to raise money for the Browns. By Thursday evening, more than $500 of the $8,000 goal had been raised.

“That shocked me!” Brown said. “It’s great. It sure helps. … Wow! See, people do love what we do.”

Two men carjacked a woman’s vehicle at gunpoint Saturday night, leading to a police chase and standoff at a South St. Paul house that lasted nearly six hours, police said.

A woman was forced out of her vehicle about 6:25 p.m. in the 400 block of Camber Avenue. Within 10 minutes, a South St. Paul police officer spotted the vehicle near Babcock Trail and 50th Street East in Inver Grove Heights and gave chase, according to South St. Paul Police Chief William Messerich.

The pursuit took the officer through Inver Grove Heights, St. Paul, Mendota Heights, West St. Paul and South St. Paul, where the fleeing driver crashed into a South St. Paul squad car about 7 p.m.

The suspects ran off near the 500 block of First Avenue South. Police set up a perimeter to search for them and soon learned they had entered a home in the 400 block of Camber Avenue, near where the carjacking had occurred.

When the suspects refused to leave the house and surrender, a Dakota County SWAT team was called in. One man came out and surrendered, but the second man refused. The SWAT team entered the house and took the man into custody shortly before midnight, police said.

There were no injuries reported in the incident.

Masked men with guns broke into a home in Inver Grove Heights on Thursday night, according to police.

Inver Grove Heights police said the incident on the 8400 block of Bryce Court involved two males with masks and firearms who entered a home at about 9:30 p.m., restrained the residents and demanded money.

The suspects have not been identified. Police ask anyone with any information about the incident to contact the Inver Grove Heights Police Department at 651-450-2525.

A woman jumped to her death Sunday afternoon from a bridge over Interstate 494 in Inver Grove Heights.

The woman, who was 29 and from Inver Grove, jumped from the Babcock Trail bridge onto the eastbound lanes of Interstate 494 at about 4 p.m., according to Inver Grove Heights police.

The city’s police and fire departments went to the scene but were unsuccessful in saving the woman’s life. She was pronounced dead at the scene. The incident temporarily closed eastbound lanes of Interstate 494.

Police are asking anyone with information regarding the incident to contact the Inver Grove Heights Police Department at 651-450-2525.

Neighbors Inc. has picked someone with a decade of leading a faith-based organization to be its next executive director.

Charles D. Thompson will join Neighbors in March, working with current executive director John Kemp until Kemp retires April 15 after 14 years with the northern Dakota County social services agency.

Thompson has been executive director of St. Vincent de Paul in Tacoma, Wash., since 2013, where he “led the organization through a financial crisis” and adopted a plan that increased financial and in-kind donations and improved community awareness, Neighbors said Tuesday in a prepared statement. Thompson previously was executive director of St. Vincent de Paul in South Bend, Ind.

Based in South St. Paul, Neighbors was established by local churches in 1972. The agency runs a food shelf, Clothes Closet secondhand store and transportation programs for residents of Inver Grove Heights, South St. Paul, West St. Paul, Mendota Heights, Mendota, Sunfish Lake and Lilydale.

Dump it today, drive with it tomorrow.

That’s the promise of the nation’s first waste-to-ethanol plant, proposed for Inver Grove Heights.

The $200 million biofuels plant would process Dakota County’s garbage into ethanol, to be blended with gasoline for use in cars and trucks.

If the plant works as described, it would make the county more environmentally friendly, said county Environmental Resources Director Georg Fischer.

The plant would be built by the Canadian company Enerkem Inc. and SKB Environmental Inc., a St. Paul-based waste and recycling company. The companies made a preliminary presentation to the Inver Grove Heights City Council in February but have not yet made any formal proposals to the city.

“There seems to be a potential for a lot of benefits, but there are also a lot of unknowns,” said city administrator Joe Lynch.

If the council and state and federal agencies approve, the plant could be operating by 2020, according to David McDonnell, Enerkem’s vice president for business development for North America.

The companies would build the plant near existing landfills, south of 117th Street and about 1 mile west of U.S. 52.

The plant would employ 100 workers and would pay Inver Grove Heights about $1.5 million annually in fees and taxes. “Economically, there is an attraction here,” Lynch said.

