INCREASE YOUR HOME'S VALUE (w/out breaking the bank)

1. Add Light -- inside and out, adding or updating your interior, exterior and landscape lighting or maximizing the bulb wattages will make your home appear much brighter and more inviting.

2. Underfoot Interest -- a nice new natural fiber throw rug or deeply piled area rug will jazz up an otherwise bland room or if you have hardwood floors under the carpet, pull up the carpet and refinish the floors or use a mop and some wood cleaner to dress them up.

3. Spruced Up Landscaping -- a new set of house numbers, a few in-expensive hostas and some new wood mulch go a long way to making your curb appeal pop.

4. Paint and Vinegar -- clean your windows with a vinegar/water solution and paint at least an area or two near the main entry or possibly an accent wall. If your furnace is old and dirty, clean the exterior and consider having it serviced. It will look good and a sticker with a recent inspection/tune-up date will help an otherwise critical buyer.

5. Kitchen Cabinets -- new knobs will make almost any set of kitchen cabinets look 10 years newer.

610 Update: Hemlock reopening needs to be rescheduled


From the MN DOT....
Okay. Remember when we told you earlier this week about the exciting reopening of Hemlock Lane in Maple Grove on Monday? Well, it looks like we'll need to postpone it for a little while due to some unforeseen signing and striping problems. We don't have a new date for the opening just yet, but we'll be sure to update you as soon as we do.

On the bright side, the new Nathan Lane pedestrian bridge is still scheduled to open Monday, Aug. 9. We'll be glad to hit that milestone and will work to do the same for Hemlock Lane as soon as possible.

For more information about scheduled closures in the area and the Hwy 610 project itself, visit http://www.dot.state.mn.us/metro/projects/610/