Enerkem operates two waste-to-ethanol plants in Canada. One is a small demonstration facility at the company’s headquarters in Quebec, and the other is a commercial plant for the 800,000-population city of Edmonton.

The Minnesota plant would be the first in the U.S. and would be twice of the size of the Edmonton plant.

Dakota County’s Fischer described how the plant could revolutionize garbage processing for the county, which produces 400,000 tons of garbage a year — half recycled and half going into landfills.

At the biofuels plant, workers would pick through the garbage destined for landfills a second time for recyclables, boosting the county’s recycling rate from 50 percent to about 70 percent, according to Fischer. The remaining material would be shredded into 2-inch pieces, heated and processed into ethanol.

The garbage-based ethanol, just like corn-based ethanol, would be blended into automotive fuels. The plant would produce about 20 million gallons of ethanol annually.

COULD USE WASTEWATER

There’s another environmental advantage to the plant — the re-use of water.

McDonnell said Enerkem likes the site because the plant could use water from the Empire Wastewater Treatment Facility in Empire Township. The Empire plant processes sewage from the metro area and pipes the wastewater to the Mississippi River.

If the ethanol plant used that water, it wouldn’t have to pump water up from aquifers.

The savings? About 1.6 million gallons annually.

“If they were able to do that, it would become more and more of a green project,” Fischer said.

He said that by slashing the volume of garbage going into landfills, the plant would help the county meet environmental goals set by the state.

State law lists environmental practices from worst to best: landfilling, landfilling that captures flammable gases, composting or burning garbage, composting yard waste and food waste, recycling, and reduction and re-use.

The biofuels plant, said Fischer, would move Dakota County up two levels. “In that respect, it would be a great thing,” he said.

The waste-to-ethanol process is so new that many environmental groups and the Environmental Protection Agency don’t list it under methods they have evaluated.

The EPA’s website, like Minnesota’s waste-management hierarchy, places “energy recovery” in the mid-range of treatment options. Presumably, “energy recovery” would include turning garbage into ethanol.

“The process, if it works as they say, could potentially be a good alternative for us,” said city administrator Lynch.

The 21-year-old son of former Inver Grove Heights Police Chief Larry Stanger was killed Sunday night in a western Wisconsin car crash, authorities said.

Jacob Stanger was driving his 2008 Infiniti G37 east on U.S. 10 near County Road O in the town of Trimbelle when it collided head-on with a westbound 2012 Ford F-350 at about 10:15 p.m., said Andrew Thoms, a patrol sergeant with the Pierce County sheriff’s department.

Stanger, of Cottage Grove, was pronounced dead at the scene. Trimbelle is between Prescott and Ellsworth.

The driver of the F-350, Charles Hill, 38, of Ellsworth was taken to Regions Hospital in St. Paul with undetermined injuries. A hospital spokeswoman said Monday afternoon that he was in fair condition.

“It’s tough for anybody,” Thoms said.

The Wisconsin State Patrol is investigating the crash, Thoms said. There was no indication at the scene that alcohol played a part, he said.

“All of that, including toxicology tests, will be part of the investigation,” Thoms said.

On Feb. 9, Jacob Stanger posted a picture of his Infiniti G37 on his Facebook page. He wrote that he had just bought the car in Illinois.

Larry Stanger resigned as police chief of Inver Grove Heights in December after investigators determined that he inadvertently tipped off the owner of a Prescott, Wis., auto-detailing business that the building would be searched for stolen construction vehicles.

An investigation found that the business owner learned of the search beforehand because Stanger had asked his son Jacob questions about the building. Jacob Stanger and the business owner’s son were friends.

An Inver Grove Heights man is the latest Twin Cities chiropractor to be indicted in connection with an alleged health-care fraud scheme related to “no-fault” auto insurance.

Timothy Wayne Guthman, 43, has been charged in federal court with conspiracy to commit health care fraud and conspiracy to commit mail fraud, the Minnesota Commerce Department said Wednesday. Guthman owns Inver Family Chiropractic in Inver Grove Heights and Team Chiropractic in Minneapolis.

Guthman then billed auto insurance companies for treatments or for services that were not provided, according to the March 22 indictment, which is the result of a continuing investigation by the Minnesota Commerce Fraud Bureau and the FBI.

In December, federal prosecutors charged 21 people, including six chiropractors, with conspiring to commit health care fraud by allegedly billing insurance companies more than $20 million in a similar scheme.

Guthman had an initial appearance in U.S. District Court in Minneapolis on March 24 and pleaded not guilty. A trial is set for March 31.

Dogs finally might have a place of their own in Inver Grove Heights.

Supporters of a pooch park say it is long overdue and would go a long way toward building up Heritage Village Park, a former contaminated railroad yard site that is pegged for passive recreation but has been slow to be developed.

The city acquired the park land from the Rock Island Railroad after the property went into tax forfeiture about 20 years ago. In 2008, the process of top-filling the polluted land with clean soil began.

Other than the Mississippi River Regional Trail, which has wound through the site since 2010, the park is barren land without amenities to draw in users. Long-term plans for the 60-acre park — which is along the river, east of Concord Boulevard and north of 65th Street — call for a multipurpose building with picnic shelters, playground areas and small amphitheater.

“It would be a start,” Eric Carlson, the city’s parks director, said of a dog park. “There are people there now using the trail, but this would bring more people down there. And that’s been our goal for the whole area from day one.”

At a city council work session last week, Carlson was given the go-ahead to seek bids from consultants to design a 10-acre dog park. Council members also asked for more accurate costs for all parts of the proposal, which was created by Mark Freer, a member of the city’s parks and recreation advisory commission.

The city has discussed the idea of a dog park several times since 2009. Two years ago, the city held public open houses, formed a committee to explore sites and surveyed residents to gauge their interest. But discussions eventually fizzled out.

This latest go-round, however, is different, Freer said.

“I believe this is the right time,” he said at a recent parks commission meeting.

With past proposals, he said, city officials could not nail down a location or funding.

But he noted how the city has state grant funds that could pay for half the cost, which is pegged at $300,000 and includes a parking lot for users of the entire Heritage Village Park.

Also, he noted, Heritage Village Park is not adjacent to homes, which was seen as a drawback by some residents in previous years.

“And we have a community (showing support),” he added.

He noted how a group of residents are organizing online on Facebook and are showing up at city meetings to voice support for the plan.

Lori Mo told the parks commission that she and other residents are already buying permits from nearby cities to use their dog parks.

“We’ve talked about it a long time,” she said. “We’ve got a viable site now, some financing benefits. I think it’s time to move ahead.”

Added resident Charlotte Svobodny: “This is the most concrete thing I’ve seen for a dog park in Inver Grove Heights in my 40 years here. We’ve got those funds. Let’s take it and run with it. Let’s go.”

A public open house Tuesday in Rosemount will focus on two draft plans about the future of greenway corridors and trail connections in central Dakota County.

The five-mile Rich Valley Greenway will connect Lebanon Hills Regional Park in Eagan with the Mississippi River Trail in Inver Grove Heights. A master plan will identify a trail alignment, trailhead locations and amenities, and recommend habitat and water-quality improvements.

A draft of a Central Greenway Connectivity study also will be available for public review and comment. The study looks at bike connections between several greenways.

The deadline for public comment on both projects is July 1.

The open house will be from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the Rosemount Community Center, 13885 S. Robert Trail.

Dakota County has finalized a deal to acquire a permanent 108-acre conservation easement in Inver Grove Heights.

About $2.9 million of the cost was paid with money from the state’s Outdoor Heritage Fund, which receives one-third of the “Legacy” sales taxes approved by voters in 2008.

Located south of Minnesota 55 and east of Minnesota 3, the area known as the Marcott Valley consists of deep, interconnected lakes and wetlands surrounded by forests and grasslands.

The agreement allows county residents to use the property through programs and classes offered by Darvan Acres Outdoor Skills and Environmental Center, a nonprofit established by property owner Vance Grannis Jr.

In addition, the county can acquire 125 acres of the protected Grannis family property at no cost in seven years.

Since 2008, Dakota County has worked with three Grannis families to protect an adjacent 17 acres and with the Lindberg family to protect 103 acres of contiguous land.

Monday is Memorial Day, but it will look more like Christmas in one Inver Grove Heights neighborhood.

Rodney and Nancy Brown, who have presented an elaborate lights display every year since 1995, have decided they are done and are offering all their decorations in a garage and yard sale that runs Monday through June 3.

“People have told me, ‘This has been a family tradition … you can’t quit,’ ” Nancy Brown, 63, said Thursday. “We have to for our health.”

Visiting the Browns’ display at 8450 Ann Marie Trail, known by many as “Santa’s House,” was a tradition for many people, attracting hundreds on weekdays and several thousand a day on weekends.

But last year was a rough one, Brown said. In mid-December, a vandal or vandals damaged statues and yanked electrical cords from outlets. Wind and ice also did a number on the display, knocking down buildings and tearing inflatables.

“We are too old to be dealing with so many issues,” she said.

The sale, to be held from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day, will include about 225 plastic statues, 15 big boxes of lights, buildings and display units, Department 56 pieces, antique Disney items and 26 inflatables.

“We’ve priced everything to sell,” she said.

Extension cords?

“We’ve got probably 300 of them,” she said.

For the past 21 years, the Browns have spent every weekend and most nights from Labor Day until Thanksgiving setting everything up.

And every night, no matter the weather, the Browns became Santa and Mrs. Claus to greet visitors and pass out candy canes.

In March, Nancy shared the decision on a Facebook page “Santa’s House in Inver Grove Heights,” which has more than 4,100 likes. The news attracted lots of gratitude for the Browns.

“You have helped so many people, some in ways you may never understand,” one Facebook user commented. “It’s time now to take care of you.”

After a year off, the Browns hope to continue to be Santa and Mrs. Claus at senior centers, hospitals and house parties.

“’Bittersweet’ is a good word,” Nancy said. “I’ll have more time for baking cookies, but it’s hard, especially when you hear comments from people. We’re going to miss the little kids.”

A boating party had a close call Sunday afternoon when the 34-foot cruiser they were on exploded in fiery flames at a gas dock in Inver Grove Heights.

The explosion around 1:30 p.m. at the River Heights Marina reportedly came from the boat’s engine in the lower mid section of the boat and blew out the windows on the boat. Passengers were able to climb off the boat before the flames spread.

David Stright heard a boom and later saw firefighters working to put out the flames as the boat drifted down river.

“There was a huge plume of smoke below us on the river,” he said.

The owner of the marina, Joe Harms, praised the gas attendant for responding quickly, immediately hitting the emergency shut off button for the pumps and — after seeing the passengers onto the dock safely — setting the boat loose so it would float away from the gas pumps.

“Thank God everybody was okay and nobody got hurt,” Harms said.

A man was arrested Tuesday in Inver Grove Heights after leading police on a chase that snaked more than 20 miles through the Twin Cities, officials say.

When officers located the Jeep about 15 minutes later at Taylor Street and 30th Avenue in Northeast Minneapolis, they attempted to pull the vehicle over but it sped off, Michal said.

Police pursued the Jeep south through Minneapolis and onto Interstate 94, where the chase continued east for several miles before the Jeep exited onto southbound U.S. 52. A state trooper forced the Jeep off the highway at 80th Street in Inver Grove Heights, causing the vehicle to roll before coming to rest, Michal said.

The driver and the woman in the Jeep both suffered minor injuries; the driver was taken into custody, Michal said, adding that the Jeep had been reported stolen in North Dakota.

Investigators are working to determine whether the man had kidnapped the woman.

At least seven people were killed in Minnesota traffic crashes over the weekend.

According to authorities:

• Adam Michael Blesener, 32, of Inver Grove Heights was killed shortly before 3:15 a.m. Saturday when his vehicle struck a truck at County Roads 47 and 88 near Randolph in southern Dakota County.

Blesener ran a Star Tribune distribution center, according to a GoFundMe campaign set up to raise money for a funeral. He was on his way to deliver newspapers when he collided with a semi, the fundraising site stated.

The Dakota County sheriff’s office is investigating.

• Bicyclist Phillip Andrew Ilg, 56, of New Prague died shortly after 7:30 a.m. Saturday when he collided with a sport-utility vehicle on Minnesota 25, west of Belle Plaine, in Sibley County.

The Minnesota State Patrol said that Ilg was westbound on Highway 25 when he collided with a westbound Ford Explorer.

The SUV’s driver, a 16-year-old girl, was not identified by the State Patrol.

• In Aitkin County, a motorist was killed shortly after 11:30 a.m. Saturday when his Ford Explorer left southbound Minnesota 47 and struck a tree.

The victim was identified by the State Patrol as James Joseph Collins, 83, of Aitkin.

• In Wabasha County, a motorist was killed shortly after 1:30 p.m. Sunday when his Chevrolet Suburban left the roadway on County Road 15, hit a field approach, landed on its roof and struck a power pole.

The victim, a 48-year-old man from Dodge Center, hadn’t been identified as of Sunday night.

• A 59-year-old Clear Lake man was killed Friday afternoon when his motorcycle crashed on westbound U.S. 10 in Sherburne County.

The State Patrol identified James Lee Rouleau as the victim of the 1:30 p.m. crash.

• A 17-year-old driver was killed Friday morning when his car went off Minnesota 30 at 7:34 a.m. near Storden in Cottonwood County.

Jonathan Escobar Lopez, of Storden, was identified as the victim by the State Patrol.

Also last weekend, a woman who was learning to drive in a St. Paul high school parking lot on Saturday afternoon lost control of her car and fatally struck her 3-year-old son.

The crash happened about 5:45 p.m. Saturday at Harding Senior High School.

The driver, Wah Has Paw, 39, of St. Paul was “visibly shaken and emotional” when police arrived on the scene, according to a St. Paul police report.

According to the initial investigation, Paw was with several family members practicing her driving in the parking lot when she accidentally pressed the accelerator instead of the brake.

“The car quickly careened out of control, struck her son, Hsa Kpaw Moo Ku, and pinned him against a large clothing collection box,” police spokesman Steve Linders said in a news release.

Frustrated by what they say is unacceptable secrecy surrounding leadership decisions, parents of students at an Inver Grove Heights charter school hope a Thursday meeting will finally provide some answers.

Terri Siguenza, who was recently named interim director and leadership consultant of Discovery Charter School, will host a meeting for parents at 6 p.m. Thursday, according to an email from the school. The purpose of the meeting is to answer questions about the school and its leadership “transition.”

“Parents are upset,” said Tony Ashbacher, whose daughter recently finished kindergarten at the school. “It’s hard when you are trying to fight for your child’s education not to get any answers. Your voice doesn’t feel like it is being heard.”

Siguenza replaces Dan Hurley as leader of the charter school that opened in September 2016. The school’s board of directors voted June 17 not to renew Hurley’s contract in what parents have described as a hastily called Saturday meeting that violated the school’s bylaws regarding personnel decisions.

Hurley’s contract ended June 30 and Siguenza was picked days later to replace him without the board holding a public meeting. Minnesota law requires school governance decisions be made in public and state education leaders asked Discovery officials July 7 to provide details about Siguenza’s hiring.

A July 5 email to parents from Samuel Master, board chair, said he understood parents’ frustrations, but he couldn’t discuss the school’s personnel decisions. The email also announces Siguenza’s appointment and gives details about her work experience, but does not include any information about how the hiring decision was made.

Siguenza already has a connection to Discovery Charter School. She works as the director of English language education for Designs for Learning, a St. Paul-based charter school consultant, which works for Discovery.

Siguenza did not respond to a request for comment.

An April financial report shows Discovery Charter School received about $2 million in state funding this school year and spent about $140,000 on “purchased services” not including transportation.

The school’s contract with Designs for Learning includes the firm providing technology, special education and human resources services. The firm also notes on its website that it won a 2016 award for managing the school’s finances.

The letter from the state also acknowledges other parent concerns over school leadership and transparency. They include the board at times lacking a teacher representative, which is required by law, the failure to remove a board member who didn’t show up for meetings and the board stacking committees to consolidate power over the school.

Ashbacher expects a big crowd at Siguenza’s parent meeting Thursday, but he really wants board members to respond to parents’ concerns and repeated inquiries. He hopes the board will add parent members, improve transparency and hire Hurley back to lead the school.

“We just want a voice in our children’s education. We chose the charter school model because we wanted something different for our kids. Why is the board denying parents the opportunity to be actively involved in their children’s education?” Ashbacher said.